The identity of Princess Charlotte’s godparents will be revealed when the royal baby is christened on Sunday, July 5, at the church of St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham, with fewer than 30 guests.
Several thousand members of the public are expected to take up Prince William and Kate Middleton’s invitation to share in the day by standing in a paddock outside the churchyard.
They will have the opportunity to see Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince George and Princess Charlotte together in public for the first time.
Princess Charlotte will wear the same christening gown her brother wore when he was baptized in October 2013 – a replica of the gown that Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter wore for her christening in 1841.
Many Brits and the media have been betting Kate Middleton’s sister, Pippa Middleton, and Prince William’s brother, Prince Harry, will be among the half-dozen godparents likely to be announced on the day of ceremony.
Pippa Middleton will be there but not Prince Harry who is in Africa on a conservation mission.
The London Telegraph reported that 30-year-old Prince Harry had been one of the favorites to be chosen as a godparent, having missed out on fulfilling the role for his first-born nephew, but after learning he would not be needed for the ceremony he embarked on a three-month trip to Africa at the end of June.
Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana was born May 2. She is the second child of Prince William and Kate Middleton and the younger sister to Prince George, who turns 2 this month. She is also the fifth great-grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh. Princess Charlotte is fourth-in-line to the throne of the world’s most famous monarchy.
The ceremony will be conducted by the head of the Church of England, Archbishop of Canterbury, The Most Reverend Justin Welby.
Afterward, the party will return to Sandringham House for tea with the Queen, plus the assembling for the official christening portrait by celebrity portrait photographer Mario Testino.
Kate Middleton and Prince William’s new baby daughter has been visited by family members at Kensington Palace.
Prince Charles and his wife Camilla spent more than an hour with their new granddaughter.
Kate’s parents, Michael and Carole Middleton, and her sister Pippa also met the princess.
The princess, who is fourth in line to the throne, was delivered at 08:34 BST on May 2nd at St Mary’s Hospital in London, and weighed 8lbs 3oz (3.7kg).
Prince William and Kate Middleton will spend the next few days at Kensington Palace; afterwards they are expected to travel to their country home Anmer Hall on the Queen’s Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
A Kensington Palace spokesman said: “The duke and duchess are hugely grateful for the messages of congratulations they have received from people all over the world. It means a great deal to them that so many people have celebrated the arrival of their new daughter.
“Their Royal Highnesses were visited by the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, Mr. and Mrs. Middleton, and Pippa Middleton.”
Prince Harry, who narrowly missed the princess’s birth after returning to Australia to finish his secondment to the country’s military, said she was “absolutely beautiful” and he could not wait to meet her.
The name of the newborn princess – sister to Prince George – will not be announced on Sunday, May 3rd.
Bookmakers say Charlotte and Alice have emerged as the favorite names for the princess, followed by Olivia, Victoria and Elizabeth.
Kate Middleton’s sister, Pippa, gave her first ever sit-down TV interview with NBC’s morning program Today Show.
In extracts of Matt Lauer’s interview, Pippa Middleton talks about the bridesmaid dress that made her a household name.
The Duchess of Cambridge’s sister has said she considered the Royal Wedding to be a family event and her now-famous dress an “insignificant” part of the proceedings.
Pippa Middleton gave her first ever sit-down TV interview with Today Show’s Matt Lauer (photo NBC)
Pippa Middleton, 30, said the experience of Prince William and her sister’s wedding had been “surreal” and attention focused on her derrière both flattering and embarrassing.
“It was completely unexpected,” Pippa Middleton said of the attention her gown received.
“You know, I think the plan was not really for it to be a significant dress. Really just to sort of blend in with the train.”
Speaking to Today Show’s host Matt Lauer, Pippa Middleton said: “I suppose it’s flattering,” although she admitted she also found it “embarrassing, definitely” because “it wasn’t planned”.
Pippa Middleton is part of the Britain team racing the 3,000 miles across the US in a charity bike race.
Pippa and James Middleton are part of the Britain team racing the 3,000 miles across the US in a charity bike race
Kate Middleton’s sister is participating in the Race Across America, decked out in spandex biking gear with the British flag printed on the front.
Her bearded brother James Middleton will be racing on her team. Pippa and James Middleton were photographed training for the grueling task on Saturday, June 14.
Pippa’s backside, which became famous after she served as the maid of honor at her sister’s 2011 wedding, was on display in her tight biker shorts.
The bike race has been going on for 32 years and in that time, fewer than than 200 individuals have successfully completed the event.
Prince George’s christening will “be a private and intimate family event”, it was revealed this week.
Meanwhile, Buckingham Palace representatives have informed us that while “a guest list will be released nearer the time” of the ceremony, it has been confirmed that Princess Anne and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, will not be there.
The Countess of Wessex is scheduled to open the new Girlguiding Residential Lodge in Somerset before attending a Festival Concert at the Cathedral Church of St. Peter in Exeter, Devon, according to the Palace. She will then visit the NSPCC Service Centre in Bristol and finally open the Healing Foundation Cleft Gene Bank and Cohort Study, also in Bristol.
Prince George’s christening will be a private and intimate family event
Princess Anne will be in Canada on that day, where she will visit the Canadian Forces Medical Services Training Centre.
A royal source revealed to E! News about the christening: “William and Kate are going to do things differently, and actually, their families are respectful of that. This won’t be a case of a big rift. Christenings are not state occasions. They’re private affairs and can be as big or intimate as the parents desire.”
It was on September 27 that the official announcement was made about the christening, which will take place at The Chapel Royal, St. James’s Palace.
While it remains to be seen who will wind up being Prince George’s six godparents, The Sun did report in August that Prince William and Kate Middleton have asked good friend Guy Pelly to be one of the godfathers.
Several other names have been thrown around as possible contenders including Prince William’s longtime pal Thomas van Straubenzee, Kate Middleton’s friend Alicia Fox-Pitt and, of course, Prince George’s aunt and uncle, Pippa Middleton and Prince Harry.
Prince George christening ceremony will be held on October 23 at the Chapel Royal.
Prince William and Kate Middleton’s son, born in July and third in line to the British throne will be christened by The Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Reverend Justin Welby, in a private service, with further details announced at a later date, the Kensington Palace said.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge broke with tradition in choosing the Chapel Royal over Buckingham Palace, where Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Prince William all were christened. The last member of the Royal family to be christened at St. James was Princess Beatrice in 1988.
Prince Harry and Pippa Middleton are even-money favorites for becoming Pince George’s godparents
Odds-makers in Britain are already hot to handicap favorites to become godparents to Prince George.
According to Ladbrokes, Prince Harry and Pippa Middleton are even-money favorites for the honors. They are followed by James Meade, Prince William’s closest chum, at 2-1, and Hannah Gillingham, Kate Middleton’s Marlborough college pal, at 3-1.
Others possibly in the running include pal Thomas van Straubenzee at 4-1 odds and sibling James Middleton at 5-1.
Longshots are David Beckham at 50-1, with his wife Victoria Beckham as godmother lagging far back at 500-1.
There’s a world of difference between Delia Smith and Pippa Middleton when it comes to tips about food, but that hasn’t stopped Waitrose ditching the former and giving the latter her own column in its magazine.
Pippa’s Friday Night Feasts will advise on the best meals to start the weekend off with friends.
“It will be an exciting opportunity to share my own passion and enthusiasm for food and entertaining,” said Pippa Middleton, 29.
A picture of a beaming Pippa Middleton features on the front cover of the latest edition of the Waitrose Kitchen magazine.
She said: “I’m delighted to be writing for Waitrose Kitchen, a magazine that’s always been a source of inspiration to me.”
Editor William Sitwell said his latest signing would be “an excellent contributor…bringing with her a wealth of experience of entertaining”.
He added: “Readers will love her relaxed and easy entertaining ideas which will help with the preparation for all sorts of occasions.”
The company refused to issue a copy of the first column due out on March 28.
However, if Pippa Middleton’s book Celebrate is anything to go by readers can expect such illuminating advice as having a bonfire on Bonfire Night and serving pumpkin soup in a hollowed-out pumpkin at Halloween.
The decision by Waitrose to drop Delia Smith earlier this year was met with uproar among many of its customers, who have relied on her cooking know-how for decades.
Pippa Middleton gets food column in Waitrose Kitchen magazine
The deal with Waitrose follows further evidence of how the Middletons appear to be cashing in on their association with the Royal Family.
In December, only weeks after the announcement that the Duchess of Cambridge is expecting her first child, the Middletons’ Party Pieces website presented a range of baby goods.
The “Little Prince” and “Little Princess” party packs are described as suitable for American-style baby showers.
Last year, the website set up by Pippa and Kate Middleton’s mother Carole in 1987, offered paraphernalia themed around the Royal Wedding and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
Shoppers will have to pay £1.20 ($1.9) a month for a copy of the Waitrose magazine if they want to discover Pippa Middelton’s advice on feasting, although it is free to those with Waitrose and John Lewis cards.
The column on the magazine appears to be part of a PR strategy to create a Pippa Middleton brand.
She has started using her name and photograph to promote the products sold on the Party Pieces website.
This significant move to boost Pippa Middleton’s own profile occurred in between her holidaying in Mustique with stockbroker Nico Jackson, 35, and then taking off on a skiing trip with him in Zermatt.
Rather than sharing a designer bag named after Pippa herself, Carole Middleton and her daughter Pippa both have their own version of Modalu handbag.
And either they aren’t ashamed to commit the fashion faux pas of looking identical – or didn’t liaise on how the other was accessorizing before leaving the house – as they both stepped out together carrying their Modalu bags today.
Carole and Pippa Middleton carried black versions of the “Pippa Grab” with gold detailing as they visited the National Portrait Gallery to see the unveiling of the official portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge.
The only difference was that Pippa Middleton’s bag had a mock crocodile skin effect. The bag is available to buy in various colors at a cost of £195 ($310) from Modalu’s website and retailers including John Lewis. A smaller version is also available for £169 ($270).
Rather than sharing a designer bag named after Pippa herself, Carole Middleton and her daughter Pippa both have their own version of Modalu handbag
Pippa Middleton, 29, was first seen carrying a grey style of the bag by the then little-known designers Modalu the day after the Royal Wedding. The brand were keen to capitalize on the new-found fame of Kate Middleton’ sibling, who was propelled into the spotlight thanks to her tightly-fitted bridesmaid gown, and re-issued the bag as the “Pippa”.
Today, Pippa Middleton teamed the bag with her outfit choice of a purple wrap coat and black Russell and Bromley boots. Meanwhile, Carole Middleton, 57, wore a black skirt and top under a blue jacket and kept out the chill with a black scarf.
Pippa Middleton and Prince Harry played a key role when Kate and William walked down the aisle and now they are favorite to become godparents to royal couple’s child.
It is no secret the siblings are two of the most important people in the young couple’s life and if the royal tradition of appointing the best man and maid of honor from their wedding is observed they will definitely be offered the roles.
Joe Little, Managing Editor of the Majesty royal magazine, said his money would be on the siblings: “I think Harry and Pippa are very likely.
“As you know most people have just one or two godparents. But in royal circles you have a lot more, certainly William had quite a team.
“I rather think they won’t have quite so many – perhaps four. Harry would take care of the royal connection and Pippa would take care of the Middleton side.
“There are few options amongst their close friends. The van Cutsems and the van Straubenzees certainly.”
Thomas van Straubenzee has been one of the Prince’s closest friends since they first met at Ludgrove Prep School.
Tom, also known as “Van”, accompanied the Prince on his first official tour to New Zealand and William and Prince Harry are patrons of a memorial fund dedicated to his brother Henry, who was killed in a car crash in 2002.
Edward, Hugh, Nicholas and William van Cutsem are close family friends from Norfolk who have known the Prince since childhood.
Three-year-old Grace van Cutsem – who almost stole the show at the Royal Wedding when she was pictured clapping her hands over her ears during a noisy RAF fly past – is William’s god-daughter and the son of Rose Astor and Hugh Van Cutsem, a friend of William and Harry.
Joe Little added: “William is a godfather of several children, one of whom was Grace van Custem, the little bridesmaid covering her ears on the balcony on their wedding day.
“Quite possibly the favor will be returned to them.
“I would say Harry and Pippa, a Van Cutsem, and maybe one of Kate’s close chums from school and that might be it.
“In the past there have been a shed load more godparents, both royal and non royal, but I don’t think they will want do things on such a grand scale. That was then and this is now.
“Whoever it is it would have been given careful consideration. It would be a huge honor to be the godparent of a future King or Queen.”
Pippa Middleton and Prince Harry played a key role when Kate and William walked down the aisle and now they are favorite to become godparents to royal couple’s child
Bookmakers are already offering odds on who will take on the important role with Pippa Middleton and Prince Harry being odds on favorites.
The couple’s first child will push Prince Harry into fourth place in the line of succession to the throne – even if they have a girl.
Prince William and Kate Middleton’s child would move into third place, become more important than Harry and not be subject to the centuries-old law of primogeniture, which puts male heirs ahead of women.
He or she will leapfrog Harry by being be the first born of first-in-line Prince Charles’s first son.
The baby will be third in line to the throne regardless of gender after Prime Minister David Cameron agreed a deal with other Commonwealth countries to change the rules on the royal line of succession which means male heirs will no longer be given priority.
This means that in the 15 other countries where the Queen is head of state the rules must be changed.
It had been feared there could be a constitutional crisis if the Royal couple had a baby girl before the law was changed.
But the announcement that the Duchess of Cambridge is expecting the couple’s first child – third in line to the throne – has come after the deal was agreed.
In October 2011, David Cameron announced that the 16 Commonwealth countries where the Queen is head of state had agreed to give female royals the same rights of succession as their brothers.
“Put simply, if the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were to have a little girl, that girl would one day be our queen,” David Cameron said.
The changes mean that, for all descendants of the Prince of Wales, younger sons will no longer take precedence over an elder daughter in the line of succession.
Members of the Royal Family who marry a Roman Catholic will also in future be able to succeed to the Crown.
And an ancient and unused rule saying descendants of George II are supposed to gain the consent of the monarch to marry will only apply to the first six people in the line of succession.
The law was brought in following the Glorious Revolution – when a Dutch invasion helped overthrow a Papist king – so that a Catholic could never sit on our throne again.
It also means that the Princess Royal, the Queen’s second born, is just tenth in line to the throne behind her younger brothers Andrew (fourth) and Edward (seventh).
The 15 other countries where Elizabeth II is queen are Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Soloman Islands, Tuvalu, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and St Kitts and Nevis.
The Commonwealth leaders also agreed to overturn the 1701 Act of Settlement, which means that only the Protestant heirs of the Electress Sophia of Hanover, granddaughter of James I, can become king or queen.
The Queen hailed the deal on changing the rules as the 53 Commonwealth countries met last year, saying she wanted the theme of allowing women to play a full part to last for years.
She said: “The theme this year is Women As Agents of Change.
“It reminds us of the potential in our societies that is yet to be fully unlocked and it encourages us to find ways to allow all girls and women to play their full part.
“We must continue to strive in our own countries and across the Commonwealth together to promote that theme in a lasting way beyond this year.”
Her comments were taken as a sign that the Queen approves of the reform.
Pippa Middleton is the younger sister of the Duchess of Cambridge whose derriere became the surprise star of last year’s Royal Wedding.
Now – in her new party-planning book Celebrate. A Year of Festivities for Family and Friends – Pippa Middleton has acknowledged the “startling” reality that she has achieved worldwide fame because Kate married Prince William and because of the unexpected focus on her bottom.
Pippa Middleton, 29, admits: “It is a bit startling to achieve global recognition before the age of 30 on account of your sister, your brother-in-law and your bottom.
“One day I might be able to make sense of this. In the meantime I think it’s fair to say that it has its upside and its downside.
“I certainly have opportunities many can only dream of – but in most ways I’m a typical girl in her 20s trying to forge a career and represent herself in what can sometimes seem rather strange circumstances.
“I am by nature an optimist so I tend to concentrate on the advantages.
“One of the most attractive has been the chance to publish [this book] Celebrate.”
Celebrate: A Year Of British Festivities For Families And Friends is party-planner Pippa Middleton’s guide to home entertaining and goes on sale at the end of this month.
In Celebrate, Pippa Middleton acknowledges the effect her sister the Duchess of Cambridge’s fame will have on sales, saying: “I know many of you will pick up the book out of nothing more than curiosity.
“[But] I can assure you that it feels even stranger to me than it probably does to you to have seen so much written about me when I have done so little to paint a picture of myself.
“This is my first chance to do that and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.
“The book is designed to be a comprehensive guide to home entertaining, based on my experience in my family’s business Party Pieces and work for London-based events company Table Talk.”
Pippa Middleton party planning book, Celebrate A Year of Festivities for Family and Friends
Last year it was revealed that Pippa Middleton – whose previous literary experience includes writing the online newsletter Party Times for the family’s business – had secured an almost unprecedented £400,000 ($620,000) deal for the book with publisher Michael Joseph.
Pippa Middleton’s recipes are accompanied by glossy pictures of the author along with a selection of anecdotes recalling her childhood growing up with Kate in Bucklebury, Berkshire.
Talking about Bonfire Night, Pippa Middleton says: “The unique sights, sounds, smells and tastes make this festival a particularly evocative one.
“I remember the noise of the bells ringing at school as the effigy of Guy Fawkes we’d prepared earlier was carried out on a canvas stretcher, hoisted on to the huge bonfire and set alight.
“Then the revelry would begin.
“My school friends and I would all have sparklers we passed around, lighting one from another.”
Pippa Middleton also reminisces about playing conkers at school: “We all used to get really competitive. The trick was to paint clear nail varnish on the conkers to make them very tough and less likely to break – outrageous cheating of course!”
After apologizing to Adele for calling her fat, Karl Lagerfeld has now found fault with the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister, Pippa Middleton.
Karl Lagerfeld, 78, was commenting on Pippa Middleton’s style, when he admitted that he admired only the rear view of her.
According to The Sun, the Chanel designer said: “Kate Middleton has a nice silhouette and she is the right girl for that boy.
“I like that kind of woman, I like romantic beauties.”
“On the other hand, her sister struggles,” Karl Lagerfeld continued.
“I don’t like the sister’s face. She should only show her back.”
Karl Lagerfeld was commenting on Pippa Middleton's style, when he admitted that he admired only the rear view of her
No doubt Pippa Middleton’s fans, who have dubbed the 28-year-old “Her Royal Hotness”, will not be best pleased.
It is not the first time Karl Lagerfeld has voiced his opinion on the Middleton sisters.
At the launch of his pop-up beauty boutique in London’s Covent Garden last week, the designer was full of compliments for Kate – even defending her style against critics who might deem it dull.
Karl Lagerfeld said: “She knows pretty well what to wear and what to do. She has a divine silhouette so she can wear anything.
“She has a sense of what’s right for the moment because you can not dress like a mad woman in those situations.”
While he slammed Pippa Middleton in yesterday’s interview, Karl Lagerfeld did have high praise for Victoria Beckham, who he recently hosted for a shoot in his couture atelier in Paris.
“That body, after four children,” he exclaimed.
“There are not so many who have a body like that. She is very disciplined.”
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