Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Kate appears to play the piano at Abbey community carol service

Kate hosted Royal Carols: Together At Christmas on December 8, as a thank you to people who supported their communities during the pandemic

Helen William
Friday 24 December 2021 10:56 GMT
The Duchess of Cambridge in the trailer for Royal Carols – Together At Christmas (BBC Studios Events/ITV/PA)
The Duchess of Cambridge in the trailer for Royal Carols – Together At Christmas (BBC Studios Events/ITV/PA) (PA Media)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The Duchess of Cambridge appears to have tickled the ivories at a community carol service at Westminster Abbey.

Kate hosted the event, Royal Carols: Together At Christmas, on December 8, as a thank you to the  people who have supported their communities during the pandemic.

A clip on the Kensington Palace twitter feed seems to show she also played the piano.

Kate gained her grade three piano and grade five theory and she was taught by Daniel Nicholls until she was 13.

Ahead of her wedding to William, Mr Nicholls told the BBC in 2011: “I don’t think she was ever going to be a concert pianist. She was lovely, she was a normal student and very pleasant.”

In a recorded introduction to the service, Kate paid tribute to the “inspirational” people who have served their communities during the “bleak time” of the pandemic.

Kate said: “We wanted to say a huge thank you to all those amazing people out there who have supported their communities.

“We also wanted to recognise those whose struggles perhaps have been less visible too.”

The duchess said the country had been through “such a bleak time” and had faced “many challenges”, including the loss of loved ones, while frontline workers had been under “immense pressure”.

She added that while people had been “more emotionally and socially distanced and isolated from each other”, this separation had helped people to realise “how much we need each other” and the importance of acts of kindness.

The service was attended by those Kate and William had spent time with during recent engagements, as well as members of the armed forces involved in Operation Pitting to evacuate British nationals and eligible Afghans from Afghanistan, young carers, faith leaders and those who may have been more vulnerable or isolated during the pandemic.

The service includes music from the Westminster Abbey choir, singer Leona Lewis Ellie Goulding and Tom Walker who performed his Christmas single For Those Who Can’t Be Here.

The Duke of Cambridge, British Paralympian and junior doctor Kim Daybell, actor Tom Felton and presenter Kate Garraway all gave readings and there was also a  performance of To The Day, a special piece created for the service by poet and writer Lemn Sissay.

Royal Carols: Together At Christmas will air at 7.30pm on Christmas Eve on ITV.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in