Kate Middleton makes surprise appearance at Wimbledon - best photos

The Duchess of Cambridge is a huge tennis fan

Updated on 02 Jul 2021, 15:41 BST

Danielle StaceyOnline Royal CorrespondentLondon

The Duchess of Cambridge has made a surprise appearance at Wimbledon, stepping out to watch a match on one of the outer courts.

Kate has been patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) since 2016, taking over the role from the Queen, and has been a regular at the tournament since before she became a royal.

The Duchess was accompanied by AELTC Chief Executive Sally Bolton and AELTC Committee Member and retired tennis player, Tim Henman, for the match.

Over the years she has been joined in the royal box by her husband, Prince William, as well as her sister-in-law, the Duchess of Sussex, and Kate's sister, Pippa Middleton.

The royal mum-of-three looked effortlessly chic wearing a navy blazer, a white blouse and a polka dot skirt for her outing.

READ: Kate Middleton surprises at Wimbledon in dreamy retro polka dots

WATCH: Kate Middleton makes surprise appearance at Wimbledon 2021

As Kate arrived, Wimbledon's official Twitter account posted: "A warm welcome back to The Championships to HRH The Duchess of Cambridge."

MORE: Kate Middleton was once forced to miss Wimbledon for heartwarming reason

A closer look at Kate's outfit for her day out at Wimbledon. As usual, the royal looked ultra chic, wearing a pleated dotty midi skirt by Alessandra Rich, navy blazer and white tee.

She added her Simone Rocha pearl earrings, a pair of white heels and Mulberry's 'Amberley' bag in white - a new designer purchase for the Duchess.

MORE: 17 times Kate Middleton stunned with her iconic Wimbledon outfits

Kate also wore a pretty floral patterned face mask and her brunette locks were styled into her signature blowdry.

kate middleton watches match outer court

The Duchess takes her seat beside Sally Bolton and Tim Henman.

It's been a week of sport for Kate as she joined William, and their eldest son, Prince George, to watch England win 2-0 against Germany at Wembley Stadium on Tuesday night.

Last year, the Duchess narrated a moving video for Wimbledon as the tennis tournament was cancelled amid the pandemic.

The Duchess is always very animated at Wimbledon, and could be seen clapping and reacting to the match.

Kate looked absolutely delighted to be back at Wimbledon after the tournament's cancellation last year.

William and Kate's Twitter account shared a video of the Duchess' arrival at the grounds and said: "With the tournament having to be cancelled last year, it's amazing to see fans and players back inside these iconic grounds."

kate middleton prepares strawberries wimbledon

After watching matches on one of the outer courts, Kate visited one of the kitchens on the grounds.

She spoke to Executive Chef Adam Fargin, who told her how the kitchen has been used by the AELTC over the past year to prepare and distribute 200 daily hot meals for the local community in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

kate middleton prepares desserts wimbledon

The Duchess was keen to get involved with some of the kitchen's preparations and was pictured helping the team to make some delicious-looking strawberry desserts.

Kate then visited the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum where she viewed some of the displays, including a special exhibition on the Centenary of Centre Court.

The Museum, which was opened by the Duke of Kent, President of the AELTC, in 1977 is a tribute to the heritage of the game and the history of The Championships. This year, the Museum is accessible for free to Championships ticket-holders for the first time.

The Duchess demonstrated some of her athletic prowess, as she tested her reaction time in one interactive part of the exhibition.

She joked: "No one told me about this. I should have worn my trousers."

She scored 24 in 30 seconds with the world record said to be 56.

Kate added: "The ones in the corners are really difficult. It is an amazing programme for coordination as it's got that lateral movement."

In the museum, the Duchess paused for several minutes at the Andy Murray portrait, by Maggi Hambling, which is on loan from the National Portrait Gallery, of which she is patron.

Keen art fan Kate said: "I love it. It has a lot of movement.

"It is very pretty. I like the concept of taking portraits back to the cities or home towns or here, it is such a good idea."

Kate then joined the Queen's cousin, the Duke of Kent, in the Royal Box on Centre Court to watch the action.

MORE: Who is the Duke of Kent?

kate middleton speaks to joe wicks wimbledon

The Duchess was spotted chatting with Joe Wicks, known as The Body Coach. He kept the nation's children fit during lockdown with his series, PE with Joe.

He was awarded his MBE in the Birthday Honours of 2020 for his incredible efforts.

The Duchess also pinned a dark green and purple bow to the lapel of her blazer, which has a special meaning.

The ribbon is worn by mostly female members of the AELTC. Male members of the club can wear a dark green and purple tie.

According to the AELTC: "The present colours — dark green and purple — were introduced in 1909 following the discovery that the previous Club colours of blue, yellow, red and green were almost identical to those of the Royal Marines. The decision as to why dark green and purple were chosen is not stated in the Club's records."

Kate also accessorised with a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses, as well as her Spells of Love chain with her personalised Daniella Draper necklace, with the initials of her three children.

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