As one of the most senior members of the Royal Family, the Princess of Wales typically completes over 100 engagements in a normal year. However, 2024 has been anything but typical for The Firm, and Kate’s recent appearances suggest she is gradually easing back into her royal responsibilities following her cancer treatment.
Over the weekend, the 42-year-old royal was spotted arriving at Crathie Kirk church near Balmoral with Prince William. The couple also enjoyed a child-free getaway at the Royal Family’s estate in Scotland, leaving Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis in Berkshire.
This brief outing came just days after Kate hosted her first work meeting in over nine months, signaling the beginning of her thoughtful return to public life.
Last Tuesday, the royal held a meeting at Windsor Castle with those involved in her ‘Early Years’ project, which delves into the crucial role the first few years of a person’s life plays in the adults they become.
The Princess officially launched the Centre for Early Childhood in 2021 – but has been researching the subject for the past 10 years and has vowed to highlight importance of the issues for the rest of her working life.
Kate was joined by members of her household team as well as representatives from her Centre for Early Childhood at Kensington Palace.
It was formally recorded in the Court Circular, the official record of royal engagements, which read: ‘The Princess of Wales, Joint Patron, The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales, this afternoon held an Early Years Meeting at Windsor.’
It was the first meeting noted in the Court Circular since the Princess held a round table of her Royal Foundation on December 6 last year.
Earlier this month, the future Queen bravely revealed she has completed chemotherapy and is now ‘focused on staying cancer-free’ as she released a touching new video of William and their three children.
In the family video, the Princess told viewers that her cancer experience has taught her to appreciate the ‘simple yet important things in life […] of simply loving and being loved’.
The royal then went on to briefly outline her plan to return to royal duties – acknowledging that she does not want to rush back into things.
She continued: ‘Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long and I must continue to take each day as it comes.
‘I am however looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months when I can.
Before this, Kate made a fleeting appearance in an Instagram video to congratulate Team GB on their Olympics effort, which was posted on their official page.
In the short clip, Kate said: ‘From all of us watching at home congratulations to Team GB.’
The Prince of Wales, wearing an official blue Team GB top, then briefly added: ‘Well done to Team GB you’ve been an inspiration to us all.’
Just weeks after King Charles announced that he had been diagnosed with cancer, his daughter-in-law revealed in an emotional message in March that she was also receiving treatment for the disease.
Since then, the mother-of-three has only been seen in public a handful of times – including Trooping the Colour and the Wimbledon’s men’s singles final.
Before appearing at Trooping the Colour in June, the royal released a statement saying that she hoped to attend the occasional engagement over the summer but urged the public to bear with her as, like many cancer patients, she has ‘good and bad days’.
After spending much of the year coming to terms with the diagnosis and receiving ongoing chemotherapy, Kate relaxed as she smiled and waved to the delighted crowds – making a triumphant comeback to public life in a carriage procession for the Trooping the Colour ceremony.
Ahead of the men’s singles finals at Wimbledon in July, officials remained hopeful that the Princess of Wales would be well enough to present the trophies. Fortunately, their optimism came to fruition as Kate, in her role as patron of the All England Club, awarded Carlos Alcaraz the champion’s trophy after an exhilarating final.
Following the trophy ceremony, Kate shared a warm moment with Alcaraz in a room inside the tournament’s main stadium. “You played so well,” she complimented him. “Enjoy the win.”
Earlier, she made her way from the stands to the court to present the trophies, taking the time to shake hands with some of the ball kids who assisted during the tournament.
While future public engagements have yet to be confirmed, the Princess reportedly hopes to attend Remembrance Sunday at the Cenotaph. However, she will not accompany Prince William to his Earthshot Prize awards in Cape Town in November.
