Kate Middleton’s annual Together at Christmas carol concert has become one of the royal family’s most important and poignant festive events, and the Princess of Wales never fails to impress
Anna Pointer and Mitya Underwood Senior Celebrity & Royal Writer
15:27, 28 Nov 2025
Kate Middleton has already set the bar incredibly high at her Christmas carol concerts(Image: Getty Images)
For many of us, Christmas is a time of year when enjoying a good old-fashioned singsong is compulsory. Tuning into the Princess of Wales’s annual televised Together at Christmas carol concert provides just the opportunity to get in the mood.
The event is a key fixture in the royal calendar and is returning to Westminster Abbey this December. The Royal Foundation accounts published in August confirmed the news, saying, “To close 2025, the ‘Together at Christmas’ will once again aim to bring together communities across the UK to celebrate people who have gone out of their way to help others with even more impactful local services.”
Kate first launched her hugely popular concert in 2021, with the evening offering a blend of traditional carols, music and readings. As royal expert Katie Nicholl says, “Nobody really knew if it would have legs, but it’s become such an established occasion, with an impressive royal turnout and huge support from Kate’s own family. It’s one of the dates she most looks forward to, and I think she’s immensely proud of what it has become.”
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Kate’s concert at Westminster Abbey has become a highlight of the royal calendar(Image: PA)
The 2024 service was her fourth to date, and it fell just a few months after Kate confirmed she had completed her treatment for cancer. More than 1,600 guests attended, with priority given to those “who have shown love, kindness and empathy to others in their communities,” including dozens of volunteers and carers, as well as the families of victims of the Southport knife attacks.
Looking resplendent in red, Kate composed a letter to all concertgoers. “Christmas is one of my favourite times of the year,” she wrote. “It is a time for celebration and joy, but it also gives us the opportunity to slow down and reflect on the deeper things that connect us all. It is when we stop and take ourselves away from the pressures of daily life, that we find the space to live our lives with an open heart, with love, kindness and forgiveness – so much of what the Christmas spirit is all about.”
She also told how the classic Christmas story “reflects our own vulnerabilities,” and in an apparent nod to her own struggles during the preceding months, she added, “Because in times of joy and sadness, we are all each other’s light.”
In 2021, Kate accompanied singer Tom Walker on the piano during his performance of For Those Who Can’t Be Here(Image: Kensington Palace via Getty Images)
Prince William spoke to the congregation at the Together At Christmas carol service in 2024(Image: Getty Images)
Reflecting the mood, the order of service was illustrated by Charlie Mackesy and included the poignant words, “‘How did I help?’ ‘You were by my side. Which was everything.’”
Speaking of the princess’s thoughtful tone, Katie adds, “It was a very personal message last year, and we heard Kate talk a lot about love and empathy. Along with recognising the healing power of nature, she clearly credits her recovery to love, family and being together, and those themes tie together beautifully at Christmas. It will be very interesting to see what her message will be this year.”
As well as being joined by Prince William for the 2024 concert, the couple’s three children, George, Charlotte and Louis, were seen placing handwritten notes of thanks on a Kindness Tree outside the Abbey. Louis even dedicated his own sweet note to Kate’s parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, which read, “Thank you to granny and grandpa because they have played games with me.”
Others in attendance included Princess Beatrice and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, Zara Tindall and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh. The Middleton contingent was made up of Carole and Michael, as well as Kate’s siblings Pippa and James. Broadcast on ITV1 on Christmas Eve, the service featured some stellar musical performances, with the likes of Paloma Faith, Gregory Porter, JP Cooper and Olivia Dean taking the mic.
At one point, Kate was overheard telling singer Paloma, “I didn’t know this year was going to be the year I’ve just had… But lots of people have had challenging times.” Readings were given by William, actresses Michelle Dockery and Sophie Okonedo, plus actor Richard E Grant and Olympic swimmer Adam Peaty. The Westminster Abbey Choir also delivered plenty of spine-tingling melodies, while dancers from the Royal Ballet School performed a festive dance to the John Rutter song The Colours Of Christmas.
Paloma Faith was one of the major stars on the 2024 list of performers(Image: PA)
For Together at Christmas in 2023, Kate’s chosen theme was the celebration of birth, with a focus on “new beginnings” and “hope for the future”. The evening saw singers Jacob Collier, Freya Ridings and James Bay perform, while Beverley Knight and Adam Lambert delivered a spellbinding duet of The Christmas Song. A year earlier in December 2022, Kate paid tribute to the late Queen, saying she always “held Christmas close to her heart” at a time that “reminded us of the importance of faith, friendship and family.” That year, Mel C and Alfie Boe teamed up for a moving version of Silent Night, while Craig David also sang.
But one of the standout moments in the event’s history came in its inaugural year in 2021, when Kate herself accompanied musician Tom Walker on the piano. As the audience watched on in stunned silence, she gave a note-perfect rendition of his song For Those Who Can’t Be Here, which he wrote after the death of his grandfather during the pandemic.
Kate Middleton is a picture of Christmas cheer at her annual carol concert(Image: Isabel Infantes/PA Wire)
“She was absolutely fabulous,” Tom said of Kate. “She absolutely smashed it.” Her stint at the piano received resounding critical acclaim, and Katie says, “It made headlines around the world, and was surprising on so many levels, because I don’t think many of us realised how talented she was. It showed a new, confident side to Kate, and because the carol service is her baby, it was special that she used it as a way of showcasing her relatively unknown musical ability.”
Also on the bill that night were chart-toppers Leona Lewis and Ellie Goulding, while gratitude was conveyed to all those who went to great lengths to support their communities during the pandemic. “We’ve been through such a bleak time,” Kate stressed. “We’ve seen so many challenges. We’ve lost our loved ones. We’ve seen our frontline workers under immense pressure.” But on a note of optimism, she added, “We’ve also realised how much we need each other and how acts of kindness and love can really bring us comfort and relief in times of distress.”
As for what we can expect for the 2025 concert, Katie says, “It’s hard to predict, although Kate always manages to keep a surprise or two up her sleeve. But because she set the bar so high when she gave that piano recital, I’m not sure if she could ever top that.”
The Royal Family at Christmas
The most wonderful time of the year is officially upon us – and few families embrace the spirit of Christmas quite like the British royals. As the all-important day draws closer, this special edition of OK! unpacks all the traditions of the royal Yuletide.
We explore what goes on at Sandringham, as well as the work that goes into sprucing up the royal residencesWe display some rarely seen photographs from the family’s festivities over the yearsWe also revisit Kate’s carol concerts, the family’s encounters with Santa, and check out customs enjoyed by other monarchies across Europe
Here’s to it inspiring some wonderfully merry moments of your own! Click here to purchase your edition for £9.99
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