Sweet gesture
Kate greets family of young photographer who died of cancer months after pair met – as she dazzles Garden Party crowd
The Prince and Princess recently celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary
KATE and William gave a warm hug to old friends as they wowed crowds at Buckingham Palace.
The Princess of Wales, 43, embraced the mum of cancer hero Liz Hatton and offered to help the family's fundraising efforts in memory of the "inspirational" photographer.
10
10
10
10
It comes as the couple have been joined by a selection of handpicked friends as they wowed crowds at Buckingham Palace Garden Party.
Liz died aged 17-years-old from rare abdominal sarcoma just weeks after she was warmly hugged by Kate on a "bucket list" trip to photograph an investiture at Buckingham Palace.
Kate, in matching butter yellow dress and hat, and William spent time speaking to Liz’s mum Vicky Robanya and step-dad Aaron Robayna Thomson, along with her nine-year-old brother Mateo.
Vicky told Kate: "You changed her life for the better."
Read More on the Royals
Liz's family have recently created a charity called Capture to support those with Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumour, in her honour.
Kate, whose cancer is in remission, was handed jelly cat toys in the shape of lemon pie and pickled onion - which Liz used to give them to people that made her happy.
William said, “My children will love these. They are children’s currency.”
Kate said: “It matches my dress, how did you know? We talked about it. When I see the fish and chips Jellycat, I think of her."
Most read in Royals
Speaking about Liz who died last November, the princess said: "She really made the most of everything. I loved her creativity all the way through.
"If you need any help fundraising, maybe I can help. Please stay in touch, really."
William and Kate bump into veteran TV star on ferry while celebrating 14th wedding anniversary in Scotland
Vicky told Kate: "You changed her life for the better, you changed ours too because our memories are all positive.”
Afterwards Liz’s parents said: “We had such a lovely day. She would have loved to have shared it. Mateo has lots of pictures to share at school.”
The family have recently created a charity called Capture to support those with Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumour, in Liz's honour.
The bash, held on behalf of the King, saw the Wales's with invited guests from patronages, military affiliations and passion projects.
Others who had the golden royal ticket included Holocaust survivor Steven Frank, who was photographed by Kate to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust in 2020.
Unsung heroes from William's Homewards project to end rough sleeping, Action for Children which Kate has been patron of for nine years, were also guests.
Staff from Ty Hafan, a hospice for children with severe conditions which means they are not expected to survive into adulthood visited by Kate in January, also joined the summer party.
And tenants from across the Duchy of Cornwall estate also got the chance to run shoulders with Kate and Wills.
The future King and Queen also extended invites to Zara Tindall and Princess Eugenie.
The Sun has previously revealed Eugenie has been given the cold shoulder by Harry and Meghan after being photographed having a fun lunch with Sussex nemesis Piers Morgan last year.
Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester also attended.
Also present at the garden party was Tony Hudgell, the double amputee from Kent who missed the King’s garden party earlier this month due to traffic delays. William joked that he had chosen a better year because it was raining when he was due to come.
This time, Tony made it on time and was warmly welcomed by Prince William at a private gathering.
Brave Liz Hatton stole the nation's hearts when she was hugged by Kate at Windsor Castle last October when the brave photographer was allowed into an investiture as part of her 'bucket list'.
The Princess of Wales had heard Liz's story and despite resting due to her own cancer struggle, wanted to surprise her face-to-care
Kate, whose cancer is now in remission, and Prince of Wales, 42, both said afterwards that brave Liz had "inspired" them both.
In a post following the hug they wrote: "A pleasure to meet with Liz at Windsor today.
"A talented young photographer whose creativity and strength has inspired us both. Thank you for sharing your photos and story with us."
The teen hero, from Harrogate, died just weeks later from rare abdominal sarcoma, aged just 17-years-old.
Paying tribute after her death William and Kate wrote: "We are so sorry to hear that Liz Hatton has sadly passed away.
"It was an honour to have met such a brave and humble young woman.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Liz’s parents Vicky and Aaron and her brother Mateo at this unimaginably difficult time."
Her parents were also invited to Kate's Christmas carol concert at Westminster Abbey in December.
Vicky and Aaron have since channeled their grief into creating Capture, a charity dedicated to supporting those with Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumour, the rare cancer that claimed Liz’s life.
The charity has funded its first research project and plans to launch its website by the end of May.
They are also fundraising through events like a 24-hour swim and a marathon challenge for 100 teams.
A photo calendar featuring Liz’s work will be released on what would have been her 18th birthday.
10
10
10
The garden parties are a longstanding royal tradition bringing together thousands of guests from across the UK.
Another garden party will take place at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh on July 1.
These gatherings form part of the royal calendar of public engagements, allowing the monarch to meet people from various walks of life who have made positive contributions to their communities.
It comes after Kate and William were notably absent from a Buckingham Palace garden party earlier this month.
King Charles and Queen Camilla hosted the first of several planned garden parties at Buckingham Palace on May 7.
The royal couple welcomed guests to the palace grounds as part of the traditional summer events calendar.
Charles, donning a grey suit and light blue waistcoat, beamed as he appeared alongside other Royal Family members.
Kate and William's 'philanthropy prize'
KATE and William have bagged a top influential prize from a magazine which once hailed Harry and Meghan in the top 100 most influential people.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have today been named by Time Magazine in their Top 100 Philanthropy Awards.
They hailed Catherine and William as philanthropic innovators for 'modernising royal philanthropy'.
It comes after Harry and Meghan named in 2021 in Time 100 most influential people.
In recent years Kate has launched her Shaping Us scheme and Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood, aimed at getting employers prioritising caring for the young.
It has tied up with major companies such as Deloitte, Lego and Co-up.
While Prince William is planning his fifth Earthshot Prize which hands out five million pounds a year eco-projects around the globe.
And his campaign to end homelessness through organisation Homewards has linked up with Pret a Manger and Natwest, among others.
Speaking about his aims at Earthshot in Cape Town last year, William said: "It's more about impact philanthropy, collaboration, convening, and helping people."
The award says: "Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, are less concerned with cultural preservation and more attuned to social issues, tackling homelessness and rural mental health through their Royal Foundation and spotlighting innovative solutions to climate change through the Earthshot Prize, an environmental award founded by William in 2020.
It adds: "Crucial to the Waleses’ approach is aligning social imperatives with sound business strategies and building corporate alliances."
Harry and Meghan have long hailed their philanthropic work through Archewell.
But the Duke has recently stepped down from Sentebale after bitter rifts.
The monarch removed his top hat for the National Anthem performance and could be seen smiling to the crowds.
His Majesty was joined by the Queen, the Princess Royal, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.
One touching video show Charles greeting and shaking the hands of well-wishers.
Meanwhile, William and Kate, 43, recently celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary during their visit to the Inner Hebrides.
The Prince and Princess of Wales begun - the setting for kids TV show Balamory - where they have announced funding for two community centres.
During their second and final day they visited the Ardura Community Forest.
They met families and Kate looked through toy “binoculars” made from loo roll tubes.
She described it as “an amazing place to be on our anniversary”.
The Princess has previously said that the "power of nature" was a huge support for her during her cancer battle.
In a heartwarming post on Instagram the couple paid their thanks to the locals on the Isle of Mull, off 's west coast for their "warm welcome".
Read More on The Sun
They tied the knot in Abbey on April 29 2011, with the aisle of the Gothic church lined with trees.
William has a connection with the Isle of Mull because it is part of lands once ruled by the Lord of the Isles, one of a number of Scottish titles he inherited from his father when Charles became King.
Inside Prince William and Kate Middleton's relationship - in their words
AFTER years of dating, Prince William and Kate Middleton announced their engagement on November 16, 2010.
Prince William revealed in their interview with BBC that he knew from the start that Kate was different from other people.
He said in their engagement interview: "From my point of view, when I first met Kate, I knew there was something very special about her.”
When asked what drew them together, it turns out her “naughty sense of humour” was the tipping point.
He said: “She’s got a really naughty sense of humour, which really helps me because I’ve got a really dirty sense of humour so it was good fun, we had a really good laugh, and then things happened.”
And it appears that Prince William is a very caring partner towards Kate. Swoon.
She previously told Hello! how much of a gentleman William is, and said: "You know, over the years William has looked after me, he's treated me very well — as the loving boyfriend he is, he is very supportive of me through the good times and also through the bad times.”
In April 2011, Prince William and Kate Middleton tied the knot at Westminster Abbey in a ceremony watched around the world by millions of fans.
Kate wore a spectacular Alexander McQueen dress and the smitten prince could be seen telling Kate: “You look beautiful” before the service began.
They may have an unconventional life, but when it comes to their relationship, it all boils down to having fun.
Prince William added: “Obviously we both have a very fun time together, both have a very good sense of humour about things, we're down to earth, we take the mickey out of each other a lot, and she's got plenty of habits that make me laugh that I tease her about."
10
10
10
Topics