Royal | News - Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
The Duchess of Gloucester and Princess Michael of Kent represented the Royal Family on day eight of the Wimbledon tournament in London.
As the Princess of Wales’s attendance at the tennis championships this weekend still remains unconfirmed, Brigitte was seen smiling and chatting to All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club chairwoman Debbie Jevans.
Words were exchanged during the ladies’ singles fourth round match between Elena Rybakina and Anna Kalinskaya on her 52nd wedding anniversary. The duchess, who is married to the late Queen Elizabeth’s cousin, Prince Richard, has been an Honorary President of the Lawn Tennis Association for 25 years.
She also attended another Wimbledon match last week and is rumoured to be Princess Kate’s possible replacement to present the winner’s trophies this weekend.
The Princess of Wales has not attended any royal engagements in 2024, apart from Trooping the Colour in June, as she undergoes preventative chemotherapy for a type of cancer which was diagnosed earlier this year.
Kate has no engagements confirmed by Kensington Palace in the near foreseeable future and it remains unclear whether she will feel well enough to attend Wimbledon this weekend.
A final decision on her appearance is not expected to be made until the morning of the women’s final on Saturday. Meanwhile, another rarely-seen royal was also spotted today at the tennis championships.
Princess Michael of Kent was pictured sitting in the royal box enjoying day eight of the tournament.
The royal has had a tough year so far after her daughter, Lady Gabriella Windsor’s husband, Thomas Kingston, was found dead back in February.
However, she, as well as husband Prince Michael, have quietly carried on with their royal engagements ever since.
Royal fans were delighted to see the two royal ladies at Wimbledon today and took to social media to express their jubilance.
One user wrote on X: “Two wonderful royal ladies are the Royal Family’s representatives at #Wimbledon Day 8: Princess Michael of Kent and The Duchess of Gloucester (on her wedding anniversary). Lovely to see them both!”
Another one commented: “Wishing the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester a very happy 52nd wedding anniversary today.”
Another royal attending today’s matches at Wimbledon was Prince Albert of Monaco, who was joined by his cousin Melanie-Antoinette Costello de Massy.