How Kate Middleton Has “Managed Expectations” For Her Royal Return

Since announcing that she’s completed cancer treatment, Kate Middleton has slowly eased back into her royal duties, including making two back-to-back appearances at Remembrance events over the weekend. With Queen Camilla missing the Festival of Remembrance on Nov. 9 and Nov. 10’s Remembrance Day due to a chest infection, Kate “was even more the focal point” than usual, according to a royal biographer. Despite expectations, however, Kate is reportedly ensuring her royal return happens on her timeline and “in her own way.”

“She has managed the expectations of the public very well,” royal expert Sally Bedell Smith told People in a story published Nov. 11 about how the Princess of Wales picks and chooses which engagements to attend. As much as Kate might want to be back on a busy royal schedule–“I am sure she has missed participating and she seemed happy to be doing so,” Bedell Smith told the publication–she is choosing to prioritize her health and healing process while navigating pressure.

“I don’t think she has wanted to disappoint people, and even though they said weeks ago that she’d like to be there, it was only on Friday that they confirmed it,” Bedell Smith told People about Kate’s last-minute decision to appear at this year’s Remembrance events.

Her appearance two days in a row at the Remembrance festivities showed how much the events meant to her. “Being a senior member of the royal family and doing these ceremonial events is obviously important to her. It was good that people saw her,” the royal expert added.

While it’s expected that Kate’s next public appearance won’t be until December at her Westminster Abbey Christmas carol concert, the princess is also busy working behind the scenes on her initiatives and foundations. She’s “working at her various projects, and that’s not anything we can see,” Bedell Smith shared.