Kate Middleton celebrated her 40th birthday earlier this month, but many were focused on her infamous in-laws instead. When no public birthday wishes came from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, people were quick to speculate that the couple was snubbing Middleton.
Royal Expert Says Harry And Meghan ‘Were Not About To Post Anything’
However, this was not the case. According to royal expert Christopher Andersen, the pair privately celebrated Middleton’s birthday. “They did a video call,” Andersen said. “They wished her a happy birthday. [It was] very private.”
This makes sense, given what we know about Harry and Markle’s life in America. The couple is extremely private, only appearing publicly for charity events. They also don’t do social media, with all posts on their joint account centered around their charity work.
Some noted that the couple did post for Middleton’s birthday in 2020, but Andersen said, “Harry and Meghan were not about to post anything the way they did two years ago. This time everything was kept private.” Since then, relations between Harry and Markle and the rest of the royal family have been strained and things remain tense.
Kate Middleton’s Small, Family Celebration
Middleton also kept things private for her birthday celebrations. She enjoyed a “small family affair” at her and her husband’s Prince William’s country estate, Anmer Hall. The party included family and a small group of friends.
“Kate only has a very small circle of friends,” Andersen said. He also shared that Middleton has her own “interesting” tradition: she bakes her own birthday cake. It’s a “holdover” from her mother, Carole Middleton, who is the founder of Party Pieces, a mail-order party supply company.
Royal Celebrations In 2022
The Duchess of Cambridge kept things low-key for another reason, as well. The royals have a lot of major celebrations coming up this year. In addition to Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, which will be recognized on February 6th, with all kinds of celebrations coming up this summer, William has his own 40th birthday coming up in June.
“The queen has a big thing planned for [William] and he is going to throw something as well,” Andersen told Us Weekly. “So, there will be big parties again, if COVID allows anything like that to happen.”
COVID was another one of the reasons Middleton had a small party. Royal expert Jonathan Sacerdoti shared that Kate’s birthday would be “quite scaled back because of the COVID pandemic.”
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