In an exclusive interview with Queen Elizabeth’s former press secretary, Ailsa Anderson, People Magazine earned a look inside Kate Middleton’s new chapter during this crucial moment for the monarchy.
“She knows the eyes of the world are on her,” Anderson said. “It is a clear signal she is back in business.”
On May 13, Kate Middleton stepped into Piazza Prampolini in the northern Italian city of Reggio Emilia, where a crowd gathered below City Hall and erupted in cheers at seeing her. Kate Middleton was said to look visibly moved by the positive reception during her first overseas trip since her cancer diagnosis in 2024.
“It’s emotional, seeing everyone,” Kate, 44, told Mayor Marco Massari. For many, it felt bigger than a routine royal visit. This marked the long-awaited return of the princess to the world.
When she was diagnosed with cancer, Middleton stepped back from the public to focus on her health and recovery, undergoing chemotherapy. And while she received nothing but support, coming back to the public eye has immense weight and high expectations.
“There’s no denying that everyone concerned has been missing the princess’s star quality. She is a huge draw wherever she goes,” Says Russell Myers, William & Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story. “Catherine is undoubtedly a central force in the monarchy’s popularity and ability to achieve its goal and move forward. There is no better time for her to return.”
Anderson adds, saying, “She is our future Queen. As Queen Elizabeth used to say, you have to be seen to be believed. She is glamorous, she is beautiful. She is warm and approachable. On the back of the King’s successful visit to the States, William and Kate are upping their game.”
During Middleton’s first solo trip overseas in nearly four years, she visited schools to witness the famed Reggio Emilia Approach. According to People, this is a huge step in expanding the princess’s “long-running early-childhood work beyond Britain through a series of fact-finding visits focused on leading international models.”
And according to the executive director of the Centre for Early Childhood, Christian Guy, she was “in her element in nature, seeing the power of the outdoors.”
“It is something that will stay with her for a very long time – she gets such joy from spending time with children.”
But while the visit was enjoyable and a huge step for the royal family, it also came at a delicate moment for the monarchy. The family is still working hard to navigate lingering fallout, including former Prince Andrew’s arrest for his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. To put it simply, the royal family is slim.
“Princess Anne and the other senior working royals are all stretched thin – and none of them are young,” says Catherine Mayer, author of Divide and Rule. “William and Catherine carry the whole thing.”
“For the moment, after that period of unprecedented turbulence, they are doing a very good job of making it look like the ship is steady,” adds Mayer. “That is why Kate is so important.”
“Charles is the incumbent, but she and William are the future. There is no institution without them.”