‘Great to Be Back’: Kate Middleton Makes Showstopper Wimbledon Appearance

Princess Catherine returns to Wimbledon

Catherine, Princess of Wales, received a standing ovation of the kind usually reserved for winners of the tournament when she arrived at Wimbledon Sunday. She was accompanied by her daughter Princess Charlotte and her sister Pippa.

A message posted on her and Prince William’s X account as she watched the men’s final between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic read: “Great to be back at @Wimbledon! There’s nothing quite like The Championships.”

Kate’s appearance was only her second public appearance since she revealed in March she had been diagnosed with cancer. At that time, in an unprecedented video address, Catherine said that she was having “good days and bad days” but added, “I hope to join a few public engagements over the summer,” fueling hopes she would appear today.

Her dramatic return to the Royal Box on Centre Court Sunday represents the fulfillment of that hope. Kate smiled and waved to the appreciative crowd, who cheered her as she took her seat. Also in the royal box: stars including Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, and Benedict Cumberbatch.

Kensington Palace announced Kate’s appearance yesterday; it is only her second public appearance since she revealed in March she had been diagnosed with cancer. At that time, in an unprecedented video address, Catherine said that she was having “good days and bad days” but added, “I hope to join a few public engagements over the summer.”

Her day will conclude, it is planned, with the Princess presenting the most prestigious trophy in grass tennis to the winner as she has every year since 2016 (although she did not make it to the women’s final yesterday).

Kate’s appearance at Wimbledon will be taken as an extremely encouraging sign that her cancer treatment is progressing well. As The Daily Beast reported Saturday, a friend of the couple commented, on hearing of the development: “It is fantastic news and a great omen. It is exactly what everyone has been praying for.”

A friend of Kate and William’s told The Daily Beast last week: “It is no secret that she would dearly love to be there, but when you are having chemo, as she herself said, there are good days and bad days. A lot depends on the timing of the treatments. She made it to Trooping the Color, so if she can make Wimbledon, she will.”

Kate’s husband Prince William will be in Germany tonight for the England-Spain Euro championships soccer final, perhaps accompanied by son Prince George.

King Charles keeps his counsel

King Charles III has yet to make any comment on the attempted assassination attempt on Donald Trump. He may decide to keep it that way. The rest of the family will take his lead and follow suit.

His perspective would be fascinating, however because on January 26, 1994, while on an official tour of Sydney, the then-Prince Charles was shot at with a starter pistol by David Kang. Kang’s motive for the mock assassination attempt was later revealed to be a protest against the treatment of Cambodian boat people.

Charles displayed remarkable composure; as soon as his security detail had subdued Kang, he adjusted his suit, looked around at the crowd, and with a slight smile, quipped, “Now, where was I?”

Kang pleaded guilty to threatening unlawful violence and was sentenced to 500 hours of community service but, incredibly, did not serve a prison sentence. He later became a barrister in Sydney.

Harry’s little bit of genius

Royal and military sources criticized Prince Harry as being an attention seeker for accepting an ESPY award this week, and the situation was not helped when he was called a “divisive” choice by Mary Tillman, the mother of Pat Tillman, the multi-million dollar football player who enrolled after 9/11 and was tragically killed, and in whose honor the award was set up.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for W+P

Harry faced down this criticism by using his acceptance speech to heap praise on Mary, saying: “Her advocacy for Pat’s legacy is deeply personal and one that I respect…The bond between a mother and son is eternal and transcends even the greatest losses.”

Rock on!

Prince George became a fan of the rock band Queen—after they performed for the late Queen Elizabeth at the big Platinum Jubilee concert in her honor (the so-called Platinum Party at the Palace) in 2022.

However, George got muddled over who sang (Adam Lambert, who replaced Freddie Mercury) and who played guitar (the redoubtable Brian May).

POOL

Lambert told the Sun: “It was such an honor. I got to meet Princess Kate, which was fabulous. She was absolutely lovely and down to earth and charming. She was talking about her son recalling the performance with the Queen at the Palace for the Platinum Jubilee two years before. She was, like, he said, ‘Oh is Adam going to play his guitar?’.

“She said, ‘I think he was confused who was playing guitar and who was who but he remembered who you were.’ I was like, ‘Oh, that is cute.’ You could tell she really wanted to take a second to connect to say thanks.”

Kate, the Sun said, was likely referring to George who was 8 in 2022.

Meghan’s 6-figure ‘Suits’ payday

Meghan Markle may have made around $200,000 (£155,000) from the sale of her TV show Suits to Netflix—and maybe even more from the sale of the show to broadcasters around the world, the Mail on Sunday reports. “The series broke records last year when it dropped on Netflix and the US platform Peacock, becoming the most-streamed show of 2023 and topping the charts for 12 weeks running,” the Mail reports.

USA Network

Interest in the show has increased ever since Meghan married Prince Harry—she starred in the show from 2011 to 2017, quitting her role when she got together with Prince Harry.

This week in royal history

July 17 is both Queen Camilla’s birthday—she turns 77 on Wednesday—as well as being the fourth wedding anniversary of Princess Beatrice and Eduardo Mapelli Mozzi.

Unanswered questions

Who will win in the big Wimbledon and European Cup finals today? And how will Kate and William cheer along?