It's been 15 years since Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales got engaged. Here's what you might not remember from the historic day

Though today they may be the ever-formidable Prince and Princess of Wales, at one time they were just Princess of Wales and Kate.

November 16 marks the day then-Miss Catherine Middleton came into the limelight, being introduced to the world after she and Prince William confirmed their engagement with a photoshoot and a tell-all interview 15 years ago.

Conducted by journalist Tom Bradby, the fresh-faced 28-year-olds spilled all the adorable details of the proposal, the lead-up to it, and the aftermath.

Watch the video above.

Let's look back at the interview that changed the royal family forever.

How they met

The couple spoke about how their relationship bloomed while they both attended St Andrews University, with William saying, "We were friends for over a year first and it just sort of blossomed from then on.

"We just spent more time with each other, had a good giggle, had lots of fun and realised we shared the same interests and had a really good time."

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Kate revealed, "I actually think I went bright red when I met you and sort of scuttled off, feeling very shy about meeting you".

The then-28-year-old, who is six months older than William, also dashed rumours she had a poster of him on her bedroom wall as a teenager.

The question led to a funny exchange between the pair, with William interrupting by saying, "There wasn't just one, there was about 20."

Kate replied with, "He wishes. No, I had the Levi's guy on my wall, not a picture of William, sorry."

The pair had also moved into the same flat together with a number of other friends, at first platonically and later becoming a couple.

Their other roommates were at first "a bit surprised that it was what happened," said William.

"Then they realised it was really nice and it was good fun and we got on really well. They were good friends of ours as well, and so we had a good giggle with them."

They pair would often cook for each other, with William admitting he tried to impress Kate by "trying to cook these amazing fancy dinners".

"All that would happen was I'd burn something, something would over spill, something will catch on fire and she'd be sitting in the background just trying to help and basically take control of the whole situation," he said.

The proposal

During the interview, William was asked about how he popped the question, revealing it happened during a holiday to Kenya.

"We had been talking about marriage for a while, so it wasn't a massively big surprise," William said, "I took her up somewhere nice in Kenya and I proposed."

Kate added, "It was very romantic… There's a true romantic in there."

William spoke about his nerves – not from asking for Kate's hand in marriage, but about the safekeeping of his mother's ring.

"I had been carrying it around with me in my rucksack for about three weeks before that and I literally would not let it go," he shared.

"Everywhere I went I was keeping hold of it because I knew this thing, if it disappeared I would be in a lot of trouble."

The ring

Kate's engagement ring holds a lot of meaning, being the one and the same as the late Princess Diana's.

"It's my mother's engagement ring so I thought it was quite nice because, obviously, she's not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement of it all. This was my way of keeping her close to it all," William shared.

"It's my mother's engagement ring, so of course it's very special to me, and Kate's now very special to me, so it was only right to put the two together."

Kate added, "It's beautiful. It's very, very special".

The ring was created by London jewellers Garrard, which was appointed Crown Jeweller in 1843.

Diana chose the ring out of a catalogue – a break from royal tradition, since they were usually custom-made – and it was presented to her by then-Prince Charles in 1981.

The ring features a 12-carat Ceylon sapphire surrounded by a halo of 14 solitaire diamonds, all set in 18-carat white gold.

Diana had her engagement ring slightly altered several years after receiving it. The ring initially featured eight white gold prongs, two in each corner, surrounding the sapphire.

By 1983, an additional six prongs were added, most likely to ensure the structural integrity of the sapphire.

Kate had the ring resized to fit her fingers, with two platinum studs added to the inside to ensure a perfect fit.

Meeting the family

Getting the blessings of in-laws is no easy feat, even for the heir of the most famous royal family in the world.

William admitted he had thought about asking Kate's father, Michael Middleton, for her hand in marriage before setting up the proposal, but rethought his strategy.

"I was torn between asking Kate's dad first, and then the realisation that he might actually say no [came] upon me. So I thought if I asked Kate first, then he can't really say no

"So I did it that way round and I managed to speak to Mike sort of soon after it happened, really."

The enormity of marrying into the royal family was evident for everyone watching it unfold, but Kate took it in her stride.

She first met the late Queen Elizabeth at the 2008 wedding of Princess Anne's son Peter Phillips and his now ex-wife Autumn.

"It was in amongst a lot of other guests and she was very friendly and ... it was fine," recalled Kate, before William added, "She wanted to meet Kate for a while, so it was very nice of her to come over and say hello and [they] had a little chat and got on really well."

Kate admitted she "was quite nervous" about meeting William's father, then Prince Charles, adding, "But he's very welcoming, and very friendly. So it couldn't have gone easier, really, for me."

The truth about their split

Royal watchers were blindsided when the campus couple split soon after graduating from university, but the couple brushed it off as part of growing up.

"We were both very young, it was at university, and we were sort of both finding ourselves and being different characters," William said.

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"It was very much trying to find our own way, when we were growing up ... it was just sort of a bit of space ... It soon worked out for the better."

Kate took the split harder than William, but soon realised it was for the better.

"At the time I wasn't very happy about it, but actually it made me a stronger person," she reflected, "You find out things about yourself that maybe you hadn't realised.

"I think you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you're younger, and I really valued that time for me as well."

Why they took so long

The couple had dated for nine years before deciding to tie the knot – the press even labelled Catherine by the nickname "Waitey Katey" – with William getting ribbed by Bradby during the interview for how long he took to pop the question.

But it turns out the pair had good reason for delaying their nuptials.

William explained they both wanted to establish their own careers before moving on to the next step – he in the military and she with her family's party planning business.

"As most people say, with couples it's all about timing and I had my military career and I really wanted to concentrate on my flying, and I couldn't have done this if I was still doing my training, so I've got that out of the way," he said.

"Kate's in a good place in terms of work and where she wants to be and stuff, and we just both decided it was a really good time."

Kate added that there were advantages to dating for a long time.

"When you go out with someone for quite a long time, you do get to know each other very well," she said.

"You go through the good times, you go through the bad times, both personally but also within a relationship as well, and I think you can come out of that stronger and learn things about yourself."

Another reason for their long courtship was also to give Kate and her family time to take a thorough look behind the curtain.

"I really want to make sure they have the best sort of guidance and chance to see what life is like in the family," William explained at the time.

"That's kind of almost why I have been waiting this long, as I wanted to give her a chance to see and to back out if she needed to, before it all got too much.

"I'm trying to learn from lessons done in the past, and I just wanted to give her the best chance to settle in and see what happens on the other side.

"I'm also glad that I've had the time to sort of grow and understand myself more as well," added Kate.

Living up to Diana's legacy

The last Princess of Wales made good on her promise to be the Queen of people's hearts, which was a huge legacy to follow for Kate.

When asked about living up to the late Princess Diana's legacy, she shared, "I would love to have met her, and she's obviously an inspirational woman to look up to, to this day."

William jumped in to add, "There's no pressure, though, because ... it's about carving your own future.

"No one's trying to fill my mother's shoes, and what she did is fantastic. It's about making your own future and your own destiny, and Kate will do a very good job of that."

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