The Princess of Wales was with her family on Friday evening for the traditional Christmas carol concert at Westminster Abbey.
The whole family reunited. Kate Midlleton appeared radiant on Friday evening at the traditional Christmas carol concert at Westminster Abbey, surrounded by her husband Prince William and their three children George, Charlotte and Louis.
After a painful year marked by Princess Kate’s cancer, this is only the second time this year that the couple have attended an official event with their children. The last time was in June for Trooping the color, at the Buckingham balcony.
The princess dedicated this ceremony to all those “who have gone through difficult times”.
Kate was dressed in a long red coat by British designer Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen which covered a long plaid skirt. Her husband William, heir to the throne, arrived accompanied by their three children, George, 11, Charlotte, 9 and Louis, 6.
“The most difficult moments of our lives”
Some 1,600 people, chosen for their support of others, were invited to this celebration in London, which will be broadcast on the ITV1 television channel on Christmas Eve.
“This year’s concert provides a moment to reflect on the importance of love and empathy, and how much we need each other, especially in the most difficult times of our lives,” Kensington Palace said.
Treated for cancer, how Kate returns to the forefront
Since the announcement of the end of her chemotherapy in September, the Princess of Wales has very gradually resumed her official commitments, participating in military commemorations in November and in the state visit of the Emir of Qatar to the United Kingdom this week.
Members of the royal family, celebrities but also volunteers and people “who have gone through difficult times this year” were on the guest list. The families of the three girls killed in July in a knife attack in Southport (northwest England) were present according to the BBC.
Just like former British cyclist Chris Hoy, who revealed he had incurable cancer in October.
Among the other guests, veterans of the Second World War, and Olivia Bowditch, 18, volunteer for a charitable organization which sends letters to isolated people suffering from cancer.
The princess arrived before her husband to welcome and thank her guests, including singers Paloma Faith, Olivia Dean and Gregory Porter.
“Last year at this time, I didn’t know I would live the year I just had,” Kate responded to Paloma Faith who expressed her sympathy.
Prince William read a passage from the Bible, saying: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness have seen the light shining upon them.”
The actress Michelle Dockery, heroine of the series Donwton Abbeywho lost his partner in 2015 to a rare form of cancer, read a text of his composition entitled “Reflections on empathy and kindness”.
Small written messages had been hung on a “kindness tree”. Prince Louis, aged 6, wrote: “Thank you grandpa and grandma for playing with me.”
“You were by my side”
In a letter to her guests, Kate emphasizes “how much we need each other despite our differences.” These guests also received a booklet illustrated by British artist Charlie Mackesy, with the following message: “How did I help? You were by my side. Which means everything to me.”
The event, Royal Carols: Together At Christmaswill be broadcast on British television on Christmas Eve, on channels ITV1 and ITVX.
If King Charles and Queen Camilla were absent, the Middleton family was there, as well as William’s cousins, Zara Tindall and Princess Beatrice, pregnant with her second child.
The year 2024 has been particularly tough for the British royal family.
Extremely popular, Kate revealed in March that she had cancer, without specifying its nature, after major abdominal surgery. She remained absent from public life for many months.
King Charles III was also diagnosed with cancer in February, and is still undergoing treatment. His wife Camilla caught a form of pneumonia after returning from an official trip to Australia and Samoa at the end of October, and recently canceled several commitments.
