Royals

George, Charlotte and Louis' First Red Carpet! See Kate Middleton and Prince William's Family Night

Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis are getting in the holiday spirit!

Published on December 11, 2020 01:39 PM

Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis are in the Christmas mood!

School's out and the little royals were taken by their parents for some traditional British holiday entertainment on Friday. Mom Kate Middleton and dad Prince William treated an excited George, 7, Charlotte, 5, and Louis, 2, to a pantomime performance at the London Palladium.

George and Charlotte held William's hands as they walked cautiously up the red carpet outside the Palladium. As they got closer to the doors, Charlotte let go of William's hand. He tried to grab it again, but the confident princess seemed to want to go it alone as she took in her surroundings. William then adorably stroked his daughter's head.

Little Louis faithfully held onto mom Kate's hand as they approached the dignitary welcoming them. While the royal parents paused for the greeting, Louis inquisitively looked up at the adults. Older brother George, who seemed cool and relaxed by the clicking of the cameras, quietly took in the scene as he stayed close by his father's side.

Prince William, Kate Middleton family — Kate Middleton and Prince William with Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Prince George. Kensington Royal/Twitter

Cambridges attend pantomime — Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Prince George. AARON CHOWN/POOL/AFP via Getty

For one of their first public engagements as a family of five, the kids were coordinated in their outfits. Louis wore a blue wool jacket from one of Kate's go-to brands, Amaia, while Charlotte wore a gray and blue checkered dress and George wore a red and blue sweater with pants.

William and Kate theater — Kate Middleton, Prince William and Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Prince George. Kensington Royal/Instagram

Inside, Prince William gave a speech. Louis sat on Kate's lap during the show. The royal couple, who wore masks as they sat with their children in the Royal Box, also met with essential workers who were special guests at the charity performance of the show.

Louis joined in the audience's clapping before the show even started and pointed towards the lights and glitter ball after his father returned to his seat.

"It's wonderful to be back here in the West End and see theatres reopening their doors," William said. "Catherine, George, Charlotte, Louis and I are all really looking forward to the show."

Addressing essential workers in the audience, William added, "You have given your absolute all this year, and made remarkable sacrifices. So too have your families, who I'm sure have seen far less of you than they would have liked. It's lovely that you are all here together tonight. You are representative of the huge number of people across the U.K. who have stepped forward to make a difference this year in so many crucial ways. The country owes you a huge debt of gratitude."

William and Kate spoke with Dom Warren, 35, and his wife Alex Warren, 33, from Hastings in East Sussex. The couple set up Dom's Food Mission five years ago to use surplus food to help feed families in need. During the Covid-19 pandemic, they have seen demand rise dramatically and are currently providing 8,000 food parcels per month to families.

The royals thanked them for all their hard work, but William urged Dom to take it easy.

"Look after yourself. You've got to look after yourself in the long term because then you can look after other people," the future King said.

Asked what the Cambridges had thought of the show so far, Dom said, "They said they thought it was amazing."

Pantomimes are a slapstick-style show, which is a family tradition around Christmas in Britain. Typically based on fairy tales, the farcical musicals can be laced with some innuendo-laden rhymes and songs and require frequent raucous interventions from the audience. They often have older men playing female parts, like the Ugly Sisters in Cinderella, or young women playing male leading roles like Peter Pan.

Friday's show, Pantoland at The Palladium, is taking place under the strict COVID-19 rules of socially-distanced seating.

The performance was a special show for key workers and others who have been helped by the National Lottery charity. Among the guests were National Health Service frontline workers, staff from the Metropolitan Police Service, London Ambulance Service, the military, the teaching profession, refuse collectors, delivery drivers and key retail workers.

It capped a festive week for William and Kate. They wound up their 1,250-mile Royal Train tour around Britain, which saw them join students to trade Secret Santa gifts and some schoolchildren for a lesson with some reindeer. Then on Tuesday evening, they joined Queen Elizabeth and other royal family members for some carols at Windsor Castle.

Royals Windsor — Kate Middleton, Prince William and Queen Elizabeth. GLYN KIRK/POOL/AFP via Getty

This year, the little royals will not be out on Christmas Day at Sandringham House as their great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth is marking the day at Windsor Castle with husband Prince Philip. The rest of the royal family will be elsewhere. George and Charlotte made their adorable Christmas Day debut alongside their parents for their annual walk to church.

prince william, kate middleton — Prince William and Kate Middleton with students in Wales. Chris Jackson/Getty

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As a child, Queen Elizabeth would perform her own pantomimes at Windsor Castle with her youngster sister Princess Margaret, during World War II. They would entertain friends — including a young Prince Philip, who would become her husband — and family and some of the staff who were on duty at the castle.