Charles ‘forced to reign in Kate Middleton’s shadow’ as Princess steals the show

2023-05-24

King Charles' reign could be overshadowed by daughter-in-law Kate Middleton after she stole the show earlier this week, one royal insider has warned.

Both the monarch and the Princess of Wales made appearances at the iconic RHS Chelsea Flower Show on Monday (May 22) a day before the annual display opened to the public.

But the King's visit to the stunning garden show received "less coverage" than he had reportedly hoped, and an insider told the Daily Mail he and Queen Consort Camilla might be "disappointed" by the publicity around their visit.

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"With his love of horticulture, His Majesty's appearance at Chelsea was an important engagement," the insider said.

"It's a shame that his visit with Her Majesty the Queen received less coverage than might have been expected. I hope they are not too disappointed."

Meanwhile, the Princess of Wales was the talk of the town as she made a surprise visit to Chelsea's first-ever Children's Picnic.

Kate looked a vision as she beamed in a bright pink frock and chatted to 100 children from 10 different primary schools at the inaugural party.

Kate Middleton treats tantrum-throwing William 'like fourth kid', says insider

This is reportedly not the first time Kate's popularity with the public has drawn criticism from her father-in-law, according to estranged royal Prince Harry.

In his memoir Spare, released earlier this year, the Duke of Sussex claimed the number of public engagements he and Prince William could take on was limited, and that Kate's entrance into the royal family threw a spanner in the works.

"Pa and Camilla didn't like Willy and Kate drawing attention away from them or their causes," he wrote. "They'd openly scolded Willy about it many times."

One particularly jarring event occurred when Kate was set to make an appearance at a tennis club on the same day Charles and Camilla were scheduled to take part in another official event.

The king reportedly feared that a "fetching" photo of Kate taken at the event could squash his chances of appearing on the front page of the newspapers the next day.

Harry wrote: "That couldn't be tolerated.

"Told that it was too late to cancel the visit, Pa's press officer warned: 'Just make sure the Duchess doesn't hold a tennis racquet in any of the photos.'"

The King and Queen didn't appear to let Kate's impromptu appearance at the flower show deter them as they toured the gardens.

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At one point the couple presented the first medals in the Garden of Royal Reflection and Celebration to three lucky recipients – designer Piet Oudolf, Baroness Janet Fookes and environmental champion Judy Ling Wong.

RHS President Keith Weed said: "The Royal Horticultural Society was exceptionally fortunate to have Her Majesty as our patron throughout her reign.

"This award celebrates both Her Majesty's glorious reign and the work she did to raise the profile of UK horticulture both nationally and internationally through her visits to RHS Chelsea Flower Show and wider work."

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