KATE'S CONCERT OF CELEBRATION

Family, friends and special guests joined the Princess of Wales for a joyful carol service that marked the end of a difficult year

- REBECCA RUSSELL

The way that the royal family spend the festive season has been the same for many years, but, like with anything in life, the old must make way for the new — and that’s just what has happened thanks to the Princess of Wales and her Together At Christmas carol service.

As the celebration returned to Westminster Abbey for the fourth time on Friday, it was immediately clear that this was a milestone moment and something the princess should be very proud of achieving.

“It’s quite something to take your place in an institution like the royal family and come up with an idea that you can make your very own,” former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond praised as she exclusively spoke to OK! “And that’s exactly what Catherine has managed to do with her annual carol concert, which has now become a Christmas tradition — and very much her baby.”

With the Princess of Wales having undergone planned abdominal surgery in January and announcing her cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy treatment in March, it has certainly been a tumultuous year. But, as ever, Catherine, 42, is choosing to use her experiences to help others as she used her beloved concert to highlight the importance of empathy and how vital it is to help others during difficult times in their lives.

While the service was filled with heartfelt moments and touching tributes, it was the design the princess commissioned from illustrator Charlie Mackesy for the front of the programme which not only tugged on people’s heartstrings, but drove home the message of the need to support others better than any statement ever could. Sitting below an illustration of a group of people with their arms around each other in a snowy scene was the question, “How did I help?” before it was answered with, “You were by my side, which was everything.”