Princess Kate’s video: How down to earth are the royals really?

Last Monday, Princess Kate returned from her sick leave with a video message. The princess announced in the spring that she had cancer and only attended very few appointments this year. But now things are apparently looking up: her chemotherapy is over and her recovery seems to be progressing.

In the video that the 42-year-old published, she gives private insights into her family life. She is beaming, romping through the woods in the county of Norfolk with her children, her husband Prince William and the family dog. Near their country estate Anmer Hall. The family relaxes and plays cards, picnics in the countryside and explores nature. Wonderfully normal considering that she and William will sit on the throne at some point in the future.

The video is heartwarming, but it also raises the question: How down-to-earth is the family really? Are all the down-to-earth images more PR than reality?

Princess Kate and Prince William like to eat fish and chips

When Prince William and Kate feel unobserved, or in the best case scenario, are, they can be seen doing completely normal activities. In 2021, in a small fishing village in Scotland, they sat on a bench and ate fish and chips for £10 from the Anstruther Fish Bar, a shop they often visited as students in St. Andrews. Afterwards, they strolled through the village, chatted casually with locals and had an ice cream, as Robert Jobson writes in his new book “Catherine, the Princess of Wales: A Biography of the Future Queen”.

Prince William once said that they usually take their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis to Lambrook School themselves. When they can, the parents also try to attend school parties or sporting events as normal. Even if there is an argument between the siblings, they play mediator, sit down with them individually on the couch and talk about the situation. As Princess Kate’s recovery video shows, they like to play cards and games together, and sometimes they have a movie night.

They do not live in the palace with servants

They like to cook pizza and pasta together and Kate also bakes from time to time, especially with the children. But sometimes they just order their dinner from a delivery service. The family from Wales, whose main residence is Adelaide Cottage on the grounds of Windsor Castle, sometimes even go to the local supermarket themselves to buy groceries.

Princess Kate’s favorite food is not caviar and oysters, but a plain roast chicken. Of course, the couple have staff, but none of them live in the house with them, not even the nanny. In addition, the building has “only” four bedrooms and is not a sprawling castle.

Life at the Wales home seems to be loud and joyful. During his appearance on the Apple Fitness+ podcast in 2021, William described a chaotic scene straight from real life. Princess Charlotte “was running around the kitchen in a dress and ballet things… and Louis was following and trying to imitate her,” he said. “It’s a happy moment where the kids are just having fun dancing, fooling around and singing.”

Biographer Robert Jobson also reports that the children are brought up in a down-to-earth manner. They have rules and have to do things around the house, for which they collect a reward: “They make their beds every morning and help with the washing up after every meal, and gold stars are given out for that.”

Even during her chemotherapy for cancer, Princess Kate and her husband were seen strolling through a farmers market in relaxed casual clothing. To this day, the couple is said to have a sense of humor in common. It is said that they also like to tease each other or slip in a joke.

Down-to-earthness was also important in Prince William’s upbringing

But it is not only the commoner Kate who is said to have been taught these values; William, as a prince, was also raised in a fairly down-to-earth manner, at least by his mother. Author Christopher Andersen of “William and Kate: A Royal Love Story” says: “Diana wanted her sons to have a somewhat normal childhood, so she took them to McDonald’s and KFC (her favorite fast food restaurant), to Disney World, to water parks and go-kart tracks.

But she also took them to homeless shelters and children’s cancer wards so they could see real-world problems first-hand. One of the most important things Diana did was make sure her children were polite to other people and never abused their status. When they went to the movies or to get ice cream, her sons stood in line like everyone else.”

Sources:,

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