Related Articles
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were pictured at the same Sandringham church service as Kate’s ‘rural rival’ yesterday – several months after rumours of a big fall out.
Prince William and Kate seemed relaxed as they waved to crowds at St Mary Magdalene Church on Sunday, despite the nearby presence of Rose Hanbury.
The Marchioness of Cholmondeley was allegedly ‘phased out’ of the royal couple’s Norfolk set – dubbed the ‘Turnip Toffs’ – following a row with Kate, rumours of which spread in March last year.
Despite the alleged feud, Rose was invited to a state banquet for Donald Trump at Buckingham Palace in June, where she was positioned in close proximity to the US President.
It comes after Kate celebrated her 38th birthday this coming Thursday by entertaining some of their closest friends at their home at Anmer Hall in Norfolk over the weekend.
William and Kate previously enjoyed frequent dinner parties with Rose and her husband David after the Cambridges moved to Anmer Hall in 2014, with the Cholmondeleys living just three miles away.
In 2011, Rose and David attended the royal couple’s wedding, and their twin boys Alexander and Oliver had even been playmates of Prince George.
Stylish couple! Prince William and Kate Middleton made their way to Sandringham’s St Mary Magdalene church on Sunday morning (pictured left), shortly followed by the Marchioness of Cholmondeley (right image, far left)
The Cambridge’s friend the Marchioness of Cholmondeley was seen joining the group, far left, dressed in a faux fur brown hat and matching coat, while Carole and Michael could be seen chatting with one another
Prince William looked relaxed on Sunday morning, comfortably wrapped up in a navy blue coat, his hands in his pockets
Rose Hanbury, Marchioness of Cholmondeley (left) is pictured alongside the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at Houghton Hall in 2016
However the friendship allegedly turned sour at some point over the last couple of years, despite efforts on the part of Prince William to play peacemaker.
Yesterday, Rose and her husband the Marquess of Cholmondeley appeared to be back in the good graces of the royal couple, as they made their way to the service in a group containing Kate’s parents Carole and Michael.
Kate turned heads in a multi-coloured coat and a mauve fedora hat with an animal print band, coordinating with the Queen, 93, who wore a tasteful plum skirt and jacket ensemble.
The pair seemed relaxed, enjoying the walk to the church without their three children Prince George, 6, Princess Charlotte, 4, and Prince Louis, 1, this morning.
They addressed friendly smiles and nods to the crowd that gathered on the way to the church.
They were joined at church by a group of friends and family, including Rose, who wore a long navy coat with fur hat for the occasion, alongside her husband David, spotted in the background wearing a red scarf.
They were joined at church by a group of friends and family, including Rose, who wore a long navy coat with fur hat for the occasion, alongside her husband David, spotted in the background wearing a red scarf
The Queen attended the service and travelled to the church by car. She sported a tasteful woolen jacket and skirt ensemble with a matching hat
The trio have not been seen together in public since they attended a State Dinner for President Trump’s visit last June.
Kate’s parents Carole and Michael also joined the group for the church service, having recently returned from a holiday in St. Barts.
The couple have spent the past week relaxing in the Caribbean resort with children Pippa, 36, and James, 32, and their partners James Matthews, 44, and Alizee Thevenet.
While James and Alizee are still in the luxury resort, it appears Carole and Michael flew home at the end of the week.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s appearance at church is unusual, and they do not often join the Queen – apart from on the first service of the year.
Everyone seemed relaxed on Sunday as royals fans gathered around Sandringham to catch a glimpse of the Queen as she attended church
Police officers searched visitors and onlookers as they arrived to see the Queen and members of the royal family including Kate and William attend church
Daily Mail royal expert Richard Kay on the the Marquess and Marchioness Cholmondeley
An aesthete and former filmmaker, Cholmondeley had a string of glamorous girlfriends without showing any sign of wanting to settle down. Then, to the surprise of friends, in 2009 he married Rose Hanbury, a willowy ex-model, 23 years his junior.
They had met at a party at the Villa Cetinale, the grand Italian home of the disgraced Tory peer Lord Lambton — Rose’s sister, Marina, is married to Lambton’s heir Ned, the Earl of Durham.
The comely sisters, who were once pictured in swimsuits with former prime minister Tony Blair have an impeccable pedigree. Their grandmother was Lady Elizabeth Longman, a bridesmaid at the Queen’s wedding to Prince Philip.
The Cholmondeleys’ home is Houghton Hall, a stunning Palladian mansion built in the 1720s for Britain’s first Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole.
The 106-room pile is barely four miles from Anmer and it was soon being reported that the Cholmondeleys with their three children were part of the so-called ‘turnip toffs’, a set of well-born friends of William and Kate with North Norfolk homes.
William and Kate enjoyed frequent dinner parties with Rose and her husband David (pictured together in 2016) after the Cambridges moved to Anmer Hall in 2014, with the Cholmondeleys living just three miles away
In 2011, Rose and David (pictured with the pair in 2016) attended the royal couple’s wedding, and their twin boys Alexander and Oliver had even been playmates of Prince George
Members were said to include William and Rosie van Cutsem, the Earl and Countess of Leicester, who live at Holkham Hall and James and Laura Meade, who is a godmother to Prince Louis.
One weekend report said the Cholmondeleys’ twin sons, Alexander and Oliver, were playmates of Prince George, despite the four-year age gap between them.
Rose and David were both guests (of the Queen) at William and Kate’s wedding in 2011, and four years ago the royal couple attended a black tie gala at Houghton Hall.
Rose and Kate, meanwhile are patron and royal patron respectively of the charity East Anglia Children’s Hospices, and the Duchess has attended the Houghton Hall horse trials with her children.
William and David would appear to have less in common. The marquess — French-speaking, piano-playing and a lover of modern art — is, after all, the same age as his late mother.
The men have been shooting together, but this is normal among landowners in Norfolk.
So does all that add up to a close friendship? According to an authoritative family source, the two couples have been to each other’s homes only three times.
‘They see each other occasionally and like each other,’ a figure close to Rose tells me.
‘They are not part of each other’s close circle. It isn’t even remotely a bosom-close friendship.’
The Marchioness of Cholmondeley (pictured in 2016) was allegedly ‘phased out’ of the royal couple’s Norfolk set – dubbed the ‘Turnip Toffs’ – following a row with Kate, rumours of which spread in March last year
Among their near neighbours was the Marquess of Cholmondeley, 58, who as Lord Great Chamberlain had a unique role at the State Opening of Parliament (pictured in 2007)— walking backwards in front of the Queen
Source link
