In early October, the Princess met with 16-year-old Liz Hatton, who has a rare and aggressive form of cancer, and who was invited to Windsor Castle as part of her ‘bucket wish list’. And just a few days later, Kate stepped out on her first, official public engagement since announcing the end of her chemotherapy treatment, as she joined Prince William on a visit to Southport, where they held a private meeting with the bereaved families of three children killed in a knife attack in July.
But while Kate is certainly out and about far more, she won’t be returning to a packed diary of official engagements any time soon. According to Jobson, the Princess will not be travelling ‘all over the country all the time, like she used to’, but will instead focus on more ‘impactful’ events and prioritise the appearances that are most important to her, while maintaining a focus on her family and her health.
In 2025, Kate is likely to take on a slightly larger workload, and will perhaps look to return to overseas tours – an official trip to Italy, that the Prince and Princess of Wales had to postpone earlier this year, could be on the cards once more. Given the recent success of King Charles’ tour of Australia and Samoa – undertaken while he, too, recovers from cancer – the Princess might feel that an international visit could be possible, but she will, says Jobson, ‘do things her own way. Her illness has been a life-changing experience; she has changed the way she lives her life and I think she will be making her own choices. Her priority is still her family.’
