The Princess in Patriotic Colors for Coronation Pub Visit

The Princess of Wales was in patriotic colors for today’s visit to the Dog and Duck Pub.

The couple traveled to Soho via the Tube.

Here is a quick video from The Mail on Sunday’s Kate Mansey. 

The Prince and Princess of Wales take the London Underground (the ‘tube’) today – they took the Elizabeth line named after her late majesty pic.twitter.com/xed6zLuvwW

— Kate Mansey (@KateMansey) May 4, 2023

You can see how well the red coat stands out in today’s photos.

A view as the royals were about to board their train.
 More from The Evening Standard’s story. 

The Prince and Princess of Wales stunned royal fans as they jumped on the Elizabeth line to enjoy a pint in a Soho pub on Thursday. Ahead of the Coronation weekend, Kate, 40, and William, 41, boarded the Lizzie line at Acton heading towards Tottenham Court Road.

And from The Telegraph’s coverage.

To the astonishment of unsuspecting members of the public, the royal couple boarded the train at Acton Main Line station to get to Soho, reports India McTaggart.

They were handed their Oyster cards by a Palace aide before being greeted by Andy Lord, Transport for London’s Commissioner.

The couple also met with Carinne Spinola, a train driver, to discuss her career aspirations.

Speaking after the conversation, the Princess said: “It’s nice to meet a female train driver, obviously a profession women are keen on getting into. She said the job was advertised on Mumsnet.”

While royal aides said the couple do occasionally travel by London Underground in a private capacity, this is understood to be the first time they used it for an engagement.

The royals spoke with Transport for London workers, asking how they are getting ready for the Coronation celebrations.

A quick video from Hello’s Emily Nash. 

Look who took the Tube today! The Princess and Princess of Wales travelled to the Dog and Duck pub this afternoon on the Elizabeth Line from Acton to Tottenham Court Road. They met @TfL workers to hear about how they’re preparing for the busy weekend: #Coronation pic.twitter.com/Mo5JWQrlSn

— Emily Nash (@emynash) May 4, 2023

The pair seemed to enjoy their ride. 

We return to the Telegraph’s piece. 

The Prince asked TfL staff what the reception to the Elizabeth Line had been since it opened and they told him “everyone loves it”.

The late Queen opened the line almost a year ago, on May 17, 2022.

The Prince said: “I can’t quite believe it has been nearly a year. It’s quite nice to get the chance to see it all, after my grandmother opened it.”  

Speaking after the couple had left the station, Mr Lord said: “It was amazing to welcome them on their first visit on the Elizabeth Line. It’s coming up to the anniversary of the Queen opening it, and they were very impressed with it.”

Another view. 

Hello reports, “At one point Kate was asked about Charles’s Coronation on Saturday and replied: ‘Yes, it’s going to be a busy time. We’re getting there. I still feel like we’re trying to get ducks in a row.'”

They then walked to the Dog and Duck.

A little more about the pub via this BBC article. 

The Dog and Duck has had famous visitors before. Madonna has been spotted here and in the 1940s it was the haunt of author George Orwell – and even his worst nightmares about a surveillance society couldn’t have expected the sheer number of camera-phones capturing every moment.

It’s long been part of the great pilgrimage of Soho pubs, such as the French House and the Coach and Horses.

Pubs, restaurants and hotels are hoping for a coronation boom, with extended licensing hours.

You get a sense of the crowd in this image. 

More from this BBC story. 

Prince William and Catherine arrived at the Dog and Duck with crowds jammed into the narrow streets of Soho in the bohemian heart of central London.

Trying his hand at being a barman, Prince William pulled a pint of beer appropriately called “Kingmaker”.

“You just get the best conversations in a pub… everyone is relaxed. You never know who you’re going to meet,” said Prince William talking inside the pub

Rebecca English reports, “The pint William pulled is a special coronation beer brewed by Nicholson’s, Kingmaker Pale Ale. He was given the honour of pulling the first pint of it.”

More from The Daily Mail’s coverage. 

The Princess also revealed her three children were deeply immersed in the preparations. ‘The children are having their Coronation celebration at school today,’ she said.

And the royal added that their eldest child Prince George was ‘excited’ about the upcoming celebrations and had been taking part in rehearsals. 

She explained that George was a page of honour during the service at Westminster Abbey and, asked if he was looking forward to it, she replied: ‘He is actually. Having done a few rehearsals, I think everyone is a bit more relaxed.’

A video from The Telegraph’s Vitoria Ward. 

I can’t quite imagine the Princess of Wales finishing a pint somehow.
Polite as ever, she took a sip.
They’re at the Dog and Duck in Soho to hear about coronation planning pic.twitter.com/HXQdBTdy4u

— Victoria Ward (@victoria_ward) May 4, 2023

The Mail also reports the Princess “…praised the atmosphere in the area as ‘wonderful’ and that excitement for the Coronation was ‘already starting to build.'”
 The couple then did a walkabout.

This gives you another view of the crowd size. 

We hear about the Princess’s conversation with one woman via this LBC story:

As the Princess greeted royal fans, she was stopped in her tracks after noticing a woman’s dog in the crowd.

Susan, who owns the dog ‘Hattie’, told LBC: “[Kate] was absolutely beautiful.

“She was making a fuss of the dog, she asked what breed she was. She asked what we were going to be doing over the weekend.

“She hoped that we weren’t going to get too wet because the weather isn’t going to be too good, possibly.”

We have another reaction to seeing the couple, this one from an American visiting the area. We return to the LBC story:

Bobby, from Texas, who is in London on holiday for the coronation, told LBC: “We woke up and opened our window and were like ‘what’s all the commotion.

“I shook her hand and she touched me. She asked me how I liked the weather.”

She said she was ‘very nice, very beautiful.”

Prince William shooting a selfie.

The Daily Mail piece also noted, “Prince William appeared relaxed as he chatted with royal fans, telling one group discussing the newly opened Shambles Bar in Windsor: ‘I love a cocktail! Best not to do it before the Coronation but maybe afterwards!'” 

A video. 

Talking with the group next to me! #PrinceandPrincessofWales #PrincessCatherine #KateMiddleton pic.twitter.com/wswAqJqF4a

— Royal News Network (@RNN_RoyalNews) May 4, 2023

There were plenty of selfies taken. 

One more. 

And a final photo.

A quick video that Kensington Palace posted on social media. 

Going underground 🚇💜 pic.twitter.com/9V5x8JZU2P

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 4, 2023

And now for our look at what Kate wore.

Many readers will have recognized the coat by Eponine London. The piece is from the British brand’s 2018 A/W line and is called the “Wool Crepe Coat with Mandarin Collar.”

It features a front closure with self-covered buttons, buttons at the sleeve, scoop pockets at the hip, a back waist belt, and the Mandarin collar.

This is the third time the Princess has worn the piece for a public engagement. We first saw the coat at a May 2021 Hold Still book launch event, then again in June 2022 for a visit to Wales with Prince George and Princess Charlotte. 

Beneath the coat, the Princess wore her Suzannah Flippy Wiggle dress ($3620), by far one of my very favorite names for a dress! Made of Italian silk, the tea-length dress has pintucks at the front yoke and waist, half-sleeves with a button cuff, and contrasting silk-covered buttons.

This is the fourth time we have seen the Princess wear the dress. It was first noted at a July 2019 Wimbledon match, then again in August 2020 for a Baby Basics engagement, and in June 2022 for a memorial service.

I said patriotic colors in the post title because the coat’s lining is blue, so there we are with a red, white, and blue theme. You can see a little bit of the lining in this image.  

The Princess carried her Mulberry Amberley bag.

And wore her Jimmy Choo Romy 85 heels in white leather.

We saw the return of the Maria Black Cha Cha Earrings ($188 for single earrings, $376 for pair).

The earrings are recycled sterling silver with 22K gold plating with a 10 – 11 mm. baroque freshwater pearl. In addition to being offered at Maria Black, they are also sold at Luisa Via Roma and at Farfetch.

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In other coronation-related news, quite a few people have claimed their spaces on the procession route. 

These scenes were shot along The Mall. 

There was no shortage of fashion statements. 

At Westminster Abbey, a final coat of paint was applied to streetlights.

Work continues apace at Kashket and Partners, “the leading specialists for the design, development, and manufacture of high-quality uniforms for ceremonial, parade and formal wear.”

More from this story in The Guardian. 

The family-run business holds the contract to provide military uniforms for the armed forces and is responsible for creating all of the uniforms for Saturday’s parade. Nathan Kashket, 25, who works alongside his father, Russell, 60, and his uncle, Marlon, 56, is the fourth generation of the family to head the firm. It was founded in the 1950s by his great-grandfather Alfred, who made hats for Tsar Nicholas II in Russia before moving to London.

We return to The Guardian piece by Emine Sinmaz.  

“When I escaped the war in Ukraine with my husband and two children, I had no idea that I would be playing a part in the coronation,” said Olga Radchenko.

She fled her home in the city of Dnipro in January and sought refuge and work in the UK. She is now one of 10 Ukrainian refugees working at Kashket & Partners, the specialist firm making up to 8,000 parade uniforms for King Charles III’s coronation on Saturday.

“I’m proud to be involved,” said Radchenko, 37, a tailor, who was busy creating new uniforms for the Tower of London’s Yeoman Warders, known as the Beefeaters. “I showed photos to my family and told them I was making uniforms for the king’s army. They also felt proud. I’m very happy to be working here.”

Also today, a ceremony at Army Training Centre Pirbright.

Military representatives from 33 Commonwealth nations and six British Overseas Territories were thanked for representing their countries at the Coronation. 

Each was presented with a Coronation Coin.

After the ceremony, a Captain from the Maldives National Defence Force tried on a bearskin hat belonging to a British Guardsman. 

I’ll leave you with a little different version of the crocheted postal box toppers.

The photo caption said the King and his family, but I think that description was an error; as best I can surmise, it looks like it is intended to be the Wales family. 

VIDEOS: 

This video from the Royal Family Channel covers the tube ride. 

And this one covers the pub visit and walkabout. 

This video runs about 1:15.