So far, it’s a part they’re playing well. “I think the Cambridge family have handled lockdown brilliantly. They have been very prominent on social media boosting the spirits of the country,” Claudia Joseph, author of How to Dress Like A Princess, says. “We have seen Prince William in a Blackadder sketch, the Duchess of Cambridge chatting to nurses and carers, Prince Louis making a rainbow poster and the whole family clapping our NHS.”
As they ride out the pandemic at Anmer Hall, their Norfolk country home, the Duke and Duchess are doing their best to juggle their royal responsibilities alongside their parental duties. “They don’t have much free time as both Kate and William are working hard online, but when they do, they go for bike rides across the private parts of the Sandringham estate,” says Ingrid Seward, the Queen’s official biographer and editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine. “When they are able to, which they now can, they take the kids to the local beach and play in the rock pools—this suits all three children.”
Mom Kate also plays in the kitchen with her children. “Kate, who loves cooking herself, is very keen on teaching her children to cook, and they spend a lot of time baking cakes in the kitchen at Anmer Hall,” Seward says. Middleton previously revealed the family all makes pizza together, and that little Louis loves to look at Mary Berry’s cookbook.
Out in the country, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, have plenty to keep them occupied: “They play hide-and-seek, pick bluebells and frolic with their cocker spaniel Lupo or pet hamster Marvin, on the grounds,” says Joseph. Mischief undoubtedly ensues, likely led by the energetic Charlotte. “Charlotte is the braver of the two older kids and always willing to try anything while George is more reticent. He always wants to be doing what Charlotte is doing,” Seward says.
With schools closed across the country, the two eldest children are now attending online classes. Kate called the process of remote learning “challenging” in a recent interview with the BBC. She also revealed that, although it felt mean, she didn’t tell them about their Easter break. This empathetic admission surely resonated with many parents-turned-teachers everywhere: “You can tell that William and Kate are very normal parents. That’s why they appeal to the great British public,” Joseph says.
Although the Cambridge children are certainly privileged, their parents aren’t shielding them these dark and unprecedented times. Instead, they’re involving them in their royal duties more than ever. They’ve publicly clapped for frontline workers, painted rainbows in support of the NHS, and delivered food to in-need neighbors. Already at this young age, they’re learning their roles as altruistic and public figures. And that may be the very thing that bonds the children together: “One thing all three of them have is a well-developed sense of philanthropy,” Seward says.