Prince William Kate Middleton NBC Special Airing Wednesday, Nov. 16

NBC is cashing in on the engagement of Britain’s Prince William with a 60-minute Dateline special set for broadcast on Wednesday. The network plans to honor the soon-to-be newlyweds with Will & Kate: A Royal Love Story, a special look at how the couple met, what drew them to each other. and what their modern-day marriage will mean for the British monarchy, NBC said in a news release Tuesday. The special will include interviews with longtime friends of the couple and exclusive video of the future princess.

Prince William said in a British television interview on ITV this afternoon that he “just decided it was the right time” to pop the question to Kate Middleton while “on holiday” in Kenya.

“We’d been talking about marriage for a while so it wasn’t a massive surprise. I had been planning it for a while. It really felt right in Africa. I had done some planning to show my romantic side,” he explained. “I was carrying the ring around for three weeks in a rucksack before that. And I literally would not let it go, wherever I went.”

The bride-to-be, who has been dating William for nearly nine years, chimed in: “It was a total shock and very exciting.”

Prince William says his fiancee is under no pressure to follow in his mother’s footsteps as a humanitarian and “People’s Princess” and will “make her own destiny.”

William and Kate will marry in London next spring or summer.