Featured Image Credit: Jonathan Buckmaster-WPA Pool/Getty Images
Topics: Kate Middleton, Royal Family, Music, Jessie J, Celebrity, Cancer
Britt Jones
Topics: Kate Middleton, Royal Family, Music, Jessie J, Celebrity, Cancer
Jessie J has explained why she and Kate Middleton broke royal protocol during their meeting yesterday.
The Princess of Wales has been in the public eye more and more since she had previously taken time away from her duties to focus on her health.
The 43-year-old previously shared her cancer diagnosis in March last year, confirming to royal fans that she had been diagnosed in January after undergoing abdominal surgery and had begun preventative chemotherapy treatments.
That autumn, Kate announced the completion of her chemotherapy and said she would slowly be getting back to her royal duties.
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It wasn't until October that she made her first post-treatment public appearance with her husband Prince William as they visited families impacted by the Southport attacks.
In January, she confirmed that she was now in remission.
Since then, we have seen her more and more at events, and now, she has been seen with singer Jessie J, who also received a cancer diagnosis.
She revealed to her Instagram followers: “Before ‘No Secrets’ came out, I was diagnosed with early breast cancer. I’m highlighting the word early. Cancer sucks in any form but I’m holding on to the word early.”
“I also know how much sharing in the past has helped me with other people giving me their love and support and also their own stories,” she continued. “I’m an open book. It breaks my heart that so many people are going through so much similar and worse, that’s the bit that kills me.”
When the pair met at the Royal Variety Performance, held at London’s Royal Albert Hall on 19 November.
It was there that Kate and Jessie hugged, which isn’t something royals are supposed to allow.
There’s very much a ‘no touching’ expectation in place between royals and the general public.
Back in 2014, for instance, there was outcry when NBA player LeBron James put his arm around Kate.
Etiquette expert William Hanson told the Daily Mail at the time: "Mr. James should not have put his arm around her. Americans are much more tactile than we Brits and this is another example of an American being too touchy feely with British royalty. You’d have thought they’d have learned by now.”
Jessie explained to The Independent that she and the Princess of Wales chose to hug due to their shared cancer stories.
“Mum to mum, who has just recently gone through cancer, I just wanted to give her a hug,” Jessie said, adding: “We acknowledged that it’s something that is not easy to go through, especially in the public eye.”
According to the Daily Mail, Jessie J told the princess: “I just had breast cancer. I just want to give you a hug. Cancer really puts life into perspective.”
Jessie became a mum in May 2023 with the birth of her son Sky, following years of fertility struggles.
Kate, shares three children - Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, seven - with Prince William, and has been open about how cancer changes the whole family.
"You have to find your new normal and that takes time... and it's a rollercoaster, it's not smooth, like you expect it to be," she said. "But the reality is you go through hard times."