Princess Kate wore Jenny Packham for the first state banquet of KC3’s reign

Here are photos from Tuesday night’s state banquet at Buckingham Palace, the first state dinner of King Charles III’s reign. Earlier in the day, Charles, Camilla and the new Waleses welcomed South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa to London.

For the state banquet, the Princess of Wales wore a Jenny Packham gown in white and silver. Kate paired the look with Princess Diana’s diamond-and-pearl earrings (the same ones Kate inappropriately wore for Remembrance Sunday) and Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot tiara. The tiara looks good with the earrings, and everything complements the dress. A solid look, which ends up showing off how wrong it was to pair those earrings with her severe Remembrance look. Kate’s diamond bracelet is also from the Royal Collection, and she wore all of her royal honors (the Royal Family order and the Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order star and sash).

Queen Camilla also had a tiara moment. Camilla recycled a blue lace Bruce Oldfield dress and then went full sapphire with her jewelry. She wore the Belgian Sapphire Tiara and the full sapphire suite (minus the matching earrings) of bracelet and necklace for the banquet. If she had worn the full suite, it would have been the King George VI Victorian Suite, given to Princess Elizabeth by her father in 1947. Also: the Countess of Wessex was there with her husband. Sophie, rather shockingly, looked nice.

If you’re curious about the menu, Charles served President Ramaphosa his choice of either a stuffed Windsor pheasant with quince compote or a grilled brill with wild mushrooms, truffles and sorrel sauce. This is different from QEII’s usual go-to main course for state dinners, some kind of lamb dish. The sides last night were “a selection of assorted Chantenay carrots, kale with roasted butternut squash, braised fondant potatoes and salad.” The dessert? “Iced Vanilla Parfait with Caramelised Apples or coffee and bite-sized confectionery.” There was also a huge assortment of wines on offer.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

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349 Responses to “Princess Kate wore Jenny Packham for the first state banquet of KC3’s reign”

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  1. Janey says:

    I’m so thrilled they managed to put the pesky cost of living crisis out of their keen minds for a well deserved evening off, to cover themselves in jewels and a new Jenny Packham dress (copying Meghan again with the cape – c’mon). I’m sure they’re hard at it again today…

    • Mjane says:

      Kate first wore a cape dress back in early 2018, so I think she can be absolved of copying. And she’s buying British!

      • SURE says:

        Given British tax payers (SG or DoC) are funding her lifestyle she should be buying British.

      • Becks1 says:

        If you’re referring to the McQueen she wore while pregnant with Louis, that had a completely different look than this one. This one is definitely a Meghan copy.

      • artemis says:

        the cape dress she wore when she was pregnant was different…

      • Lucy says:

        In this case, I agree. Sometimes the copying is glaringly obvious, and sometimes there are only so many styles and colours of dresses.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        Per Tatler: “The Princess of Wales had a Hollywood moment in a gown by Jenny Packham, her go-to designer for high profile occasions like the James Bond: No Time To Die premiere and the recent state visit to Jamaica. The gown is a bespoke version of the Elspeth gown from the designer’s 2021 bridal collection, with the royal wearing fewer embellishments and the original keyhole back replaced by solid fabric.”

        https://www.tatler.com/article/state-banquet-tiaras-everything-you-need-to-know

      • KATHLEEN WILLIAMS says:

        Not the same thing. This dress with the obvious slit up the arms feature was a very close copy of Meghan;s funeral cloak dress, The only thing missing were the gloves.

      • Haylie says:

        That curtain she wore over a dress while pregnant with Lennox Louis was not a cake dress. She’s a copier for sure.

        But she can’t copy Meghan’s presence or youthful face.

      • Yvette says:

        @KATHLEEN WILLIAMS … Oh my Deus, you’re right about the dress. I’m surprised the Tatler didn’t call Cate for her copy-keening of Meghan’s style. I don’t understand why Cate can’t create her own style. It seems every time Meghan looks drop dead gorgeous in an outfit, Cate decides to snack it as well.

        Cate, it ain’t the outfit that gives Meghan her steez.

    • Eurydice says:

      The gold Jenny Packham “Bond” dress also had a cape.

      • aftershocks says:

        LOL @MJane, Copykeen Khate will never be ‘absolved of copying.’ 🤣 All Khate knows how to do, especially regarding what she wears, is to copy her dead MIL, her own mother, her SIL Meghan, other royal women, the now dead QE-II, Will’s old flames, etc. Khate has no creativity nor style of her own.

        Let’s be quite honest too that Meg’s stylish, chic, and of-the-moment looks are always fashion-forward and influential. Meg has worn several notable and unique cape-style outfits, with the blue column cape gown in Fiji, and the red column cape gown for the 2020 concert during the goodbye royal events, standing out as most memorable.

        Since then, a number of prominent women and royal ladies, including CP Mary have worn very similar cape-style gowns. This is not to say that Meg created the column cape-style. She just wore it so well that it created singular and unforgettable moments, which have resonated and influenced the choices other fashionable ladies make.

        That said, Khate is not one of these fashionable ladies. She’s just a keen shopper and a keen copier. This is true ever moreso since Khate copped The Princess of Wails title.

      • BeanieBean says:

        Exactly, it’s a simplified version of the Bond dress. It looks less heavy, physically, to wear, but it still seems to weigh her down at the shoulders. I think the earrings and new brooch are worn well this time, as opposed to Remembrance Sunday. I wonder what it’s like to wear that tiara, though, with the dangling pearls. They look like they swing quite easily. As for Camilla, that tiara & etc. are hideously old-fashioned looking. Granted, tiaras are old-fashioned, but that one looks like it would benefit from a complete breakdown & re-design. It might have been considered lovely in the 50s, but we’re 70 years on.

      • dawnchild says:

        Camilla’s jewellery is Ug. Ly.
        Kate looks like she’s at a pageant, sparkles, sash, tiara…

      • KATHLEEN WILLIAMS says:

        Meghan wore a shorter navy version of her caped funeral dress in 2018, long before the Bond dress.

        https://www.pinterest.com/pin/561261172307154497/

      • Nic919 says:

        Meghan had a cape style dress in Fiji which is before anything similar to what kate wore in that style. And to those bringing up a totally different cape style that kate wore once, nice try. It’s sloppy and most posters are well aware of what kate has done prior to Meghan.

    • Cessily says:

      My first thought was “she chose to wear a white blinged out version of Meghan funeral dress and as much of Princess Diana’s jewelry as possible.” Besides for the post here I have seen nothing on this in the USA media, so good luck taking the States by storm.

      • Debbie says:

        I don’t know the name of the tiaras, but isn’t that the same tiara that Princess Diana wore on some official occasions? I think that someone here guessed that Kate would take this opportunity to wear it on their Bingo card. Oh, she is predictable, that one.

      • Nicolez says:

        The cape dress was not appropriate for a funeral.

      • Becks1 says:

        @Debbie – yes, that’s probably the royal tiara that is most associated with Diana. Apparently she didnt like it bc it was too heavy and gave her a headache so that’s why she still wore the Spencer tiara a lot after she got married.

        @Nicolez – how was it not appropriate? Because she showed her arms/elbows?

      • QuiteContrary says:

        Meghan’s cape dress was completely appropriate for a funeral — understated and classic.
        But some people criticize Meghan, the biracial duchess, for everything she does.

      • Jaded says:

        @Nicolez — you’re definitely showing up here with a Meghan axe to grind aren’t you. Meghan’s funeral outfit was perfection, it was Kate showing up blinged out that was inappropriate.

      • Lorelei says:

        @Cessily lmao, good point! The only other person I know of who’s aware of this and discussing it is another royal-watcher friend, like me (a Bostonian, no less). Kate is not going to take anything “by storm”

      • Giddy says:

        Kate reminds me of that character in the L’il Abner cartoons…Sparkle Plenty.

    • JustBitchy says:

      TBH Queen Maxima introduced the cape dress. Pretty sure with a Han Timaniou number.

    • NotSoSocialB says:

      MFT was how very much I like these caped dresses- the first of which we saw on Meghan!

    • Sugarhere says:

      My eyes are sore looking at such ugliness. Too gaudy. Too vane. Besides, I can’t help but notice that kate’s left eyebrow never moves from its towering position, which indicates that her plastic surgeon is an overenthusiastic right-handed practitioner.

      • MissF! says:

        For being married to a senior petulant pegger for over a decade, Waity is still remarkably Chavvy!!

    • Honey says:

      It’s also a copy and serious knock-off of Queen Maxima and her style.

      While Kate & her stylists mimic very closely whatever Meghan wears, they also closely watch and copy the styles of Queens Maxima, Letizia, Mary, and sometimes that of QP Victoria.

    • Dilettante says:

      Moving on from the discussion of Kate’s sartorial splendour, can you imagine sitting next to her at dinner, and having to make conversation with her? Tedious and painful doesn’t begin to describe it.

      • Lorelei says:

        Seriously. What on EARTH could Kate possibly have to say? They probably talked about the weather and then went back to eating their food.

    • Mrs.Krabapple says:

      I was actually picturing something like this for Kate to wear when she and William go to Boston to grovel for American approval. First, because Meghan showed how good a woman can look in a cape, but more so because Jackie Kennedy wore a white cape to her husband’s inauguration (but without the gaudy bling, of course). THIS dress is exactly what I pictured Kate would wear in Boston. So what happens now? Would she wear it again so soon, or did she actually buy MORE new clothes that she can wear in Boston?

    • Carmen says:

      That dress does nothing but make her look super skinny.

    • Josephine says:

      This. It’s just such a disgusting pagentry of how out of touch they are. It’s a really vile showing and the English people really need to revolt against paying for these useless, selfish morons who steal and grift.

    • Sketchy says:

      I thought the same thing, but honestly thank goodness she does copy Meghan. Remember some of her past formal wear? This is much better, although I don’t think it needs all the glitter on the shoulder. That makes it look cheaper somehow, which I am sure its not.

  2. Seaflower says:

    She’s been browsing her Meghan look book.

    The Sydney Morning Herald had a wonderful comment on the flashy shoulders…”Imagine Gwyneth Paltrow’s caped Tom Ford dress from the 2012 Oscars encountering a Bedazzler, and you’re close to the mark.”

    Camilla looked good.

    • susan says:

      Camilla has dropped a bunch of weight since being named QC

      • SAS says:

        After the “health retreat” in India? Hmm.

      • Cessily says:

        I still think she had her face lifted with a simple thread lift because she is a lot less wrinkled and did not have time to recover from a full facelift.

    • BayTampaBay says:

      Sophie Wessex looked VERY good too.

      • Lorelei says:

        @Susan, wow, you’re right- Camilla does look a lot thinner. Maybe she’s wearing multiple layers of Spanx, like I do sometimes (:

        @Bay, I thought Sophie looked pissed in the pics I saw of her. Maybe she’s humiliated to have to go on parade like that when the entire world knows how Charles just fcked over her husband

    • Well Wisher says:

      Camilla and Sophie wore colourful outfits and matching Jewelry.

      Theirs were a lovely appropriate look.

      Kate wore white, as the late Queen and monarch would, does this mean that Kate is the new monarch?

      What about protocols?

      • Lady D says:

        The DF yesterday was crowing about Camilla’s time in the sun at this dinner. Kate was to play a supporting role because KC3 wanted Camilla to shine in her first official role as QC. There were several articles about Camilla’s big role last night. Think Kate is in sh*t?

      • Nic919 says:

        I suspect kate showed up as the princess bride once she was told she would not be getting access to a new tiara for this event. Camilla and Sophie had colours and muted looks whereas Kate showed up like she got attacked by a bedazzler.

        We can expect to see certain segments of the rota throw in some shade especially about the fact that she wore a new dress for this event despite the cost of living crisis. Camilla the queen, wore a repeat. Kate, not the queen, did not.

      • Lorelei says:

        @Lady D, I’m lmao because the Fail *also* had an article about how Kate was the “center of attention” and “stole the show.” I specifically remember because I said to my friend, “Camilla’s going to love that”

        ETA @Nic “attacked by a bedazzler” OMG I’m crying

  3. Emmi says:

    They look great but what’s with these sashes and brooches/orders and such? It always ruins the dresses for me. Do you HAVE to wear that stuff for every state dinner etc?

    • Mjane says:

      Yes, it’s standard.

    • Becks1 says:

      Yeah, its so they can remember how important they are all to each other and how many family awards they’ve gotten and such. I think its dumb, but its traditional so….🤷‍♀️

      • Brassy Rebel says:

        The feminist in me can’t help noticing that the men wear medals and the women sport what look like brooches with pix of the late, lamented queen. No matter what else happens, they will always remind us that female royals are strictly second class.

      • Harper says:

        I cannot stand those sashes and royal orders! Color-wise, they completely undo any look you are going for. I think it’s crazy that they plop them on these expensive feminine gowns.

        Anyway, since any family can actually award each other made-up honors like the royals do, I think I’ll go to the craft store today and get some navy ribbons and yellow silk. I can easily fashion some sashes and orders for us all to wear tomorrow to the big dinner with the turkey. Maybe I’ll make us all proceed in to the table as couples–we’ll never stop laughing.

      • BeanieBean says:

        @Harper, I like your style! Maybe combine that with sending in the cranberry sauce on a Roomba as one commenter earlier in the week did, only instead of it playing Ride of the Valkyries maybe something with bagpipes?

      • Emme says:

        @Becks1…..totally agree! The royals give each other “awards” just like Oscars are given by the same industry to each other 🤣

      • Mrs.Krabapple says:

        How would we know how important they are, if they didn’t give themselves medals and ribbons?

        As for Kate’s — well, that’s just a reminder of WHY she was given the yellow ribbon, isn’t it? I wouldn’t wear it myself. Every time I looked at it, I would be thinking, “yeah, I got this because I stand silently by my cheating husband.”

      • Nic919 says:

        To be precise Kate got the sash and Victorian order following the Rose episode. She got the household order the year before for not being Meghan.

    • Smart&Messy says:

      I agree on all counts. Everyone looks great, except Chalres’ jacket which dwarfs him somehow. The sashes and pinned on orders ruin the dresses. Especially the one that looks like a post-it.

    • Tulipworthy says:

      They look like yellow post it notes to me.

      • Chaine says:

        Same! Especially from a distance, looks like someone pressed a crumpled post it on Camilla.

      • Blue Nails Betty says:

        Staffer: Now remember, don’t be racist to the nice Black president you are honoring.

        RFs: I can do this.

        Staffer:

        RF:

        Staffer: *scribbles don’t be racist on Post its, pins them to RF’s outfits*

      • TheVolvesSeidr says:

        @Blue Nails Betty LMAO! Perfect!

      • ElleV says:

        i wondered about those – they’re royal family orders awarded to female members of the family and the portrait and ribbon colour changes with each monarch (Queen Elizabeth had two of them in pink and blue, one from her grandfather and one from her father)

        poor charlotte missed out tho – she’ll get the order from Charles or her dad probably and who wants a cameo of their ugly mugs? lol

      • windyriver says:

        Thank you! Ever since I first noticed those weird orders a couple of years ago, have been trying to pinpoint what looks so odd about them. And that’s it! They look like they’re on top of yellow post-its.

      • JanetDR says:

        My first thought is always post-its! Just so unattractive and it ruins the whole look!

    • Nic919 says:

      The bedazzling that Kate added to the regional Packham design clashes with the sash and order but she just thought “sparkles!” Because I guess she couldn’t add buttons to this dress.

    • Debbie says:

      I feel the same way every time I see these sashed. I don’t know what they did to merit this punishment, but it couldn’t happen to a bigger bunch of racists. They add 10 pounds and 20 years to whoever wears them.

    • JustBitchy says:

      If you notice on Khate dress her caplet where the sash is, had been tailored to allow the sash to go under the rather gaudy sparkly embroidery

  4. Heather says:

    Kates dress giving me Meghan’s QEII funeral dress vibes.

    • SarahCS says:

      You don’t think she keeps her look-books and pinterest boards up to date for nothing do you?

    • Coconut says:

      Her arms are at her sides again!! Major change in body language!

    • QuiteContrary says:

      I gasped when I saw Kate’s gown — the copying is so blatant.

      Pity for her that her face is so hard. Meghan, by contrast, is luminous in even jeans and a white shirt.

  5. Elizabeth says:

    I’m surprised that you didn’t mention how similar this dress is to evening gowns that Meghan has worn. The minute I saw these photos I knew she’d gone back to her Meghan Pinterest board.

    • Well Wisher says:

      It is evidence of Kate’s admiration and love of the Duchess of Sussex, she wore a dress similar to hers in tribute.
      /sarcasm

  6. Grace says:

    She. Wore. A. Cape. Sleeved. Dress.
    OMFG!

    • Eating Popcorn says:

      I think she is swimming in it, look at the photo where she is walking into dinner. Is it the style or is it just too big for her slender frame? Also, I think the pearl bracelet takes it over the top with tiara, sashes, earrings, big blue, etc…

      • Grace(who wrote comment 6) says:

        I agree. It’s just too much going on all at the same time.

      • BeanieBean says:

        I don’t think too much is too much at these things. These state dinners are a chance to wear everything you own all at once. Sparkle City!!

      • Well Wisher says:

        There is too much, one does not know where to look.

        The normal way is plain, bespoke frock and bling with focus on a complimentary body part. For example:- arms, neck, face or head.

        A be-jewelled dress calls for understated elegance via minimum or no bling except small earrings and a tiara.

        Kate is as usual, extra.

    • Anna says:

      My thoughts immediately – cape dress? Interesting….

  7. SarahCS says:

    I love Sophie’s dress!

    As for KKKhate, all I can see is that her face seems almost permanently lop-sided these days.

    The menu is interesting, still no joy if you’re veggie/vegan but a non-meat alternative at least. I wonder if they’re allowed to use garlic now?

    • ML says:

      They don’t eat garlic?!

      • SarahCS says:

        Liz wouldn’t allow it, I think just she didn’t like it, not a garlic breath at fancy dinners issue.

      • Beana says:

        QEIi reportedly hated garlic, so it was never served at a meal where she was present. Hopefully KCIiI has liberated the garlic!

      • Roo says:

        No garlic? That’s part of what’s wrong with these people. No lovely food and no joy!

    • ShazBot says:

      I do wonder if she’ll start only being photographed looking towards her left to hide the fact that one eye is now much more open than the other.

    • susan says:

      I think garlic was forbidden as much for the flatulence as for the breath.

      • Bklne says:

        It’s also rooted in social class and snobbery, unfortunately. In the early and mid-20th century, it became de rigeur for native-born WASP-types (white Anglo Saxon Protestants) in both the US and Britain to disdain garlic and other spicy foods and strong flavors because that’s what immigrants and brown people ate: Indians and Pakistanis, the Windrush immigrants from the Caribbean, all the Italians who came to the US, Eastern Europeans – all that food was frightfully déclassé, dahling. QEII may have legit disliked the taste of garlic and had concerns about bad breath when greeting people, but it’s ALSO true that she was raised in the ultimate snobbish, class-conscious environment and would have absorbed those attitudes from everyone around her. And, like many outdated attitudes, I’m sure a critical mass of the BRF and courtiers still subscribe to that BS.

        Just as an aside: I hope Meghan and Harry indulge in all the garlic they want on a daily basis! 😜

      • Lady D says:

        Could you imagine denying yourself Italian food? I think one of the best smells in the world is the one that greets you when you walk into an authentic Italian restaurant.

    • ThatsNotOkay says:

      I wonder if it’s Bell’s palsy, or just Botox gone wrong/hit a nerve.

      • ElleV says:

        I wondered if she had bells palsy when i was looking back at the photo the other day of her in the green dress on the Carribean tour … it was a very pronounced drop in the whole left side of her face

      • BeanieBean says:

        I don’t know how it is with everyone, but a friend got hit by Bell’s palsy in high school & she had to wear an eye patch because she couldn’t close her eye. She also had difficulty talking & slurped a bit. I think Kate’s issue is an asymmetrical face that has had too much botox.

      • sparrow says:

        I’m with BeanieBean re asymmetrical faces. No one’s face is symmetrical but Kate has an underbite. It’s very small but I think it throws her face off balance a bit. A relative of mine has it. Factor in all the cosmetic stuff she does and bucket loads of botox, and I wouldn’t be surprised if she has pulled it off kilter even more.

      • Steph says:

        @sparrow I don’t remember which is the underbite. It’s the one where the bottom jaw sticks out further? Cuz I’ve definitely noticed that when she makes her manic faces. They make her look crazier.

      • Nic919 says:

        Underbite is when the lower jaw protrudes more than the upper jaw. It also doesn’t help that kate got veneers which seem to be too big for her jaw. (Her teeth were perfectly fine in her photos as a teen. She didn’t need the large fake teeth).

      • sparrow says:

        Hi Steph. Nic919 is right. The underbite is when the lower jaw sticks out and goes over the top. It makes someone look a bit like they’re gurning when their mouth is closed. When it’s really bad it is fixed with extensive braces, and sometimes even surgery, which is normally done when you’re a teen/late teen. I don’t think hers was picked up on/anything done about it because it is so minor. However, I do think it pushes her jaw slightly and therefore affects her facial balance. I actually think her top veneers have been made overly large to bring them out slightly over her bottom teeth, in an effort to aesthetically correct the underbite. I’m not sure; it’s just a hunch. Either way, her teeth do look too big and uncomfortable. ps I read somewhere that Americans think her underbite is “cute”????

      • JanetDR says:

        A slight overbite often looks cute, but I think an underbite reminds most people of a bulldog! Whenever I see a photo that shows Kate’s underbite I wonder why they didn’t take steps to fix it as it can lead to a lot of problems.
        Mr R ‘s was untreated as a child and but as an adult he was able to improve the alignment with braces with very nice results for both function and appearance (although very significant surgery involving both jaws and chin would have been the gold standard fix).

  8. TigerMcQueen says:

    Khate is totally copying the caped look Meghan has worn before. It’s the first thing I noticed.

    And whoo boy, once she got her hands on those earrings she’s not giving them up!

  9. SomeChick says:

    someone’s copying the cape sleeves. hopefully she got the earrings on straight for this appearance.

    they all look mean. like their inner selves are leaking into their outer selves. eh.

  10. Grace says:

    I absolutely hate the boxy blingy shoulder part of Kate’s cape dress. The sash looks out of place when placed over all that bling. But she has the best tiara hair she’s ever sported. Camilla’s tiara looks like it was trying to grow small antlers, it’d look better if they removed the lonely pointy sapphire lollipops. Sophie’s dress is nice and she chose her best tiara for this event.

    • Not the same Grace says:

      I commented further up, cause I couldn’t believe she went there.

      And I agree with you about the sleeve embellishment. It should have been one or the other. The blingy sleeves might have been less obnoxious if they were short cap sleeves. And the long cape sleeves fight with the orders too. The one time Kate’s thinness might have been super chic she drowned herself in all that material down the sides.

    • dee(2) says:

      I thought the same thing about those sleeves. I would really like that dress, and it could be a good alternative to a traditional wedding gown without it. The first thing I thought when I saw it was Captain Crunch. I don’t understand why they always have to add just one more embellishment that ruins the entire look.

    • Nic919 says:

      The original design has far less bling but Kate redesigned it to add more sparkles which I agree clashes with the sash and the order. Remove the added embellishments and this might have not looked as busy.

      Leave it to kate to add design elements that make things look worse.

      • sparrow says:

        Nic919. I didn’t know or read that properly. Thank you, it’s really interesting. I’ve been commenting that Packham should’ve known better than to put bling at Kate’s shoulders because she hunches a lot. Now I know Kate did it. Why oh why????

  11. Lizzie says:

    Was the headline Let Them Eat Cake?

    • KFG says:

      Right!? Where was old Peggs?

      • Harper says:

        These dinners must be torture for Burger King. A slow, boring night where one must be appropriate and not rag on about sports or make racy bro-type jokes, and all the while being piss-mad that Harry doesn’t ever have to do one of these stupid nights ever again. These are just the kind of events that I bet make the abdication thoughts boil in his egg head because he is trapped doing these for ever.

      • SueBarbri33 says:

        I was just coming here to ask the same question–I saw William in the line to walk into the dinner (wearing a weird smirk), but no photos of William at the actual dinner. Odd. The big photo on DM last night was of Kate, The President of South Africa, Charles, and Camilla. Just the 4 of them and no William. We all agree that he’s a dud around these parts, but I was surprised to see they left him out. I wonder what’s going on…

      • lleepar says:

        I was about to ask the same thing. Did they ‘disappear’ the heir to the throne?

      • Nic919 says:

        He was there but they stood far enough apart that he was barely in any shots with her. And then at some point they are paired with a guest from the South African party and so he wouldn’t be sitting next to kate anyway.

      • Debbie says:

        Perhaps Kate beat William to the center of the photo, like she did on the balcony next to the queen, for old time’s sake (and future pictures). I think it would be funny if he were there but further down and cropped out of the pictures.

  12. Lolo86lf says:

    Look at the newly minted Princess of Wales. Doesn’t she look regal? I mean it she looks good.

    • BUBS says:

      The “Princess of Wails” looks as she normally does- like someone really trying to look regal. Nothing that excites, nothing that piques the interest…just Kate, the clothehorse being put on show. Plus, she needs to chill with the botox…her left eye is looking really funny and her face is all but melting!

    • Tessa says:

      Kate plays dress up. There should be more to a princess of Wales than dressing up

      • SURE says:

        Dressing up and lording it over the plebs is largely what tax payer funded royals do in the name of duty and service.

    • Lizzie says:

      It’s no big trick to look regal especially when your in laws finance the whole costume and provide the jewelry. Thankfully the long gown won’t ‘accidentally’ blow upward showing her bare behind again.

    • Haylie says:

      She looks like she raided Meghan’s closet, but added tacky bling and that dreadful Lover’s Knot tiara to her look.

      So dated.

  13. Veda says:

    One more look ticked off the Meghan mood board. Looks like Kate’s access to the royal vault is restricted.

    • equality says:

      With so much of questionable provenance and more and more countries protesting what was stolen, the access of all shrinks daily.

    • Kelsey says:

      It has to be, unless she hopes that with each lover’s knot tiara wear she gets in she gets closer and closer to embodying Diana.

  14. Jan says:

    Meghan’a funeral dress style, only in a gown, copying Meghan’s style are her best looks.
    This is a quick turnaround, less than 3 months copying an outfit.

    • Kit says:

      Wtf is on the shoulders of that dated but gorgeous dress , it’s like a swarm.of bees has landed on her shoulders, she absolutely ruins every look every time. She may get in her golden carriage there and trot trot to.British Vogue, seriously she needs a professional stylist ! That’s all lve got

  15. girl_ninja says:

    That gown looks like the red one Duchess Meghan wore on one of their overseas visits. She’s copying again and looks weighed down by the sashes and broaches. It’s a no for me…per usual 🙅🏾‍♀️

  16. Maxine Branch says:

    What I find amazing is the amount of happiness some derive from the Windsors dripping in stolen diamond while wearing expensive clothes. When you really think about it it should be annoying as hell verses tripping over. Everytime I see these folks and I am an American, dripping with diamonds stolen from ethnic countries I am annoyed because I know how they got them.

    Also interesting the Stan’s for this family constantly comparing the Montecito family who are hard working Americans with these folks with their horrific legacy. To me it shows how off the cliff their UK subjects are. To take this much joy from this family for looking gauche while flaunting stolen valor and jewelry says a lot about their values.

    It never occurs to these folks this is one of many reasons why the Sussexes left. How very uncomfortable it would have been to have to wear stolen jewelry while campaigning for human rights.

    • Weetzie says:

      Literally yesterday I thought, at least she’ll never wear a caped dress because that’s just too identifiably Meghan. No such thing I guess.

    • Brassy Rebel says:

      I hear you, Maxine Branch, and I heartily concur. DGAF what they wear except for what it says about a sick system.

    • Nic919 says:

      It’s one thing to see Americans get excited over this stuff because they don’t pay for this family. I truly don’t understand any British people seeing this and somehow thinking that kate wearing a new dress worth thousands of pounds makes up for the fact that they have to pay hundreds more in their energy bill this year. And it is linked. The millions that go to the sovereign grant for this group are millions that don’t go to assist those who need assistance with increased costs in food, heating and housing.

      • sparrow says:

        Thank you, Nic919. Are you American or British or neither, can I ask? You always seem to get the Brit angle very well and understand the sovereign grant and duchies. As a Brit, for whom this angle matters very much, I can’t understand why our tabloid readers (some of the poorest people in any country) find this stuff so wonderful. I haven’t been over to the DM yet. Perhaps there are dissenting voices. There have been more in recent years. Maybe they see it all as a bit of a fairy tale distraction, when it is actually pointless and offensive.

      • Nic919 says:

        I’m Canadian so I have to deal with these people indirectly. And we have to pay for their visits when they pretend to care about Canada once every few years.

      • sparrow says:

        Thanks, Nic919. I get it now – of course you’ll understand personally how much these idiots cost people. Truly awful.

      • sparrow says:

        I actually just hopped over to the DM. Dissenting voices have been growing on there lately, particularly when Kate Know Nothing talked about the cost of living crisis, but there are loads of posters pointing out how disgusting this event is, esp now. As usual, there are the comments about how she “gets it right every time”, but lots saying that Kate is not Diana and will never be, and that she looks old. That last bit doesn’t really matter, but in reality it sadly does; all Kate has is what she looks like.

    • Truthiness says:

      I 💯 agree Maxine. Wearing the spoils of colonial wars shouldn’t be a thing, some of the gems are cases of absolute thievery. If you want to wear blood conflict gems we need to talk reparations. Besides, so many of the pieces are ugly, gaudy as hell. In so many pieces, a modern jeweler could create something far more elegant from 1% of the gems and return the rest.

    • Josephine says:

      Totally agree. Makes me want to vomit every time.

  17. SarahCS says:

    Me again, I’ve had a lightbulb moment about one of my issues with the idea of ‘king’ Chuck.

    TQ always got to wear a tiara so while she wasn’t actually in a crown we were used to the head of state/top of the monarchy tree looking ‘kingly/queenly’ with a bunch of (mostly stolen) jewels on her head. He will rarely wear a crown so doesn’t look any different than he used to.

  18. Amy Bee says:

    They all looked OK. The Royal Family serves no purpose except as a means of escape from real life issues.

  19. Flower says:

    I have no words.

    It’s the lack of shame for me.

    The cape dress is ripped straight out of Meghan’s style book.

    I have never seen Kate in a cape dress before. I think KP saw the adulation that Meg received for her funeral outfit and they Jenny Packham lifted the style onto Kate. Even the demure jewelry tells me that Kate is aware that people felt she looked like a gaudy cheap mob wife at the funeral whilst the contrasting comments for Meghan must have been a blow.

    • Crybaby says:

      The infamous gold dress she wore had a cape, among several others,

    • SAS says:

      I think the Vegas showgirl Bond dress was a caped Jenny Packham. But yes, the fact that this looks somewhat modern rather than matronly (I’m shuddering at the memory of previous ruffled State dinner gowns) is very Meghan.

    • Becks1 says:

      The gold Jenny Packham Bond dress had a cape and so did a mcqueen she wore while pregnant with Louis. Both very different looks from this dress though which overall is just very Meghan in the silhouette.

      • sunny says:

        Totally right. Capes aren’t new for her but the silhouette is very Meghan.

        That being said, Kate has never had an original thought in her life so *shrug*. She looks good here but overdone(she always is so overdone because it is hard to buy taste).

        Aslo I think Camilla is wearing too much jewellery. Like, please remove the necklace. The optics of them draped in jewels while Britain is starving really is something else.

  20. Jais says:

    Agree that it’s a solid look. I like it so much more than the gold dress or the black and white top gun dress. Wish we could have seen a view of the back bc on the Jenny Packham site, the back is open and I wanted to see if she kept that part. Like everyone else is saying, the cape sleeve feels v Meghan.

    • Becks1 says:

      I don’t think its open. If you look at the picture with Sophie and Edward, you can see Kate’s back in the mirror.

      • Jais says:

        Hmmm, interesting. Bummer cuz the back was actually a cool feature but wondered if it would be too risque. There were so many dresses from the Packham collection that I could have seen Kate wear. The top capped sleeves, even though they flow into a cape, still reminds me of the red Saaafya dress Meghan wore at the royal Albert hall. It was so iconic that I kind of wonder if it inspired a lot of designers to evoke a similar look.

      • Nic919 says:

        It wouldn’t be risqué for her to show her back since some of the past gowns are far more décolleté. She’s just boring and the lookbook didn’t have that feature.

      • QuiteContrary says:

        I loathe Kate but in this instance, I’m going to try to be sensitive. When you’re severely underweight, it’s hard to show one’s torso, because your bones are too apparent (I know this from experience).

    • First comment says:

      I agree with you..it’s a solid dress and I like it a lot… my only objection is the silver part of the shoulders…. i think it’s too much with the tiara, earrings etc.. as for your question concerning the open back of the dress, there’s a photo where you can see that she has changed it… it’s closed… that means ‘custom made’? Therefore, even more expensive?

      • Ginger says:

        It’s a nice dress but Kate’s horrible posture and zero curves ruins it for me.

        I also think it’s tone deaf to show up in a brand new dress during the cost of living crisis and so close to Earthshot
        (where they want everyone to show up in repeats) She has thousands of dresses to choose from. But I guess being the new Princess of Wales outweighed the optics.

      • SURE says:

        @Ginger Yes, like the dress she wore to Charles’ 70th birthday which we barely glimpsed from the car shots to and from the party.

      • Becks1 says:

        Even Camilla wore a repeat!

      • Jais says:

        @ first comment- I didn’t mind the sparkly shoulders but you’re right that with the jewelry it can veer towards too much. But overall, it was fine. But definitely not a repeat, becks1! Would have been surprised if Kate had actually done a repeat. Maybe if she’d been given a new tiara.

      • ChewieNYC says:

        If you look up Hilary Duff wedding dress you can see the non jeweled up version. She’s wearing a wedding dress.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        @ChewieNYC – Your statement is basically what Tatler said. See my comment above with the link to Tatler.

  21. Flower says:

    Also to add Edward and Sophie also have no shame.

    Why are you still doing these events – like really ?

    Just tap out and go and live your lives. Why continue to work for a brother who treats you like this ?

    • Lady Esther says:

      And where was Anne?

    • SueBarbri33 says:

      Agreed. And Sophie and Edward are both so glum in these photos, they almost certainly added nothing positive to the experience. Their postures and facial expressions are those of teenagers sulking before Thanksgiving dinner, but they also look nearly as old as the Duke of Kent. Just terrible.

      • Lady D says:

        The Daily Mail said the look on her face was overwhelming grief over QE’s passing. She certainly didn’t look happy. I wonder if their presence was mandatory?

      • Lorelei says:

        Oh FFS, “overwhelming grief at the Queen’s passing?” I mean, who knows, but that really feels like a stretch to me. More likely she’s angry and mortified about the whole DoE thing and was annoyed at having to see Charles.

      • Feeshalori says:

        I think Sophie realized she had it good when the Queen was alive and had a deep level of affection and closeness with HM with constant visits and mutual interests. Those days are over now and between the new monarch in town, all the changes in the new regime, and no DOE title, that grumpy face is no surprise.

  22. Cel1495 says:

    Those medals and saches look silly speculum because none of them have done anything whatsoever to deserve them. All so silly. They are taking all their fancy tiaras and showing all their wealth while the Uk experiences the worst crisis ever regarding housing, food insecurity and housing insecurity. These fools are using the peoples money to play dress up. I saw so many people writing agains this whole nonsense on instagram… hope that is fine more.

  23. Becks1 says:

    To start off with something nice – yes, this is one of Kate’s better evening looks. Because of the high neck and the detailing, she can’t wear a necklace which is where she often goes wrong (wears the wrong necklace for the dress, hides it with her hair, etc.)

    The fact that she is wearing the same earrings as Remembrance Sunday just highlights how inappropriate the earrings were for that event.

    That said…..this is definitely a Meghan copy. Minus the detailing, this dress is so similar to Meghan’s cape dresses….the gold dress from the Bond premiere was a bit iffy, in terms of how much of a copy it was, but this one leaves no doubt.

    • Chloe says:

      The cape dress is definitely Meghan-esque but in my opinion she’s been going for the diana comparisons lately. Yet again she’s wearing jewels that either belonged to Diana or are heavily associated with her. And guess which 2 pictures were on the frontage of a tabloid? Yep kate and diana.

    • BUBS says:

      Are those earrings the only ones she’s allowed to wear?

    • Nic919 says:

      Had she not bedazzled the shoulders it would be a much better look. I think the overpraise of the bond dress got to her head even though that was the dress an aging star for the 80s would have worn. Her taste isn’t modern and sleek as much as she tries to copy Meghan and she goes to tacky kitschy glitz way more than most 40 year olds tend to.

      The earrings did work at this event, but it’s odd she has worn them to the Remembrance Day ceremony. Maybe she thinks repeating the earrings make her look thrifty?

      • Lorelei says:

        @Nic, I’m still shocked when I remember how much praise she got for that gold mess. Hideous!! It was one of the tackiest things she’s ever worn, and her hairstyle that night made the entire look even more ridiculous.

        And ITA with Becks1’s comment above that the fact that she wore the earrings to this event shows how inappropriate it was for her to wear them on Remembrance Day.

        For the love of god, someone get this woman a stylist! 😫

  24. Lady Esther says:

    Totally called both tiaras, me! (pats myself on the back)

    I think Kate looks lovely, somehow the bling on the shoulders of the dress works perfectly with all the other bling. I’m surprised at two things: why was she allowed to completely overshadow Camilla in white? Sophie was also in a blue shade, so you’d think she’d go for pale blue (and she already has a gown in that colour that she wore to the premiere of the Bond movie Spectre). And is it me or is her tiara askew? It seems like it’s not on straight in some photos….

    • Serenity says:

      @Lady Esther: I sense, from your first sentence, a fellow Southerner. Louisiana, perhaps? I’m from Nawlins myself. 👋 Hi!!😊

  25. L84Tea says:

    This is definitely one of Kate’s better looks. Not her best, but it’s not bad. The one I’m surprised over is Camilla. I actually think she looks pretty good in that royal blue shade and looks nice with the sapphire tiara. That’s the tiara that I was thinking maybe Kate might get at some point. I’m sure she wants it since it would match Big Blue.

  26. GinaA2 says:

    Am I the only one who thinks Kate’s dress looks awful? These embroidered shoulders don’t look good with the amount of evening jewellery she wears. Too much. Also the fabric of the gown is too light. The dress clings to her emasculated body when she is moving – not in the flattering way. Camilla and Sofie looked good.

    • Grace says:

      The hem of the gown is somehow off. It makes me think of a nightgown. And as I already mentioned, the shoulder part is a miss for me. Too boxy and blingy and definitely not meant for wearing a sash. I read somewhere that this dress should be from the 2021 collection, so it makes me wonder how many dresses Kate just buys and stocks away and possibly never wears?

    • Emily_C says:

      Kate looks awful in everything now. It must be well-nigh impossible to tailor anything for a skeletal body.

    • equality says:

      I think it would look okay minus the bling on the shoulders. I like Cam’s dress best, especially the color.

    • Tessa says:

      I thought the gown did not fit well and emphasized how thin she is.

    • WiththeAmerican says:

      No, you can sit with me. Whoever said a bedazzled got her dress spoke for me. I know the bar is super low with her but my god she cannot edit.

      They all look like Victorian sofas bedazzled to me. Way too much going on. They all look unhappy and boring. What a misery to sit through a meal with them.

    • sparrow says:

      I think it looks awful, too. More because I think she looks dissociative and not part of what is going on around her, particularly at this event. She actually looks nervous as all hell. Her gown makes her look like a fairy on a Christmas tree with no idea how she got up there. It’s also a photoshop triumph, which always makes her look plastic. At her next day time event, with rushed out photos in daylight and perhaps a different photographer, her fans will say “but she looked different just a day or two ago…it must have been a hard night with the kids..”. You have to laugh.

      • Becks1 says:

        Disassociated is a good word to describe her IMO. In the pictures I’ve seen, she just looks…..not out of it, but like she is completely uninterested in what’s going on. Even in pictures where she’s smiling.

    • Nic919 says:

      You aren’t alone. The original design from packham is nice but then she goes and over bedazzles the shoulders and makes them even boxier than the original. And the bedazzling clashes with the sash and the order which shows she doesn’t have taste. As much as the reasons why the order and sash are given are a joke, if you are wearing them you need to showcase them and kate just went and made it messier looking. And all the bedazzling and glitter really shows that kate DGAF about the poors and their concerns over paying an extra thousand for heating because she just dropped more than that on a new dress.

    • lucy2 says:

      On it’s own, it looks nice, but all that bedazzling on the dress is fighting with the sashes, jewelry, pins, and other crap.

  27. Amy Bee says:

    I keep seeing people saying that Kate copied Meghan. I don’t think that true. She’s worn cape dresses before. How can anyone forget the gold cape dress that she wore to the Bond premiere last year. I think what she was trying to do last night was replicate the press reaction she got for the gold dress by wearing an almost exact copy of the gold dress.

    • Pal says:

      This dress is not a cape, it has sleeves. And even if it was a cape royal women from all over the world have been wearing capes long before Harry met Meghan. Even Kate wore one when pregnant with Louis.

      • Becks1 says:

        That cape dress when she was pregnant with Louis was a VERY different look from this one. This silhouette is basically pure Meghan.

    • equality says:

      I think it offends most people whenever Kate wears anything similar to Meghan because of the media making it sound like anytime Meghan wears something it breaks protocol but Kate can wear the same and be praised. Other than that, copying and things going in and out of style, etc. is just how fashion goes.

      • Ginger says:

        Exactly. If Meghan wore this dress to a state banquet she would have been ripped to shreds for “breaking protocol” We can’t forget when Meghan wore a one shoulder dress for the British fashion awards and she was called vulgar for wearing the dress and Kate showed up in the EXACT same style dress two months later and was praised to the heavens for wearing it. She was called a classy and regal future Queen for wearing it. Disgusting.

    • Not the same Grace says:

      This is one time Kate SHOULD have copied Meghan like for like. I think the orders would have looked better with a true cape behind, framing her waist in the same colour, rather than the droopy sleeves swishing around her.

      (I wrote comment 6, as ‘Grace’ )

  28. MsIam says:

    Kate looks very matronly as usual. I don’t like that drab teal color on Sophie, even all of the bling doesn’t help. Of the three, Camilla looks the happiest to be there. I think the blue sapphires are a nice change from the all white diamond look. Also, I thought state dinners were supposed to be all white gowns for the women? The colors are a nice change.

    • KFG says:

      Kkkates face is not looking good. The last picture with her walking with the SA president shows how lumpy and wrinkled she is.

      • sparrow says:

        I know. Sometimes the editing doesn’t quite do enough to let her slip through untouched. We all know what she really looks like but there’s been a pretty hardline job done on the photoshop here, apart from the walking one you’ve spotted. It’s photoshopped, too, but not quite enough for her liking no doubt.

  29. Cerys says:

    Yet another expensive new dress for Kate. The Duchy of Cornwall credit hard must be maxed out with all the shopping she seems to have done since she got her hands on it. Camilla, although she was decked out in bling, at least wore a dress that has been worn before. I’m not sure if Sophie is repeating a dress or not so I won’t say anything other than she looks very nice.
    I appreciate that there is a lot of grandeur around state visits but it all seems very tone-deaf when many brits are having to choose between eating and heating.

  30. Pumpkin (Was Sofia) says:

    I agree with others that this is one of her better looks. While I am tired of seeing the lovers knot, it does work well with the dress. Fashion wise: I’ve got no complaints.

    But I was sure she was going to get a new tiara. Maybe not even a shiny new tiara to wear can pry the lovers knot out of her hands. Or maybe she just wasn’t offered a new tiara. Again, the tiara works with the outfit but I wish she’d wear something different.

    • Becks1 says:

      Someone mentioned yesterday that they thought Camilla would wear a new-to-her tiara and Kate would repeat the Lovers Knot, and then for the diplomatic reception in december we would see Kate in a new tiara. So will be interesting to see if she repeats this one in December or does in fact get a new one.

      • Pumpkin (Was Sofia) says:

        Ah okay. Well yes let’s see if that prediction holds up further. I don’t hate the lovers knot I’m just tired of seeing it every time.

      • Lady Esther says:

        @Becks1 that was me 🙂 All credit to the Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor website, RIP for everything I’ve learned about royal jools….

        I’m also tired of the Lovers Knot on Kate, so I’m hoping for a new tiara for her for the diplomatic soiree (Oriental Circlet, anyone? to continue the Queen Mum cosplay…maybe reworked). It will be interesting to see if Charles thinks she should stay with the tiara she has – it is a so-called “big gun,” after all – both to wipe out all memory of Diana wearing it and for Kate to “earn her stripes” as it were before she gets a new one for the coronation….

        ….because believe you me, Charles is weighing in on this. He has always paid close attention to jewels (lavished them on Camilla all throughout their relationship) and all sartorial concerns in general, and their significance.

        And Camilla in the Vlad for the diplomatic soiree, I’m calling it now!

      • Nic919 says:

        Charles is controlling the vault now and so Camilla was always going to get first pick. And so I am not surprised that she was the only one wearing a tiara not seen in a while. Since the coronation is the big event they are likely planning the unique moments for that event. The diplomatic reception may be repeats.

        And it wouldn’t surprise me if Charles doesn’t let Kate wear anything new until the coronation. It’s not like the Wales have been killing it work wise and we all know he can be petty.

      • BeanieBean says:

        Isn’t Camilla in charge of the royal bling now & the one to decide whether Kate has access to any of it? I think that may be why we’re seeing Kate in the same pieces over & over again. Camilla is the one who now has access to the entire trove, not Katie Keen.
        ETA: Oh I see. Just read Nic919’s post. Right, Charles is the monarch & the one to say yay or nay to access to the royal vault. Still, I bet it’s whatever Camilla wants & Katie gets to make do with what she’s been given so far.

    • Seaflower says:

      The Lovers Knot is so closely tied to Diana I suspect they will need to rip it from K’s grasp

  31. M says:

    Your Diana and Meghan cosplay is showing, Kate. The tiara is crooked, and the dress looks cheap. White satin in November is certainly A Choice.

  32. Chloe says:

    Kate is extremely desperate for those diana comparisons. From hugging children and making sure the press gets the right shot, to wearing jewels either belonging to diana or heavily associated with her. I guess carving out your own role as the princess of wales and putting your own mark on that title is just not an option. She has to emulate someone. Classic kate.

    And seeing some pictures which give a close up of her face the foundation layer she was wearing was heavy. It was blended well but it was a lot.

    Overall she looked pretty though. The bejeweling on the shoulders if the dress is a bit much but other than that she looks pretty.

    Camilla simply looked old

    And sophie looked really nice. It was simple but i think i like her look the best.

    • Tessa says:

      Kate will never have Diana s style,warmth and humanity and work ethic. Diana would have been on team Meghan. Imo

  33. Tessa says:

    Meghan was criticized for the cape look yet the media and bots praise Kate to the skies. The gown was not figure flattering for Kate. How come Charles allowed the media to focus on kate

    • Chloe says:

      I am actually starting to believe that charles doesn’t mind it if the attention is on kate. The monarchy is in need of a superstar and currently kate is the only one that garners actually some attention. So i think he and Camilla resigned to the fact that in order to keep the monarchy some what relevant, the attention should be on who garners the most attention. And currently that is kate.

      • Tessa says:

        Kate is bland and mediocre and her overpraise by dm commentators gets sickening imo. She also is not a nice person and a stepford. I don’t care much for Charles bit as king he should get the attention. I somehow think Kate gets on Camilla s nerves

      • Tessa says:

        Kate is not modern and is just a clothes horse. She also gets negative attention after the way She treated Meghan

      • Chloe says:

        @ tessa: all you just said doesn’t take away from the fact that kate gets the most attention out of all of these people. Everything you just said was your opinion. But she has the most star power out of the current senior royals. And although she gets some negative attention, mostly from sussex supporters, the general public likes her well enough. And it’s incredibly clear that the kate is now the horse the monarchy is betting on to keep that institution relevant.

      • Tessa says:

        It is my opinion. Kate was never really a modern woman. I think there will be more interest in the next generation . Diana and Meghan had star power but were rejected by that family.

      • HeatherC says:

        @tessa @chloe
        Both can be true. She can be bland and the monarchy’s superstar. It just shows what a shallow bench they’re pulling from.

      • Nic919 says:

        Charles is not okay with anyone outside of Camilla getting attention. The media uses kate in photos because she is the most photogenic of the bunch, which is not a high standard. We will start to see more briefing against kate from Charles to keep her in her place. Don’t be surprised comments about her being the only one with a new gown show up, or comments about her laziness become more prominent. It will come from people like Jobson or other rota linked to Charles.

        This is a family that traffics in pettiness and jealousy so let’s not pretend that things have changed.

      • San Diego says:

        @chloe.. I’ve notice that too and that’s why I believe her and William will never divorce. The institution actually needs her for the attention she brings. They are all behind her and that’s why she gets praise to the heavens for just existing. Charles said it in his speech.. with William will be POW with Catherine by his side. She is not going anywhere.

      • Saucy&Sassy says:

        Chloe, Fails and Wails are the “younger” working royals. I believe Chuck has no choice but to use them. The problem that I see is that at some point people will lose interest (probably sooner than later). There has to be some substance to hold people’s interest, and neither of them do. Having said that, however, if the citizenry is looking for ceremony and sparkles, no one will not be disappointed.

        I saw a Mirror? photo of Wails on twitter last night (photoshopped I believe), and my first thought was she looked 10 years older–literally. She needs to find a really, really good plastic surgeon to try and do something for the left and right eyes being so disproportionate. I’ve said before that I think something is going on with her and I think part of that is her belief that her looks are most important. I can’t help but feel she needs help.

    • Jais says:

      Was Meghan criticized for her cape looks though? For sure, the one shoulder dress was criticized but didn’t most say the cape looks were stunning.

      • Eurydice says:

        Yes, I don’t remember any criticism about Meghan’s cape dresses – maybe it was on Twitter, but not in the regular media.

  34. SURE says:

    Not a fan of Sophie’s look. The dress design seems too casual for a state banquet particularly when compared to what K&C are wearing. I loathe her tiara. It just doesn’t complement her earrings and necklace (though I’m not sure that the earrings even complement the necklace). She’s certainly piled on the bling she but still seems to look somewhat dowdy and sour at the same time. She can do better and has done better, so maybe this is her dutifully dimming her light to uplift K&C.

  35. BUBS says:

    Did William even attend this thing or do the BM just find his face so unappealing to include in the photos? They photoshop Kate, so why not do same for him?

    • Tessa says:

      I think the dm focuses on Kate to get the fans to trash Meghan with platitudes like William chose well and watch and learn Meghan. And how harry misses Kate. Kate is not all that

      • BUBS says:

        What exactly is Meghan supposed to “learn” from this woman? They want Kate to “teach” Meghan how to stay unoriginal, mute and incurious and only be known for wearing clothes? Heavens forbid!

    • Serena says:

      Kate looks so stiff, it’s uncomfortable to look at her (where is Bulliam though?).
      Camilla.. everytime she so much as smiles it comes out a a a grimace..it’s unfortunate..to say the least.

      The menù at least looked interesting.

      • sparrow says:

        She is incredibly hunch-y. Drop your shoulders! She has worn this designer before, and probably works one on one with her. Knowing how Kate carries herself, surely Packham wouldn’t have drawn so much attention to her shoulders if she cared about what she was doing.

    • Pumpkin (Was Sofia) says:

      A woman wearing a pretty gown is just “better” to put on the front pages – no matter what her husband looks like.

    • Eurydice says:

      People had a photo of him with Kate in the car going to the event. He was wearing white tie and looked just the way he always does.

    • Jais says:

      So at the dinner, William was actually sitting at another table, I believe, or a different section of the table? Which was interesting bc Kate was placed in the center and the camera was catching her the whole time as Charles gave his speech. I don’t know why they don’t sit next to each other these things. Assuming it’s a protocol or something. But it’s still weird that they wouldn’t have William sitting at the main table?

      • Nic919 says:

        At events like that it is protocol to sit with an invited guest. I didn’t see where William was sitting but he walked in with someone from the South Africa delegation and I assumed he was sitting on the other side of Camilla and her guest because they alternate male female at these events as well.

      • SueBarbri33 says:

        I believe that’s right–I just still think it’s strange that he’s barely in any of the photos. Even Edward and Sophie got a full bodied couple’s photo in the DM and nobody is even checking for those two po-faced nobodies. I know why Camilla was in the center of the photo, but that’s no excuse for centering her in all the photos, if that makes sense. The first photo of the event I saw this morning was of Camilla cackling like the wicked witch, wearing the Queen’s old jewels. That’s not a winning strategy for anybody. William might be a mess, but he’s still more popular than Camilla can ever be. Do they think she’s a highlight/draw for anybody? Why?

  36. Inge says:

    So the white duchess who loves to wear white to events with BAME people wore white for a state banquet with a country that has overcome their racist white supremacy regime?

    • Lemons says:

      I thought I was the only one who caught that, but Kate really does love wearing white when BIPOC people are around. The woman who loves to theme dress flags…I can hear the dog whistle.

  37. Snuffles says:

    Where’s William? I don’t see him in any of these pictures.

  38. Eurydice says:

    They all look exactly as I would expect the BRF to look at a state banquet – everything musty, dusty and proper.

  39. WiththeAmerican says:

    Bedazzled Victorian sofas! (repeating myself from above because I want to scream.)

    Cam almost pulled it off but had to wear some kind of layers of blue doily lace with all of this other fuss.

    Kathy looks like a white satin covered talkback chair that no one sits in because it’s uncomfortable. Why is she wearing pearl bracelet with bedazzled shoulders, drop earrings, sash, tiara, and assorted girl scout badges? Why does she pick out clothes that don’t look good on her?

    Sophie… why is she wearing bedazzled stripper heels with a casual long dress? If she’s playing the part of the poor relation, leave the sparkly shoes at home.

  40. sparrow says:

    When I see photos like this I think: This is exactly what Carole Middleton spent years wanting to achieve – her dream has come true; Kate’s photographer is on side, once again; even with her wrinkles and bags smoothed out and photoshopped to hell and back she looks old; and just how disassociated she looks from what is going on around her, like she doesn’t know how she ended up here, and doesn’t know what she is doing and why she is doing it.

    • ChattyCath says:

      Carole Middleton. It’s been reported she wore Diana’s pearl choker to QE11’s funeral. And now the BM go back to calling the POW ‘Kate Middleton’ to the outrage of Twitter. The Aristocracy who live by arcane rules know she’ll never be one of them. Marriage doesn’t matter. As an English snob all I can say is that she must have some nasty habits. LOL . The Aristocracy red in tooth and claw

      • sparrow says:

        Exactly. She will never belong, even as PoW and then QC. One doesn’t just leap over the fence and land in the aristocracy. Time and generations are what she needs, and she simply doesn’t have them. It must hurt like hell.

  41. manda says:

    I’m not really up on who wore what first but I will say, Kate looks good here. And ordinarily I would be loath to say that, but it’s inescapable. Somehow this dress gave her a waist and a little bit of a shape. Meghan looked great in hers too, but that’s a given

    • Eurydice says:

      Yes, she looks better than she has in a while – appropriate and not overly festooned for the event. I would have chosen a lipstick just the tiniest bit bright, but Kate seems to prefer eyes rather than lips.

  42. Chaine says:

    I like Sophie’s tiara best. The other two look ridiculous in the modern era for anything other than maybe a coronation? Too over the top. But Sophie had to accompany it with such a hatchet face! And what on earth is up with Edward, he looks positively frail and elderly, if I didn’t know better I would think he was close to Charles’s age.

    • Chrissy says:

      I didn’t see one photo of Sophie smiling. She looks really sour and Edward looks lost. Maybe it just dawned on her that she and Ed really are the poor relations of this ‘family’. It seems that they’ll be begging for scraps if Charles gets his way. And he will.

    • Snoodle says:

      I think Edward might be phasing out his darker hair dye for progressively lighter shades. The man is 58 and Windsors do not age well, you know he’s been dying his greys this whole time.

      But now he’s getting to the age range where his hair staying just as dark as ever becomes increasingly odd and vain, so he’ll slowly moving from dark brown through blonde and eventually into grey/white.

      Sadly, without his usual darker hair to frame his face he looks washed out and ill.

  43. Over it says:

    I don’t have any plans on going anywhere else to look for pictures of Peggy , but either I am blind or he ain’t in any of these pictures. Lol. Also I am sure it’s been said plenty but the copying of Meghan is a real thing for Kate . The cape, i really with Karen Mcbuttons would buy a life of her own

  44. Princess Caroline says:

    Dang….they are DRIPPING in jewels y’all. Camilla has sooooo many sapphires on and look at the emeralds on Charles!

  45. Over it says:

    Also sophie looks depressed and beaten down. Chucky has really cut the wind out of her and Eddie sail .

    • Well Wisher says:

      This is the first state dinnner without the Queen. That absence must have been palpable, their lives were …..???
      with the Queen around.

  46. sparrow says:

    OK. Apart from what she’s wearing, which some like some don’t, can we agree that she looks like she hasn’t a clue what she’s doing. Can you imagine Meghan looking this unanimated and unready to engage or have a conversation. The woman looks terrified that she will be talked to and have to say something back that isn’t inane. Meghan would have been chatting and engaged, with light behind her eyes. Kate looks like wax because she acts like wax.

  47. aquarius64 says:

    Kate looks OK. That tiara was once called the Cambridge Lovers’ Knot. Sad Kate has to co opt Diana’s jewels to gain legitimacy. As I said on a previous post, the British aristos will always see Kate as a social climber no matter what jewels she wears. The close ups in the Fail shows the bad Botox work. Keep it up and people are going to start calling Kate Left Eye.

    Side note on Ed and Sophie: they came to this event as the Earl and Countess of Wessex. If this appearance doesn’t confirm the Duke old Edinburgh title is off the table I don’t know what does. I bet Charles ordered them to show up as a sign they are ok with the no title upgrade.

    • MsIam says:

      Maybe that’s why Sophie wore that awful dress. She definitely doesn’t look happy. In fact the only one who looks pleased with herself is old Cams.

    • JustBitchy says:

      This article does a good job of explaining the difference
      https://www.thecourtjeweller.com/2017/07/lovers-knot-tiaras-cambridge-vs-queen.html

    • Debbie says:

      I’ve seen Kate’s left eye/right eye size difference in past pictures, but I don’t see it in the photos above. Sure, she looks tired and worn but, who can blame her, she works so hard. I mean, it’s got to be tough to decide which what jewels to wear.

    • lucy2 says:

      Eh, lots of people have that, myself included – mine is because I smile crooked, so in photos my left eye always looks smaller. It’s gotten more pronounced with age, maybe that’s happening to her too. Or she’s had bad botox.

      Thanks for the link on the tiaras, I much prefer this one to the Cambridge, it’s a little more understated, and looked so good with Diana’s 80s feathered hair!

  48. Digital Unicorn says:

    As i’ve said before the cosplaying is out of control – however last night was one of those rare occasions she actually looked good. The overall look was one of her better looks, her makeup was as tragic as it usually is. She was also smugness personified, she was clearly loving lording it over everyone else from the family who were there. She still can’t wear the bling bling – those earring clashed with the jewelled to part of the dress, it created a weird shiny look esp with her ‘order’ on display over the jewelled dress. It all clashed.

    Cams looked great – girlfriend really knows how to rock the bling bling.

    Sophie looked good – the colour and style of the dress suited her.

  49. rawiya says:

    Considering Camilla re-wore a dress, Kate should have worn a reworked version of the Norway Banquet dress. It would have looked nicer than…that. Maybe she thought she deserved a new dress since she wasn’t given a new tiara. Either way, I don’t like the dress. The shoulders are too bedazzled and too shoulder-paddy for her. And she just seems so boring. There’s no pizzazz, no spark, nothing.

  50. thaisajs says:

    Everyone in those photos look like they’re having such a good time. (Not.) I mean, what a grim procession. If I was facing that menu, I’d probably look the same. At least there was plenty of wine!

  51. Mslove says:

    The prime minister could have hosted the South African President. There is no need for the royal family at all.

  52. HeatherC says:

    William’s wife looks…..fine. It’s fine. She looks boring and bored. I think all the sashes and pinned on ribbons look cheap so they bring down everyone’s look, especially the ribbons.

  53. Relly says:

    This dress really pulled my attention to how tiny she has become. It’s disconcerting.

  54. Tina Loman says:

    Kate’s evening gowns are usually dull. This one is pretty good. Well, if Meghan wore the bright blue in Fiji and red one when leaving and got so much attention, she should do it too. That’s the way Kate thinks it seem. Most people would avoid others most talked about style. Kate like to take them for herself. If you wear it enough it becomes your look. She has plenty of opportunity. The pink McQueen was an entirely different style she wore while pregnant. The gold and now this white one. I think it looks less bridal with embellishments. Her jewelry goes together with her outfit. It usually doesn’t. Her tiara is crooked, but the rest is okay. Are Prince and Princess Michael of Kent not invited any more. She wouldn’t wear a brooch. Meghan isn’t there. Princess Alexandra probably couldn’t make it.

  55. zebz says:

    Jenny Packham’s designs are absolutely awful. Every dress Kate has worn from her is matronly as all hell. The bedazzling on everything in the collection looks old fashioned. I don’t get her devotion to this designer. What would’ve been a sleek look was ruined by the shoulder pads and sequins blitz.

    I just don’t get Kate. The only gown I have liked that she wore was to the top gun premiere. She at least looked like someone from this century. She goes from a sleek look one minute, to this “fru fru” princess crap. You can tell she doesn’t have a style idenity. Embarrassing.

    • sparrow says:

      zebs I said similar above. Why does Packham bugger things up so badly. She obviously has Kate as her top client and must know her body shape and way of carrying herself. Kate hunches her shoulders a lot (nerves? posture problems?) and Packham goes and puts all this bling at her neckline and shoulders…which draws attention to that very spot. It’s a weird thing to do. I bet Packham loves it that she was claimed by Kate as a British designer. She is not good.

  56. MoonRiver says:

    Am I the only one who is wondering where William is at the first state banquet of King Charles’ reign?

  57. Dee says:

    Those crusty shoulders say “Don’t touch me” in a very aggressive way. Wearing white’s her thing, but too much bling.

  58. TheOriginalMia says:

    The dress is pretty. She seems overdressed. The jewel tones that Camilla & FF are wearing are beautiful but they seem like lesser royals compared to Kate. I was it on purpose? No idea, but Kate looks off when compared to them.

  59. Tina Loman says:

    Sophie’s dress is okay, but a little dull. I’m not a Princess Anne fan. She gets driven around for twenty-minute engagements five times a week sometimes, but its hard for me to forget her being rude to old people waiting to see her. I don’t like her personality. She’s thought of as blunt and no-nonsense. I just see rude. Her and Princess Alexandra were missing. Kate’s birthday photos, Jubilee tour, and state dress. If she doesn’t rewear one of her fifty old dresses for the second time I’m going to say she’s spending it while she’s got it. Princess Diana’s budget went up around three times during her last year as POW. She bought shoes, clothes, and jewelry everything. I think Kate will last to 2024 myself. She has more time to get it, but there is a cost-of-living crisis. She really has a million-dollar wardrobe to wear already. She could wear.

  60. SnarkMonster says:

    Wow, a cape dress… so original… we’ve NEVER seen anyone do that before… 🙄

    I wonder if Meghan gets annoyed seeing Kate copykeening so many of her looks or if she just sees it for how pathetic it is. I think if I were in her shoes I’d be annoyed, but then again I’m annoyed on her behalf.

  61. SURE says:

    K’s dress is a closer copy of the mauve evening gown Princess Mary wore to the Enthronement Ceremony Of Emperor Naruhito in Japan 2020. M’s dress didn’t have any embellishments so she wore a ruby (?) and diamond necklace to elevate her look. And strangely, she wore a purple percher style hat with an oversized bluish flower – weird! Maybe K is cosplaying Mary this time.

    • Lorelei says:

      @Sure, that’s exactly what I thought. It reminded me of Mary’s immediately. But somehow, Mary didn’t look so tacky or like she’d been bedazzled.

  62. Curmudgeon says:

    Bad photoshop strikes again: https://twitter.com/_PeterHunt/status/1595185236555407360?cxt=HHwWgICp_auhnqMsAAAA

    Are the tabs ticked at her or something?

  63. Nicki says:

    Not a fan but Cathy looks beautiful. This regal look-at-me stuff is her fashion sweet spot. Cams looks fab in saturated colors. She should lean into that. Chuck looks cranky and Bill looks bored.

    • Julia K says:

      Agree@nicki. This is where she shines. One of her few responsibilities in life is to be decorative. Throw on the glitz and glamour; if that’s what the tabloid royalists want, so be it.

      • Unblinkered says:

        Well said, pretty much captures the moment. Where are the smiles indeed.
        I’d say, for all of them, this is a classic case of be careful what you wish for.
        I do find it strange about the withholding of the Duke of Edinburgh title, I’m more inclined to think William is behind it for some reason and, if thats the case, what hold has he got over Charles?

  64. Rapunzel says:

    So I’m old enough to recall some folks snarking that Meg’s cape dresses were trying to appear like the queen. No such snark for Mutey Middleton. Even she was literally presented as the star of the show. Based on coverage, you’d have thought she was the queen last night. Pretty tacky.

    And the cape might copy Meg, but the white is copying Diana, who famously wore white dresses all the time with that tiara.

  65. CC says:

    If you look closely, William is indeed pictured. He was so incandescent that he turned into a light fixture.
    His transformation means he’s more useful now, too.

  66. AmelieOriginal says:

    Everyone’s saying she copied Meghan and it is true, Kate didn’t wear caped dresses until Meghan wore a few of them. This dress copies the silhouette of the Jenny Packham gold Bond premiere dress though the cape is cut a little lower due to the bedazzled embellishments on the shoulder. My first reaction upon seeing it was “why is she wearing something so bridal looking?” And it turns out this dress is from Jenny Packham’s bridal line. It’s a beautiful dress and she also wore white to the last state dinner the BRF hosted (the Trumps unfortunately lol) but I can’t imagine wearing a white dress to a state dinner where you have to eat!

    She looks beautiful but I am surprised she wore a new dress considering the economy. Even Camilla had a rewear (I have to say Camilla really pulled off the all sapphire look! She looked good). I thought she might rewear an old dress with a new tiara, I was disappointed to see the Lover’s Knot again. She wears it well but I wonder if she’s worn it so many times because of the Princess Diana association and she wants it to become “her” trademark tiara too or if she isn’t allowed to wear others? Sophie looked good too, I really like her tiara. But I really hate the sashes/brooches etc., it just makes the dress look so busy.

    • Sms says:

      The caped style was around before Meghan. It has been seen on Letizia and Princess Caroline, who worn the same one shoulder caped dress in red back in 2017, on Princess Mary, and the Queens of Belgium and Holland. Kate herself has worn at least two caped dresses in the past. Not everything that happens is about Meghan.

  67. tamsin says:

    History seems to be repeating itself. The Princess of Wales has managed to completely overshadow her husband. Seems the only pictures of William are of him sitting beside Kate in the car. I think Kate looks good here. Also, it’s pretty original to choose a dress from the designer’s wedding collection. It makes a fabulous winter wedding dress. It seems to me that for the last two decades, the late Queen always wore a white evening gown to state dinners- usually one of her bejewelled sacks. And she always wore huge necklaces and earrings with her tiaras because all the royal jewels are out-sized. Nothing dainty there! So it was interesting that Kate wore white and Camilla wore a beautiful jewel-toned gown. I think Camilla looked very good, and it was a good idea for her to wear a tiara that belonged to the late Queen and was a gift from her father. Genuine Windsor jewelry. I think Camilla is the one who can carry off huge bling, and she always wears huge bling along side her sombrero-sized hats. I always thought the Queen looked overwhelmed by her jewelry. I thought Sophie looked rather frumpy and those silver glitter platform shoes a bit over the top. The material seemed too thick for an evening dress, so it looked like a day dress made longer to be formal. It looked like a house-coat to me, especially with those flutter sleeves. I think she would have looked nicer if the dress were in a more sheer fabric. Liked her jewelry selections though.

    • Tessa says:

      To be honest I do not think William cares. He could have been relieved not to be sitting next to her or posing with her and her loving looks that he does not return. History imo is not repeating itself because Kate is no Diana but very bland.

  68. alexc says:

    Kate and Camilla look gaudy, Sophie looks elegant and understated.

    • sparrow says:

      I often think Sophie gets it more right somehow. Like she doesn’t try so hard so it doesn’t look so effortful.

      • L4Frimaire says:

        She looks like the poor cousin in that basic dress with borrowed jewels. She doesn’t try hard because her job is to be in the background, especially after being shot down in their quest for the Edinburgh Dukedom. Whatever.

  69. Concern Fae says:

    For the curious, lamb is a go-to for diplomatic meals as it is permitted in the Jewish, Muslim, and Hindu religions. And it’s not chicken.

  70. sparrow says:

    Thanks to curmudgeon upthread for the link to that photo! Yikes.

  71. Robin1568 says:

    QEII wore white to stand out. My first thought when I saw this was, “she’s trying to outshine Camilla.” Because she’s the first person you notice with all that going on. She absolutely HATES not being in first place, doesn’t she?

    • Well Wisher says:

      Inappropriate colour choice on Kate’s behalf.

      According to US report, they are on the outs, Kate gets her wishes granted in the upcoming cermony in May 2023, much to Camilla’s annoyance.

      Time will tell.

  72. L4Frimaire says:

    Regarding the menu, I’m making kale with squash for Thanksgiving too. Anyway, people are going on about the gowns and saying nonsense about dress copying, Montecito and stuff. I actually don’t see that, there’s a lot happening with the bedazzled shoulders but they wanted to bring out the big guns and jewels.Don’t like what Wessex, the forever countess, wore, in her dress barn outfit she’s worn several times before with the overly showy necklace.

    • BeanieBean says:

      I think Sophie’s necklace is one of those that can also be worn as a tiara. I think it would have been more interesting paired with a different tiara, so they would seem a reflection of each other. The one on her head, ugh. And her color palette was really weird, the pale stone in her tiara, with the dark green-blue dress & purple sash, then grey-ish shoes & purse. Weird.

  73. Steph says:

    I know everyone wants Khadaver to cut off her but at least she had enough for the very rare style change. Camilla has been wearing the exact same fringe cut since the 70s at least. No matter the weather, outfit or the occasion. I haven’t changed my haircut in years but I go through a pony, half up, all down each at least once a week. 😆

  74. Carolind says:

    I thought Kate was OTT. She looks frightening at some events. That tiara does not suit her. I thought Sophie looked great, but very sad. She and Edward are mourning the late Queen. I also thought Camilla looked nice and good she wore a dress she had on before. Loved her jewellery. Would have liked to have seen more photos of the other royal females. The DM went mad with photos of Kate. Anyone would have thought she was monarch.

    • Well Wisher says:

      Yes.
      But the comments were delicious, clearly Kate is not that popular among non-bots as marketed.
      The fail simply sopped up the bad energy as advert £..
      The comparisons to Meghan were brutal to anyone, even with the healthiest of self esteem.

  75. Monlette says:

    Have you read the brown nosing by the royal and body language experts? I swear they can’t get any more sycophantic.

    “Kate throwing a vase at William’s head and chasing him around with a golfclub indicates a sort of a confident playfulness in her marriage that wasn’t present in Diana’s marriage. It is the sign of a couple so much in love they arent afraid to take a swing at each other with a lethal weapon in good fun. The partial paralysis near her left eye shows determination and isn’t the result of botched botox in the slightest. So much more remarkable than the last POW, because Diana was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. So fake and crazy. Thank god we have Kate instead.”

    • Saucy&Sassy says:

      Monlette, is this their way of telling us that this really happened? When Fails was injured when he was 8, was that with a golf club? This doesn’t sound playful.

  76. Athena says:

    I thought Kate looked fine, the style definitely gives Meghan vibes. Meghan has worn multiple versions of that cape dress and to be honest it’s not a look that I like no matter who wears it. The earrings were probably lent to Kate for this occasion and she decided to wear them on Remembrance Day, which was inappropriate. For the person above who commented that a cape dress is inappropriate for a funeral, I didn’t realize there was a no cape dress rule for funerals, or is it only inappropriate when the black princess wears it. What’s the rule for blinged out earrings and jewelry for funerals and remembrance services?.

    Someone asked about Anne, her and her husband are on a royal tour, out of the country. If you google Anne, there’s no coverage of this tour.

    I was curious as to why the wife of the President of South Africa did not accompany him. There was an article back in October stating that they would both be there. The First Lady of South Africa is a practicing medical doctor, perhaps she doesn’t suffer fools and has decided to skip this.

  77. Kay says:

    I have no idea why the Kennedys are linking in with the Windsors. I think John Kerry has been doing some work in the background. Jackie Kennedy famously didn’t think much of the Queen. The Windsors are close to the right wing press and politicians its a shame that the Kennedys are hosting them.

  78. Kittenmom says:

    Medals, sash, and bling absolutely ruin this attempt. The person inside the dress is pretty awful too. Camilla reminds me of my daughters as toddlers playing Pretty Pretty Princess…gotta shove on as much big, tacky jewelry as will fit. Nope nope nope.

  79. lucy2 says:

    Most of the royal jewelry is too gaudy for me, but the lover’s knot tiara is stunning.
    I like the color of Sophie’s gown.

  80. HeyKay says:

    Tiaras, tiaras, I would enjoy a tiara I think.
    Might need to stop at Dollar General, pick one up for laundry day. 😀
    I’m poor, I need affordable fun. lol

    I can’t help myself, I’m thrilled and yet nauseated by the BRF jewels.
    Since Liz was Queen before I was born, I used to be able to ogle the jewelry without giving it too much thought.
    When Princess Diana wore the jewelry, I thought it was fab. Diana was so young, and to me, a real life Disney princess, beautiful, kind, etc.

    Now? None of the current royals should be wearing the jewels. They all stink.
    Not you George. I still picture George in his tiny blue bathrobe and slippers meeting BO.
    Museum pieces, donations from viewing given to charity. Open book charity, public records just like the Freedom of Information Act in US.
    Down with King Charles and William the angry!

  81. SIde Eye says:

    I was thinking the bedazzling is very Michael Jackson circa 1992, but then Dee(2) said Captain Crunch lol and now I can’t unsee it. Dare I say – I don’t hate it. She looks nice. She accomplished her goal: be front and center, outshine her husband (basically it’s tantamount to outshining a boiled egg), and outshining Camilla (I’ll keep my thoughts on that one to myself but let’s just say – it’s no monumental accomplishment to outshine Camilla).

    I literally purse my lips and clench my fists when I see these welfare queens and descendants of colonizers, looters, and thieves wearing these stolen pieces of jewelry pillaged from other (mostly Brown and Black) countries. It infuriates me.

    The optics looks incredibly tone deaf. I think times have really changed. The mood has turned against them and is this fanfare okay when their subjects will literally freeze to death this winter? They don’t get it.

  82. Sue E Generis says:

    Does someone happen to know the significance of the random detritus stuck to various parts of their outfits? The meaning of the sashes, the toilet paper-looking thingy with brooch and pic attached etc.?

    • Nic919 says:

      The yellow ribbon with the portrait of the queen is the household order. It is given at the discretion of the monarch to women who are blood royal or married into the family. The queen wore the ones she got from her grandfather and father, which had pink and blue ribbons. There will be one made on behalf of Charles soon and Camilla and kate will likely get it after coronation.

      It should be noted that while most women who married into the family got the household order within a few years of the marriage, it took 7 years before kate got hers, longer than any other married in woman. And likely because Meghan was seriously dating Harry and going to be a part of it so Kate needed something before Meghan.

      The sash Kate wears is the Victorian order. She got it in 2019 after disappearing for almost two months because the story of William’s affair was made public. Harry has a version of the Victorian order which he got for his military service. The level he was given is not as high as Kate I guess because staying with a cheater is more service than actual military combat.

      Camilla is wearing the order of the garter which she gets as spouse of the monarch. There are star brooches that are a part of this getup.

  83. Wild Rose says:

    Greetings People,

    Time to throw me into the tower – How much did it cost to get this lot out of the Wax Museum in London (maybe they are on permanent loan) either way this is exciting as watching a pot of porridge being stirred.

    This lot drags the European Monarchies down to a level that even a limbo dancer couldn’t get to followed hard up with the looks on their faces showing pure disgust at having to be photographed in each other’s company. Priceless.

    Obviously there has been a directive with bullet points that they were told to follow on pain of having their rattling jewelry taken away. Mind you the obvious grave robbing has continued, and the snarky Bill has thrown his toys out of the cot – so the evil eyebrow is searching the room to see if he has slipped out and who with.

    This is boring, so much so that my eyeballs hurt – pretty much ten ways to Sunday and even a visit to the local fish market cannot save this lot. Maybe King Felipe decided that he would not put his exquisite Queen through the meeting with the dullards a couple of days back – he is a very wise man.

    No “breathless” headline can save this crew of Muppets and the obvious Style Commandment of looking in the mirror and taking one thing off was not on the “post it” note stuck to Middleton’s mirror.

    And now to the Tower.

    • Teagirl says:

      Evil Eyebrow! Almost choked on my tea reading that. Thank you for the best laugh of the day so far.

  84. Margaret says:

    I think Kate looked good… apart from the crooked tiara. I imagine they are not just plonked on the head by the wearer but are positioned carefully by the hairdresser so she couldn’t just nudge it back into position when she realised it was crooked. Why couldn’t the hairdresser or tiara placer get the tiara straight? Did someone make it crooked on purpose? I like the idea it was intentional. 😀

    I am not really keen on the tiara worn by Camilla – I think it looks rather clunky – but overall I liked her outfit and the matching blue jewellery.

  85. Carolind says:

    The wife of the South African President is said to be recovering from an eye op.
    Camilla goes to India before big events to do stuff like relaxation and yoga.

  86. TeeCee says:

    Catherine looked beautiful! Perfectly tailored & so regal!

  87. A says:

    This is the moment Kate’s been waiting for her whole life so far. Of course she was going to copy Diana. She doesn’t have a single original thought inside of that wiglet head. The whole look was entirely meant to evoke the Diana comparisons, on purpose. Mission accomplished, bc that’s what everyone is raving about so far. I’d ask if this moment is worth sacrificing a lifetime of happiness for, but who am I kidding–Wiglet would say yes.

    Next, Camilla–same thing. This is the big moment, aside from the coronation, that Charles has been planning for since the moment he decided to marry Camilla. I would not be surprised if he was the one who handpicked the jewelry, and dictated the choice of clothing. Everything about Camilla is a reflection on him, so he probably stage managed every detail down to the threads.

    But all I could think about, looking at those pictures of Camilla in those sapphires, is how resplendent Diana would have looked in that set. Can you imagine Diana in a gown that shade of blue, with that tiara and the necklace? The monarchy was made for someone like Diana. Instead we get something worse than a dime store knock off version. Tragic.

    This state dinner should be a big victory lap for this whole bunch. This should be their big moment, the moment of triumph that all of these greedy, status-conscious bunch of social climbers have salivated and dreamed about for decades. You know that these people have had these outfits and gowns and jewelry planned and earmarked for years before now, in anticipation of this very moment, with the intention of making an impression.

    And yet–where are the actual smiles? There aren’t any. Camilla isn’t smiling as much as she’s grimacing. Charles BARELY looks like the king that he’s supposed to be. Weasel probably can’t stretch her facial muscles into a smile, although I will say that her fillers have settled nicely since yesterday. Baldy is such a nonentity, that he doesn’t even feature in these pictures or news coverage to the extent that he should be. I almost forgot that he was in attendance as well. And he must be seething bc Kate and her outfit dominated the coverage for the most part. Pity the poor KP grunt who has to bear the brunt of his angry yelling.

    And what a let down for the Wessexes. I guess they imagined that they’d be swanning around with their new ducal title by now. Instead, they got shafted by the selfish and untrustworthy older brother, and relegated to playing second fiddle forever until they fade away into obscurity. I’d feel bad for them, but I don’t.

    All of these people have all gotten exactly what they wanted. Too bad they can’t do the one thing they desperately wish they could do–force people to like them.

    • Tessa says:

      Kate can dress up and try to imitate Diana. She is no Diana. She is work shy, pretentious and essentially not a nice person. I noticed how harry quickly walked away from her on that walkabout

  88. sammi says:

    The only reason she is going to Jenny Packham is because she is the sister of Chris Packham , wildlife acivist and very popular. Chris is vocal in his condemnation of the Royals usage of land and in particular Game shooting of the endagered species like the Woodcock red listed bird. He has propbably refused an honour like Dawn French but not said anything. Jenny Packham is a wedding dress designer and look at her green dress worn by Kate previously to see her ‘style’. A copy is a copy and not sure the designer of Meghan’s cape original style would be impressed .
    Springwatch , Nature programme with Chris and other popular presenters was up for the Bafta award which amazingly William seemed to have ‘won’ for Earthshot which was a disaster programme and hardly any viewers.

    • sparrow says:

      Yes. Totally true. I love Chris Packham for his wildlife programmes. He is SO vocal in his hatred of hunting of all kinds, to the point he gets death threats and damage to his property. His family doesn’t have to share his views, of course, but it’s so odd that his sister is in the designer bed of the most transparently hunting and shooting family in the UK. I actually don’t see Kate getting the hypocrisy of buying a Packham dress, nor do I think she does it for the eco credentials by association with the Packham family. I think she just went for Brit designer and has stuck with someone she thinks gets her shape. She is as shallow as that IMO.

    • windyriver says:

      And the former head of BAFTA is now CEO of W&K’s Royal Foundation, as of this summer…

  89. Noor says:

    Camilla – nice outfit but the tiara is competing with the necklace and the earrings.
    Kate- beautiful dress, nice medals and sash but together they spoiled the flow of the cape dress
    Sophie – too plain dress but she looks good.
    Wondering what is the cost of this tremendous display of pomp and pageantry involving thousand of military personnel, state carriages, cannon salute etc etc for a mere presidential state visit .

  90. El says:

    I think it’s odd that K wore a wedding dress to this event.

  91. Julia K says:

    Camilla looks nice here except for one very major item; her teeth. They are crooked and discolored. Someone with her money, connections and need to be high profile visible should have addressed this year’s ago!

  92. TheOriginalMia says:

    After seeing the original design of the dress, I have to laugh. Kate had too much bling added to the shoulders. The dress looks much better without all that extra bead work. As usual, Kate doesn’t know how to dress or accessorize. Too many competing elements from the tiara to the cape to the jewels. It’s just so overwhelming and looks awkward when compared with the other royal ladies.

  93. Sooky Choi says:

    The ‘we are the upper crust of the world’ cosplay vibe in these photos is somethin’ else…jesus murphy. TOTAL Fantasy Island wilful denial of current events, changing mores, the horrific inequalities that could be addressed with the barest minimum of awareness/empathy. All the preening and display and hysterically bad teeth when Camilla smiles…lordy…the fabled British dentition on glorious display. And this is the result of generations of ostensibly ‘superior’ breeding…haaaa!!