Meanwhile, the prince returned to work following the Easter holidays when the Waleses spent quality time with their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. Louis celebrated his sixth birthday on Tuesday and Charlotte turns nine on Thursday. William and Kate released an unedited new photo of Louis straight to social media to mark the youngster’s big day to thank well-wishers and avoid the uproar over the princess’s digitally altered Mother’s Day photo.

Life partners for more than 20 years, William and Kate met at the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, and became friends first before embarking on a romance. William said in their engagement interview: “Obviously we both have a very fun time together, both have a very good sense of humour about things.”

The princess called him a ‘loving boyfriend’ who was “very supportive of me through the good times and also through the bad times”. They wed in a grand fairytale ceremony in Westminster Abbey on April 29 2011, with the aisle of the gothic church lined with trees.

The bride wore an intricate ivory gown with lace applique floral detail designed by Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen, while the groom was dressed in the red tunic of the Irish Guards. William and Kate welcomed their first child George in 2013, followed by Charlotte in 2015 and Louis in 2018.

They have shared ups and downs, from the arrival of their children and the celebration of Jubilees to the late Queen’s death and more recently the King’s cancer diagnosis, and kept their counsel amid accusations levelled at them by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in the wake of Harry and Meghan’s split from the royal family.