The Princess of Wales will join King Charles and Queen Camilla for one of the biggest events in the royal calendar next week.
It has been confirmed that along with Prince William, they will all be attending the annual Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey on Monday. Both Kate and the King missed the major service last year after they were both diagnosed with cancer.
However, the princess has now confirmed she is in remission and is making a gradual return to public duties. Kate was diagnosed with cancer after having abdominal surgery at the start of last year and revealed at the end of March that she was undergoing chemotherapy.
Kate with Prince William, Queen Camilla and King Charles at the last Commonwealth Day service she attended ( Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
She has carried out several engagements this year as she continues her return to public life, including visiting Pontypridd ahead of St David’s Day last week. It will be the biggest royal gathering for an event since Christmas Day.
William, Kate, Charles and Camilla will also attend the service along with Princess Anne and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Buckingham Palace announced. This year’s Commonwealth Day theme is “Together We Thrive”, which celebrates the “enduring spirit of the Commonwealth family”.
Charles, who is Head of the Commonwealth, gives an annual address each year to the family of 56 nations, but last year pre-recorded a video message after postponing his public-facing duties for around three months.
Camilla and William led the service last year with Kate and the King not attending ( Image: Getty Images)
In his video message last year, he said: “In recent weeks, I have been most deeply touched by your wonderfully kind and thoughtful good wishes for my health and, in return, can only continue to serve you, to the best of my ability, throughout the Commonwealth.”
He added: “My belief in our shared endeavours and in the potential of our people remains as sure and strong as it has ever been. I have no doubt that we will continue to support one another across the Commonwealth as, together, we continue this vital journey.”
After Monday’s service, the King and Queen will then be the guests of the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Baroness Scotland, at the annual Commonwealth Day Reception at Marlborough House. There they will hear a song by Andrew Lloyd Webber to mark the inaugural Commonwealth Peace Prize.
Also earlier in the day, the King will officially launch the Commonwealth Sport King’s Baton Relay at Buckingham Palace for the Glasgow 2026 Games. The Games had been plunged into crisis when the previous 2026 hosts Victoria in Australia pulled out amid ballooning costs.
Australia has hosted the Commonwealth Games five times, including on the Gold Coast in 2018 and in the Victorian capital of Melbourne in 2006. However, it will now take place in Glasgow next summer after the Scottish city stepped in.
