As the Princess of Wales turns 43 on Thursday January 9, the much loved royal’s life is world ’s away from where it was at the same time last year. In 2024, Princess Kate had started the year not knowing that the next twelve months would involve major surgery and a devastating cancer diagnosis – but now, a year on, she is finally able to embrace 2025 with a welcome return to normality having completed her treatment.
Approaching her birthday with a new lease on life and a positive and gracious outlook, many royal experts have predicted that this year will see the Princess at her husband Prince William ’s side far more often as they resume their place on the world stage. With King Charles still undergoing treatment for his own cancer, Prince William and Princess Kate will be acutely aware of their future roles as King and Queen of the country – particularly as it means 2025 will likely hold far more international travel.
As his father continues to recover, William is far more likely to be called in to represent the monarch at various state and official occasions, such as when he headed to Paris in December to meet with US-President Elect Donald Trump at the reopening of Notre-Dame cathedral. Which means having Princess Kate for support at his side, will now be more crucial than ever.
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Despite the return to normality however, Princess Kate is still putting her health first ( Image: Getty)
“Last year was an exceptional year, and William stepped up into a solo global-statesman role, but going forward, I think Catherine will spend more time at his side,” Kate’s biographer Robert Jobson told HELLO!.
He added: “They will both be mindful of their children’s education and will make sure they’re around if anything crucial happens, but there will be situations where they have to put the country and duty before their children. Once Trump becomes President, there will be another state visit, and William and Catherine will play a key role, just as the King did the last time, when the late Queen was alive. This is all part of William becoming a global figure.”
Since announcing the successful competition of her treatment, Kate has been making a slow but steady return to her official duties, such as when she hosted her Together at Christmas concert last December. However, while the Princess has shown no hesitation in doing her duty, her health is still the priority – as is her young family.
“What we saw last year was her prioritising her recovery, and there hasn’t been a step-change in that,” a friend told the publication. “There’s no press of a reset button as such.”
