The Sweet Nod To Queen Elizabeth You Might Have Missed At Kate Middleton's Christmas Concert
On Dec. 15, 2022, Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales, hosted her second annual Christmas Carol concert. As reported by the Daily Mail, 1,800 people attended the event at Westminster Abbey, including King Charles III; Queen Consort Camilla; William, the Prince of Wales; and numerous members of the royal family. The show will be broadcast on ITV in the UK on Christmas Eve.
When the family was planning the event, the late Queen Elizabeth II was very much on everyone's mind. Kate honored the queen by including corgis on the event's invitation. The family also paid special tribute to her in the program, writing, "This carol service is dedicated to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and to all those who are sadly no longer with us. Her Late Majesty's strongly held values of duty, compassion and faith have guided the creation of this service," per People.
During the service, William continued to honor his grandmother by quoting from her 2012 Christmas Speech, saying, "I am always struck by how the spirit of togetherness lies also at the heart of the Christmas story," per The Telegraph. This idea of togetherness served as the service's theme, in gestures as well as words. For example, Prince George and Princess Charlotte joined their parents at the event, coordinating with them in matching outfits, per Town & Country.
Plus, the royal family made a notable gesture inside the Abbey to remember their matriarch.
Westminster Abbey was decorated with Paddington Bear ornaments
Ahead of the 2022 Together at Christmas concert, William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, posted photos of the decorations on their Twitter account. The Waleses honored the late Queen Elizabeth II with their choice of ornaments.
A closeup of the Christmas tree inside Westminster Abbey revealed a variety of Paddington Bear ornaments, including miniature stuffed bears. Red and blue ball ornaments also featured Paddington along with messages like "Let it snow" and "Beary Christmas." In addition, Hugh Bonneville, who played Mr. Brown in the Paddington films, gave a reading at the service, per People.
The queen and author Michael Bond's iconic bear have been connected since they appeared together in a video for the monarch's Platinum Jubilee. After Elizabeth's heartbreaking death in September, mourners left stuffed Paddington toys in her honor. William later confided that this gesture made him feel "choked up," per Hello!
The royal website detailed that 1,000 bears left in tribute to the queen would be given to children in partnership with Barnardo's Children's Services. Queen Consort Camilla hosted a special Teddy Bear's Picnic in November and handed out the bears to their new owners.
Frank Cottrell-Boyce, who wrote the Paddington sketch for the jubilee, noticed shared traits between the queen and the beloved bear. "Paddington stands for a set of values that she stood for as well, for welcoming the stranger, for decency, for politeness," he said, via Hello!