‘KATE NOW FEELS LIKE A QUEEN-IN-WAITING'

THE DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE STUNS IN NEW PHOTOGRAPHS AS SHE CELEBRATES HER MILESTONE 40TH BIRTHDAY

- GEORGIA TREVITT AND SAMUEL McMANUS-MAXWELL

Kensington Palace has released three powerful new images of the Duchess of Cambridge to celebrate her 40th birthday.

Kate, who hit the milestone on Sunday 9 January, looks every bit the future queen, wearing minimal make-up with her hairstyled in side-swept curls. In the images, she models three incredible gowns designed by Alexander McQueen.

In one shot, the duchess smiles at the camera wearing a one-shoulder red dress with a statement puffy sleeve. And in a sweet tribute to the Queen, she wears Her Majesty’s diamond earrings, which she’s been pictured in on multiple occasions throughout the years.

Two other black and white snaps show Kate wearing her late mother-in-law Diana, Princess of Wales’ pearl drop earrings. They were originally a wedding gift to Diana from Collingwood Jewellers, the family jewellers of the Spencer family, and Kate was first spotted wearing them at the Spanish State Banquet in 2017.

A close-up image of Kate shows her in a white dress with a ruffled shoulder, while a third is a side profile shot of the duchess, this time in a flowing white gown.

Royal expert Jennie Bond tells OK! that while the pictures of Kate – who shares children George, eight, Charlotte, six, and Louis, three, with husband Prince William, 39 – are not what we usually see, they reflect her role in the royal family perfectly.