Queen's Jubilee: Queen speaks to Prince Louis on balcony

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Kicking off the third day of Platinum Jubilee celebrations on Saturday, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge surprised delighted royal fans when they arrived for their scheduled outing in Wales with Prince George, eight, and Princess Charlotte, seven. Not in tow was the youngest Cambridge, little Prince Louis, four, deemed too young for the trip – though he certainly missed his mummy, as these pictures show. 

The sweet reunion saw the young Prince run to his mother, still adorned in her chic red dress and just stepping off the helicopter in the grounds of Kensington Palace, and throw himself in her arms for a big cuddle. 

Marlene Koenig, the royal author and historian who snapped the pictures, said: “I heard the helicopters, raced [to] Kensington Palace and the Cambridges were returning from Cardiff.

“I got pictures [of] Louis jumping into mummy’s arms!”

The images also show Louis running up to Princess Charlotte for a hug, and walking with his father and brother back towards the palace. 

Prince William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte were all arriving back from the outing, which saw the royals visit Cardiff Castle for concert rehearsals and take in some of the local celebrations being held in honour of 70 years of the Queen’s reign. 

For her first official visit to Wales, Princess Charlotte wore a navy frock coat and blue Mary Jane shoes with white ankle socks. 

She smiled and gripped her mother’s hand as they waved to well-wishers.

William and George, both of whom will one day hold the Prince of Wales title and, eventually, be King, were dressed in matching blue suits with open-collared shirts, both smiling and chatting with fans. 

The outing held particular poignancy for the future of the royal family, with royal experts noting that the Cambridge family are vital to the continued success of the monarchy. 

According to a royal source quoted in People: “The Jubilee is of historic significance but it’s equally an opportunity to show the succession and the monarchy as a whole.”

The family met with the crew, hosts and stars of the concert as they prepared for the event, learning about the technical production and helped with some of the final preparations. 

BBC weather presenter and drummer Owain Wyn Evans, who performed at the event, said Charlotte and George had wanted to have a try on his drum kit, but they were “a bit too shy and so I did a little drum performance for them”.

He joked afterwards: “At the time I was dripping in glitter, but they said I actually needed more glitter – so I’m going to try and find some spray glitter for my fringe now!”

Emma Thomas, a fan from Cardiff, met the royals and said: “Prince George walked right up, shook my hand and said ‘I’m George’.

“Princess Charlotte was eyeing up the sparkling shoes of the lady who gave the flowers to Kate.”

The concert, with a lineup including newly-appointed MBE Bonnie Tyler, John Owen-Jones, finished at 7pm, with screens at the event then switching to the Platinum Party at the Palace in London, allowing revellers to continue the fun. 

Richard Perry, from Port Talbot, the concert producer, said the excitement for the event had been “building for the last three months”.

He added: “It was heightened once we heard that their royal highnesses were coming to visit the rehearsals and then, in the last couple of days when we heard the Bonnie Tyler has received an MBE, so it’s already coming together really, really fantastically well.”

Millie Rose Davies, 21, one of the younger singers who met William and Catherine, said: “I’m so excited and nervous.

“I’m really grateful to the team who have given me this opportunity to take part in the concert.

“I have been working with them for a few years and one of my first professional jobs was with Richard and they really champion rising talent and Welsh talent.

“It’s always been on my bucket list to meet the Royal Family. 

“The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee is a once in a lifetime event and it’s spectacular that I have been given the opportunity to perform in a celebration like this.

“I don’t know how to act around the royals, but I’m so excited!”

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