Kate Middleton discussed her children’s love of football during a sweet chat with an Irish Guard’s seven-year-old son on St Patrick’s Day, yesterday.
Kate, 43, donned festive green as she chatted to Irish Guards and their families in the Sergeants’ Mess at Wellington Barracks in London on Monday, after putting money behind the bar for them to celebrate the annual Irish holiday.
During her visit, Kate, who shares Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and Prince Louis, six, with Prince William, revealed that their children are keen footballers.
Speaking Noah Hogan, seven, whose father John is Company Sergeant Major, she said: ‘Do you like football? Our kiddies play football. Have you started playing at the weekends yet?
After Noah replied: ‘Yeah’, Kate asked: ‘Do Mummy and Daddy come and watch? When they can?’
Noah added: ‘Dad doesn’t watch that much, when you are at work.’ Which prompted Kate to ask: ‘Do you like the idea of being in the Army too? What would you like to do?’
Noah said he wanted to be just like his father and do the same job when he grows up.
The future queen also chatted to his Noah’s brother Lucas, 12, saying he was the same age as her oldest son George.
Kate Middleton shared that her children love football during a sweet chat with an Irish Guard’s seven-year-old son Noah Hogan on St Patrick’s Day, yesterday
‘You’re the same age as George. So you haven’t got exams this year?’ She asked.
The royal, who is colonel of the regiment after taking over from her husband, dressed in a lucky green Alexander McQueen coat dress and a Cartier shamrock brooch.
She styled her look with black heeled boots and a percher hat, and added a Shamrock pin, while tucked her hair up into a sleek updo and opting for a light make-up look.
She added Kiki McDonough Green Tourmaline earrings to her look – which she also wore at the St Patrick’s Day Parade in 2018 and 2019.
Kate missed the Guards’ annual occasion last year as she was undergoing treatment for cancer.
After arriving at the central London camp, Kate inspected the troops before being presented with traditional sprigs of shamrock by a member of the guard.
In a further sweet moment, Kate knelt down to pet the regimental mascot Turlough Mór, an adorable Irish Wolfhound known as Seamus. She then gifted him a sprig of shamrock.
Later, inside the Junior Ranks dining hall, Kate sipped on a pint of Guinness as a senior guardsman toasted her, but didn’t quite manage to ‘split the G’ instead choosing to savour the drink slowly.
Kate, 43, donned festive green as she chatted to Irish Guardsmen and their families in the Sergeants’ Mess at Wellington Barracks in London , after putting money behind the bar for them to celebrate the annual Irish holiday
Prince William with Prince George are often seen soccer matches together (pictured at Aston Villa)
Prince William and Prince George were pictured celebrated at the Spain vs England Euro final in 2024
The royal, who is colonel of the regiment after taking over from her husband, dressed in a lucky green Alexander McQueen coat dress and a Cartier shamrock brooch
The Princess of Wales enjoys a glass of Guinness during a visit to the Irish Guards for their St Patrick’s Day Parade at Wellington Barracks
Catherine, Princess of Wales during the 2025 Irish Guards’ St. Patrick’s Day Parade at Wellington Barracks
‘Three cheers for the colonel in the regiment,’ he said before raucous applause.
She later took the official salute from the Irish Guards, raising their Bearskin caps into the air.
Kate started the day by saluting the colonel during a march-past and met Irish Guards veterans as well as junior cadets from Northern Ireland known as Mini Micks.
During a private ceremony, in the junior ranks’ dining hall, senior guardsman toasted in her honour.
The Princess drank from a half pint of Guinness as Guardsman Barry Loughlin raised a toast to her as royal colonel in the Dining Room.
‘If you have a drink, stand with me now,’ he said, ‘bit quicker boys,’ he joked.
‘Three cheers for the Colonel of the regiment,’ he said. Kate sipped her drink after the three cheers rang out then headed over to meet Barry’s partner Georgia Wills and son Regan, four.
Barry said of the Princess: ‘She just wanted to find out how everything’s going. She’s really nice in that respect, she doesn’t just disappear. She’s warm and you feel welcomed by her.
‘You could tell she had a genuine interest.’
In a further sweet moment, Kate knelt down to pet the regimental mascot Turlough Mór, an adorable Irish Wolfhound known as Seamus
Princess of Wales during the 2025 Irish Guards’ St. Patrick’s Day Parade at Wellington Barracks
Kate, 43, made a triumphant solo return to the celebration, before putting drinks behind the bar for guardsmen
Inside, she told soldiers and their families, including some who had recently returned from Iraq, that she had missed taking part in the ceremony over the past two years.
Kate handed out long service and good conduct medals to Colour Sergeant Healy, Sgt Ben Beavis, Sgt Kristian Pooley and the Operation Shader medal to Sgt Jamie Davies, before heading out onto the Parade Ground.
The princess then joined the regiment for their traditional parade, taking her place on the saluting dais as soldiers from Number 9 Company, Number 12 Company and the Rear Operations Group marched onto the parade square, led by their Irish wolfhound mascot, Turlough Mor.
After taking the salute on the dais, she handed out shamrocks to Guardsmen and officers before finally presenting a sprig to the regimental mascot Turlough Mor, an Irish wolfhound known as Seamus.
She also said she wants to take her children to Australia and New Zealand now they are a bit older.
Chatting about how she and Prince William took their eldest son, Prince George, away with them on his first official tour when he was a baby, she told Corporal Adam Hamilton, an Australian reservist: ‘George finds it fascinating that he has been to Australia and New Zealand.
‘I would like to go back there with them now. It’s finding time to do that. But I love to travel – yes, it’s a long flight.
‘But I love the Middle East because that’s familiar to me from growing up. There are so many opportunities now to travel, I think it’s brilliant to experience it.
In a further loving moment, Kate then knelt down to pet Turlough, the adorable Irish Wolfhound who works as the regiment’s mascot
Princess of Wales during the 2025 Irish Guards’ St. Patrick’s Day Parade at Wellington Barracks
‘We tend to go further afield when it’s official visits, it’s being able to carve out time to experience these countries in a more private capacity.
‘Because otherwise you end up seeing lots of insides of amazing buildings but you don’t get to meet that many.. people
‘It’s making sure that you can combine a bit of work with… the children. I might see you down there!’
The Princess also chatted to section commanders in the bar about her husband’s beard.
‘These trends come and go,’ she said. ‘I was saying to my husband, I’m not sure how long he’s going to keep his for.’
Kate was all smiles as she arrived at Wellington Barracks, where crowds of tourists had lined up along the perimeter fence to watch.
She was greeted by Major General Sir Chris Ghika and Lt Col Ben Irwin-Clark and met their wives and other senior officers inside.
Leaning down to shake hands with Rory Irwin-Clark, six, she said: ‘You’re six? The same age as my Louis.’
‘We so often see you at matches because our girls are always playing each other, they are Farleigh and Lambrook, so I think there’s stiff competition,’ said his mother Carice, who has a daughter in year five.
‘I was just saying, they’re doing so much, sporting events,’ replied Kate.
‘Now it’s getting a bit warmer, it’s a bit nicer for a spectator,’ joked Carice.
Kate wished each officer a ‘Happy St Patrick’s Day’ as they stepped forward to receive the shamrock.
Then when Seamus arrived, she spent time patting him and scratching under his chin and behind his ears as his sprig was pinned to his smart red coat.
His handler, Drummer Joseph Aldridge, 27, said of the encounter, ‘It was special. She’s our colonel and obviously we want her to come to our parade every year but due to some unfortunate circumstances she couldn’t [last year]. It’s nice to see her come out and get to meet everyone — especially Seamus.
‘He’s the fan favourite. Not just with the royal family but everyone.’
‘We had a lovely chat about animals. She said ‘he’s being well behaved.’ And I said ‘He is but he can be unpredictable!’ She laughed and said ‘horses are the worst.’ She loves all animals,’ he added.
The Princess returned to the dais for three cheers from those on parade, with soldiers raising their bearskins into the air on each ‘hooray’.
After another royal salute and the national anthem, they then marched past, followed by Irish Guards veterans.
Three-year-old Elsie Enright was chosen to present Kate with a bouquet of Spring flowers and the Princess commented on her ‘beautiful shoes.’
She was then introduced to a line up of ‘mini Micks’ – cadets who had travelled from Northern Ireland to attend the Parade – and another group of veterans.
Then it was time to pose for group photographs with the Officers and Guardsmen. Kate giggled as two small boys who had been watching relatives taking part in the parade wandered into one of the shots.
Meanwhile, officers from the regiment deployed in eastern England paused their training of Ukrainian troops to present shamrocks to their recruits as part of Operation Interflex, a UK-led programme providing battlefield skills to Ukrainian soldiers.
The Irish Guards have played a key role in the programme, which has trained more than 45,000 Ukrainian recruits since Russia’s full-scale invasion.
During the parade, a tribute was paid to soldiers stationed in eastern England, with Commanding Officer Lieutenant Colonel Ben Irwin-Clark describing St Patrick’s Day as ‘a wonderful opportunity to strengthen the friendships that are so fundamental to our regimental ethos and identity’.
