Kate Middleton Wore Meaningful Earrings to Windsor Castle Meeting After Completing Chemotherapy

Mar. 15, 2025

Kate Middleton hugs Liz Hatton at Windsor Castle on Oct. 2, 2024.Photo:Andrew Parsons / Kensington Palace

Andrew Parsons / Kensington Palace

Kate Middletonaccessorized with a poignant pair of earrings for her first photographed meeting since announcing she hadcompleted chemotherapy.

On Oct. 2, the Princess of Wales, 42, made a surprise appearance at Windsor Castle afterPrince Williamheld investiture ceremonies there to privately meet with 16-year-old Liz Hatton, a budding young photographer who is navigating a rare and aggressive form of cancer. Prince William, 42, invited Liz and her family to capture the investitures for her “photography bucket list,” and the teenlater toldBBC Radio 4 it was a “massive shock” to meet the Prince and Princess of Wales after.

Princess Kate wore a maroon suit with what appeared to be her Cassandra GoadTemple of Heaven earrings, reaching for baubles that have been in her jewelry box for years and bear a key meaning, according to the brand.

Kate Middleton hugs Liz Hatton at Windsor Castle on Oct. 2, 2024.Andrew Parsons / Kensington Palace

Statement earrings are one of Princess Kate’s style staples, and she has worn the Temple of Heaven earrings before. She wore them forZara Tindall’s pre-wedding celebration in 2011, and later to a 2014 reception for Place2Be, a children’s mental health charity she supports as patron, among other occasions.

Cassandra Goad is a female-founded brand based in London, and the Princess of Wales wore the luxe jeweler’s Cavolfiore Pearl Studs toTrooping the Colourin June (which were also already in her collection).King Charles' birthday parade was one of Kate’s two official public appearances so far this year after she announced in March that she was undergoingtreatment for cancer.

As has become her new norm, Kate opted to not wear her iconic sapphire engagement ring that once belonged to her late mother-in-law,Princess Diana,swapping it for a different ring— which she has done multiple times recently.

Kate Middleton and Prince William pose with Liz Hatton (center) and her family at Windsor Castle on Oct. 2, 2024.Andrew Parsons / Kensington Palace

The Princess of Wales issued avideo messageon Sept. 9 to announce that she completed chemotherapy treatment and shared a bit about what she imagined the months ahead would look like.

“Doing what I can to stay cancer free is now my focus. Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long and I must continue to take each day as it comes,” Princess Kate said in part. “I am, however, looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months when I can.”

The royal has quietly hada few meetingsfor work since, but the Windsor Castle meetup with Liz and her family was significant because it was the first of its kind that Kate was photographed at since she announced on Sept. 9 that she had completed treatment.

Kate Middleton in a video issued on Sept. 9, 2024.Will Warr

Will Warr

“A pleasure to meet with Liz at Windsor today. A talented young photographer whose creativity and strength has inspired us both,” the Prince and Princess of Wales wrote on social media.

“Thank you for sharing your photos and story with us. ❤️,” they wrote. The couple signed the post “W&C,” using the initials of their first names as shorthand to signal that the update came directly from them.

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The Prince and Princess of Wales' team posted two photos from the meeting, one of Kate (who has described herself as an “enthusiastic amateur photographer”) hugging Liz, as well as a group shot of the royal couple with Liz and her loved ones.

The teen later recapped the royal meeting in a Gen Z-approved way — on her Instagram Stories! — and told theTodayshow on BBC Radio 4 that it was wonderful to meet William and Kate.

Liz Hatton’s Instagram Stories on Oct. 2, 2024.Liz Hatton Photography/Instagram

Liz Hatton Photography/Instagram

“Talking to them was amazing ‘cause it was like talking to anyone, like just a normal person,” she said during her Oct. 3 appearance on the show. “There was no sort of grandeur about them, there was just humanity and kindness.”

source: people.com