The Prince and Princess of Wales' visit to the annual Royal Ascot horseracing event in England this month has become the focus of a new social-media video, as fans shared footage from behind the scenes at the historic race track.
Prince William and Kate Middleton married in 2011. For a number of years since then, the couple have been included among the VIP guests at the Royal Ascot event in Berkshire, which is spread over five days each June.
Queen Elizabeth II was known to keep Royal Ascot as a firm fixture in her diary. She often entertained family, friends and foreign dignitaries in the private box reserved specially for the monarch's use.
William and Kate first attended the event together, at the invitation of the queen, in 2016 and made returns in 2017, 2019 and 2022. Last year, the couple acted as formal hosts on the fourth day of the event, on behalf of Queen Elizabeth, who at the time was too frail to attend in her Platinum Jubilee year.
2023 marked the first Royal Ascot of King Charles III's reign, and he attended all five days of the event alongside Queen Camilla. William and Kate made an appearance on the penultimate day of the event to cheers from crowds as the couple processed down the racecourse as part of the traditional royal-carriage procession.
Uploaded to TikTok by user princessofwales2022, and captioned "behind the scenes," footage of the Wales couple walking to or from the royal box in the main grandstand has gone viral, being viewed in excess of 705,000 times in 48 hours.
The footage shows Kate, dressed in an all-red outfit comprising of a bespoke Alexander McQueen dress and Philip Treacy hat, as she rests her hand on her husband's back while walking.
The video has received in excess of 38,500 likes and 720 comments, many of which have praised the couple for their style and public display of affection.
"Gorgeously elegant as always! How could she walk effortlessly in heels all the time like in sneakers?" one TikTok user wrote of Kate, who was wearing a pair of towering Jennifer Chamandi heels.
"So proud of them and how they handle it all," posted another fan, with a further comment reading: "They're always chatting non stop with each other. It's cute."
William and Kate have become the subject of an increased number of social-media videos in recent months since taking on elevated roles within the monarchy as Prince and Princess of Wales, following Queen Elizabeth's death.
Eagle-eyed royal fans have been quick to post edited clips of the couple's public displays of affection (PDA) to TikTok, Twitter and Instagram, many of which have taken place at official royal events.
Earlier this year, the couple's interaction at the BAFTA film awards in England became the focus of such viral videos, when Kate appeared to tap William on the butt in a jovial moment on the red carpet. Dressed in another bespoke McQueen outfit, with William in black tie, Kate touched her husband as the pair arrived at the awards and waved to fans gathered in London.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
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