Kate Middleton's carol concert features a sweetest nod to the Queen
What a lovely gesture!


We were so excited to hear that Princess Kate is hosting her Carol Concert at Westminster Abbey again this year, but obviously nowhere near as excited as the people who were actually invited to the special event on 15 December.
The lucky attendees are comprised of "inspirational guests who have been invited to the Abbey from across the UK in recognition of their tireless efforts to help and care for those around them," according to the official event announcement.
These guests all received an absolutely beautiful invitation, which was drawn specially by illustrator Aurelie Baudry Palmer, and eagle-eyed royal fans were quick to notice that the invite includes two little corgis on their way to the Abbey.
This, of course, is a beautiful tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth, who was a lifelong lover of the dog breed. It was apparently a special request from the Princess of Wales to honour her grandmother-in-law.
A post shared by Aurelie Baudry Palmer - Home-Drawn (@homedrawn21)
A photo posted by on
"It was such an honour to be approached by Kensington Palace to illustrate the announcement for the Princess of Wales' carol service at Westminster Abbey," Aurelie told Hello!.
"It was definitely a 'pinch-me' moment when they got in touch!
"This commission was a fairly quick turnaround, and I also wanted to leave plenty of time for feedback — like the addition of corgis!"
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She added: "I'm over the moon my work has been shared so widely, and also to play a small part in such a thoughtful community carol concert.
"I worked on the illustration over three days, filming as I drew and showing the progress to the Kensington Palace's team as I went along to make sure I was on the right track. It certainly took a few hours... a little longer than the beautiful 22-second clip that was put together afterwards."
The clip in question is the timelapse Kate shared on social media of Aurelie putting together the invitation.
A date for your diary this December! 📆🎄And you can join us for this very special Carol Service on @ITV on Christmas Eve 📺 pic.twitter.com/UoThGKGsAlNovember 4, 2022
Kate, then the Duchess of Cambridge, hosted the Carol Concert for the first time last year. During the service, she even mucked in with the performers by accompanying singer Tom Walker on the piano.
We hope she participates like this again this year!

Iris Goldsztajn is a freelance news writer for Marie Claire UK. She covers celebrity and royal news, and has previously written for titles including Marie Claire US, InStlyle, Women's Health, Bustle, Stylist and Red.
Aside from her quasi-personal investment in celebs' comings and goings, she is especially interested in debunking diet culture and de-stigmatising mental health struggles.
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