The Princess in Separates for London Engagements

The Princess of Wales was in separates for engagements in London today.

The Prince and Princess started their day at Borough Market, a popular produce and street food market. 

More from this People story.  

The couple started their morning at Trethowan Brothers cheesemakers, who make small-batch, traditional cheeses at their dairy in North Somerset, western England. Their stall at the market opened in 1998, bringing cheeses such as Pitchfork Cheddar and award-winning Gorwydd Caerphilly to London. Stalls like theirs have helped make Borough Market a destination for foodies and restaurateurs.

We learn details from this Daily Mail piece by Rebecca English. 

Both the Prince and Princess tried their hand at slicing the Pitchfork Cheddar, and Catherine asked which cheese was the most popular.

Mr Trethowan said afterwards that they were ‘big cheese fans’, telling him ‘that’s lunch taken care of!’ when he gave them cheese and chutney to take away. Asked about their cheese cutting skills, he said: ‘They were naturals.’ 

They were particularly interested to hear about the ‘blossoming’ success of the British cheese industry, he said, after he told them many young people are now getting into the job.

The royals then walked through the market to their next stop. 

They visited Change Please, a charitable social enterprise that supports people experiencing homelessness through barista training and other means. We return to The Daily Mail’s coverage. 

Last year, the Prince’s Homewards programme funded Change Please to run an employability scheme in Northern Ireland.

Prince William told staff he would like to get the coffee into the cafes of the royal palaces, naming Windsor Castle in particular. ‘It’s fantastic,’ he said.

The Princess was keen to learn more about coffee grinding, asking ‘can you show me how to do it’ as she darted inside the stall to try her hand.

More from this article in The Times.

After taking a few minutes to work the machines, froth and pour, she held a coffee cup out and said “William, I made you a coffee! It’s not decaf.”

Politely declining, he suggested: “They [stallholders] can sell it!”

Next, a visit to Humble Crumble, offering their blend of fruit, crumble toppings, and vanilla custard. We learn more from this Telegraph article by Hannah Furness. 

…[the] Prince took charge of ladling the fruit and crumble pudding, while the Princess was tasked with the embellishments: pouring custard, piping pink marshmallow fluff, and sprinkling toppings.

Gabriel Unger, the chief executive of the company, who placed the first order from the royal visitors, joked that they would “pass their trial shift” easily and be offered a job, if they wanted.

The Princess also earned praise for her piping skills. The Daily Mail reports the company founder, Kim Innes, said, “the Princess’s piping skills were ‘fantastic’, adding ‘She could teach the team, she’s a natural’ while William ‘did a good job of the correct ratio of fruit to crumble.'”

The Princess serves a customer one of the couple’s creations. 

We return to Simon Perry’s People piece. 

After visiting the market, the couple then took a walk along what is known as Bermondsey Beer Mile, a route featuring over 20 nearby craft breweries, taprooms and bottle shops. It has been a center for London’s brewing industry since the 17th century. William and Kate visited Southwark Brewing Company, which was started by Peter Jackson as a home‑brewing hobby in his garage.

There, Princess Kate tried her hand at brewing, climbing up a ladder and sporting long gloves so she could stir some beer in a large vat with a long stick.

“Wow, look at that,” she said, peering inside.

“What do I do?” she asked before being told to “put it in, give it a bit of a stir.”

The Princess, as she mixed up the concoction.

They then had a competition to see who could pull the best pint.

Peter Jackson, the company’s owner, told them: “Do you know what? You can come back on Saturday for a shift.”

Next stop the Bermondsey Beer Mile where the royal couple helped pour pints and Kate revealed ‘since my diagnosis I haven’t had much alcohol. It’s something I have to be a lot more conscious of now’. But turned to Wills and said ‘but you like cider…’ https://t.co/sIp4Wx8vcd pic.twitter.com/FXXrD9aBj0

— Matt Wilkinson (@MattSunRoyal) March 12, 2026

The royals then visited Fabal Beerhall, also located on the Bermondsey Beer Mile. 

The Times of London offers more in this article by Kate Mansey. 

When she was invited to try some beer and cider, Kate told owner Hannah Rhodes: “Since my diagnosis I haven’t had much alcohol.” She added: “It’s something I have to be a lot more conscious of now.” 

Rhodes, who offered Kate a soft drink instead, said: “Fair enough.”

Turning to William, Kate patted her husband’s knee and said: “But you like your cider, don’t you?”

Prince William sampled beer and cider, and the couple tasted honey used as a sugar replacement during fermentation.

We learn more from this Daily Mirror piece by Russell Myers. 

Kate, who is known to be a beekeeper with hives at her Norfolk home of Anmer Hall, tried some of the honey by dipping a stick into a jar. The princess said: “If you take the honey off the hive in early summer it tastes very different.”

Speaking about harvesting honey from the hives, she added: “If you take the honey off when it’s wet it is a natural fermentation process anyway.” William laughed and joked: “She knows a lot about bees. Be careful what you say, you might be corrected.”

The Prince and Princess’s final stop was at the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) station near the Tower of London.

To get to the station, the couple took one of the RNLI’s E-class lifeboats.

It looked like they enjoyed the ride.

A wide shot. 

The couple after their arrival.

The Tower station is the RNLI’s busiest lifeboat station. 

Greeting more crew members. 

The Tower station is the newest of four RNLI stations along the Thames in the Greater London area. The couple shared some cake and cookies they purchased at the Borough Market. 

We learn more from the RNLI’s piece on today’s visit. 

They enjoyed a ‘brew with the crew’, and the charity’s Occupational Health and Wellbeing Manager, Michelle Johnson, where they heard firsthand about the type of rescues undertaken along the Thames, and how the charity provides training, equipment and support to deal with challenging situations.

The Telegraph’s piece offers additional details about today’s visit. 

…they joined staff and volunteers to learn more about their lifesaving work on the tidal river and mark the 25th anniversary of the RNLI Lifeguards over a cup of tea.

Prince William, referring to tides, said: “We don’t respect it [the water] enough sometimes.”

They also spent time talking to members of Bridge Watch, a charity which patrols local bridges to intercept members of the public who appear to be contemplating suicide and take them to a local cafe to talk.

“It’s about reaching out, is it, and building trusted relationships that they might not have elsewhere in their lives?” asked the Princess. “It’s an incredible role to play.”

Many readers will recall that the couple’s first official joint appearance following the announcement of their engagement was at the RNLI Trearddur Bay Lifeboat Station in Anglesey, Wales, where a new lifeboat was dedicated.

After leaving the RNLI, the couple greeted well-wishers gathered near the station. 

A brief video. 

The Prince and Princess of Wales greeting well-wishers outside the RNLI Tower Lifeboat Station in London 💛

🎥 Agnieszka O’Connor pic.twitter.com/TjB1ebRfxd

— Anna (@tokkianami) March 12, 2026

She was given some lovely flowers. 

Here is another view. 

Now, we turn to our look at what Kate wore. Some may have recognized the Catherine Walker blazer, first seen at a February 2022 engagement. It is a single-breasted design with a fitted silhouette, notch lapels, flap pockets, a center-back vent, and four buttons at the cuff. 

The Princess brought back her With Nothing Underneath shirt, the British brand’s Boyfriend Fine Poplin Button Up ($150) in sky blue. The shirt is also available at Olivela ($150), and the same style with an exaggerated cuff is stocked at Liberty of London ($140).  

She repeated her Joseph Coleman Long Gabardine Stretch Trousers ($465) in Cocoa that we first saw in February of this year. The style is also available at Harrods ($385). 

The Princess also wore what appears to be the Cece Ankle Boot ($1350) in coffee brown suede by Jimmy Choo. The design is inspired by equestrian style, crafted in velvet suede with a pointed toe, side zipper, and a 2.5″ heel. It is also available at Farfetch ($1295) and Senser US ($1180). Thank you to Princess of Wales Style for this ID.

Her belt looks like a past-season ME + EM style, the label’s Reversible Belt, featuring conker-brown croc-embossed leather on one side and smooth black Spazzolato leather (a high-shine leather) on the other. Thanks for this ID go to Princess of Wales Style and Kate Middleton Styled on Instagram via Middleton Maven.  

We saw the return of the Cartier Trinity Earrings($3850) in white, rose, and yellow gold.

Longtime WKW friend Natasha shared links for the Navy RNLI Flag Cap (£9) worn by the Princess and the Heritage Flag Bone China Mug (£10) she used today. 

Hopefully, we will see the Princess with the Irish Guards on Tuesday for St. Patrick’s Day. If not, we will definitely see the Prince and Princess on Wednesday, when they will greet the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, on behalf of the King. Until then, here is one more photo from today’s engagements.