Catherine and family at church in Balmoral (Sunday 25/08/2024)

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Catherine and family seen at church in Balmoral (Sunday 25/08/2024)

Kate Middleton is seen at Crathie Kirk for the first time since revealing her cancer diagnosis as she joins Prince William and other Royal Family members for Sunday service | Daily Mail Online

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It's nice to see her out and about. Kate's had a good few months of chemo now, maybe she's hiding her hair from the photographers. In her position I'd not want thinning hair to knock my confidence or haunt me years from now.
Edited to add: I like the hat

I think hat wearing is just a thing for the royals in church. The pictures of the Queen show she is wearing one too. And the King is in full kilt regalia. There is a nice picture of his knees 😂

We always got dressed up going to church when I was little (inc hats) & no one I know goes to church wearing scruffy clothes! Might not be 'Sunday Best' anymore, but it's still a lot nicer than what you'd wear around the house! I'd definitely dress up if I were a royal.

My UK church isn’t informal - I’ve never seen anyone wearing jeans to church!

Even the little kids wear smart clothes.

Our church is really informal. Catholic, if that makes a difference. I haven’t been for a while, but when I did, people were usually in jeans or similar.

Great to see her - and wearing what she feels comfortable in.
At our church I see a variety: from smart casual to Sunday best is usual but no one would bat an eyelid if someone did come in wellies or a suit..

She has many, many mornings when she doesn't have to get up or do anything.

You can’t really see what she’s wearing apart from the top bit of that jacket (and the hat. She could have a smart dress on? 🤷‍♀️. However I do understand that dressing for the church at Balmoral is more informal than if they’d been going to Westminster Abby for example. It’s “country set” type wear. Like there are different rules for what you wear at Balmoral House compared to Buckingham Palace. Didn’t Tony Blair say he’d not realised and turned up with “city smart” clothes for a stay at Balmoral?

Does or did Tony Blair know what a square yard of earth is?

lol - I always assumed the Catholic congregation would be a lot more formal and smarter than my little CofE rural church - we aren’t even one of the ‘high church’ C of Es.

Aww 🥰

There are definite benefits to being Royal. But an awful lot of downsides too. No privacy. Not knowing if anyone is really your friend or just a social climber. having your every move analysed. Having people write crap about you on social media. Being betrayed by people you think you can trust.

I used to 'have' to go to church for various reasons when i was first married. I'm not even Christian. TBH the best thing about it was the sherry at home afterwards while the Sunday roast was being cooked by DH. I hope the Royals have sherry afterwards also. I like to think they do.

I know I never looked as good as the PoW though. She really is lovely looking IMO.

If that's true, that's unbelievably ignorant.

I was raised a post-Vatican II Catholic. I actually attended folk masses as a child where the nuns played their guitar while singing "Kumbaya". Needless to say, I'm used to informal dress at church.

I think it's one of those areas where the RF hang on to the more formal practices of earlier ages. My grandmother (born mid 1890s) would not have set foot in a church without a hat, mind you it was a rare day she went beyond the garden gate without one. Another relative, same sort of age as the late Queen, never wore a hat (and was a keen supporter of "messy church" for kids in her quite sedate parish)

It might also be about visibility. We expect royal women to be wearing hats at certain occasions including church, it makes them stand out (and probably easier for the photographers to spot)

Sorry, ignorant of Tony Blair to not know or ignorant of the RF /someone to not tell him? Apparently the Queen Mother was “horrified” by Blair’s trousers. He can’t have been too bothered as he managed to get Cherie knocked up that weekend! 😁

Guests are issued with details of the weekend itinerary including what attire is expected .

Honestly it is incredibly rude of the Royal Family to dictate what the Prime Minister should be wearing.

Eh?

They don’t dictate , they let them know the itinerary and anyone with half a brain would know that a walk on the grouse moor would require stout shoes/ boots .
That’s not dictating . It’s similar to someone being invited to a wedding or posh event .

@FriendlyRobin "Yes UK church is much more informal. Lots of jeans. Very unusual to see lots of people very dressed up or the little hats."
Depends very much on the Church.

There is no 'UK church'.

That is not true. Someone posted above about the Queen Mother being horrified because Tony Blair wore the "wrong" trousers. That is incredibly rude of her.