Kate Middleton breaks cover for hospital visit after pulling out of Royal Ascot

The Princess of Wales has made a surprise visit to Colchester Hospital as she returned to public duties where she dropped by the RHS’s Wellbeing Garden to celebrate the healing power of nature

The Princess of Wales has made her first public appearance since she pulled out of Royal Ascot. Kate, 43, returned to work and visited Colchester Hospital today where she dropped by the Royal Horticultural Society’s (RHS) Wellbeing Garden.

Her visit celebrates the healing power of nature and the princess hopes to raise the important role that spending time in nature plays in bringing joy and supporting mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing. It comes just two weeks after she missed Royal Ascot for the second successive year as she seeks the right balance following her treatment for cancer. Since announcing in January she is in remission, the princess has been gradually returning to public duties.

During her visit to Colchester Hospital this morning, Kate met with with award-winning garden designer Adam Frost, who led the design of the garden, and hear about how he worked with NHS staff through the design and consultation process to ensure the garden addresses the needs of staff and patients.

As well as dropping by the garden, Kate also visited Colchester Hospital’s Cancer Wellbeing Centre and met patients and staff, to understand how gardens in healthcare settings play a crucial role in promoting good health outcomes, preventing poor health and supporting increased recovery time.

The garden, which opened in July 2024, is a relaxing and restorative space for NHS staff, patients and visitors and is described a vital hub for the community, offering activities for those working in or visiting the hospital.

It was created in partnership with the RHS, Colchester & Ipswich Hospitals Charity and NHS Charities Together, the latter of which is a joint patronage of the Prince and Princess of Wales. The Wellbeing Garden at Colchester, and the impact it has on patients and NHS workers, forms part of the research for the RHS’ Blueprint for Wellbeing Gardens, which will launch next year.

Kate’s visit also coincides with the donation of 50 ‘Catherine Roses’ to the garden, which she helped to plant. The rose, named after the princess, is being sold by the RHS with funds from sale of them going to the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. Kate was treated at the Royal Marsden following her cancer diagnosis last year.

In addition, 500 ‘Catherine’s Rose’ plants will be donated to wellbeing and community gardens across the UK this summer, including Maggie’s gardens for people affected by cancer, East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices and Horatio’s Gardens for those living with spinal injuries.

The princess has long advocated the benefits of spending time in the natural world, previously revealing how nature became her family’s ‘sanctuary’ in the wake of her cancer diagnosis and during her chemotherapy treatment.

She also opened up last month in a personal insight into what nature means to her on a trip to the Lake District with the Scouts earlier this year, admitting: “I find it a very spiritual and very intense emotional reconnection, I suppose, these environments.

“Not everyone has that same relationship perhaps with nature, but it is so, therefore meaningful for me as a place to balance and find a sort of sense of peace and reconnection in what is otherwise a very busy world.”