The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will carry out their first joint engagements of the year next week. Prince William and Kate, both 37, have been on a break from royal duties during the Christmas period.
Kensington Palace has announced the royal couple will travel to Bradford on Wednesday 15 January to visit a number of projects which support the community and promote cohesion within it, in one of the UK’s most diverse cities. William and Kate, on behalf of the Queen, will also host a reception at Buckingham Palace to mark the UK-Africa Investment Summit on Monday 20 January. The Summit itself will be hosted by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and will bring together businesses, governments and international institutions to showcase and promote the breadth and quality of investment opportunities across Africa.
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© Photo: Getty ImagesWilliam and Kate in Sandringham
William and Kate attended church with the Queen in Sandringham last weekend and a whole host of their friends – including Thomas van Straubenzee and his fiancée Lucy Lanigan-O'Keeffe, Lady Laura Meade and her husband James Meade, as well as Rose Hanbury, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley and her husband, David, the Marquess of Cholmondeley.
The Duchess hosted some of her closest companions at the couple's country home Anmer Hall in Norfolk to kick off early birthday celebrations, before she turns 38 on Thursday.
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The Cambridges also spent Christmas Day in Sandringham and their eldest children Prince George, six, and Princess Charlotte, four, made their debut at the annual church service. Princess Charlotte delighted royal fans as she hugged members of the public and curtseyed to her great-grandmother, the Queen.
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William and Kate took part in a festive TV special with Mary Berry in December, where the cook accompanied the royal couple on some of their engagements in connection with their patronages. The show culminated in a Christmas party at London's Rosewood Hotel to thank volunteers and staff from charities and the emergency services. The Duke and Duchess helped Mary to prepare the food in the kitchen and competed against each other to make the best meringue roulade.
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