Kate Middleton has been given a direct phone line to the Queen so she can call her grandmother-in-law for advice and updates any time she wants, a royal expert claims.

The Duchess of Cambridge is believed to have cultivated a strong personal relationship with Her Majesty, allowing her to bypass the monarch's formal chain of communication.

Royal author Duncan Larcombe claims Kate calls the Queen regularly to check in on how she's getting on during the coronavirus lockdown, the Mirror reports.

In fact, he claims she was the one who taught Her Majesty how to video call so she could stay in touch with the rest of the family over the last year.

Speaking to OK! magazine, Duncan said: "Kate has her own direct line to speak to the Queen and she calls her to check in on her and give her updates on the children.

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"She always leans on her for advice.

"Kate strikes that balance between bowing to her as head of the Royal Family in public but being able to check in with her as the great-grandmother to her children."

As they have not been able to see each other regularly for months, phone calls and video messages have become vital for the royals, just like everyone else.

The Queen has also been forced to carry out all of her charity engagements virtually.

"It's believed Kate was the one to teach the Queen how to use Zoom and that's been lovely, so she can see her great-grandkids and stay connected," Duncan said.

The Queen seems very satisfied with how Kate has taken to life in the Royal Family and presented her with a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (RVO), which is her highest seal of approval, in 2019.

Awards under the Royal Victorian Order are made personally by the Queen, and not on the recommendations of Downing Street unlike many of the others she hands out.

The RVO has five classes from member to Knight or Dame Grand Cross, and Kate follows in the footsteps of the Duchess of Cornwall, who received the same honour in the Queen's 2012 Diamond Jubilee year.

Since marrying into The Firm in 2011, Kate has championed her own causes including the early years' development of children and mental health, and she has travelled the Commonwealth on behalf of the Queen.

The two royal women have also carried out a number of joint engagements over the years, including a trip to Chelsea Flower Show when Kate showed the Queen around a garden she designed.

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