Kate Middleton Is 'Incredibly Grateful' for Lady Gabriella’s Help with Her Christmas Carol Service

Mar. 15, 2025

Kate Middleton and Lady Gabriella Windsor at Kate’s Christmas carol service on Dec. 6, 2024.Photo:kate-gabriella-carol-service-122224-ls

kate-gabriella-carol-service-122224-ls

Kate Middletonhad an extra set of hands working on herTogether at Christmascarol service this year.

The Princess of Wales, 42, wanted the fourth annual service to be focused around love, kindness and empathy — and she askedLady Gabriella Kingston(née Windsor) to join her team to help, PEOPLE confirms.

Gabriella, the only daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, played an advisory role around the music performances featured in the Dec. 6 service, PEOPLE understands.

And the 43-year-old royal, who works as a freelance journalist, enjoyed her role and was excited to be a part of the service, a source tells PEOPLE.

Kate “was incredibly grateful for her contribution,” the insider adds.

Lady Gabriella (middle) arriving at Kate Middleton’s Christmas carol service on Dec. 6, 2024.Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty

Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty

Gabriella’s role in the service was fitting for the royal, who previously showed off her musical chops in 2020, when shereleased two songsto benefit music nonprofit Playing for Change Foundation.

Set to air on Christmas Eve, theTogether at Christmasservice — which welcomed a total of 1,600 guests, including members fromboth sidesof Kate’s family — marks the end of a difficult year for Princess Kate, who announced she was undergoingtreatment for cancerin June.

Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Kate Middleton during Kate’s ‘Together At Christmas’ carol service on Dec. 6, 2024.Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty

In September, Kate shared that she hadcompleted chemotherapy, and the Dec. 6 Christmas concert was her most notable appearance following the news.

“It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the death of Thomas Kingston, our beloved husband, son and brother,” the statement read. “Tom was an exceptional man who lit up the lives of all who knew him. His death has come as a great shock to the whole family, and we ask you to respect our privacy as we mourn his passing.”

Earlier in December, a source assured that, though Princess Kate stepped out alongside her family to hostTogether at Christmas, sheis taking a slow, intentional approachwhile navigating her return to public life amid her cancer recovery.

Kate Middleton at her Christmas carol service on Dec. 6, 2024.ISABEL INFANTES/POOL/AFP via Getty

ISABEL INFANTES/POOL/AFP via Getty

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“She is focused on herself and her family right now, rightly,” a source close to the palace told PEOPLE at the time.

Other friends and sources emphasize that the princess' experiencehas changed her perspective forever, with an insider close to the royal household telling PEOPLE, “Life-threatening illnesses bring a reconsideration of priorities. She and William have always made it clear that family is the most important thing.”

“You can’t go through something like that and come out the other side unchanged,” the source added. “She is a different person now.”

source: people.com