Kate Middleton may be considering naming her sister, Pippa Middleton, as her lady-in-waiting when she becomes Queen, according to reports from royal experts.
Kate Middleton has never assigned official companions — however, her decision to effectively go solo goes against royal tradition. When her husband, Prince William, assumes the throne, she will become Queen — and experts think she might decide to bring on a few companions to help her with her duties.
“The job of a monarch and a consort isn’t getting any smaller. The letters, the correspondence, the emails are growing every day,” said royal historian Kate Williams while speaking on True Royalty TV’s The Royal Beat: Back in Time. “So when Catherine becomes Queen, the levels of tours, the levels of letters, the level of receptions, will still require this assistance. So I think she will have to appoint some ladies-in-waiting.”
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The natural choice would probably be her sister, Pippa. “I think traditionally, we might expect Catherine to appoint her sister Pippa, because Catherine is so famously close to her family,” said Williams. “She doesn’t have companions because she’s so close to her mother and her sister. I think we might possibly expect that Pippa might be someone she might appoint.”
Added Ailsa Anderson, the former communications secretary to Queen Elizabeth, “It’s actually quite nice to have somebody who you’ve known and trusted to be by your side in those big events because when you’ve always got to be on show.”
However, as Williams went on to note, Pippa may not actually want what is essentially a full-time assistant role. “Pippa has her own life — three children, and a busy life of her own,” she said. “It’s a fascinating question.”
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The two sisters have always been extremely close and supportive of each other. In 2011, Pippa served as Kate’s maid of honor when she tied the knot with Prince William. In 2017, Kate played an unofficial supportive role in Pippa’s wedding.
More recently, Pippa has been a huge support as her sister undergoes treatment for cancer. “The real anchors in her life are her parents [Carole and Michael Middleton], and her brother James and her sister Pippa,” said royal expert Katie Nicholl to Entertainment Tonight. “While you certainly don’t see them photographed together very often, they are very much there in the background … They are absolutely fundamental.”