Touching moment Kate hugs cancer survivor as charity workers tell her she is ‘an inspiration to all patients’ after her year battling the disease during royal Christmas church walk

Kate Middleton has spoken to well-wishers about her battle with cancer and hugged a cancer patient after a Christmas Day church service with the King and the rest of the royal family.

The Princess of Wales and her children joined the King and Queen as they attended the Christmas Day service at Sandringham today.

She told royals fans she was ‘hugely grateful’ to the hundreds of people who had written to her offering their support after her cancer diagnosis earlier this year.

Moments after she took a gift for Charlotte from a little girl, who she wished Merry Christmas, a woman who had worked for Macmillan Cancer Support told Kate: ‘I just wanted to say you are an inspiration to all the patients.’

The Princess of Wales replied: ‘The amount of people who have written this year is extraordinary and I think cancer just really does resonate with so many families.

‘People like you are doing all the hard work out there. I’m hugely grateful.’

Another woman added, ‘We’re all behind you, never forget that,’ to which Kate replied, ‘Thank you very much, [that’s] so kind, nice to meet you.’

Members of the public who met Kate described her as ‘radiant’. A cancer patient who was one of the well-wishers also hugged Kate.

Karen Maclean, from North Lincolnshire, spoke with both Charles and Kate and gave the princess a hug.

The 73-year-old, who is retired, said she had had ’20 years of cancer’ and spoke about the disease with the King and his daughter-in-law after their own health issues this year.

‘We just had a little talk about cancer, really,’ said Ms Maclean.

‘I’ve met the King before. He said to me ‘I can remember you’, I’m thinking ‘what!’, like many years ago?’

She said that Charles and Kate seemed ‘very well actually, considering what they’re going through’.

She added after hugging Kate: ‘What a privilege.’

Earlier this morning, King Charles, 76, and 77-year-old Queen Camilla walked the short distance from Sandringham House to St Mary Magdalene Church past a crowd of well-wishers. 

They were joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children – Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and six-year-old Prince Louis.

William walked hand in hand with Charlotte, and Kate who wore a green coat and hat smiled at the crowds.

Also in the walking party was the Princess Royal and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.

Members of the royal family who walked to the service were greeted at the foot of the steps to the church by the Reverend Canon Dr Paul Rhys Williams.

They then headed inside and the National Anthem was sung before the first hymn, O Come, All Ye Faithful.

Both Queen Camilla and Princess Catherine donned emerald green coats as they walked with King Charles and Prince William.

Catherine’s coat was designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen.

Crowds were given copies of the order of service, conducted at the Church of St Mary Magdalene in Sandringham, conducted by the Rector Rev Canon Dr Paul Rhys Williams.

Hymns included O Come All Ye Faithful, Oh Little Town of Bethlehem, While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night, and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. The service also included The Lord’s Prayer.

Prince William said last week that he was looking forward to spending Christmas with 45 members of his family ‘all in one room’ as he attended a seasonal event for families of 1st Battalion Mercian Regiment, in his role as colonel-in-chief, in Bulford, Wiltshire.

However, Prince Andrew, 64, will not be attending the Royal Family’s celebrations and instead headed out for a solitary walk.

He joined the family at church for the last two years in succession, but was said to be preparing to spend Christmas Day with his ex-wife Sarah, Duchess of York this year.

They were expected to spend Christmas at Royal Lodge, the home they share in Windsor Great Park, Berkshire.

Those invited to Sandringham can look forward to a mixture of the traditional and some festive fun of the Royal Family’s own making.

Members of The Firm opened their presents on Christmas Eve in a nod to the family’s German origins.

They laid out their gifts on trestle tables and exchanged them at teatime.

They are known to enjoy giving each other novelty presents, typically buying things that are cheap and will make people laugh rather than spending a lot on big, lavish gifts.

They laid out their gifts on trestle tables and exchanged them at teatime.

They are known to enjoy giving each other novelty presents, typically buying things that are cheap and will make people laugh rather than spending a lot on big, lavish gifts.

For instance, Prince William reportedly gave his late grandmother Queen Elizabeth a pair of slippers emblazoned with her face.

Today, the Royals attended the Christmas Day service at the Church of St Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham estate, where they were greeted by well-wishers.

After the service, the royals greeted well-wishers and accepted flowers and other gifts.

King Charles passed on his thanks to the crowds, telling them: ‘I hope you will be able to get back in time [for dinner].’

Royal superfan John Loughrey said: ‘I said to Kate that she is an inspiration to us all, we are so proud of her.

‘She said thank you, and that she liked my top with her picture on.

‘She looked in good colour, radiant is the word I would use.’

Frenchman Louis Beauchamp, 29, handed Kate a specially made pashmina which he designed and bought for the princess on a recent trip to Morocco.

Mr Beauchamp, an English language teacher from Paris, said: ‘She said she was very grateful, and said: ‘How kind of you.’

‘I’m a teacher, we have met before, and she said: ‘keep up the good work.’

‘It was very moving to see her after such a hard year for her.

‘She said: ‘Thank you for all your support and coming a long way today.’

Theresa Iredale, from Banbury in Oxfordshire, spoke to Kate briefly when she asked if was allowed to hand chocolate coins to George, Charlotte and Louis.

Ms Iredale said: ‘I didn’t want to do it without permission and Kate just said: ‘That’s fine.’

‘I shook her hand and said I was so happy for her that was she feeling so much better and she said: ‘Thank you so much, thanks for the support.’

Later, they will return for a traditional lunch of roast turkey and all the trimmings.

They will sit down ready to eat at 1.15pm sharp, according to Queen Elizabeth II’s former chef Darren McGrady, who catered for Christmas at Sandringham frequently in the 1980s and 1990s.

On Christmas night, they are expected to play parlour games including charades and bingo.

Owing to links to alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo being revealed, Prince Andrew is expected to spend the holidays in Windsor with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson instead. 

He also pulled out of a pre-Christmas lunch for royals at Buckingham Palace last Thursday.

After speaking to his ex-wife the Duchess of York, Prince Andrew has decided not to join 70 members of the Royal Family at the palace.

It had been claimed Andrew was insisting on going to the lunch, telling friends ‘he should be there’, and that as it’s a family occasion, ‘why shouldn’t he go?’

But MailOnline understands Sarah persuaded him not to attend.

After a year of trials for the Royal Family, it seemed many breathed a sigh of relief at the decision.

Both Princess Catherine and King Charles announced this year that they had cancer.

Last week it was reveaed that the King will continue to need cancer treatment in 2025.

A Buckingham Palace source said the 76-year-old’s health is still being ‘managed’ but is ‘moving in a positive direction’. 

His Majesty intends to return to a full programme of public duties next year. This will include ‘exciting’ UK and international visits in the first half of 2025, the insider said.

‘His treatment has been moving in a positive direction, as a managed condition the treatment cycle will continue into the new year’, the Palace source said.

Charles has been carrying on with his duties despite facing a personally challenging year in which both he and the Princess of Wales were diagnosed with cancer.

News of Charles’ cancer, undisclosed in its form, came in February, after it was discovered while he was treated in hospital for an enlarged prostate in January.

He cancelled all face-to-face public duties but returned in April and has since travelled to France for D-Day commemorations, hosted incoming state visits for the Emperor of Japan and the Emir of Qatar, and undertaken a hectic tour to Australia and Samoa with the Queen, despite still undergoing outpatient cancer treatment.

Meanwhile, a video released by Kate in September which confirmed she would return to public duties following the completion of her course of chemotherapy. 

Kate has been gradually returning to public events after revealing in September that she had finished a course of cancer treatment.

William described the past year which has seen his wife and father being treated for cancer as ‘brutal’.

He said that 2024 has ‘probably been the hardest year in my life’ and a ‘dreadful’ experience. 

The Prince spoke candidly about the royal family’s major health scares in an interview while in South Africa last month, saying 2024 has ‘probably been the hardest year in my life’ and a ‘dreadful’ experience.

When asked on November 7 about his year, William replied: ‘Honestly, it’s been dreadful. It’s probably been the hardest year in my life. So, trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult.

‘But I’m so proud of my wife, I’m proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done. But from a personal family point of view, it’s been, yeah, it’s been brutal.’

Kate appeared in a deeply personal video with her family in September to confirm her return to public duties following the completion of a course of chemotherapy.

The Princess’s heartfelt message about her cancer journey was spoken over images showing the Waleses and their children enjoying the outdoors, and she said her focus now was ‘doing what I can to stay cancer free’.

She described the previous nine months since her serious health issues began as ‘incredibly tough for us as a family’ and how the ‘cancer journey is complex, scary and unpredictable for everyone’, with the experience giving her a ‘new perspective on everything.’ 

The public gleefully welcomed them as they arrived at Sandringham for Christmas Day’s church service today.

The first royal fans arrived outside the gates of Sandringham at 7.30pm on Christmas Eve in order to secure the best spot.

That included self-confessed royal superfans John Loughrey and Sky London.

The friends spent the night sleeping al fresco wrapped in sleeping bags.

Mr Loughrey, 69, from Wandsworth in London, said: ‘The weather has been damp, it’s been soaking through the sleeping bag and I’ve had an hour’s sleep. But it doesn’t matter.’

He said he empathised with Kate and her recent health issues because his late partner Marion Crean died with skin cancer in 2003.

Mr Loughrey, wearing a T-shirt depicting a montage of the Princess, and holding a Christmas rose bouquet for her, said: ‘Catherine has been an inspiration to us all, and her positivity has been amazing to see, she’s got support all around the world.

‘She has told us she is not out of the woods, but we want to stay positive.

‘We also all want to see King Charles and Queen Camilla because of course they’ve not been well.

‘It has been a difficult year for them and there are millions of people supporting them.

‘I’ve met the King before and he said to me he has never seen anyone wearing so many badges before.

‘I think to be honest there probably isn’t anyone in the world who has seen the Royal Family as many times as me, and I’m proud of that.

‘My friends know what I’m like, that this is my passion. Sometimes people say silly things but I love doing this.’

Mr London, 64, from Paddington in north London, was also wearing a customised Kate T-shirt and holding a bouquet for the princess.

He said: ‘John and I have had a good laugh, he kept trying to yap to me last night so I didn’t get much sleep.

‘The only place I’d rather be than outside here at Sandringham today is probably inside Sandringham with them. So this is the next best thing.

‘When you do this sort of thing you don’t actually need much sleep, you feel refreshed and ready to go.

‘It means the world to me to see them.

‘I really want to see William again. I spoke to him before and he said: ‘Don’t call me Prince William, I’m just William.’

‘And he is – he’s very down to earth. Unfortunately he’s an Aston Villa fan and I’m Birmingham City, their rivals, but that doesn’t put me off him.’