Princess Anne Skips Cheek Kiss With Kate at Commonwealth Day Service Over Hat Size, and Both Laugh It Off

LONDON — A moment from this year's Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, when Princess Anne skipped the customary cheek kiss with the Princess of Wales, has resurfaced in royal coverage, with some headlines describing it as a snub. Accounts from the reporter who captured it and from outlets that reviewed the footage say it was a lighthearted exchange about hats, and both women were seen laughing.

The exchange took place on Monday, March 9, as members of the royal family gathered at the abbey for the annual service, which brings together representatives of the 56 Commonwealth nations and is held on the second Monday in March, according to InStyle. Prince William greeted his aunt, Princess Anne, with a kiss on each cheek, according to People and Marie Claire. When Kate, the Princess of Wales, went to do the same, Anne instead leaned back and made a joke, Hello! reported, prompting laughter from Kate. Marie Claire said photos confirmed Kate leaning in to kiss Anne, only for the Princess Royal to lean backward, and that Kate could not contain her laughter.

The Daily Mail's royal editor, Rebecca English, shared a video of the moment on Instagram with a caption that explained it. "There was no way Princess Anne was going to attempt a kiss under a hat like the Princess of Wales's," English wrote. In a separate post on X, English described the atmosphere at the gathering, according to AOL. There was "quite a bit of joking amongst the ladies about whether they should kiss given the size of their hats," she wrote. "Princess Anne made clear she wasn't even going to try." Instead, Kate placed her hand on Anne's arm as the two smiled and chatted, AOL reported.

Outlets covering the moment described it as good-humored rather than tense. Enstarz said the two royals were seen laughing and smiling at each other, showing the brief exchange was lighthearted, and People described the pair as having skipped the kiss reportedly because of their headwear. InStyle framed the incident with the words that Kate was rebuffed, "but not for the reason you might think." Yahoo's retelling this week said Kate has a warm, respectful relationship with Anne, and that the two are frequently seen greeting each other warmly at major events. That characterization comes from the outlet's own reporting rather than from either royal.

Kate, who was 44 at the time, wore a navy Catherine Walker coatdress with matching suede Gianvito Rossi shoes and a wide-brimmed hat by the milliner Sean Barrett, InStyle reported. She added a five-strand pearl necklace by Susan Caplan and a pair of Queen Elizabeth II's earrings. Marie Claire described the earrings as the late queen's Bahrain pearl drops. The hat's size was the reason for the joking, according to English. Kate managed the headpiece without trouble while greeting other family members, People reported: she kissed King Charles on the cheek and curtsied, then curtsied again to Queen Camilla, and she also greeted Anne's husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, with a kiss on the cheek, AOL reported.

The service came a month after the former Prince Andrew was arrested, and AOL described it as the biggest gathering of British royals since then. In his message for the service, King Charles, who leads the Commonwealth, referred to the "increasing pressures of conflict," calling it a "time of great challenge and great possibility." He added: "It is often in such testing moments that the enduring spirit of the Commonwealth is most clearly revealed," according to InStyle.

The episode fits a pattern in how Anne, 76, approaches greetings. She has a reputation for preferring formal gestures, according to Hello! Earlier this year, when Scotland rugby captain Sione Tuipulotu went in for a hug after Scotland's win over England, she laughed and opted for a handshake instead, the magazine reported. After Scotland's victory over France, Hello! said, he jokingly pretended to lean in for another hug and she playfully held up her hands, again opting for a handshake. He eventually got his embrace: Scottish Rugby shared a video of the captain thanking her after a warm hug in the changing room at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. "Away from the crowd!" he joked, patting her shoulder, according to Hello!

Hello! also pointed to remarks from a royal biographer about Anne's stated preference after her mother's death in 2022. Robert Hardman wrote in "The Making of a King: King Charles III and the Modern Monarchy" that a senior staff member offered Anne a hug shortly after the queen died, and that she had an unexpected reaction. "There then followed a wry smile. 'That is the last time that's going to happen,' the Princess said firmly," Hardman wrote. That anecdote has been cited in coverage of Anne's manner, including by Tribune, which described her as combining tradition with personal style.

The coverage reviewed included no comment from Anne, Kate or the palace on the moment. What the available accounts show is a short greeting that was recorded on video and widely shared, and that appears to have been taken in good humor by both women. The word snub appears in some headlines, including the Hello! and Yahoo piece that prompted this report, while the accounts themselves describe a joke about hats.