Prince William and Kate Middleton's baby may be due ten days earlier than previously thought. Although close friends of the royal couple recently revealed that the Duchess of Cambridge's due date was 13 July, observers believe a wrong date was given to misguide the press.
Clarence House officially announced in January that the happy couple were expecting a baby in July, and the Duchess told reporters in April that she was due more specifically "around mid-July, but apparently, babies have their own agenda." However, William and Kate could be keeping the real date a secret, just as Princess Diana did when she was pregnant, according to the Daily Telegraph. When Princess Diana was expecting her first child with Prince Charles in 1982, she announced that her due date was 1 July. However, the little Prince arrived on 21 June — ten days before.
The potential earlier due date means that the Duke and Duchess could become parents shortly after William's birthday, which falls in June, or at around the time of Princess Diana's, which falls on 1 July.
Kate is already following Princess Diana's example by chosing to give birth in the same hospital where Princes William and Harry were born. The baby, who will become third in line to the throne, will be delivered at the private Lindo Wing in St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, London. It has also been revealed that royal gynaecologist, Dr Marcus Setchell, will supervise the birth. Dr Setchell helped Sophie, Countess of Wessex deliver her two children and cared for Sophie following her ectopic pregnancy in 2001. The Lindo Wing, within one of London's NHS-run teaching hospitals, has welcomed previous royal babies including Zara Phillips and Peter Phillips. According to the hospital's website, a normal delivery package costs £4,965 for the first 24 hours, rising to £6,420 for the first 24 hours of a Caesarean birth.