This week’s People Mag cover story is all about Princess Charlotte’s second birthday and the little princess’s life with her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. People Mag didn’t get any exclusive photos or anything – their cover image is the same photo of Charlotte which was released to the media on Monday, the photo taken by Kate. People’s exclusive is more about how Will and Kate are super-normal and Just Like You!
In this week’s cover story, an insider tells PEOPLE that guests at Anmer Hall are typically greeted by Kate herself at the door, with newly 2-year-old Princess Charlotte in her arms and 3-year-old Prince George “clinging to her ankles.”
“There was no formality at all,” says the insider. “It really was like any other family sitting down to lunch, with George and Charlotte eating their homemade food in their high chairs and toddling around with their toys.”
And although they have plenty of help from nanny Maria Turrion Borrallo, it’s often just the family of four at home.
“You’d think that Kate and William would have an army of staff to help them out, but it really was just them and the children,” notes the insider. Activities include arts-and-crafts with mom Kate, kicking around a soccer ball and watching episodes of the children’s show Peppa Pig. (Though in an interview with BBC Radio 1, William admitted that George is past the Peppa Pig stage now.)
“The children have good fun together,” says one friend. “They are brilliant kids — very playful and cheerful.”
Sigh… alright, here’s what I believe: I believe that Kate enjoys being a mom and that she wants to recreate the kind of bond with her children that she and her siblings enjoy with their own mother Carole. I believe Kate is more in-tune with the kids and she spends more time with them than William does. Here’s what I don’t believe: that it’s ever just the four of them at home. I think Carole is always around and if she isn’t, Kate and the kids are at Middleton Manor. I also think they have a sh-t ton of staffers, both at Anmer Hall and Kensington Palace. The Daily Mail just said over the weekend that even though they’re moving to London this year, they just hired extra help at Anmer.
Also: apparently you guys want to talk about the ongoing trial in France about the photos taken of William and Kate in 2012? This story and case has been going on for so many years and I sort of forgot why anyone would care. From what I remember, I felt some sympathy for Kate in particular because it was her naked body being splashed around the European tabloids. At this point, I do think William is just holding onto a grudge which everyone has moved past except him. Anyway, the court case started this week and William is asking for $1.9 million in damages. And he’s invoking his mother’s memory.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
*Enter “and so it begins” Lord of the Rings gif here*
An army? No, just a squadron!
Is it me, or do Kate and Wills constantly describe the children as “running the household”, “being in charge”, etc.? Sure, they may be lively kids, but… just odd to me.
Charlotte is totes adorbs, but her expression in the new birthday pic seems a little wonky to me. Was that really the best shot taken by world-renowned photographer Kate?
I agree it’s not a great picture. I remember for Princess Isabella (Denmark) 9th birthday Princess Mary took the photos (they were fine) but this year a professional took them and it did make a difference. Let the professionals take the photos and then choose from the top 10.
But if kate takes the pictures she gets the rights to them. Saying who can publish and get royalties when bought. It’s always about control.
The press gave them a rough year about being work-shy, so this year they brought the # of photos down to only 1 being released.
As for no army, just because kate answers the door doesn’t mean there’s not: security, housekeepers, landscapers, decorators, cooks, nannies, advisers, pr/marketing, stylists, etc.
Kate’s a terrible photographer, that’s it. There’s not much to say about that photo.
The British royal press mostly said Kate takes terrible photos. Check out Richard Palmer’s tweet thread.
I think Charlotte is adorable.
The one thing I notice with all of Kate’s photos is they seem so stiff, she has no creative flair, she doesn’t seem to have a good eye at capturing magical moments.
Look at adorable Mia Tindall’s photos done by some of the Royal photogs, those are magical.
I’ve read Richard Palmer’s tweets, he’s so right.
She’s just not good and I wish somebody would tell her that but Wills and Kate hired a lot of Yes-sayers so yeah.
She is pretty terrible.
From the candids that exist of Princess Charlotte, she seems to be quite curious and have quite a bit of personality. None of that is captured in Kate’s photo.
Kate managed to make that adorable, lively little girl seem as beige and stepford as Kate is.
Aww I thought her picture was precious. Even my fiancé was like have you seen that picture of princess charlotte.. the cutest thing EVER. I do have baby fever at the moment thought so I think ever kid is pretty much the most adorable thing ever.
I think one reason Kate does it is, to own all the copyrights. If a pro photog is brought in I think he or she would have a copyright entitlement to use photos later for whenever.
Also does Kate make money off of her photos since they are her copyright? I wonder if it’s Middleton move taught from mum’s party pieces business?
Just wondering?
You bet your bottom dollar she makes money off those photos.
Maybe she has Bell’s palsy or facial paralysis. That’s how my face looks and that’s what I have. Is there something wrong with a ‘wonky face’?
I don’t think she has a medical condition. Her face is asymmetrical like her mother’s. As many people’s are.
My face is asymmetrical like Charlotte’s and I look like that in most of my photos. Cannot blame a serious medical condition that coincidentally one of my cousins suffers from.
Charlotte just has asymetrical eyes – who knows how she will look when she gets older. But Kate does have a way of making a lively child look pretty darn stiff.
And I don’t believe any of the BS about her having no help. I am just in no mood for more propaganda today. I have had enough for a year.
My friend is a pro photographer (attended college for it and all that, not just bought a camera), and I asked her about these pics. She said she prefers a mother’s photo because this is the daughter through her mother’s eyes, as her mother sees her, which makes it more real. And that people are way too critical of others’ skills. Idk. I just think the pic is perfectly fine and not everything needs to be picked apart.
Yea. Your friend is right in an opinion based way. That said. Much like singing how we perceive is influenced heavily by our own personal interpretations. What makes a great photographer or singer for purposes of this discussion is finding that sweet spot we all can see/ hear/ feel.
Kate snaps shots core her and that’s fine! But don’t expect those to not be held to the same standards when head to head in an industry people study and make incredible livings off of.shes not a natural in a professional sense. She just has a crew, expensive equipment a mom taking personal shots wouldn’t really have. It’s an ok photo. Personal meaning. Cute kid. As a pr photo? It’s not great even after touching up.
Then her mother sees her as a stiff and uncomfortable child in this photo.
My daughter went to college and has a Bachelors in Photography and she just laughs at these pics. They are point and shoot. It’s fine, for a family photo album, but with royalty, these are going to all be part of a formal record of these kids as they age.
I needed a laugh before my interview and this just gave it to me. Thanks Kaiser!
Good luck with your interview!
Has Carole connections to People Magazine? It sure sounds like that.
And yes, they do have an army of staff. Everybody knows that.
Likely Jason does, and goes to a US publication over a UK one with leaks about W&K.
The Middleton’s have People Mag Royal writer on speedial and the Daily Mail too imo. Those publications know way too many personal things about that family when it comes to weddings, parties, vacations,etc.
The Middleton’s are the thirstiest, leakiest family to hit the Royal family in generations. lol
Gad, this article is about as fake as the one ma Carole paid GQ mag to write about bro James and his hetro-ness ladies man-ness. Remember that.
My partner studied history and calls Kate the new Elizabeth Woodville.
The write-ups about these two are always so bizarre. Nobody believes what you’re selling, stop it. Nobody would care if they had 4 nannies, 2 cooks, 3 housekeepers, and a pet wrangler as long as they did their job. Pretending like they clean their own toilet won’t help.
The child is ridiculously cute.
I think they’ve made it clear they have a housekeeper and a nanny. I think they’re trying to convey that they don’t have an army of staff 24/7. It’s also not surprising or crazy that she answers the door on a private estate.
She is surrounded by security. It better not be a problem opening her front door.
I want them to release a video of Normal Bill doing the shake and vac.
I second this, and humbly request Queen’s “I want to break free” be the soundtrack for it.
Katie Keen also needs to convince me with a Bisto ad.
I need to taste that chutney. I bet she’s a Pinterest cook.
This has the makings of a very good list of conditions they need to meet.
William always uses his dead mother but more and more people call him out for that.
What a shame, Diana deserves better.
Just th four of them, when they are in the living or dining room maybe. The cook is in the kitchen, gardeners and maintenance are outside on the grounds and the stable hands are busy grooming. The aides of course are off site unless needed.
So totally, just the four of them.
Totes just the four of them, until staffers resign, or they throw a christmas party for 30+staffers or a random shop keeper outs them for their handlers or they are papped with said staffers or they tell us on the radio that they send the help to pick up their take out non-spicy meals….
They had four full-time staff for the 4-bedroom farmhouse in Wales. No way on earth do they have zero staff for 10-bedroom Anmer.
How gullible do they think the public are? They should have staff, no one is begrudging them that. Just stop pretending that you are just like the rest of us. Very annoying!
Do any of you think the staff gets offended by the “we have absolutely no help” attitude of WK? Those people work so hard for those dimwits and get no recognition and are made to be nothing to the public. I’d be pissed.
And let’s not forget the ENTIRE BASEMENT being built under KP for -gasp- more staff.
These two are on track for several short, sharp shocks from the public over their blatant lies, and the continued non-existent work ethic – especially now Philip is being put out to pasture in Windsor. Everyone can see through their shenanigans, and they still think they’re fooling everyone (because their cowed staff won’t tell them otherwise).
The Correcting Brick of F-ing Reality… it’s coming for them… and I’ll be sitting here waiting with my Schadenfreude pie. mmm-mmm tasty.
The frequency with which William cries “Diana!” is beginning to feel extremely disingenuous. If you’re really bothered by the press that much – truly – it’s time to own up to it, put your health and the health of your family first and withdraw from the Royal family.
Diana is the reason why William and Harry can do what they want. I doubt they often hear the word “no”.
I think they mean their staff is low profile when company is over and they’ve forgotten how much help they have. They can’t even pick up their own takeout!
So mini Carole/Pippa is on the cover of People.
Granny Middleton must be delighted.
1000 plus
I think she has middleton eyes & hair, and then the mouth & nose is totally william. A bit of the queen in her face shape too.
Chaz looks exactly like the queen as an old lady. Are you all blind?
Of course they do not have an army staff: they spend their saturday morning at the market, and doing their own laundry like us peasants ! I don’t understand how you cannot see this. Seriously.
And the they look at sales because we know she wouldn’t want to spend money on clothes. She keeps a budget wardrobe. You know, $35 slacks, stuff like that.
Hmm, so they don’t have their 24 hour security on premises, the 2nd Nanny that they would rather we forget about, the live in housekeeper, his valet etc…
So full of BS.
She can answer the door with the children around her ankles because the house has been cleaned from top to bottom by the housekeeper cleaners, the gardeners are constantly keeping the weeds in check and all the families clothes are laundered by the laundress.
Perfectly said.
They should stop pretending to be *normal* people. No one believes it anyway, it’s just ridic and embarrassing.
Of course they don’t have an army of staff. I mean if you compare them with Charles. They make do with a quarter of his numbers. It’s practically slumming, but they are normal dontchaknow!!!
Let’s not forget that William and Kate were supposed to be opening the Paralympics and bowed out because they claimed they had another engagement/duty to attend to. But really they just went off on holiday to France. I think this is the real reason they are upset. They got caught out on another lie. I’m not “keen” on the idea of people using long lenses to photograph other people, but I am so sick of these two and their whining, complaining, poor me routines. You don’t like the life? Then step down and get out of the public eye completely. On a more positive note, I do think their kids are precious.
I hope the lawyers bring this up in the trial. It would fall under “public interest” that proof of them lying be published.
Now I understand why they were left, right and centre the last week re ‘grieving for the lost Mummy’ . Harry was once again used for WK’s upcoming battle of the court.
Last week we were told they had just hired a new housekeeper, had to go to the Middleton’s for “normal” country experiences. Now we’re told that they live a normal life with no staff (which is ridiculous, when she was pregnant with George, they had a Christmas party for 27 staff something that has to have nearly doubled by now.) Yesterday Kate told us all about the animals they have including the little chickens they had to go to Berkshire to see.
Not to mention Kate and William leaving them behind to go hand with their friends abroad for no reason. Pippa had her hen party recently in London, no sign of Kate, so they’re skiing trip was for no other reason then a holiday without the kids and each other.
They’re also not really moving to London. Amner will still be their main permanent home. London’s all for show.
Sigh. If I were her I’d want him to drop it. A lot of people had forgotten about it and now its all being dragged up again. That said, she seems to be a bit of an exhibitionist so maybe she enjoys it, who knows.
Well he hasn’t forgotten! Easy for someone anonymously sitting behind a keyboard to say. It was his Mother and his wife who were violated by the press. This just isn’t about money for him. It’s loss of privacy. Its about abuse by the press for the almighty dollar at some else’s expense.
Her dress blows up and she’s an exhibitionist. I guess all the other royals in other countries are as well. If you look there are photos of their dresses blowing up too.
I hope he wins and donates the money to his Heads Together charity.
Please search “kate middleton dress fly up” and count the number of times she’s shown the world her butt and crotch by not wearing a slip or any discernible underwear.
And don’t forget her unbuttoned-up-to-her-crotch Ralph Lauren houndstooth dress.
“Once Is Chance, Twice is Coincidence, Third Time Is A Pattern.”
Her flashing is documented… goes back to her school days in Berkshire, when she did it to get attention.
It’s not an accident. It’s a lifestyle choice. And yeah, the press are going to call her butt out on that (pun intended) because she’s the future Q of E. If the royal family ain’t got dignity, they ain’t got nothin’, and there’s no reason to keep them around!
So we’re still getting constant propaganda from the Royal family to persuade us that they’re just like normal people with normal lives. Sorry – it isn’t true, and no amount of bleating about it will make it true.
They aren’t normal – William is heir to the throne of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. I don’t need to be told that they have kitchen dinners like a normal family. Do they think constantly lying to the public will make them more likeable? Do they think the British public are that dumb? They have staff, security, personal security officers, private secretaries, assistants. I certainly don’t! And neither does anyone I know!
It seems like this constant pushing of the ‘They’re So Normal’ agenda is because they know the privilege that they have makes them unpopular. There is a constant guilt factor which makes them need to tell everyone and themselves that they are just like the average Brit.
However, if they actually ever lived a week in the life of the average Brit they would realise they are NOT EVEN CLOSE to normal. There is nothing ‘normal’ about being a member of the Royal family.
They need to accept that and move on. Stop pushing this agenda.
Yes-I really wish they’d stop trying to push this. They’re the BRF-of course they’re going to have oodles of staff!
Everyone DID forget about those pictures – why would he want to drag the images of his wife’s boobs out in the open again? Okay, to show that the dirty did never goes unpunished and to make some extra cash ( to donate to the ladie’s modesty fund of course). But I don’t know how I would feel if my husband would try to make some money on my naked boobs years after I’ve moved on. This man holds his grudges like a pro and I bet everyone walks around on eggshells with him.
The stuff don’t have to be around all the time anyway so it’s a bit cheeky of them to make it sound like they are self sufficient. The cleaning crew comes and does goes when you aren’t there, the gardener works outside, the driver is on call, the press secretary and assistant are there when needed.
So this “no help around” really means just that- not around at the time 🙂
Excellent point.
I think its a lovely picture of the little princess. It really captures her innocence. It’s understandable why they dont release many photos of their children considering some of the nasty and vile comments. People are so mean and resentful of the RF they stoop to imo a new level of low by criticizing a little girl.
Does this make me an evil person if I go ahead and say, Charlotte is cute because she’s a toddler now with chubby cheeks. I don’t get all the fawning over her, as she looks just like every other Caucasian toddler,
Nothing special.
I don’t see her being a good looking princess as an adult either. George is the one who seems to have gotten the good looks, seems to me. Hopefully she’s allowed to develop as an intelligent and kind person and retains her spunky personality.
Ugh! Caucasian toddler?
Yep Joannie, she’s Caucasian or colloquially known as white, although I don’t like using the colours found in a Crayola box to describe a person.
Oh please – there goes my lunch! Kate’s not cleaning Anmer, she isn’t mowing the lawn, she doesn’t pay the mortgage, she doesn’t shop for groceries, she doesn’t launder the towels and bed linen, she doesn’t sit down once a month and pay the household bills. She has a cleaning and maintenance staff, a household accountant, a gardener, a housekeeper, a chauffeur, and a nanny – at a minimum. If it marches like an army and looks like an army . . .
The fact that they sit down to lunch like a cute little family without starched butler and serving staff present doesn’t mean she doesn’t have an army. She does. By any of the world’s standards, by any standards of what most young mothers have to shoulder, this is an army.
Oh, did I forget to mention the other platoons in her “army”: the British taxpayer? Her husband’s family and its immense personal fortune, built on advantages that flowed from a shameless deal between the BRF and Inland Revenue that lasted from the 1920s to 1997 that should have caused riots?!
So well said …they must think we british are stupid ..
I am sure they mop their own floors too. Please.
“Activities include arts-and-crafts with mom Kate, kicking around a soccer ball and watching episodes of the children’s show Peppa Pig.”
Must be nice to be able to spend so much time together as a young family without any worries or cares…of course it helps that in addition to multiple full-time staff, neither parent actually has a job.
Bad idea to drag up the pics, especially as the editors of some of the publications that printed them claim there are photos of them actually having sex (in an area that could be seen from the public road) which were not printed.
Kate seems believe she could do anything, so she’s trying hard to handle everything,,
well, sometimes, when you took picture of your children, you think your children are the most precious things for most of the pictures, even there will always be cute and lovely pictures of your friends kid…
For this case, Kate should hire a professional photographer and invite them to their home, make everything look normal and let her daughter playing around, in that way, there will be amazing tons of candid pictures to choose
But, she’s a great mom, maybe next time she will have great candids photos of the children to shares, children are best on candid, because they were always act naturally.
No comments on Prince Philip and how it will affect W and K – and it will!
I am amazed.
Does anyone remember when William changed the movie for their 26 staff strong Christmas party because he had seen it already?
The whole article sounds phony to me. Maybe there are language differences but I seriously doubt George–at nearly 4 yrs old–eats meals while sitting in what Americans would call a “highchair” (a booster seat, sure.) And as feisty and mobile as Charlotte appeared in Canada over 6 months ago I’d be surprised if she hadn’t graduated to a booster seat long ago too. And as an almost-4 yr old does George really still “toddle around” and as tall as he is how does he manage to cling to Kate’s ankles when she answers the door?
I think the reasons Kate serves as the children’s photographer are 1. Misplaced belief in her skills. If she hasn’t seen lots of other cute but kind of ordinary “mommy photos” taken by moms in her “circle of friends,” she might really think hers are professional quality 2. Will’s obsession with privacy. Allowing photographers at any of their homes would be a big deal.