Princess Kate rocks new hair for poignant first public outing of 2025

Kate’s poignant visit

The Princess of Wales no doubt holds a special place in her heart for the Royal Marsden and the healthcare professionals who cared for her during her chemotherapy treatment last year, which saw the royal take almost an entire year away from the public spotlight. 

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The royal is set to become the hospital’s joint patron alongside her husband Prince William, and expressed her delight at entering via the front entrance after having visited in secret for several months. 

During her visit, Kate sat with patients currently undergoing treatment at the world-leading cancer centre in Chelsea to deliver the news. 

The Princess takes her new hair for a spin

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The Princess’ outing comes days after she debuted her new hairstyle for 2025 revealed via her birthday portrait photographed by Matt Porteus. 

Looking radiant in the black-and-white photograph, Kate’s tumbling brunette hair appeared to be the longest it’s ever been, curled to perfection in silky coils.

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HELLO! spoke with talented professional hairstylist Tom Pike, who confirmed the change in her tresses.

“Essentially, Kate has upgraded the style known as the ‘Hollywood wave’. To achieve this, you would use either a smoothing cream or a nice blow-dry spray. Blow dry your hair smooth, then using a large barrel wand, twist the hair round the tool, taking slightly thicker sections as you work. Once this is done, gently brush it out.”

Tom, who has tended to actress Lily James’s hair during his career, added: “The way that Kate’s done it slightly differently; she’s parted her hair at the back and then pushed it forward, so it looks like you’ve got that real, I call it a ‘royal wave’, but it just looks like you’ve got that real deep wave in the hair. It’s beautiful.”

A year of change for the Princess of Wales

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In September, the Princess of Wales delighted the nation when she confirmed that she is “cancer-free” after undergoing a course of treatment.

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In a moving video message, the mother-of-three told viewers: “Doing what I can to stay cancer-free is now my focus. Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long and I must continue to take each day as it comes.”