After the excitement and street parties of last year’s Royal Summer, this July will provide a second wave of Monarchistic pride in the form of William and Kate’s baby who was due to arrive on the 13th July. In the approach to the event there has been a flurry of activity including an increasing amount of Baby Cambridge memorabilia and the usual marking out of territory by journalists outside the hospital. Although the date cannot be predicted accurately, the place of the birth is a traditional choice as the hospital where Princess Diana gave birth to both William and Harry.
William and Kate long ago made a decision to keep the gender of the baby a mystery, although thanks to recent changes in royal rulings, the baby will receive the style of His or Her Royal Highness, meaning that if it is a girl she will be the first in hundreds of years to be allowed the title Princess and remain third in line for the throne either way. Kate Middleton has announced that she plans to give birth naturally, and that they will both be hands-on parents, breaking a long tradition of royal babies being taken care of by full-time nannies. The pavement surrounding the hospital is marked with duct tape and chalk to signify the waiting photographers’ positions.
Away from the hospital, the betting has begun. NBC News London has set up an amusing sweepstakes which allows members of the press only to bet on the time and date of birth, while a local Ladbrokes took bets on the gender, name and even hair colour of the baby; keeping an eye on the FREEbets Blog is a good idea for hints, although it is uncertain when any of this information will be revealed so it’s better to get in sooner rather than later! When William was born, he was not shown to the public until 21 hours after his birth, and his name was not announced until one week later. Nicola McGeady of Coral has suggested that the current bets seemed to favour the child being a brunette girl named Alexandra, although these are changing constantly as more speculation emerges.
When Kate goes into labour, William will start his two weeks of paternity leave, and later this year they will move into their new family home. It remains to be seen how long the couple will leave the media guessing, although considering their eagerness for privacy they may be better off revealing the details as soon as possible. Surrounding the birth, the Museum of London has opened an exhibition of royal baby clothes and memorabilia, blue and pink truffle sets have been created by Prestat and a picture book has been released called “Ssh! Don’t Wake the Royal Baby!” with the adorable front cover depicting the Queen parachuting Olympic-style with the baby strapped to her chest.
William and Kate long ago made a decision to keep the gender of the baby a mystery, although thanks to recent changes in royal rulings, the baby will receive the style of His or Her Royal Highness, meaning that if it is a girl she will be the first in hundreds of years to be allowed the title Princess and remain third in line for the throne either way. Kate Middleton has announced that she plans to give birth naturally, and that they will both be hands-on parents, breaking a long tradition of royal babies being taken care of by full-time nannies. The pavement surrounding the hospital is marked with duct tape and chalk to signify the waiting photographers’ positions.
Away from the hospital, the betting has begun. NBC News London has set up an amusing sweepstakes which allows members of the press only to bet on the time and date of birth, while a local Ladbrokes took bets on the gender, name and even hair colour of the baby; keeping an eye on the FREEbets Blog is a good idea for hints, although it is uncertain when any of this information will be revealed so it’s better to get in sooner rather than later! When William was born, he was not shown to the public until 21 hours after his birth, and his name was not announced until one week later. Nicola McGeady of Coral has suggested that the current bets seemed to favour the child being a brunette girl named Alexandra, although these are changing constantly as more speculation emerges.
When Kate goes into labour, William will start his two weeks of paternity leave, and later this year they will move into their new family home. It remains to be seen how long the couple will leave the media guessing, although considering their eagerness for privacy they may be better off revealing the details as soon as possible. Surrounding the birth, the Museum of London has opened an exhibition of royal baby clothes and memorabilia, blue and pink truffle sets have been created by Prestat and a picture book has been released called “Ssh! Don’t Wake the Royal Baby!” with the adorable front cover depicting the Queen parachuting Olympic-style with the baby strapped to her chest.
I am hoping for a Princess, I like the idea of breaking tradition and allowing her to be third in line to the throne even if she is female. What are you hoping for?