Kate Middleton is set to attend Trooping the Colour on June 8: Princess of Wales' first official dut

The Princess of Wales will attend Trooping the Colour in three months’ time as part of her comeback to royal duties after Easter following abdominal surgery.

The Ministry of Defence has confirmed that Kate Middleton will be present at the parade on Saturday, June 8 from 10.30am at Horse Guards Parade in Westminster.

While this is Kate’s first official duty to be announced since she underwent surgery, Kensington Palace has not yet confirmed her attendance at the final rehearsal. 

More than 1,400 soldiers from the Household Division and The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery will take part, including 400 musicians from the Massed Bands.

They will parade on Horse Guards for the second of two formal reviews, while there will also be 250 soldiers from the Foot Guards lining the route along The Mall.

There are two further Trooping the Colour parades being advertised by the MoD – one reviewed by Major General James Bowder on June 1 and another by King Charles III on June 15. Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed the monarch’s attendance. 

Also this morning, the King was pictured with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt ahead of tomorrow’s Budget in a meeting in his private audience room at Buckingham Palace. 

2023 — Prince William and Kate with their children Prince George, Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte at Buckingham Palace for Trooping The Colour in London on June 17 last year

2023 — Glorious scenes down the Mall during Trooping the Colour in London on June 17, 2023

When Kate attends Trooping the Colour, it will be almost exactly the same as when the King reviews the parade – with the exception of fewer mounted officers riding.

The general public can watch from the stands on Horse Guards Parade by applying for tickets via the MoD website, which cost £15. The parade will finish by 12.25pm.

There will also be a limited view from standing in public vantage points on The Mall or on the edge of St James’s Park overlooking Horse Guards Parade from 9am.

On an online ticket booking site for Trooping the Colour, the MoD said Kate, as Colonel of the Irish Guards, will carry out the inspection during the event on June 8.

2022 — William, Kate and their children attend Trooping the Colour in London on June 2, 2022

2021 — Trooping the Colour was held at Windsor Castle in front of the Queen on June 12, 2021 

A section on the event information said: ‘Trooping the Colour reviewed by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales is identical to Trooping the Colour reviewed by His Majesty The King, with the exception that some additional mounted officers ride when His Majesty The King is present.

‘Taking part will be over 1,400 soldiers of the Household Division and The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, including 400 musicians from the Massed Bands, all of whom will parade on Horse Guards for the second of two formal Reviews.

‘Trooping the Colour reviewed by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales also includes 250 soldiers from the Foot Guards who will line the processional route along The Mall.

‘The soldiers will be inspected by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales, Colonel Irish Guards.’

Kate is not set to return to official duties until after Easter, and William temporarily stepped back from his royal role to juggle caring for her and their children.

The Princess was admitted to the London Clinic for a planned operation on January 16 and left the hospital on January 29 – almost two weeks later.

The 42-year-old then returned to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor to be reunited with her three children. Details of the Princess’s condition have not been revealed.

Kensington Palace however said previously it was not cancer-related and that Kate wished her personal medical information to remain private.

A week after the Princess left hospital, Buckingham Palace announced King Charles III had been diagnosed with cancer and was receiving treatment.

2019 — William and Kate at Trooping the Colour with their children in London on June 8, 2019

2017 — Philip speaks to William and Kate at Trooping The Colour in London on June 17, 2017

Kate’s parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, and siblings, Pippa Matthews and James Middleton, are thought to currently be hands-on in helping the Waleses.

Yesterday, TMZ published a photograph of Kate near Windsor Castle in the passenger seat of a black Audi car being driven by her mother Carole Middleton.

The photo of the Princess, who was wearing dark sunglasses, is the first of Kate since she was pictured during a Christmas Day walk in Sandringham, Norfolk.

Meanwhile, Kate’s ‘black sheep’ uncle Gary Goldsmith – the brother of Carole – praised her as ‘perfect’ as he entered the Celebrity Big Brother house last night.

Kate was last seen at a royal event on Christmas Day 2023 with her family at Sandringham 

King Charles is pictured with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt at Buckingham Palace in London today

He added that she could be watching the new ITV programme from ‘behind a sofa’.

Asked by presenter AJ Odudu if Kate would be watching, 58-year-old Mr Goldsmith said: ‘If she is it will be behind a sofa, I guess… It’ll be a nice one in a nice house, I can guarantee that.’

In a pre-recorded interview which aired before he entered the house, Goldsmith said: ‘She is simply perfect.

‘First time I met William, Catherine was cooking and William said, ‘Hi, do you want a cup of tea?’ Very normal.’

Towards the end of the programme, he told fellow housemate Fern Britton ‘I absolutely adore my family’ after the TV presenter praised his decision to come on the show.

Speaking to The Sun before entering the house, Goldsmith described his niece as a ‘doting mum’.

‘She’s beautiful on the outside, but more beautiful on the inside and really is a doting mum… so the way the monarchy is moving, it’s family-centric.’

He added he became ‘upset’ with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex ‘because you don’t put a stick into that spoke and reinvent history’.

‘Throwing your family under the bus just seemed inappropriate, especially what was happening with the Queen. I just thought it was totally unnecessary,’ he added.

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