The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended the BAFTAs at Royal Albert Hall tonight, marking their third appearance at this event in as many years. Th stakes were notably lower this evening compared to last year – Kate was in the third trimester of her pregnancy with Prince Louis and the Time’s Up movement prompted other women attending to wear black, putting Kate in a bit of a difficult position given the Royal Family’s political neutrality.
(You may remember my thoughts on that.)
Tonight, however, is unfolding on a *much* lighter note thanks in no small part to the white Alexander McQueen gown Kate debuted. I think it’s fair to say that while the couple’s presence is prompted by William’s position as president of BAFTA, all eyes are always going to be on Kate and what she wears on the red carpet.
I’ll also say that I’m pleased they’ve started attending this regularly – it’s a nice dash of glamour that still feels in keeping with both of their roles within the RF.
It seems like tonight’s gown may be the white version of the gown that Kate wore to the Prince of Wales’s 70th birthday dinner in November. On that occasion we only caught a glimpse of the neckline as she and William drove into the Buckingham Palace gates, but it certainly seems similar based on the shoulder detailing, etc.
Anyway, I feel confident calling this a solid win. It’s a gorgeous dress and I love that Kate uses some of these red carpet moments to make slightly more daring fashion choices. (Her gown in 2017 – another McQueen – was strapless, if you recall.)
I’m also not certain that we’ve seen Kate in a white gown since her wedding day, but correct me if I’m wrong. I’m remembering a Self-Portrait dress in 2016, but its cut and silhouette were decidedly less formal.
Kate’s shoes are Jimmy Choo (we’ve seen them before), while her bracelet is on loan from the Queen and her earrings once belonged to the late Princess of Wales. As we’ve seen over the years – and certainly more so since the introduction of the Duchess of Sussex – William and Harry seem to have gifted a good bit of their mother’s jewelry to their wives and it’s always touching to see it on display.
Some video of the two taking their seats within Royal Albert Hall:
And I don’t remember this from previous years, but this year Kensington Palace shared some video of William and Kate mingling with award recipients. Here is Kate talking to Spike Lee, director of BlacKkKlansman, which won the award for best adapted screenplay:
And here with Rachel Weisz, who won for her depiction of Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough in The Favourite…which reminds me, I should really get a post up about Queen Anne, the Marlboroughs and Abigail Masham. A project for another day!
In other news, KP announced at the end of last week that Harry and Meghan will be making a two-day visit to Morocco at the end of this month. I think it’s a fair guess that will mark Meghan’s only overseas travel in an official capacity before the birth of the couple’s first child in the spring. There’s a rumored tour of the United States and Canada in the mix, but according to reliable royal reporters, that trip has been pushed back to the autumn when Meghan returns from maternity leave.
All of which is to say, I’m wondering when we’ll get an announcement for the next Cambridge tour? William and Kate undertook a trip to India and Bhutan in the spring of 2016 when Princess Charlotte was just shy of a year, so it’s entirely possible there will be something scheduled for April. We’ll see – I’m still recovering from the Sussexes’ Oceania tour, but I could see a few-day trek somewhere in Europe being a bit of a palate cleanser!