Two candid Cambridge sightings in two days: Will and Kate on a wet-haired dinner date in Norfolk, arriving back in London

Two candid Cambridge sightings in two days: Will and Kate on a wet-haired dinner date in Norfolk, arriving back in London

Prince William and Kate Middleton enjoyed a dinner out last Thursday, August 28. There are pictures–I wonder if they’ll complain. They didn’t make a peep for the recent pics of Kate walking George in the park with her bodyguard (note: Popsugar says it’s Kate’s friend, but that is incorrect, that woman is Kate’s bodyguard and has been since at least the wedding–you can see her getting out of the car as Kate arrives to the church), even though they’ve complained many times before. There are also pictures of Will and Kate (and Lupo!) arriving back in London from Norfolk on Friday, August 29.

So back to the dinner, Will and Kate went to a restaurant/pub in Great Bircham, Norfolk, the King’s Head Hotel. Will drank a lime and soda while Kate had a white wine spritzer (so much for those pregnancy rumors). They both ate grilled fillet of black bream with roasted Mediterranean vegetables, baby spinach, marinated olives and oven-dried tomatoes with arrabiata sauce for dinner and split vanilla ice cream for dessert. That actually sounds delicious. I prefer chocolate ice cream, though.

    From the Daily Star:

    “No one could believe it when Wills and Kate just walked in and headed over to the bar. Aside from the fact they had four bodyguards with them, they looked like any other young couple in love. Kate’s hair was still wet and they were both in jeans. They had the look of any other parents who had grabbed the opportunity for a night out without the baby. William asked for a table in a quieter part of the pub as the main restaurant was packed, so staff sat them in the bar. All evening, they were holding hands and giggling. Kate kept tousling her hair in a flirty way. Wills couldn’t take his eyes off her for the whole meal. They were really lovey-dovey and they were kissing a lot.”

    “They were like any other couple – they spent ages deciding what to have, then both picked the same meal.”

    “A few diners went over and shook their hands as they left. They seemed happy to say hello.”

    From the Express:

    “William was extremely affectionate and considerate towards Kate throughout. She walked in with wet hair. She kept playing with it, twisting it around her fingers while talking to him. They were quite flirtatious and couldn’t keep their hands off each other. When they had finished their meal, a couple of locals came up to them and said hello. They smiled and were very chatty, very accommodating. My overwhelming feeling was how normal they were. They just seemed happy to mix with the locals.”

I didn’t think Kate would be the type of woman who would leave the house with we hair. Huh. Ugh at Kate twirling her hair. Homegirl does that ALL THE TIME.

Oh, but four bodyguards? Is that really necessary? Ugh, whatever.

As I mentioned, there are also pictures of Will and Kate arriving at King’s Cross station in London on Friday, the day after the dinner date. Go here to see a slideshow.

It’s interesting, we go for weeks with nothing from Team Cambridge and then we get two different candid shots from two different days in the span of a few days. I seriously wonder if Will and Kate are going to complain about these photos.

On a side note, Kate and Will have a new appearance planned for September 8; they will open a building at Oxford University.

In other news, the Sunday Times is reporting that Will and Kate will make a tour to China in 2015. And we may see Will and Kate attend a state banquent during the Singapore state visit in October. If so, we may see Kate in a tiara, but for now it’s just a rumor.


80 thoughts on “Two candid Cambridge sightings in two days: Will and Kate on a wet-haired dinner date in Norfolk, arriving back in London

  1. Yawn. I am surprised that William the Litigious isn’t throwing a tantrum. Call me old fashioned, but they need to be seen more especially with PG in order to calm folks down. Oh, and work.

    1. They won’t throw a tantrum because they need the positive PR for their lack of work, and for ditching their infant with the nanny for 14 days (22 total this year now, with the Maldives vacation).

      I personally believe this is a really obvious, planned PR stunt and that the “candids” and reports of their affection are planted.

      1. I kind of think it’s PR, too, because those quotes about their “date” were sickeningly sweet. But if it is PR, I’m surprised Kate agreed to be photographed looking so… not done up (no blow out, no make up).

        1. I think Kate is very concerned about her slenderness – I do not think she has an eating disorder, I think she prioritizes eating low fat and exercising regularly – and about getting rid of wrinkles and the bags under eyes via botox.

          But I think she isnt afraid to go without makeup and simple hair. None of the middleton women seem too fussed about their hair. And when she does care, it is exactly. the. same. every. time.
          I also dont think she is into fashion as much as she is made out to be.

  2. OK, there’s got to be another scandal coming up if the papers are flooded with their lovey-dovey behavior and we get sightings of them. And if William doesn’t complain about the media encroaching on their “private” time with these photos, that means it’s a PR setup. Call me skeptical, but something’s in the wind……

    1. Oh for sure. The “sources” and “onlookers” were far too detailed and were selling the lovey-dovey story far too hard for it not to be some sort of PR move (especially since the pics don’t show Will and Kate holding hands or being affectionate at all). It will be interesting to see if Will throws a tantrum of not. If not, then definitely PR set up. If he does throw a tantrum, it may still be a PR set up. There are plenty of celebs who call the paps on themselves and then complain about the paps following them (lots of b- and c-listers, but the Garner-Afflacks so it too, Jen Garner complains about her kids getting papped but when it came time for Ben’s Oscar campaign they were all about the happy family photo ops). If it’s a PR move, I have to wonder why. Like you said, there must be some sort of scandal coming that they’re trying to get in front of. Hm…

  3. Love the “death glare” from Kate in photo 1. As for Kate leaving the house with wet hair… really? I’ve got long hair and don’t leave the house with wet hair, was she made to go out in a rush? And as for all the lovey dovey action? It just sounds fake fake fake. So someone is trying too hard?

  4. At last, you get an idea of Kate’s height. So without the LK Bennetts or the wedges of doom Kate must come up to William’s shoulder?

  5. To me, the hallmark of a truly chic and stylish woman is how she pulls herself together in casual dress when she is out and about and does not expect to be photographed. The late style icons Princess Diana and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis always looked stunning in casual dress when caught unaware by the paparazzi. More recently, model Giselle Bundchen – also a young wife and mother – looks down-to-earth, stylish and pulled together when out and dressed casually. In the three venues presented here (Kensington Garden, the pub, and King’s Cross station), Kate’s look is messy and lacking in style. Her hair seems unkempt; colors are poorly coordinated; and the outfits look as though they were pulled from a university duffle bag. The candid photos presented here may recall – for some – memories of Glamour magazine’s “dos” and don’ts” column.

    1. So true. Jackie pulled off casual slacks and a dark colored crew-neck sweater with such aplomb in her paparazzi photos. If her hair was messy, a stylish Hermes scarf over it and some chic sunglasses. Kate still looks like a sloppy coed when she isn’t dolled up.

    2. Eh. I mean, I see what you mean, but sometimes people just want to be lazy. And I think one can be stylish and still have the occasional lazy fashion day. That said, I don’t think Kate is all that stylish. She’s had some great outfits, but it’s hit or miss at best (been miss a lot lately).

      1. Interesting. I had not considered how “laziness” might extend to the way that she dresses and presents herself, but – you’re right, it might. In other words, does Kate make the effort to get dressed up and be stylish only when she is required to? If so, that would mean that dressing up and wearing make-up would be work for her.

        1. Problem with this idea is that she’s spent two decades wearing pancake makeup, harsh blush, and the sharpie eyeliner. If she considered make-up work, she would wear little to no makeup on personal time. Photos over the years show that she is rarely, if ever, without makeup “off duty.”

        1. Where do you think the “naturally stylish” thing comes from? Is it just a confidence thing? Like, a woman is confident in anything she wears–even if she’s been gardening all day–and therefore she can pull off any outfit?

          1. I was actually thinking of my Mum when I wrote that. She was a model in the 1950s, looked very much like Princess Grace. Maybe it is a confidence thing, perhaps being comfortable in your own skin (like the french say – elle/il est bien dans sa peau). Being a beauty (having good skin and the right body structure) helps! So my Mum has it, Princess Madeline has it, Kate Middleton DOES NOT have it!

    3. Also, sadly, sometimes it just depends on the woman. Some women have it, some don’t. JKO could wear casual slacks, a sweater, and an Hermes scarf and look amazing. Her Majesty wears a sweater and an Hermes scarf and looks like every other country housewife. I like HM’s style, but I think JKO just naturally knocks her out of the park.

  6. The King’s Cross story said they left George at KP with the nanny. If that is true, then they weren’t grabbing a quick night out but were on another baby free vacation. I think the story said they were gone for a week or two.

    1. Yes, the articles are claiming Will and Kate left George at KP with Nanny Maria, and they’re also claiming W&K were at Anmer for two or three weeks, which means W&K left George with Nanny Maria for two or three weeks while they spent time away from him at Anmer. That whole “hands-on parenting” thing is BS if they’re leaving their kid with the nanny for weeks at a time when they could have easily brought him with them to their second house that they supposedly want so George can play outside.

    2. It does seem like cover for a 2 week baby-free vacation elsewhere. Use Anmer and the obvious pub and train bit as convenient arrival/departure location to get people off the scent.

      Now they’re using the baby as cover for their vacations? Allow the kid to be trotted out to the park and photographed so nobody looks for mummy and daddy at the airport? Did anyone track the shopping in London twitter sightings for veracity?

        1. The baby was photographed last week in London. Are you suggesting that they were at Balmoral – but left the kid behind in London? They haven’t been at Balmoral at all this season.

          1. Always question the information – how do you know that photograph was taken at that time and in London? Those photos of Maria Teresa and George are photo shopped using a watercolor filter – they did not appear in any tabloid – just on the internet and were passed around. There was a story going round that Kate was shopping in Harvey Nichols last week by some makeup marketing firm on twitter – yet there she is in Norfolk. Why would you leave your baby in the city while you went to the country? Isn’t it more likely you would leave your baby in the country while you went to the city? Also, I don’t think you can just leave the baby with the nanny for weeks at a time due to employment laws. To summarize – be more skeptical of information. And for security reasons, don’t be surprised if you can never figure out where George really is and who he is with.

          2. Those labor laws do not apply to the BRF. They regularly practice “0 hour” contracts. Always question, especially when W&K show up, act lovey dovey, and do not protest when photos of them or the baby show up. This is damage control, for what we don’t know.

          3. I think it is press boredom filling a vacuum. If they aren’t out and about doing duties regularly they will be “hunted”. Meanwhile, why is the nanny taking the baby to public places? Don’t they have enough private places to hang out?

          4. “I think it is press boredom filling a vacuum. If they aren’t out and about doing duties regularly they will be “hunted”.”

            I totally agree. I really think if Will and Kate worked more consistently, and more often, that people would stop “hunting” them. If they worked more, consistently, then the public would be more forgiving of what they do on their time off. So what Greta is saying she doesn’t like (tracking W&K’s movements during their down time), I think would be alleviated. If the public and the press got regular photos at events, then they wouldn’t have to desire to “hunt” them in their down time for photos.

    1. I saw that. Sigh, more excuses for not working. Because you know she’ll take it easy while pregnant, and then take a year of maternity leave after. So almost two years excuse for each kid.

  7. yep she cant even manage one kid, what about three, kate aint happening, shes always ALL TALK and NO ACTION its been too long now, what u see is what you get! And they are duke and duchess even when off duty , they should look well put together, ALWAYS!!

    1. I think that Kate has no sense of self therefore she equates William’s happiness to hers. If Will wants a vacay without PG, she will do it to make him happy. From what we know, this has been a Kate pattern for years and having PG, or any other baby, won’t stop it.

  8. Lady Blue Ribbon: Thank you for raising the possiblity of security concerns vis-a-vis the Cambridges. We really do not know what goes on behind the scenes in their lives. While one might assume vacations and frivolous subterfuge, who knows what real security issues there might be. I, for one, will no longer be commenting on anything remotely related to their whereabouts and security. We live in a dangerous world now, and despite how one might feel about the Cambridges, we should respect their privacy in this regard.

    1. All of this second hand information is not damaging to their security. It is damaging to their image, because it is too easy for the general public to see that they 1) don’t spend a lot of time together and 2) they have no excuse for their lack of royal work.

      1. Going forward, what time they spend together and how they spend it together is something that I choose not to make my business or speculate on. What does count is the effort they devote to their royal work, and I agree there is room for improvement there. Ultimately, this blog is speculating on how and where they spent their time this summer. That is their business, and since we’ll never know for sure – why bother?

        1. There is a reasonable argument to be made that how and where they spend their time is, in fact, public business, insofar as these two are intended to serve the public good–and are completely failing on that point.

          1. That is an interesting point. Someone (was it Bob Dylan?) said that you can fool some of the people all the time and all of the people some of the time, but not all of the people all of the time. In that spirit, falling short on royal responsibilities and shirking duty would catch up with them eventually. Ongoing monitoring and speculation re their private lives, though, can have aspects of a surveillance mindset, and I’m not comfortable with that.

        2. “That is their business, and since we’ll never know for sure – why bother?” — Because I think it’s hilarious when their PR lies blow up in their faces, because they put more effort into lying and making excuses (and covering their asses when shit hits the fan) than it would take to just work consistently.

          1. It would be interesting for a media studies major to do an analysis of their manipulations for the last 13 years. Break it apart, show what was going on at the time to force the PR move (ex. Lovey dovey drunk photos in parking lot to distract from Uncle Gary’s escapades).

            Also hilarious that someone is telling all of us how to spend our free time. Don’t enjoy what we discuss here, do you need help finding the door?

          2. It’s actually pretty fascinating, their PR moves and PR in general. What specific information triggers what reaction from the public; when to release things to distract from other things.

            What W&K fail to realize is consistent work is the best PR they could do, because then we’d focus on that and wouldn’t question what they did in their down time as much, and wouldn’t chase them down for photos in their down time. For all the PR they put into their image, they just don’t get that working consistently would be so much easier and grant them far more leniency than fake PR.

  9. After the royal wedding in 2011, I became an avid royal watcher and followed most of the blogs on Kate and the royals. The defunct Enclave 24 was by far the best. This blog – KMR – is the first to which I have actually contributed. After a month of reading and contributing, I have had my fun and feel that I have said all that I have to say re Kate and the royals. I am calling it quits with royal-watching. I have enjoyed many of your contributions. Some recent comments re the intense efforts to track and account for William and Kate’s whereabouts, though, are disturbing on various levels and have brought me to a position of sympathy for the Cambridges. Never thought that I would ever say that, but there it its. Perhaps someday, someone will do a study of people who contribute to blogs and what motivates some to say the things that they do. That would be an enlightening counterpart to the study that MyTwoCents suggests.

    1. Maybe try following some more interesting, dedicated royals who actually step up and serve their countries? Sweden, Netherlands, and Spain come to mind. Looking at those refresh me when I’m at my wit’s end with W&K.

      1. Yet when I post about one of the other royals from another royal house, hardly anyone cares.

    2. Well thank you for reading and contributing for the time that you have. I’m sorry that doing so has turned you off of royal watching.

      Why do I royal watch and contribute to blogs? Because I totally bought into the W&K love story after the wedding, and then after the France photo scandal I did some digging and realized how much whitewashing had been done. I had never really paid much attention to how much PR went in to everything before that. And I started this blog because I was sick of the sycophantic treatment of W&K and wanted a place to voice my opinions. I contribute because I feel like Kate (And William and Harry, among others) gets undeserved praise, and that bothers me.

      And re my comment about finding it hilarious when W&K’s PR lies blow up in their faces… I find it hilarious when anyone’s lies blow up in their faces. Whether it’s Reese Witherspoon’s America’s Sweetheart image being destroyed with her “Don’t you know who I am” drunk arrest speech, W&K’s stuff, or some idiot who lied about being sick to get out of work and then their boss finds drunken pics or vacation pics or some pics on social media taken and posted when the employee was supposed to be sick. Basically, I don’t like liars and I like it when they get some comeuppance.

      Royal watching, celeb watching, soap operas, reality TV, other terrible TV shows or movies… they’re all an escape. Something fun to take your mind off of things. So royal watching is supposed to be fun, but often times when the royals don’t do things in a way that we feel they should, we get annoyed and so caught up in voicing that annoyance that we forget that it’s supposed to be fun. I understand getting caught up in the negativity and having royal watching burnout. And that’s when you need to step back.

      So again, Greta, thank you for the reading and participating you have done, and I’m sorry that royal watching is no longer fun for you. I hope you find something else to have fun with. Have a great day!

    3. Most people simply want information, whether it’s about famous people or the couple next door. Bloggers and their readers are simply curious. As an undergraduate, I recall reading about studies attempting to demonstrate a relationship between intelligence and level of curiousity…supposedly, the smarter one is, the more curious. I hope no one asks me to provide a bibliography, as this was many years ago.

      Royal watching has been around as long as the royals. Five hundred years ago it was considered an honor to be present “at court” and those who were talked about what they saw and heard…gossip. As recently as 200 years ago in the U.S., many people could not read but they wanted to know what was going on. They crammed into taverns to hear someone read aloud from any tract or broadside or newspaper so they could get information. They were curious. Many historians believe the American Revolution would never have occurred had the colonists not been informed.

      Blogging is very simply the high-tech version of what people have always done. We seek info, we provide info, we discuss and speculate about that info. Then we discuss and analyze those speculations.

      1. Curiosity certainly plays into the whole, “what are they REALLY doing” thing with W&K. Because we know that their PR lies all the time, we are even more curious to know the truth, hence analyzing their whereabouts.

    4. Maybe they could do a side study. Why do you, Greta, need to announce why you’re leaving and suggest we be part of a study on stalkers? A little lecture on your way out of the door perhaps? Why feel the need? Why not just leave and no one notices you’re gone? Obviously, you had something you needed to say to us first.

      Just so you know, I don’t spend my whole day on these sites. Most days, the amount of time I spend on William and Kate doesn’t even amount to a half hour. Some days, it amounts to zero minutes. When I do look up an article or contribute to a blog, it is as a diversion from all of the other stuff and it isn’t my only diversion in life. Far from. Most of my day is spent in other activities either necessary like work and house cleaning or cooking or my day is spent in activities that are non-royal related and fun like hiking, reading books, playing with my dog, visiting with friends and so forth. I have a feeling a lot of other people here are the same way. Royal watching is just a small part of a rich life. In contrast, a stalker spends all day obsessing about someone and doesn’t have time for much else, so I doubt myself or anyone else on this site would qualify for your stalker study. We don’t spend enough time thinking and writing about William and Kate.

      As for negative, don’t confuse negative with valid criticism. There is a big difference and it seems like people are confusing the two more and more. As for criticism, William and Kate invite a lot of it on themselves because they don’t work very hard at their jobs as representatives of the UK and patrons of their charities. I agree with a lot of people around the web who have said, most of the criticism of Kate and William would vanish if they worked as hard as Prince Charles or Princess Anne. I agree. If you act like you care about someone other than yourself on a regular basis and you are a royal, the public is very forgiving. Diana is a perfect example. She has some serious personal flaws but she worked hard for her charities and cared about people outside of her privileged social sphere and the public forgave her manipulations and insecurities.

      As for Twitter pictures to return to William and Kate, a lot of us get them because we belong to blogs or Twitter feeds that send us alerts about Kate and William on the web. It isn’t like we spend hours online looking through random pictures hoping to find one on William or Kate. A lot of the people who catch Kate shopping aren’t paparazzi. They’re just starstruck bystanders with a camera phone, so they’re not stalking William and Kate, they just bumped into them while they were at work or doing some shopping themselves.

      I can’t speak for anyone else on this board but for myself, I think it is interesting to see where William and Kate are and what they’re actually doing via Twitter because their PR team lies for them so much of the time in a vain effort to try to make William and Kate look busier and more engaged with their charities and royal duties than they are. For example, when William and Kate lied when they skipped the Special Olympics. They were in the south of France, not preparing for an overseas tour unless preparing involved being naked on a balcony. I also thought it was interesting they were all over the Olympics but not he Special Olympics. As impressed as I am with the Olympians, I am more impressed with people who have disabilities who do the same things. I would’ve been more interested in attending the Special Olympics myself. Also, remember when William was supposed to be at his bespoke agriculture course and he was in Spain boar hunting instead with an ex-girlfriend instead. Oops! In a ten week course, you can’t afford to skip as much as William did. Don’t forget, when Kate was supposed to be in Angelsey being a devoted military wife. That was half of the reason the public was supposed to give her a pass on full-time royal duties her first year of marriage. Instead, she was in London shopping and having her hair done more often than not. Finally, right now the excuse for not working full-time is taking care of Prince George as a devoted mother. For a devoted mom, Kate really dumps that poor kid with the nanny a lot and still doesn’t do a full slate of royal duties. You never would know it without Twitter.

      To sum up my examples, thanks to Twitter you get to see behind the PR bull pucky that way. Kind of like when a celebrity forgets they have a hot microphone on their chest and say something that reveals what they really think of something rather than what their PR reps wanted them to say. Always interesting to see behind the carefully choreographed veil with celebrities, royals and politicians.

      1. Excellent post.

        “Always interesting to see behind the carefully choreographed veil with celebrities, royals and politicians.” – This.

  10. “Royal watching is supposed to be fun, but often times when the royals don’t do things in a way that we feel they should, we get annoyed and so caught up in voicing that annoyance that we forget that it’s supposed to be fun. I understand getting caught up in the negativity and having royal watching burnout. And that’s when you need to step back.”
    Thank you, KMR. I take your comment as intended for the few who obsess about William and Kate’s whereabouts. I agree that they do need to step back, take a deep breath and get a grip – perhaps also say the “serenity prayer.” I am walking away from the negativity that their comments generate, not the behavior of the RF. With the way that the internet is closely monitored for security now, I would be very careful about second-guessing RF whereabouts.

    1. I am very familiar with personal security, building security, and executive security. I can assure you that you need not worry about Will and Kate and PG. They have appropriate security and a few folks on a blog will not put them in physical jeopardy. No one here stalks them. Watching their general whereabouts to determine how hard they are avoiding work of any kind and/or their dysfunctional relationship, is not stalking. The internet police you are warning us about know the difference, I can assure you.

      1. Thank you, fairygodmom. Pointing out the flaws in their PR – including their fabrications about where they spend their time – is curiosity not stalking.

      2. You are spot on, India. I have been a royal watcher for years. Not to age myself, but I remember Charles and Diana’s wedding when I was in kindergarten. From 1981 – 1997, the BRF was more insulated because the lack of the internet. They could hide behind PR. I remember up until 1991 that the press said that Charles and Diana would try for a 3rd child. Will and Kate don’t have that luxury. They are real time royals and the public desperately want the real and not the mystique.

        I had great expectations for Will because I can say that I watched him grow up and have his own family. But the Special Olympics did it for me. While I do not obsess or stalk them, I compare them to what I grew up with. I want them to be better because they have a rich history of service and charity.

        I will say this: I like KMR because this is a site that shares the good and the bad. I tried Tumblr and I will tell you this: you cannot criticize Will or Kate or voice concerns without someone throwing serious shade.

        1. “I will say this: I like KMR because this is a site that shares the good and the bad.” My thoughts exactly. I follow another blog, and if you make one negative comment about William or Kate, you are immediately attacked by several people. I find that crazy, because like everyone else, W&K are not perfect.

      3. Also, talking about where they were days after they’ve left that place isn’t a security risk–they’re not even there anymore. It’s not like we’re talking about them in real time and psychos are going to run over there and attack them. We always get this type of info after the fact.

  11. The bodyguard is Sergeant Emma Probert of Scotland Yard’s Specialist Operations 14 unit of Protection Command. She was one of two female bodyguards reassigned to Katie from Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie before the wedding. I don’t remember the other female bodyguard’s name.

    1. I bet that adds to more of the Middleton v York drama, since the York girls (or at least Andrew) were unhappy that their protection was taken away. Then to have that protection handed to Kate, whom they don’t like, must have hurt.

  12. Is it me or did anyone notice that the pathetic fools running through the station looked like they were late for work? ( What am i saying those two do not work! ) What can be so important that the dim doll cannot dry her before leaving home? I have no proof, but i think their up to something!

    1. Sarah wrote one of my favorite endings to one of her articles: very succinct and on point.

      “What’s “normal” about William and Kate having not one but two virtual palaces, when they barely do any “work” to justify their privileged possession?

      St. James’s Palace will have to spin like a rescue helicopter in order to reconfigure a new image for Prince William and Kate Middleton.

      For now, just call them Mr. and Mrs. Incognito. Have ballcap, will travel!

      But no one cares anymore.”

  13. I see nothing wrong with the photos of PW and Kate. It’s good to see them together outside of their Royal Duties. Give Kate a break, everyone deserves to dress down without makeup, even a future Queen of England.

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