Kate Middleton’s subtle nod to Queen Elizabeth II in new photo revealed
Kensington Palace surprised royal fans with a new portrait of the Princess of Wales to mark her 43rd birthday on Thursday.
The black and white image shows Kate dressed smart-casually in a blazer, white shirt and jeans, with the future Queen tucking her hands into her pockets.
Kate’s pose is reminiscent of a rather iconic portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II, shared exclusively by HELLO! back in 2019, showing the monarch standing with her hands placed in the pockets of her white tweed dress.
The image sparked an incredible reaction from royal watchers at the time, with many seeing Elizabeth II, then aged 93, in a different light.
The late Queen’s personal dresser Angela Kelly revealed in her book, The Other Side of the Coin: the Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe, that it was Her Majesty’s wish to be photographed posing in a way she hadn’t been pictured before.
Angela recalls that the late Queen expressed her wishes to the photographer Barry Jeffrey at the time of the shoot, saying: “No Barry, this is how we are going to do it. Just keep the camera rolling.”
The late monarch’s right-hand woman wrote: “Her Majesty took her position in front of the lens and started striking a series of poses, slipping her hands in and out of her pockets and placing them on to her hips, mimicking the stance of a professional model. I stood in disbelief, the Queen was a natural.”
It isn’t the first time that Kate has struck such a down-to-earth pose – her 40th birthday portraits taken by Italian fashion photographer Paolo Roversi in 2022, showed the Princess with her hands tucked into the pockets of an exquisite red one-shoulder Alexander McQueen gown.
In another unprecedented move, the Prince of Wales shared a declaration of love for his wife to accompany the new birthday portrait, taken by photographer Matt Porteous in Windsor last summer.
Prince William wrote: “To the most incredible wife and mother. The strength you’ve shown over the last year has been remarkable. George, Charlotte, Louis and I are so proud of you. Happy Birthday, Catherine. We love you. W.”
The past year saw the Princess undergo major abdominal surgery during a two-week hospital stay before she was diagnosed with cancer – just weeks after her father-in-law, the King, announced he was also being treated for the disease.
Kate is making a gradual return to her royal duties after completing chemotherapy in September.