Why Kate Middleton waited for five years before making her Royal Ascot debut

The royals have been adapting to life in lockdown, with the Queen making special video calls to show support for nurses and sharing videos of her beautiful garden, and Prince William and Kate Middleton secretly volunteering for crisis helplines.

While the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are reportedly hoping for restrictions to be eased so that they can resume in-person engagements, there's one event that the whole royal family were unable to attend this week - Royal Ascot.

Usually, the Queen and her extended family would be attending Royal Ascot. However, the royals will be joining fans in watching the event from home this year as a result of coronavirus pandemic restrictions.

Meghan Markle made her Royal Ascot debut just one month after marrying Prince Harry in 2018, but her sister-in-law, Kate Middleton, waited five years before attending.

So why did the Duchess of Cambridge wait for so long?

According to HELLO!, the Queen invited William and Kate to Royal Ascot every year since they exchanged vows in 2011, but Kate politely declined until 2016. When she did attend, it was to celebrate the monarch's 90th birthday.

Royal correspondent Emily Nash reveals that during those years, William was working as an air ambulance helicopter pilot and the Cambridges wanted to spend time raising their young children.

She explained: 'William and Kate's focus was on his job and the children for a while, but they've stepped up their royal duties in the past couple of years.'