1
On 29 April 2011,
the most talked about couple in
the world tied the knot.
It was a real fairytale, wasn't it?
It was the real thing.
And since that day,
it's been a whirlwind 12 months
for Will and Kate.
From taking part in the local pub
quiz in Anglesey...
He actually turned to me and said,
'Do you know what colour the
Simpsons' car is?'
I said, 'I think it's royal blue.'
He laughed his head off
when I said that.
I love being in Anglesey.
It's a beautiful place.
to their first official
royal tour.
It will improve as we go on.
Just what happens when you come
face-to-face with a duchess?
I didn't know if I could touch,
what I could touch.
It ended up looking like I was
playing Twister with her.
I personally thought it was
absolutely phenomenal.
I think they were just terrific,
the two of them.
We will find out what makes
this twosome tick...
The fact that there is a passion
there, there is a chemistry...
It is very clear.
and hear how the
world's favourite couple
has won over everyone on their way.
They are just very normal. They're
down-to-earth, they're caring.
They identify with the ordinary
working man.
We'll see them deal
with Britain in turmoil.
The signal that
they were sending out
was that they care,
that they understand.
And while the Prince does his
duties overseas...
In Argentina's capital, their chant
is, 'Get out of the Falklands.'
we see the future Queen consort
flying solo.
I feel enormously proud
to be part of East Anglia's
Children's Hospices.
One year on from their big day,
this is the inside story
of how William and Kate
stole the nation's heart.
And now, as they say,
lights, camera, action.
On Friday, 29 April 2011,
the eyes of the world
focused on London
and the fairytale wedding of Prince
William to Catherine Middleton.
William Wales and Kate Middleton
That is why we are all here.
1.5 million people flocked
onto the streets of London.
Here at Hyde Park, we are expecting
some 200,000 fans plus.
But at Westminster Abbey,
only the chosen few had an invite.
The guest list reflected the world
William and Kate inhabit,
their own friends,
the young and successful.
There was a tremendously
buzzy atmosphere.
People were greeting each other.
They were pleased to see each other.
I got married in Westminster Abbey.
I would have been terribly pleased
if the atmosphere before my wedding
was a patch on what theirs was.
With the supporting cast in place,
at 11:01, the moment everyone
had been waiting for arrived.
She is
wearing brand Alexander McQueen.
It is a wedding dress that has
been designed, as was speculated,
by Sarah Burton.
That dress just nailed
the right level
between the simplicity
and the glamour.
She just got it perfectly right.
The bride walked towards me
and it was just a breathtaking
and wonderful sight, really.
Such a beautiful dress.
I daresay she did feel
a bit nervous.
I mean, who wouldn't at that
particular moment?
There was no great sign of it
at all.
She seemed very calm
and very together,
and utterly prepared for what was
going to happen.
Around the world,
2.4 billion people watched
as William and Catherine said,
'I do.'
Be who God meant you to be...
and you will set the world
on fire.
The families watched on with pride,
but one very special person,
dear to Prince William, was missing.
I felt a bit heartbroken on the day
that we weren't seeing Diana
in the Abbey
because she would have been loving
every second.
I think the Princess of Wales,
his mother,
would have been very, very proud
of him.
The new royal couple.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
As hundreds of thousands of people
made their way up The Mall
to gather beneath the balcony...
inside the palace,
the two families were preparing for
the official photograph.
They'd just come back from the
Abbey, in that carriage,
and then they came
into the throne room.
It was lovely listening to
them all getting on
and who was paying attention to what
and whatever. It was great.
But for Hugo, the pressure was on.
We had officially 28 minutes
from when they got back to the Abbey
to when they had to leave
the throne room.
With the clock ticking,
Hugo had one last task,
to get a shot of the bride and groom
with their bridesmaids and pages.
But he had a trick up his sleeve
to get the children on his side.
I felt that jellybeans was probably
a suitable bribe.
With little people,
you show them the jellybeans,
and say, 'These are for you,
but we've got to do the job first.'
There was a bit of an ugly scramble
for the jellybeans after the shoot.
There's no doubt about that.
Outside Buckingham Palace,
tension was building
as the huge crowds waited for a
glimpse of the newlyweds.
'Oh, wow,' she says. 'Oh, wow.'
And there was one thing
they all wanted to see.
And there you have the moment
they had all come for, the kiss,
this new tradition
that you imagine has been going for
hundreds of years,
that was actually only invented by
William's parents Charles and Diana.
They did the kiss, that first
kiss... 'Let's get this one over.'
But it was the second one
which was the real humdinger.
Oh, another one!
It was not rehearsed.
It was spontaneous.
Again, it showed the passion.
Those two are not afraid to touch
each other.
As a matter of fact, it looks like
they like to touch each other.
Just days after playing starring
roles on the world stage,
it was back to normal
for the newlyweds
as Catherine and William returned to
their home in Anglesey.
Anglesey is a small island
off of Wales.
It's rather windswept,
it's very remote.
They live in a not excessively
large cottage, close to the sea,
and they absolutely love it.
I've loved being in Anglesey.
It's a beautiful place.
When the sun shines out,
it's stunning.
The beaches here,
the general life...
It's great to settle in after a hard
afternoon. It's good.
I think William and Catherine
relish their life in Anglesey.
It's private, quiet. When they're
there, they're just Will and Kate.
They don't have a team of staff.
It's something they decided they
didn't want to take on
when they got married.
They have a housekeeper,
but it's Kate who does the shopping,
the cleaning,
taking out the garbage...
She does all of those things.
While Catherine is busy homemaking,
William is hard at work as a search
and rescue pilot at RAF Valley.
Every day you come into work and you
don't know what is going to happen.
It is quite exciting in that sense,
but at the same time,
it's great that you get to go out
and save someone's life, hopefully,
or at least make a difference to
someone when they are in trouble.
Guys, you are clear.
William has a full-time career
in the Royal Air Force,
and he's made it clear
that that's a job he wants to keep
going with full-time
as much as he possibly can, even
for the next two or three years.
Some reports have suggested
even longer.
He wants to be a serving
Royal Air Force officer.
I mean, he's not messing around.
His career is very important to him.
It was totally apparent to me
straight away
how important the job is,
the general airmanship
you need to have around you,
the wits you need to survive the
situation you are thrown in to.
It definitely is advanced flying and
it is rewarding.
Put the two together,
and it's a fantastic job.
You could never accuse people of
favouritising him for who he was
because nobody would put other
people's lives at risk
and have a rescue sea helicopter
going out
with a man who didn't know
how to fly it.
It's a tough job, and just like
people all over the country,
at the end of the day,
he likes to wind down
by popping into his local
for the pub quiz.
On the night that William came in,
I was actually in the kitchen.
One of the staff came through and
said, 'Prince William is here.'
I said, 'No. There's no chance.'
I sat on the table opposite him,
and he was really friendly.
He actually turned to me and said,
'Do you know what colour the
Simpsons' car is?'
I couldn't help myself.
I said, 'I think it's royal blue.'
He laughed his head off
when I said that.
He stayed right until the very end.
I went over and thanked him
for coming in
and he thanked me for a lovely
evening
and said we'd see him again.
And the canny landlord
could spot an opportunity when it
presented itself.
I told everybody that Prince William
had been
and I told them that he was coming
the following Thursday as well.
You didn't know. Which I didn't know
whether it was true or not.
The following Thursday,
the pub was very busy as well.
Kate and William enjoy life
in Anglesey
away from their royal duties,
but it won't last forever.
Things will change when they move
to London,
which will happen probably
at some point in 2013.
It's when they will have to give up
their private part of their lives
and they will become full-time
working royals.
For the time being, they can enjoy
some quality time in Wales.
I think this is a wonderful
opportunity for them both
to have a life that is as normal as
possible.
I think that this is,
sadly for them,
probably the short span
of their life
when they can really be like a
normal person.
Two weeks into married life,
the newlyweds swapped the rugged
beaches of Anglesey
for their top-secret honeymoon
destination...
the tropical beaches
of the Seychelles.
They'd said beforehand that they
wanted to go somewhere hot,
a young person's destination.
The Seychelles fitted the bill.
This was something a bit different,
a bit younger,
more akin to what people of their
generation with a bit of money
would do for a honeymoon.
They went to the Seychelles in 2007,
post their temporary breakup.
They'd had a fabulous time.
William was reported to have said it
was the best holiday he'd ever had.
I think they were keen
to go back somewhere that had
really positive memories for them.
The couple settled down in their
exclusive 4,000 a night villa
on the uber-fashionable
North Island.
What was great is that they could be
safe and secure
in a very remote part of the world
on a little island.
What more could you want?
After 10 days of taking in the sun,
it was back to Britain,
and back to business.
The president and his wife Michelle
were welcomed by the Queen and
Prince Philip.
They later met the
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Here was a moment that illustrated
the extraordinary leap she'd taken
from being an ordinary member
of the public
to suddenly meeting the most
powerful man in the world,
the president of the United States.
She looked great,
she was suntanned, glowing.
I just love the fact she wore a
high-street dress for that meeting.
It kind of said it all, didn't it?
The 175 dress sold out immediately.
The Duchess of Cambridge is an
enormously powerful sales driver.
As soon as she wears something,
it sells right out.
She has an immediate
and instant effect.
From kicking back in her casuals...
to Couture on the red carpet,
all eyes are on the Duchess
wherever she goes.
And comparisons to Princess Diana
are inevitable.
My impression is that she is trying
very hard
not to be the fashion plate that
Princess Diana was.
Princess Diana was adored by the
British fashion industry
and she loved wearing clothes.
I think Kate was never particularly
interested in fashion,
never had any need to dress
to be photographed,
and now she suddenly finds herself
thrown into the spotlight.
With Will and Kate on top of
everyone's guest list,
the world watches their every move.
This was the royals as glitterati.
William and Kate could hardly have
chosen a more opulent occasion
for their official debut
as a married couple.
When Kate stepped out of her
limousine, my goodness.
The Duchess... She dazzled..
She looked absolutely stunning.
She was wearing a Jenny Packham
blush gown down to the ground,
nipped in at the waist, and she
literally sparkled.
She really looked like she was
having a blast.
Enjoying what you're wearing is the
key to looking great in clothes.
I think that was one of the reasons
why that dress was so successful,
because she looked like she was
really enjoying it.
While every one of Catherine's
outfits hits the headlines...
the fashion press
waits with bated breath
to see how her look evolves.
I think it was Yves Saint Laurent
who said that...
"Fashion is passing
and style is eternal."
I would hope that the advisers
that she had
would steer her clear of fashion.
She's a young woman, so she can
certainly nod to it,
but style is more important.
As Kate starts to take on more
and more royalty duties,
increasingly, she'll be expected
to showcase the British fashion
industry.
I think as she's moving forward,
she mustn't shy away
from wearing some of those higher
end British designers,
maybe putting some of them
on the map.
She is our future Queen consort.
We do like to see her looking
glamorous.
So far, she hasn't put a foot wrong,
so hopefully that will continue.
Coming up...
William and Catherine take a trip
across the pond.
Canada and the United States
were a triumph. Flawless.
And what does the newlyweds body
language say about them?
We were witnessing a moment
there between the two of them
that clearly illustrated
how in love they are.
Just two months
after their wedding day,
with the world under their spell,
the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
headed off on their first official
overseas trip.
It kicked off in Canada.
It was William and Kate presenting
themselves to the world
and the world had an insatiable
appetite for them.
Will and Kate!
Will and Kate!
Canada was a perfect choice
because Canada does royal tours
extremely well.
It's had dozens of royal visits
over the years.
There was a lot of pressure on them
and no one quite knew the reception
they were going to get,
whether it would be one of
anticipation, apprehension...
Would they fill the Queen's boots as
well as people might have hoped?
But there was no need to worry.
Canada went crazy for Kate
this evening.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
arrived in Ottawa
and big crowds turned out
to see them.
Kaboom! Look up. What do you see?
Rows and rows and rows of cameras,
people shouting, 'Kate, Kate,
look this way, look that way.'
People had driven overnight to
secure a good spot.
They got there at 3:30
in the morning
to make sure they were at the front
of the guardrails
so that they might get a photograph.
William and Kate did everything they
could to see, touch, do a picture,
with as many people as humanly
possible.
With so many people desperate for a
piece of William and Catherine,
it fell to one man to keep
the royal show on the road.
On paper, my job was to be there at
the right place at the right time.
There are so many people involved.
Everything has to be planned
to the minute.
On site, when the Duke
and Duchess are there,
they can meet someone who knows
exactly what's going on
and where people are supposed to go.
I'm sorry. I've got to go.
I've got to go.
It was Jean's job to keep the
couple on schedule,
but he soon found out just who was
in control.
At one point,
we were 15 minutes later,
so I went up to the Duke and said,
'I'm sorry, but we have to go now.'
I totally remember.
He turned towards me and said,
'Jean, this is my first contact
with Canadians,
I want to take my time.'
I said, 'Yes, sir.' I backed off.
Since then I say, 'I know what the
tour is all about now.'
Kicking off their nine-day trip
in Ottawa...
It will improve as we go on.
the Duke and Duchess hit the road
with a tour like no other.
Making Inuit speeches...
That means, 'Thank you.'
street hockey...
and even Stetsons.
I think what they said
to the Canadians
is, 'Look at us. We're not like
royalty you've seen before.'
That is amazing.
They are totally in touch with not
being stuffy.
Every day, there seemed to be
something different.
It was canoes, or it was cooking
with kids.
They just embraced everything.
By day five, the newlyweds reached
Prince Edward Island
and William took the controls
of a Sea King helicopter
for some extracurricular training.
Landing a helicopter on water,
or water birding, as it's known,
is a skill unique
to the Canadian air force
and the Duke quickly picked up this
new trick.
As he's coming around and the
helicopter's coming to land,
I said, 'This is not looking good.'
We were just joking. You could see
the Duchess looking at us,
'What do you guys mean
it is not good?'
So we had good fun on the side
of the lake.
Having impressed everyone with his
piloting skills...
the Duke and Duchess took to the
waves for a dragon boat race.
I was walking down to the pontoon
where they were doing the race,
when I suddenly heard someone say,
'Arthur!' And there she was.
I said, 'William says
he's going to win,'
and she said, 'In his dreams.'
Both William and Catherine
are very competitive
so I think for both of them
it was game on.
Kate was steering originally
as we went up the lake
but it was a very windy, tricky day,
and so when we got to the top
of the lake,
I think she'd had her fill
of steering.
When I asked her if she would like
to steer or paddle,
she chose the paddling
for the second half.
I stood up to switch positions and
then I was faced with a dilemma.
I was looking eye to eye
with the Duchess
and I didn't know if I could touch,
what I could touch.
It ended up looking like I was
playing Twister with her
because I was doing everything
humanly possible
within a 24 inch wide boat
not to touch as we shuffled
and changed positions.
We were side-by-side.
He was talking trash
to the Princess,
bragging that he was going to beat
her and that sort of thing.
He was paddling very hard.
He was yelling,
'They are gaining. Let's go!'
That kind of thing.
She knew how to pilot.
She got a little splashed.
It didn't affect her at all. She was
paddling wonderfully the whole way.
William's boat won the little race
that we had,
and certainly, at the end
of the race,
he was very pleased
to have been victorious.
One of our guys actually
said to him,
'Your Royal Highness, is this going
to get you in trouble at home?'
And he said,
'There is no chivalry in sport.'
What we saw with Catherine and
William at the dragon boat race
were two young people who really get
a kick out of each other.
She had that lovely little moment
on the dock,
after they got off the boat, where
she pretended to push him in,
and then they held onto each other.
It was just... It was lovely.
We don't often get to see royal
public displays of affection
and we were really witnessing a
moment there between the two of them
that clearly illustrated how in
love they are.
They are always touching each other.
The fact there is a passion there,
there is a chemistry there,
is very clear.
You know, they smile at each other,
they flirt with each other.
It is really cute to watch.
And they're very sexy.
Nine days and 8,000 miles later,
the newlyweds had wooed Canada.
I think the trip to Canada was the
most incredible success.
I happened to say to somebody,
'I think it's quite fantastic
how she has taken to this like a
duck to water.'
Then somebody said,
'We knew it will be all right
because of the way she reacted to
the wedding.
She was so calm about the wedding.
She listened and she knew what she
had to do.'
And so they were not astonished
like me
that somebody could get it
so right the first time.
The hottest couple in the world
had conquered Canada,
but could they shine in Hollywood?
The bright lights of Tinseltown
beckoned.
This was them coming to Lala land,
and they laid on everything.
All the A-list celebrities turned
out to pay homage to them.
With only three days to tour LA,
their schedule was jampacked.
With everything from painting...
to a charity polo match,
and as a winner, the Prince
was rewarded with a kiss.
There's a star-studded night ahead,
a BAFTA reception, and big names.
Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks,
Jennifer Lopez...
No doubt, though, who the real stars
are going to be.
I don't think it was until I got to
the end of the red carpet,
as the Duke and Duchess were about
to arrive,
that I suddenly realised what a big
event this was.
I walked up the red carpet talking
to them
about the other things they'd been
doing on the tour,
and before we knew it, we were
at the first lineup.
I felt my role that night was to
look after William and Kate.
So many people wanted to meet them.
We only had so much time.
You'll probably see me in the
background
hovering around looking a bit tense.
It was very interesting
watching everybody
because even Barbara Streisand,
who's the queen of celebrities
in America,
was incredibly nervous meeting
Catherine and William.
Of everybody in that room,
the one who looked most composed,
most comfortable, was William.
Catherine was just beaming.
It was like watching a child
who had just entered this world of
candy and wonder and splendour.
She just couldn't stop smiling.
Here we are in Hollywood,
where there are big events
every night, week in, week out,
and yet this event was so special.
After a spellbinding performance
worthy of an Academy Award...
Thank you for coming!
it was time for the royals
to return home.
PR wise, Canada and the United
States were a triumph. Flawless.
Nothing went wrong.
The script couldn't have been
written better by Hollywood itself.
It was flawlessly organised,
the pictures were sensational,
and William and Kate,
as everybody could see,
carried it off perfectly. Really.
12 days after
their North American trip,
Kate's wedding dress went on display
in Buckingham Palace.
The Queen went to see the dress with
the Duchess, who made it famous.
But the dress provoked an
unexpected reaction.
It's horrid, isn't it?
Horrible. It's dreadful.
She wasn't talking about the dress
being horrible.
She was merely talking about the
way it was displayed.
It was fantastic to see the Queen
just talking normally
and saying what she thought
rather than what the spin doctors
thought she ought to be saying.
Headline immediately...
'It's horrible, says the Queen.'
What it did do. It gave that
exhibition such a boost.
Record numbers went to see that
dress. Numbers were huge.
Coming up...
Birmingham gets a royal visit.
I think it's terribly important when
there are disasters and tragedies
that people realise that the
royal family are thinking of them.
and Christmas at Sandringham.
I've done Sandringham
for at least 20 years.
Last year's crowd was the biggest
I've ever seen.
From the glamour of Hollywood
to the gritty reality
of the UK in turmoil.
Just five weeks after
their overseas tour,
duty called for the
Duke and Duchess.
Tensions on the streets again.
Hundreds of police on standby
after mob violence last night left
London burning.
In August, riots spread across the
streets of Britain...
and the royal family
responded quickly.
Prince Charles went to London,
Prince Harry to Salford,
and the Duke and Duchess
visited one of the worst affected
areas, Birmingham.
This week's series of royal visits
was orchestrated by
the Prince of Wales.
Officials say he watched television
coverage of the riots in dismay,
and immediately contacted
his two sons
to draw up a plan of action.
We expect them to be not only there
when things are good,
but to visit when times are bad.
The royal family are really
at ground roots level,
and you would expect them to be
there. Absolutely.
If you shy away from that, then you
shy away from who we are,
and what happens to us as a nation?
For one community,
the ultimate price was paid.
Shahzad Ali, his brother
Abdul Musavir, and Haroon Jahan
were killed when a car ploughed into
a group of men
out protecting the community
of Winson Green.
In response to the tragic event,
The Duke and Duchess
held a private meeting with the
grieving family.
It was a private family meeting.
I'm-I'm... I'm grateful for the
Prince and his wife for coming down.
It was a... Somebody like myself...
I'm a nobody,
and for them to come down,
it was very touching.
I think it's terribly important when
there are disasters and tragedies
that people realise that the royal
family are thinking of them.
It's hugely important for the royals
to get out
and get into the communities when
bad things have happened.
All of this really goes back to the
Queen Mother during the Blitz.
She really rallied.
She tried to get out and see Britons
that were suffering.
William and Kate want to be seen to
be in touch with real people.
The signal they were sending out
was that they care,
that they understand, and I think
that's very important,
and I think they've pulled that off
very, very well.
In November, they carried out their
first humanitarian aid mission.
They went to Copenhagen to visit
UNICEF's headquarters
where they were packing supplies
for Africa
with the Crown Prince of Denmark
and his wife.
A foursome of young
European royalty
here to champion the cause of
Africa's dispossessed.
Well, I think it was initially
a very big story.
A lot of people did hear about it.
But I think, because it has been
going on,
people have perhaps lost track of
the terrible situation.
I think this hopefully will put the
light back on this crisis.
But it wasn't
the East African crisis
that made the headlines
the next day.
They were offered a taste of a
special peanut paste
made for malnourished children.
William tried some, his wife passed
it on to the Danish royals.
That sent the rumour mill into
overdrive that she was pregnant
because pregnant women are advised
not to eat peanuts.
It wasn't the first,
or the last time,
that Kate would find herself
in the middle of a pregnancy
speculation storm.
I think before the ink had even
dried on the register
the royal baby rumour mill
had kicked off,
but the things that kicked off these
rumours were just astounding.
Kate drinks water at a cocktail
party... She's pregnant!
She wears a loosefitting gown...
She's pregnant!
She doesn't eat peanut paste...
She's pregnant!
One of the American tabloid
magazines
went as far as to say that her
little clutch bag,
held in front of her stomach,
was hiding a bump.
It's nonsense.
They'll have a baby when they
are good and ready.
The Duke of Edinburgh is continuing
his recovery in hospital tonight
after missing the royal service at
Sandringham for the first time.
With Prince Philip's illness
overshadowing Christmas
celebrations,
the royals rallied around to support
the Queen.
The Queen had 27 house guests at
Sandringham this year.
The whole family were there,
which was fantastic.
It wasn't just the family that
turned out.
So did the crowds.
I've done Sandringham Church
for at least 20 years
and I know about crowds.
I've been there in the snow,
I've been there during gales,
in torrential rain,
and when the sun has been shining.
Last year, the crowd was the biggest
I've ever seen.
Experiencing her first festive
season at Sandringham,
one of the biggest dilemmas
facing the Duchess
was what to pack for Christmas
with the royals.
You will probably get up
in something
then put on something more robust,
weatherproof, to go out shooting.
You'd come back again, drenched wet,
have a hot bath as soon as you can,
change into something like a skirt
or a clean pair of trousers for tea,
and then change again for dinner.
That would be four changes in a day.
It sounds ridiculous, but it is
actually quite practical.
But it wasn't just her wardrobe
that Catherine had to worry about.
What do you give the family
that has everything?
I think it is looked down on to be
very extravagant at Christmas
because I think the Queen probably
rightly feels
that if it is not set at the witty
and amusing level
that people do more perhaps than
they can afford.
Kate really really got it this year,
because what she brought to the
table, to give to her new family,
were pots of home-made jam,
and that went down a treat.
Coming up...
Prince William flies into the eye
of a storm...
In Argentina's capital,
their chant is,
'Get out of the Falklands!'
and the Duchess makes one little
girl's dreams come true.
We got a phone call to say that Amy
had been nominated by Alder Hey
to present the Duchess with flowers.
After their first Christmas together
as royals,
2012 began with Catherine and
William being separated...
when the Prince was deployed 8,000
miles away in the Falkland Islands.
Falkland islanders gearing up
for the 30th anniversary of the
Argentinian invasion
are also getting ready for a working
visit by Prince William.
Prince William will begin work at
this windswept base within days,
flying helicopters, living in basic
accommodation.
Part of being a services family
is separation.
That is part of life for Kate,
and I'm sure she knew about that.
It is what they want. It is part
of the normality that they want.
He's arrived in the Falklands
amid renewed tensions between
Britain and Argentina.
In Argentina's capital,
their chant is,
'Get out of the Falklands!'
It's addressed to Prince William,
who has just arrived there,
but also to Britain.
I think William's time
in the Falklands
really presented a perfect
opportunity
for Catherine to step out
and launch her solo career.
I don't know the ropes really
well yet,
but no, I am willing to learn
quickly and work hard.
She'll do really well. Yeah.
Very well.
With William away
serving Queen and country,
Kate's solo career kicked off
with a visit to the
National Portrait Gallery.
In London's West End,
a blizzard of Kate mania.
It was very straightforward.
It was an arrival,
the viewing of the art gallery
was private,
no cameras let in, a short
receiving line, and she left.
It went flawlessly.
From there, all the evidence
was that flying solo was just fine
as far as Kate was concerned.
With her first royal visit without
William successfully under her belt,
Kate's next visit was an altogether
more public affair.
A warm welcome in Liverpool for the
Duchess of Cambridge this morning
at the start of her busiest day
of solo engagements to date.
First stop, a visit to a charity
helping addicts to recover from
drink and drug dependency.
On Valentine's Day,
Catherine stepped out
for her second engagement,
and she visited The Brink,
which is the very first alcohol free
bar in Liverpool.
It is run by another of her
patronages, action on addiction.
She'd done a lot of research
and had come to the conclusion
that addiction was at the root cause
of so many problems in our society.
She felt that if you deal
with addiction,
you deal with all of those other
problems as well.
It's very important for them
to be seen to be in touch
with real gritty issues of the day,
and the addition centre does that.
With another visit close
to her heart undertaken,
Catherine's whirlwind tour
of Liverpool
took her to Alder Hey
Children's Hospital.
Hospitals really are a forum
where the royals excel.
It is an arena where their presence
is so appreciated.
The crowds turned out in force for
a glimpse of the new Duchess,
and for one little girl,
the day was a dream come true.
We've been going to Alder Hey
since she was nine days old.
She got diagnosed with
a heart condition.
We got a phone call
to say that Amy had been nominated
by Alder Hey
to present the Duchess with flowers.
I felt very excited,
and very happy.
She said she liked my coat,
and she said the flowers
were very pretty.
To meet the Princess...
It was like a fairytale.
The Duchess then continued her tour
of the wards.
She's got a natural warmth,
a dazzling smile,
and she was halfway there
before she even started speaking to
the patients,
and the patients really responded
to her.
If she couldn't speak a lot
about the medical condition,
she found something else that they
could speak about.
The boundaries that you perceive
with a royal visit
are time, time, time,
and they were broken.
Kate broke those down to spend time
with the children.
She spent a lot of time talking to
our patients.
It was very touching.
There was a buzz about the place
and it was really exciting.
A great day.
With Kate,
shades of Diana completely,
totally at ease, sit on the bed,
chat to a kid in hospital,
big smiles all round, made his or
her day. It's perfect.
So, you know, she's got the touch.
There's no doubt about that.
After a month on the road,
meeting and greeting,
lending her support,
making people smile,
hitting the odd hockey ball,
and handing out shamrocks
to the Irish Guards,
there was one royal duty Catherine
still hadn't performed.
That was to make
her first public speech.
It was her biggest test yet.
When you have to make a speech
that you know everybody has been
looking forward to for weeks,
and they know it's your first,
I think it must be utterly
terrifying.
She would have been very aware that
had she messed up,
that would have been the headlines
the next day,
not what she said, not the work of
the charity...
It would've been,
"Kate made a boob."
First of all,
I'd like to say thank you.
Thank you for not only accepting me
as your patron...
but thank you also for inviting
me here today.
She did a fantastic job.
She would have been relieved
to get the first one out of the way.
I'm only sorry that William cannot
be here today.
He would love it here.
She did well, and now she's done the
first one, it's onwards and upwards.
I feel enormously proud
to be part of East Anglia,
the Children's Hospices,
and to see the wonderful life
changing work that you do.
Thank you.
William will find that the wife he
once steered
through public engagements
like this,
is now more than comfortable
in public on her own.
With Catherine having to perfect
her skills all alone
while William was away,
at some events, she had a wealth of
experience to rely on.
In front of cheering crowds,
the Queen began her Diamond Jubilee
tour of the UK in Leicester today.
A few paces behind the Queen,
as ever, was Prince Philip.
A few more behind him, their
grand daughter-in-law Kate,
learning the royal ropes
from the experts.
The fact that the Queen invited Kate
to join her for the Diamond Jubilee
celebrations
it was really very, very touching,
Very special,
I think it must have made Kate feel
very welcomed into the royal family
and very privileged.
The Queen and Catherine really have
a very fond relationship,
and I think that the Queen looks
at Kate,
and sees that she is the future,
she's the Queen consort.
It will be many years
before we see her in the top job
alongside William,
but there's no better way to learn
than by doing it.
This is a family now that is
actually genuinely quite happy.
The past is behind it.
Everybody seems to be settled,
everybody seems to be happy,
and I think that's very, very
important to the Queen.
With William back from his tour
of duty in the Falklands,
the Duke and Duchess were reunited.
Life went back to normal
in Anglesey,
but as working members
of the royal family,
normality always includes some
official duties.
Their next big set piece event
is a tour of the South Pacific.
You can be sure it's going
to be huge
in terms of global attention.
It won't just be us following them,
there'll be media from all over
the world.
It will be a very, very big event.
After that, I suspect there might
be a period of quiet and calm.
They've both made it clear
that in the immediate future
they want to continue their life
as a serving services family.
Not bad for a new boy.
Probably some point in 2013...
That's when the Prince will decide
his future with the RAF.
It's when they will have to give up
the private part of their lives,
that part of life they are able to
enjoy in Anglesey at the moment,
and things will change.
Will they have a family?
Well, it's speculation.
Obviously, that's part of the plan.
I think we'll take it one step
at a time.
We'll get over the marriage thing
first, and then maybe look at kids.
As well as one day becoming parents,
William and Catherine's future lies
at the helm of our country.
They are our future King
and Queen consort.
I think William and Catherine
will be fantastic leaders.
I think, looking ahead to William,
I think there is a sense that it
will be in quite safe hands.
They are an amazing couple
who have just taken
the nation's heart.
I think the reason we've fallen
in love with them so much
is because they are genuinely
in love.
We are looking forward to spending
the rest of our lives together
and seeing what the future holds.
I think as a double act,
we couldn't get much better,
actually.