Kate rocks festival chic in statement earrings at '24-hour rave'

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Princess Kate let her hair down with a drink in a snap that appears to have been taken at an exclusive, 24-hour music festival in Norfolk last weekend.

In a photo, which is thought to have been taken at Houghton Festival, held on the land of Kate and William's friends the Marquess and Marchioness of Cholmondeley, the Princess of Wales was pictured enjoying the drink with two other guests.




The Houghton Festival is held on the 1,000 acre Houghton Hall Estate which is owned by the Marchioness (right) and Marquess of Cholmondeley

In the photo, which was shared on Twitter, the Princess appears deep in conversation with her fellow festival-goers, while carrying a short glass containing what appeared to be a cocktail. 






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The Princess's visit to the high society event marked her first ever festival - after reportedly being convinced to attend by her friends, Rose Hanbury and her husband David, whose 1,000-acre estate was hosting the event. 

A source told the Daily Mail that the mother-of-three had been dining at Houghton Hall with the Marquess and Marchioness of Cholmondeley when a friend convinced Princess Kate to attend.

'After dinner, one of the guests suggested that Catherine go to the festival,' the source said. 

'Catherine was nervous about the idea, but, after much discussion with her protection officers, she went with lots of security. William wasn't there.' 

Billed as Britain's only 24-hour music festival, it is the brainchild of DJ Craig Richards, who launched the event in 2017. More than 200 artists performed across 13 stages from last Thursday to Sunday with music playing somewhere on the Houghton Estate site at all times. More than 12,000 revellers were expected to attend.

Although Catherine is not known to have previously attended a festival, she does like to dance. Before she married into the royal family, she was pictured attending a roller-disco with friends including the jockey Sam Waley-Cohen in 2008.

A Kensington Palace spokesman declined to comment, so it's not clear why William didn't join his wife. It was the Glorious Twelfth on Saturday so the heir to the throne, a keen shot, could have been on a grouse-shooting trip with friends.




Although the Princess of Wales may not have been to a festival before, she has been known to let her hair down in the past and lived it up at a roller disco in 2008

The Evening Standard also revealed this week that the Princess of Wales reportedly offered hospitality staff at the festival a £700 tip for the meal she ate during her visit.

During her night out, she is said to have avoided the festival food trucks, instead opting for the on-site Turntable & Napkin restaurant, where diners pay £60 each for a four-course meal. 

‘[Catherine] was in high spirits, ordering spicy margaritas, eating affogato [an Italian coffee-based dessert], and speaking affably with the other members of her party,' the newspaper reported.

‘Her companions apparently carted in a huge, balthazar-sized bottle of AIX rosé and, together with Kate, left the festival restaurant staff a £700 tip.'

A balthazar is a 12-litre bottle and it would cost about £500 from a wine shop.

Catherine's lively night out is just the latest example of the warm friendship between the future king and queen and the Cholmondeleys, nicknamed the 'Turnip Toffs', who live just a few miles from their Norfolk retreat, Anmer Hall.

Last September, the Marquess was replaced as Lord Great Chamberlain after the death of Queen Elizabeth. 

However, King Charles made sure that the Marquess, aka filmmaker David Rocksavage, did not lose his intimate connection with the monarchy.

In March, I reported that the King handed the Marquess a new position that would see him and his wife, the bohemian former model Rose Hanbury, returning to the heart of the royal court.

The King appointed the Marquess, 63, as his Lord-in-Waiting, a prestigious position that would see him attend important state and royal occasions, as well as being called upon to represent His Majesty at various events.

Rose married Rocksavage in 2009. He is 23 years her senior and friends had almost given up hope that he would ever marry.

Rose soon produced an heir and spare, twins Alexander and Oliver. Like Catherine, she has since given birth to a third child, Iris.


 



So now we know she likes a rural rave, just who are Princess Catherine's 'Turnip Toff' party chums?
Was she getting her own back on William for his surprise appearance at a Camden Town club a few weeks ago?

Or is the Princess of Wales more of a raver than anyone has thought quite possible?

Either way, Kate's impromptu visit to a Norfolk music festival in the company of her friend the Marchioness of Cholmondeley - as reported by The Daily Mail's Richard Eden - has thrown the spotlight back on the royal 'court' that surrounds the Waleses in the countryside.

Even though they are several hundred miles from Kensington Palace, Kate and William can call on a wide circle of well-connected friends and aristocrats for company whenever they are at Anmer Hall, their Norfolk home. 

They call them 'the Turnip Toffs'... 

Rose Hanbury, Marchioness of Cholmondeley 




Prince William and Princess Catherine with the Marquess and Marchioness of Cholmondeley, Rose and David,  at Houghton Hall, King's Lynn in June 2016





Rose Hanbury, The Marchioness of Cholmondeley at  the National Gallery in 2022

Kate had been dining with Norfolk neighbours David and Rose Hanbury at Houghton Hall when the three of them  paid a visit to the Houghton Festival on their estate.

David Rocksavage, 63 and Rose, 39 are the Marquis and Marchioness of Cholmondley. 

They married at Chelsea Town Hall in 2009, following a very brief engagement. 

They share twin boys Alexander, Earl of Rocksavage, and Oliver, Lord Cholmondeley, both 13, and a younger daughter, Lady Iris, seven.

Rose, who boarded at Stowe and has a degree from the Open University, had a modelling career and worked as a researcher for Conservative MP,  Michael Gove, now Secretary of State for Levelling Up.

Rose's grandmother Lady Rose Lambert was a bridesmaid in Queen Elizabeth's wedding to Prince Philip in 1947.