Here are photos of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at the 2020 BAFTAs. Prince William celebrated a decade of his BAFTA presidency this year, and Kate decided to “on theme” for a change this year too. The theme of this year’s BAFTAs was sustainability/sustainable fashion. Meaning, people should either recycle a look from their closet or buy a piece made from sustainable or recycled fabric. Kate chose to go with an old look which has been in her closet for nearly eight years: this gold & cream custom McQueen which she first wore in 2012, during the Cambridges’ Asian tour. Of all the evening gowns in her closet/archives, she chooses this one? I mean, it’s nice to see this dress again (I had forgotten about it), but does this scream “BAFTAs”? Sometimes I like to see how clothes move, and here’s a video of Will & Kate’s arrival on the BAFTA red carpet:
The dress moves very well, don’t you think? Very floaty and light. From the waist down, I don’t have any issue with this gown. I do think that the built-in padding on the bust looks a bit absurd though. Oh well!
Kate accessorized with a sparkly Anya Hindmarch clutch, sparkly Jimmy Choo heels and a necklace and earrings from Van Cleef & Arpels. Which is interesting – she didn’t borrow anything from the Royal Collection, so the earrings & necklace were either borrowed or already in her own private collection. They are not right for this dress.
Photos courtesy of Getty and Backgrid.
I thought the Alhambra pieces she is wearing were perfect with this dress. She styled her look better this time than in 2012.
I thought this looked like a costume party wife of Henry the VIII dress
It is utterly without merit
The edging around and across the bust, the shoulders and the arms are particularly heinous
Not an attractive dress and did not fit her all that well.
I think the opposite, her dress is already very loaded. If you have a dress very loaded with details and others patterns, you have to be simple with the accessories. Her necklace, the earklace pillows, the glitter shoes brought even more information to her outfit.
And this dress don’t flatter her figure, then makeup and hair do nothing for her. I would have liked her to recycle one of is two dresses: – https://www.myfashionlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/kate-middleton-jenny-packham.jpg
– https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcSUlYbDqroQ4kQt1dGo_CTnlU3GjQcZo94LvZ5IBEutZBB2FjG3
I agree in the Jenny Packman dress. That would have been a much better choice. With this dress, she should have chosen little to no jewelry, maybe just earrings, but skip that necklace/earrings choice, yuck!
How very, very, funny….I didn’t hear anyone screaming at the almost $10,000 cost of the jewelry, or the Jimmy Choo shoes, or new clutch, did you?
I did go onto the Fail and say just that, and I was notified there were “multiple complaints” about my reply and they were “exercising their discretion to remove it”. Funnily enough, EVERY SINGLE TIME I’ve ventured in to point out a hypocrisy at the Lamebridges and support H&M, they “exercise their discretion to remove it” lol.
I think it’s great that you ruffled so many feathers. That ‘s hilarious.
The necklace was $11,600US on the Van Cleef and Arpels website. I couldn’t find a price for the matching earrings.
She has so many jewels and clutches that she could have reused for this. Sustainability applies to more than just the gown.
I mostly like the dress, even though the top half does like quite dated now. It’s not terrible but I bet she had better dresses.
@Nahema – agreed. I don’t hate this dress, never did, but if she was going to do a repeat she has much better options IMO
I think she looked really nice in the dress, her hair up is very nice.
She looks lovely! Can you add a link to when she first wore it? I am curious about how she styled it the first time.
The dress is Alexander McQueen and Kate wore it in 2012. If you google it you find loads of pics / side by sides.
Also, the jewellery is fine for this dress? Overall it’s a very princessy look…I really like how she did her hair, however.
I love mother of pearl, but it photographs terribly. Looks too silver here to go with the dress. I wouldn’t even min the matchy-matchiness of the motifs if she’d gotten this set in a better color. (side note – wondering if this is borrowed from/a gift from Camilla – she has a few different pieces from this collection that she wears not infrequently, and it wouldn’t surprise me if she had more we haven’t see publicly)
You’re right that mother of pearl photographs terribly, I had no idea it was MoP until you mentioned it! Thought it was ‘just’ solid silver or platinum.
It’s interesting to me that Camilla owns this set in malachite, some diamond earrings, and potentially these too. I’ve never considered buying jewelry the same way I might buy a few pairs of comfortable heels.
I don’t think Kate needs to borrow anything from Camilla. She has a lot of money to spend.
I agree about the color a jewel tone would’ve looked better for this dress and the way it’s cut IMO
It’s so absurd that the whole hall has to stand up for them when they enter. Most of the people in the hall are probably thrice as accomplished as them. This whole institution is absurd and outdated. Why do they still have it?
Agreed. We know there’s no royal blood, just privileged people who lucked out. On top of privilege, they get applause for existing? No wonder William is the way he is.
Was thinking the same thing. Why does accomplished, hard working, hustling like there’s no tomorrow to make a living in the industry they love have to bow to mediocre, dolittle and vapid ?
This is what you get when you have the Monarchy. I bet in Spain or other countries with a Royal family they do the same.
Agreed! And what was that music? Why not just play God Save the Queen in the background? (Ok maybe it’s a dumb question but I am seriously asking lol)
It’s a ridiculous institution for sure. But I mean… we’ll stand for a bride when she walks in too – it’s just one of those weird leftover traditions that doesn’t make a ton of sense in the real world.
Yes it’s absurd. But then so is standing for the National Anthem (and criticizing those that don’t)
They aren’t standing up for Will and Kate. They are standing up for Great Britain, of which the Royal Family is a living embodiment.
In the same way, people stand up for the POTUS, not Trump.
You respect the country, even if you hate the man
And that’s the benefit of Royalty. A head of state that no one hates.
@caroline I damn sure don’t stand up for trump! And I damn sure would not be standing up for these racist mongers, strutting in like they’re actually superior than people. I’m sure their shite smells twice as bad as mine! Ugh
Tell it Val!
I’d never stand up for Trump…EVER.
The Royal family doesn’t have a constitutional role outside of the actual monarch, so standing up for the guy who gets the job when 2 people die ahead of him is a bit silly.
I grew up in England. It’s ingrained. I remember being in grammar school, and we stood up when a teacher entered the room. It didn’t matter which teacher or which room.
I moved to the USA in 6th grade and stood up when the teacher walked in and everyone stared at me and I was yelled at to sit down.
+1 This is (or was) a thing at school in at least two other Commonwealth countries.
Standing for people went out with the Ark.
I’m British and I’ve never stood for anyone in my life.
Recently retired from teaching, I had students stand upon my entrance to the classroom. Private school, to be sure.
I love the dress.
And recycling gowns it’s one thing she does constantly.
I predicted she was going to recycle.
My favorite gown is the one she wore when she and “Rose Who” hosted the EACH charity benefit at Houghton Hall. I think this gown is by Jenny Packham.
I do like that gown. She worn it at least three times?
She probably has spent $$$$ lavishly on her gowns. I think her “economizing” is rather fake and patronizing.
“And recycling gowns it’s one thing she does constantly.”
😂 No she doesn’t.
whoops wrong reply
she rarely “recycles”.
She started re-wearing clothes a lot last year, before that, not so much…anyways, I hope she continues to “recycle” stuff…
She rewore a dress because it was part of the theme.
Kate had a lot of rewears in 2018 because her wardrobe cost was going to be compared to Meghan. Otherwise she doesn’t do rewears that often.
I don’t love this look. She just looked matronly to me. The squareness of the line around the bust paired with the severe hair was harsh.
Same, it just looks dowdy to me. Although I like her hair up.
The hair is matronly. I’d like to see her with a real updo, where it sits up higher on her head. It could lift everything up a bit. This hairstyle pulls everything down, like a frowny-face for the hair.
And I HAAAAAAAATE this dress and was super disappointed to see it. It looks like she’s wearing a sports bra. The bottom part is so beautiful, if it didn’t have the stupid sports bra in a glitter frame thing going on, it could’ve been pretty. It looked nice from the back. It also looks like she’s got some little shoulder pads in.
Someone else wondered about the idea of wearing an “ethnic inspired” gown (that’s actually made by a western designer), that she wore on tour in Asia, and if it’s her way of trying to match her dress to the idea that the BAFTAs need to be less racist and more diverse. Was the gown highlighting how she likes and “cares about” diversity, POC, “ethnic stuff”? I don’t know if she thought about it like that or not, and if she did think about it, I don’t know if wearing a vaguely South Asian inspired McQueen gown was an effective way to send that message.
My theory is the hair extensions limit the placement of her updos.
Someone mentioned boob harness in another post and I can’t unsee it.
Folks, I’M matronly, and I’d give my eyeteeth to look like this. The settled matrons in your neighborhood must be rockin’!
I’m not a fan of VCA jewelry, but the rest of the look is nice enough. Kate can veer towards matronly. This dress could have been updated by removing the sleeves and still fit the theme while looking a bit more modern.
The dress itself is lovely but as usual she and her stylist can’t accessorise for sh!t. The hair was nice but again the make up was bad, the panda eyes age her and maybe a pop of colour with a brighter lipstick could have added something to the look.
Given the embroidery of the dress and her accesories have a similar shape, I assume this was a case of Kate “dressing on theme” and not so much her stylist doing.
I loved this dress the first time she wore it, but I’m just not feeling it now.
IMO she looked better the first time because she had a nice tan which went really well with the gold in the dress.
Yes, the tan definitely helped put the focus on the warm gold and not the cold white.
I like the new sleeves but it’s a very weird dress to wear that jewelry with.
I love how regal gold on ivory looks. However, she is skin and bones.
And her posture–girl has got to stand up straight! At this weight, she is a candidate for early osteoporosis. If she walked regally, it would improve so much.
This, plus a million. For the love of God, stand up straight!
Girl got some dry ass elbows is all I took from the rear pics of this. I hate this dress. And I REALLY hate the updos with the Snooki poufs.
to me the dress looks cheap and is hideous. something i can but with 50 bucks here.
I liked the sleeves better the first time she wore it. The more structured look with the lining doesn’t do it for me. The jewelry is outrageously overpriced. It’s pretty, but not $15,000 pretty.
The jewelry looks cheap. It looks plastic. I know it’s not but it looks like plastic to me. I also think she chose the jewelry because she was going for an “ethnic” theme.
This looks like a Disney princess dress and my guess is Alexander McQueen would hate it. She usually buys new expensive accessories when she wears an outfit for the second time.
Exactly! To make up for rewearing this she consoled herself with $15000 in jewelry – plus new clutch and shoes. I just wish all the sheeple would wake up and see her for the hypocrite she is.
The coloring is pretty, I also don’t care for the bust/neckline or the jewelry but I’m just glad she stuck with the theme. I think it’ll be some time before she tops her 2019 BAFTA dress.
I agree. Her look last year was probably the greatest she had ever looked.
+1, best look ever.
Looking at those close up pics of Kate and holy BOTOX!
The whole thing is a no for me: dress, makeup, hair, jewelry. Nothing works.
Same.
I like the dress. I liked it the first time she wore it too. I thought she looked great.
I like the dress. She looks lovely.
Another quite entrance for the Cambridge’s. The music was to mask the uncomfortable silence. Kate dress looked dated and she looks 50. William looks like an ass. Boring middle age couple.
I think Kate looks properly regal, and I wish I could fit into one of my dresses from 2012.
I thought it was just ok; not horrid. It flowed nicely but I don’t love the gold applique. Hair up was better. Eye makeup still too heavy and aging.
2 things of note- her posture is horrible. The mom in me would be in her ear constantly – shoulders back. Shoulders back. One of my kids had scoliosis so I’m diligent with the posture correction for everyone in the family
The other was the uncomfortable silence as they walked in.
I’m ignoring his speech because it was an embarrassment.
I’ve read that she does a lot of pilates-based exercise – thought that would help with posture but apparently not in her case.
I thought Kate looked stunning. And they are not the ones to blame for royal protocol. They probably hate it as much as we do.
They might hate practicing royal protocol, but they love receiving it.
There is no law requiring that people stand up for the entrance of the heir to the heir. So if it’s happening it’s because William and Kate have zero issues with everyone standing for them.
I like that dress, it was a great choice. But I don’t like the jewelry. Oh well.
I think this is one of her ugliest dresses- it started out with good potential, but ended up looking it like the top/bodice was cut wrong, and somebody tried to fill it in with different material that doesn’t even match the rest of it. The earring/necklace shape is too matchy-matchy to the print on the dress. The dress looks better now with the solid sleeves than with sheer sleeves, and she fills out the dress better than the last time she wore it. She always looks so pretty with her hair up, too.
Awful and unflattering, especially the top half of the dress. Between this and the drab updo, she looked rather matronly. William’s suit looked cheap and tacky, though I’m sure its cost was astronomical.
Between the jokes from Pitt and Wilson (they could barely even fake grin for the second one), getting upstaged by Joaquin’s specula on racism, and having disinterested people leave during William’s paltry speech, they seemed to have a rough time last night. Oh well.
I loved the entire look.
Don’t really like the dress but kudos to kate for actually wearing something sustainable. No one else did, even though that was the theme, and the vast majority of people there have been very outspoken about being eco friendly.
I absolutely hated this dress the first time she wore it, and I still hate it now. I think I described it as “slutty Disney Princess” when I first saw it. So weird to outline/pad the chest, totally throws off the proportions of the dress. Also, when she first wore it, it was at a formal dinner in a very conservative country where all the other women were very covered up. I thought it was offensive of her to wear such a low cut gown in that environment. While it’s not inappropriate on a red carpet, I guess my former distaste for the low cut lingers. But mostly, I think it’s just weird and ugly.
Kate looks incredible. She is so elegant and poised.
I didn’t like it if I’m going to be honest. The embellishments seem very heavy and they’re exaggerated by the jewellery
That dress was ugly the first time she wore it and it’s ugly now. It’s so matronly and dated. I dont know why Kate insists on dressing like someone 30 years old than her would.
Totally agree. This dress is horrible. The padded cups and the gold braid under the bust are awful. That’s the design detail I loathe. Changing the sleeves and adding a slight shoulder pad are an improvement, but the real problem is in the bust area. I like the jewelry, but not with the dress. The bag and shoes are good from what I can see of them. The hairstyle is terrible as is her makeup. My god the makeup looks horrid!!! Retire this dress, Kate, it’s a loser.
Exactly…matronly is always the word that comes to my mind with her style. Matronly hair as well. Some are happy the hair is up but my god, this updo does not belong in the 21st century (although I’m not sure if it ever belonged).
Right? Always matronly, never quite right. I dislike most everything she wears and/or how she styles it so I don’t know why I’m always so disappointed when I see it. Why do I keep expecting something new, fresh, exciting, or just not horrible from her?
But when you’re known only for your clothes, to the point where your patronages are literally failing due to lack of funding, can you at least wear good clothes?
Maybe she could auction this dress off and donate it to her charity that is failing.
Indeed and yet still nothing from her about that.
She looks amazingly good.
Kate looks bland. This dress looks like a medieval Anne Boleyn dress. the sleeves should have been long or it should be sleeveless. Such a weird cut
Well that’s your opinion, not shared by the majority of British people.
The majority of the British people don’t care about Kate and her dresses.
Think this comment sums the mindset of the typical racist “Megxit” supporter, quite beyond William’s overwhelming hypocrisy-
“If you want to squander the current affection of Brits toward yourself and your wife, William, and join your brother in exile, keep playing the pc tune!”
The ‘current affection ‘ from brits just for being racist towards his SIL. Even the Cambridge’s stans know what they are really like and that is exactly why they like them. Terrible 😔
Anyone else google side by sides of William when Kate last wore this dress? It’s not flattering how poorly he has aged. He was actually attractive the first time Kate wore this dress, then the Windsor genes hit him with their ugly stick.
I actually had the opposite reaction. I thought she still really looked like “her” in both the 2012/2020 pics! I didn’t see it as aging.
I thought she looked more fuller faced and not as thin in the 2012 pictures!
I think Kate has aged well (although the weight loss ages her). William looks like 20 years have passed.
What I find fascinating regardless of the dress whenever Kate attends a function like this even with all the movie stars she truly outshines them all. What is it? Her style, her look.? I just don’t get it.
I agree, and I also wonder why!
It’s sarcasm, because Kate is the most bland and not charismatic royal personality in the world. She not a great hardworking,she seems to had not develop any passions since 9 years as royal, and she have terrible sense of fashion.
No actually it was not. She really does just always look the best it’s like she shines. I sometimes think it’s because she doesn’t try hard. Like quite simple. Like I looked at the others last night and they all looked really sad beside her. To me it is so interesting.
She is very bland .
I thought it was sarcasm too. She’s so painfully basic. And she is seriously “try hard” all the time. Maybe she just looks like she shines next to her oatmeal husband.
@Therealme – I disagree. I think there are plenty of actors much prettier than Kate, although I think Kate is very pretty. Did you see Jodie or Maggie?
Also keep in mind these award shows are WORK for actors. If they win, that affects their jobs prospects. They are there to make connections. The Royals are playing.
JodieTurner Smith looked amazing last night. Kate looked ok but not spectacular. Only the sycophantic UK media pretends that she outshines movie stars.
Well I’m definitely not UK press and I disagree with you. I think she stands out somehow, as OP noted.
Kate’s UK vogue cover didn’t really sell well despite being an anniversary edition so I guess a lot of people just didn’t find her that compelling. If Kate wasn’t William’s wife she would not matter to the media at all and simply would be another thin English Rose with horsey teeth. There is nothing unique about her and she consistently dresses in ways that make her attributes look even duller.
I was distracted by the reemergence of a bust on her in this gown. The other day when she was in that white shirt and skinny jeans at the children’s center she looked completely flat-chested. Must be all smushed together here and padded up the wazoo.
Notice how William pays her no heed when they are walking in together? Up and down stairs but no offer of an arm for support. Wills just charges straight ahead with his sidekick tagging along. I am sure it burns Kate to see how solicitous Harry is of Meghan when they appear together and how connected they appear. Neither did Wills acknowledge Kate when they were laughing over Brad Pitt’s joke about naming his award Harry. She always turns to him (I believe out of her desire to share the moment with her husband and not for approval) but it’s like Wills goes out of his way to avoid glancing at her so as not to give Kate any ideas that he’s enjoying her company or is in any way aligned with her other than allowing her to do the Royal job she said she wanted.
Well, after two weeks of intermittent showing up do you think they are off on their vacation already?
William seems like a truly awful husband. Very cold and not gentlemanly at all considering he’s a prince. I’m not a huge fan of Kate but it must be very hard to deal with petty, unmanly, stoic William day in and day out. He barely acknowledges her at all in public
They’re relationship has all the charisma of a pair of department store mannequins. And William’s head is so far up his arse it’s a wonder he can’t see daylight.
Did you miss the photo with his hand on her back?
I just looked through a bunch of Getty photos and there was one where his hand was hovering over her back while she was looking back, almost as if he was trying to move her along or shift her attention to someone in front of them. Definitely not a touch of affection or anything remotely like that. And other than that ONE photo, there was not one single photograph where they were even looking at each other, far less touching each other. Seriously.
I think supposedly it was anathema for a royal couple to touch each other in public. I remember the rantings on some blogs and tabs that she “touched” Harry too much. Maybe William and Kate are showing themselves to the media as the “good ones” who don’t touch each other in public. Weird.
The funny thing is that they used to be affectionate every now and again in the first 2 years of their marriage. It would be one thing to simply refrain from PDA, but the issue with W&K is more than that: there’s a tension and discomfort that’s been on display for several years now. The way he often ignores her (and has unpleasant expressions on his face when she speaks), the way she’s looked eager for his acknowledgment and approval…it’s not normal, no matter how much their fans try to claim “protocol”.
There is a huge change in their public demeanour since the first few years and so many here pretend otherwise. They were never huge PDA people, but there was a level of attention that William gave to Kate that he simply fails to do now. Kate tries to be the same, but so often she gives him looks and he is not looking in her direction at all.
It would take a lot to top last year’s look. This is okay…it’s definitely not a wow moment.
I don’t like the dress but that’s not the problem. Keen Katie just doesn’t have IT. She’s bland and common so she makes the most elaborate, expensive dress brand and common too. It’s a skill.
Customising an already customized dress!!! Look at the sleeves. I wonder how much it cost her🙄
So the theme is suppose to be sustainable fashion, but this only ever comes up when referencing Katie Keen. Many stylists said yesterday that no one told them about the theme. 🤔
I must be a tasteless creature, because I think she looks lovely! I love the length of her necklace with the dress’s neckline, my only caveat being I’m not crazy about the white fitted bust.
Nikki* I’m with you. I love the dress, even the bustline. My only quibble is that I don’t think the color is all that flattering to her – it’s a little too subdued. I think Kate looks better in stronger colors, especially jewel tones. I would agree that the jewelry she’s wearing doesn’t quite go with the dress either, but it’s not that bad. Overall, I think Kate looks just fine. However, I will say that the one-shoulder white gown she wore last year (I think it was 2019) was just stunning.
Her makeup and hair look great. Her dress look like something Queen Elizabeth the First would wear. But she looks pretty minus the strange chest feature.
Agree – the jewelry is a mess. The Van Cleef earrings & necklace look so amateur hour. Not elegant enough. Too fussy and busy.
The jewelry with the dress is much too much – I think that if you are wearing an outflt with a lot of embellishment, you just keep the jewelry and other accessories understated, otherwise you end up looking like an over-decorated Christmas tree. Also, i find it hilarious that whenever a celebrity wears a gown more than once, she’s “recycling” it. By that measure, I’ve been recycling and re-recyling my clothes all of my life.
I liked this dress the first time she wore it but it’s not my favorite of hers, despite the dress’s intricate styling at the sleeves. I do respect she rewore it as a sign of the BAFTA’s dress code (which she didn’t adhere to when they all wore black and wore a dark green Jenny Packam dress identical to another blue one she already owned during the MeToo era). The necklace does not go with the dress either, it is too busy with the dress’s already intricate pattern. I think she should have left it with the earrings that I do like and a plain shoe, not the glitzy ones she wore.
I will say I prefer her hair UP with this dress, she wore it down last time and it looked pretty terrible. She also had the sleeves updated. If you go back to the 2012 pictures, the sleeves are more billowy and not as structured and they added lining to the sleeves (they were previously more sheer).
She’s over-decorated. No need for the necklace. Poor styling.
These two seem to be living in such a bubble. William really wants to be King. I’m sure Kate wants out sometimes but the lavish living is convenient, along with nannies, butlers, cooks.
That dress is a NIGHTMARE imo.
Kate looks so unglamorous coming down the stairs, trying to balance dress and high heels. If only her husband could lend a hand…oh wait.
The wide gold trim on the bodice kills it for me. Plus those gold embellishments? Too much with the top trimmed like that. I will say it is better than some of her other choices, at least it is not lace. I think the one-shoulder white dress she wore last year (?) was much prettier.
The dress was ugly the first time she wore it and it still is!
I know they re-worked the bodice and lined the sleeves which I guess works. Its possible that they also took it in because she looks thinner than she did in 2012.
Wow…the tone of most comments certainly puts the bitchy in Celebitchy. She’s a beautiful woman, looks lovely and appropriate and recycled her gown. As for her weight, perhaps she’s having a hard time keeping weight on after Louis. I did (the only time in my life) when I had three children under 6. As for her marriage, I don’t know many couples who’s interactions could stand up to this level of scrutiny, especially after 20 years together.
+1
Welcome to CB — I say that because clearly you are new around these parts. Any article involving the DoC is an invitation to go all in.
The dress is ugly. Looks like fancy dress for 7 y old.
Or something u will find in museum and say oh that doesn’t look so bad for 200 y old dress…
I love the dress but I don’t think the jewellery goes with it very well. I think heavy pieces in plain gold in a simple design would have been more suitable. However the shape of the pieces in the necklace are reminiscent of the shapes in the embroidery on the dress so maybe that was the inspiration. Not close enough for me though and therefore I think a contrast would have been preferable.
On reflection though I think the main issue is that the dress does not suit Kate. She doesn’t have the gravitas to carry bold designs in rich fabrics and her smile reminds me of a teenager playing dress-up. She looks her best in casual clothes but since her future will see her wearing an increasing number of fancy dresses and serious bling, I think she needs to cultivate a more appropriate demeanour and facial expressions to suit the costumes she needs to wear for her role and ditch the “Gee, Mum, look at me all gussied up” grins.
She’s giving us her best enduring princess look, but sorry she just looks dopey to me.
That dress is hideous. I can’t believe it’s McQueen. Eek. Points for “recycling” of course.
I hated the dress the first time and I hate it now. With her resources there’s no excuse for her sartorial game. Look at Mary of Denmark, Mette Marit of Norway or Letizia of Spain. They found their sartorial place. Why can’t Kate???
Scarlett Johanson was best dressed, Renne Zellweger too. Now I see why everyones says Kate looks dowdy.