29 September 2023 , 16:48
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The Princess of Wales has backed out of attending Prince William's Earthshot Prize environmental awards in Singapore, fuelling speculation future king Prince George will attend prestigious Eton School.
Kate has attended every awards ceremony since they began two years ago, but now will not travel with her husband for the 2023 event in November. Royal sources today confirmed Kate had made the decision to stay at home due to the couple's eldest son sitting exams in the same week.
The senior source explained: "The Princess will not be attending. Prince George has exams that week and the Princess wants to be at home to support him." The Mirror revealed earlier this week that Kate would miss the awards as she did not want to disturb her children's schooling.
Prince George with his mum Kate (PA)Kensington Palace has refused to comment on what exams future king George, 10, will be taking. However, the preliminary entrance exams for Eton College, known as ISEBs, occur at that time as the Earthshot Prize during the first week of November. Several other elite private schools also use the exams.
George has been spotted visiting Eton, which his father William and uncle Prince Harry both attended and is widely expected to attend the school. He is currently a pupil at Lambrook Primary School, along with his younger siblings Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. Lambrook, however, only teaches students until age 13.
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The Prince and Princess of Wales were spotted in June touring the campus with their eldest son. It's possible that in three years, the young prince will attend the all-boys school, which is located near Windsor Castle, where the family now live after leaving Kensington Palace.
Prince William on his first day at Eton in 1995 (PA)When William enrolled in Eton in 1995, he became the first senior royal to attend the school in Berkshire, England. King Charles, and the late Prince Philip, attended Gordonstoun, a boarding school in Scotland, but his maternal uncle and grandfather attended Eton. Other royals to have attended Eton include Queen Elizabeth II's first cousins Prince Edward, Prince Richard, and Prince Michael.
Royal sources have questioned why the Princess of Wales has failed to make any international travel in nearly a year. Kate's star quality at last year's Earthshot Prize Awards in Boston shone through as she dazzled in a stunning, floor-length dress from rental firm HURR by Solace London and Princess Diana's emerald choker. As she and William arrived at the awards, they were given a pop star's welcome and were greeted by hundreds of screaming fans.
It was a star-studded event with other attendees including Oscar winners Rami Malek and David Beckham as well as singers Annie Lennox and Ellie Goulding and actors Daniel Dae Kim and Catherine O’Hara. Kate also attended the inaugural Earthshot Prize awards in 2021 when they were held at London's Alexandra Palace and wore a beautiful lilac dress by Alexander McQueen, which was a repeat wear. At both ceremonies, she gave a speech and presented an award.
Earlier this month, William travelled solo to New York and hailed the "inspiration and optimism" of the 2023 Earthshot Prize finalists unveiled in New York – and admitted to taking a morning jog around Central Park. William, who launched the £50million award to encourage and support the fight against environmental challenges, said: "It's gone better than I'd hoped", but there was "still a lot of work to do".