Brad Pitt, Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, Ariana Grande, Emma Watson and Hugh Jackman were among the celebrities watching Carlos Alcaraz defeat Novak Djokovic in the nail-biting men’s final at Wimbledon Sunday.
But the star power of these A-listers was no match for Catherine, the Princess of Wales, who, as the royal patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, got to hand out the trophy to Alcaraz, the 20-year-old Spanish sensation. The queen-in-waiting’s husband, Prince William, and their two children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, also took center stage at the match, with Pitt, Craig, Weisz, Grande, Watson, Jackman and the rest taking supporting roles.
Headlines also focused on how Charlotte was making her Wimbledon debut, and was escorted into the royal box by her mother, dressed in an eye-catching emerald green dress by Roland Mouret.
The British royal family hasn’t had an easy time the past few years, with the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September, the onslaught of negative attention generated by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the lukewarm response to King Charles III’s ascension to the throne, and the scandals associated with Prince Andrew and the cash-for-honors investigation of Charles’ close aide.
But as much as critics say the royal family has no relevance in the 21st century, or that it lost its real stars when Harry and Meghan left for America and after the queen died, the fact remains that the royal brand can’t be denied. In recent months, Kate has proven to be a power behind the brand, as one of the royal family’s most popular members.
At Wimbledon, some very important people clearly liked being at the All England Club in the presence of her and her family for the final matches Saturday and Sunday. It’s similar to the way that other top celebrities — Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian — liked being seen attending the White Party in the Hamptons, one of the social events of the year, thrown over the July 3 weekend by billionaire Michael Rubin.
Some celebrities attending Wimbledon over the weekend also looked very happy to be sitting in the royal box or in the general vicinity. That includes Craig and Weisz, who sat a few rows behind Kate, William and the children on Sunday. The day before, Priyanka Chopra, long said to be Meghan’s good friend, showed that she was very happy to be in the royal box with Kate, Meghan’s estranged sister-in-law. Kate was there on Saturday to hand out the trophy to Marketa Vondrousova after she defeated Ons Jaber.
Copra’s husband, Nick Jonas, shared a selfie of the two of them in the royal box. “Beautiful day out at the tennis with my (heart emoji),” Jonas captioned the photo, which he shared with his 35 million Instagram followers. “Such an honor to sit in the Royal box and watch @marketavondrousova win her first grand slam.”
Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas seated in the Royal Box on day thirteen of The Championships, #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/QrvNBebNqp
— Spotted @ Wimbledon (@CelebsWimbledon) July 15, 2023
Other celebrities attending Sunday’s final included Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba (who had been a guest at Harry and Meghan’s 2018 wedding), Andrew Garfield and Lily James. It’s unknown if these stars mingled with Kate and William, but they probably wouldn’t have minded getting their photos taken with them.
Since Charles’ ascension to the throne, much attention has focused on how his son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren children represent the future of the monarchy, if there is to be a future. The Daily Beast reported that respect for the monarchy could dwindle as long as Charles and Camilla remain on the throne, creating the “not-so-secret hope” that the two would abdicate in favor or William and Kate, “while they are young enough to make a difference.”
A new chapter of a book on the monarchy by London Times royal correspondent Valentine Low also described how Kate has become a behind-the-scenes power player who is fiercely devoted to the monarchy’s longevity. The chapter in Low’s best-selling “Courtiers” described how Kate insisted that the famous phrase “recollections may vary” was left in Buckingham Palace’s official response to claims of racial insensitivity made by Harry and Meghan in their March 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey.
After the queen watched the interview when it was shown on British TV, “serious negotiations” began over a response, Low reported, according to an excerpt that appeared in the Times in late Jane. Low said that William and Kate together considered a draft statement which did not yet include the phrase “some recollections may vary.”
A source told Low: “It had a much milder version. The debate was, do you rise entirely above it and offer the olive branch to (Harry and Meghan being) ‘much loved members of the family’? Or is there some moment when you have to intervene and offer a view?”
At some point, one of the royal aides came up with the phrase, “recollections may vary.” Low said some senior officials were against its inclusion, “because they feared that it would rile Harry and Meghan.” But Kate, then the Duchess of Cambridge, “pressed home the argument that it should remain,” Low wrote
A source quoted Kate as saying: “History will judge this statement and unless this phrase or a phrase like it is included, everything that they have said will be taken as true.”