Lip Reader Reveals What Kate Middleton Cheekily Said About Prince William's Beard

Kate Middleton made her first significant formal appearance since completing chemotherapy at the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance in London. She joined Prince William and other senior royals to commemorate the solemn occasion. During the daytime event, the Princess of Wales was caught having a light-hearted moment with her 'true confidante and sounding board' Sophie, the Duchess of Wessex, while showing up on the balcony above the Cenotaph war memorial. According to the UK Sun, Middleton was seen gushing about William's new style obsession: his 'kingly' beard. 

Lip reader Nicola Hickling interpreted the particularly endearing instance in which Sophie remarked on the Prince of Wales's charming stubble. Sophie had asked Middleton, "What, you like a beard?" to which the Princess replied, "I find it quite rousing." To this, Sophie responded "You're all better now," as the pair joked. However, according to Kayleigh Harris, another lipreader's observations, the Princess really called Willam's beard 'never quite rounded' instead of rousing. Still, Harris claimed that the Duchess of Wessex admired the facial hair and complimented that it looked much better now. 

Many were elated to see Middleton at the public event, especially due to the various health issues the royal family has had this year. William had previously disclosed that Middleton's goal was to increase her royal activities in 2025. He said: "I think hopefully Catherine will be doing a bit more next year, so, we'll have some more trips maybe lined up." He was particularly relieved that the Princess of Wales was able to attend the formal event in good spirits. 

On the other hand, it wasn't the first event where the future King showed off his spotlight-stealing beard. The Prince of Wales visited Cape Town, South Africa, for the Earthshot Prize Awards, and he spoke for the first time about his new appearance. As per People, William recalled that his bearded appearance did not immediately appeal to his daughter, Princess Charlotte. “Well, Charlotte didn’t like it the first time. I got floods of tears, the first one I got tears, so I had to shave it off," he said.

William revealed that he had to convince his daughter to keep it and then joked that 'appearances can be misleading' when one of the reporters pointed out that his new facial hair, which he debuted in August, gave him a relaxed, easygoing demeanor. “It’s interesting you say that, because I couldn't be less relaxed this year, so it's very interesting you're all seeing that,” he said. “But it's more a case of just crack on and you’ve got to keep going,” he added. 

Prince William has been diligently following his royal responsibilities in the wake of health tragedies announced earlier this year; Middleton and King Charles were both undergoing cancer treatment. He claimed that he is making time for the things that are most important to him in between his royal duties and his family. “I enjoy my work, and I enjoy pacing myself and keeping sure that I have got time for my family too,” he said.