Princess Kate surprises Wimbledon fans by skipping Royal Box for outside courts

The Princess of Wales has ditched the Royal Box to take in the action on Court Number One, as the tennis-mad royal took in the best of the action at Wimbledon.

Superfan Catherine, 44, seemed to be living and breathing the drama on the outside courts on Thursday, gasping and putting her hands over her face during a tense match.

The Princess - who is a keen player herself and often hands the trophy to the winner at the end of the tournament - was joined by tennis royalty in SW19, sitting next to the likes of Sir Andy Murray and Tim Henman on a glorious summer day.

A tennis aficionado, Kate’s search for the most exciting matches at the All England Club took her to Court Number One and Court 18 as she broke with tradition and avoided the prime seats on Centre Court.

Earlier she smiled as she chatted to members of the public who had joined the queue for Wimbledon tickets in the early hours of this morning.

She also helped hand out grounds passes to tennis fans, some of whom had camped overnight in Wimbledon Park to secure coveted access to the tournament. 

Kate posed for selfies with members of the public, affectionately putting her arm around one woman who was holding her phone in one hand and her queue card in the other. 

She was also overheard telling two attendees ’have a really fun time’ as she handed them their tickets. 

The Princess greeted those who had been waiting for entry into SW19 and hailed the queue as an ’accessible’ entry point. 

Speaking to two excited children, Kate asked them if they were big tennis fans, to which they smiled and nodded.

One attendee congratulated the princess on her recent Three Peaks challenge.

When distributing tickets, and operating a card machine, the Princess apologised for ’taking ages’ and told relieved attendees that they must be ’desperate to get in and have a drink’ after queuing for so long.

Kate donned an elegant blue linen suit from Gabriela Hearst for the occasion, which she paired with a white top and Ralph Lauren sunglasses. 

The Princess added a top from H&M and moonstone and lapis ’Stella’ drop earrings from Carousel Jewels.

She wore her hair in a pony tail and finished off the outfit with a pair of drop earrings with an oval royal-blue gemstone.

In a break from tradition, Kate did not sit in the Royal Box but watched one of the matches on the outside courts alongside former British number one Tim Henman. 

The children showed Kate Polaroid pictures they had taken around the Wimbledon grounds.

Speaking to one child, the princess praised a photo they had taken of a tree, calling it ’abstract’ and telling them: ’I love that.’

While speaking to the group about the importance of photography and arts, she said: ’Creativity is such a good way of exploring your emotions.’

She added: ’I’m such an advocate for this sort of creativity and for supporting young people finding different ways to explore life beyond technology and outside of school.

’And doing it in such a communal way like this I think is really fantastic.’

Kate later took a seat in Court One to watch Briton Katie Swan as she faces American Madison Keys.

The princess walked down the corridor leading to the court with former world number one, Sir Andy Murray.

The pair have been friends for many years, with Kate sharing a touching tribute to the tennis star after he played his final Wimbledon match in 2024.

Speaking about the famed Wimbledon queue system, she told another attendee: ’It’s just so amazing to be able to still - for these big events and things like that - to be able to still buy tickets on the day. It makes it so accessible for everybody, doesn’t it?’

Kate’s appearance at the Championships today comes just days after she completed the gruelling Three Peaks Challenge on Saturday night.

As a royal patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club since 2016, Kate is a regular fixture at the prestigious tournament.

She has attended most years since 2011, missing only 2013, when she was pregnant with Prince George, and 2020, when the tournament was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

She did the endurance event solo and was supported on the route by Mountain Rescue, with her family meeting her at the last stop at the base of Snowdon in Wales. 

It has a total walking distance of 23 miles (37 kilometres), an ascent of 10,005ft of vertical climbing and a driving distance between the peaks of approximately 462 miles.

The Princess was driven between the peaks - Scotland, then England and finally Wales - by her team. 

It is not believed that any other member of the Royal Family has completed the Three Peaks Challenge, also making the princess’s triumph a royal first.

Kate was last at Wimbledon for the men’s final last year when she handed Jannik Sinner the Wimbledon trophy following an enthralling four-set battle. 

She was joined in the Royal Box on that occasion by her husband Prince William, eldest son Prince George and Princess Charlotte but Louis stayed at home.

The Princess donned her ’Wimbledon bow’ - a brooch featuring the tournament’s iconic colours. 

Kate was also present for the 2025 women’s final and offered consoling words to the runner-up Amanda Anisimova after her 6-0, 6-0 loss to Polish player Iga Swiatek.

In 2024, while recovering from cancer, Kate did not attend the women’s final but was on hand for Carlos Alcaraz’s win over Novak Djokovic at the All England Club.