Kate Middleton and Prince William share Christmas card photo with moving message

The Prince and Princess of Wales have shared the heartwarming snap that they've chosen to feature on the front of their Christmas card this year - showing the couple with their three children in Norfolk

The Prince and Princess of Wales have revealed the heartwarming snap that features on the front of their official 2024 Christmas card.

The poignant photo shows the couple with their three children in Norfolk. It is taken from the video released by Kate in September, which confirmed she would return to public duties following the completion of her course of chemotherapy after her cancer diagnosis earlier this year. The card was shared on a post on social media that said: "Wishing everyone a very happy Christmas' - with the words inside the card saying: 'Wishing you a very Happy Christmas and New Year."

The release of the card comes after it emerged earlier today that William, Kate and their three children would not be attending the royal family’s traditional pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace, taking place today.

A royal source said William and Kate are already in Norfolk, as had been planned, and are looking forward to spending time with the rest of the royal family at Sandringham over Christmas. The Buckingham Palace lunch is a private event for senior royals and their wider family who will not be attending Christmas celebrations at the King’s Norfolk home.

Last year the photo showed all five of the Wales family posing in a formal shot dressed in matching white shirts and dark denim jeans.. It was marked difference from the snap shared for 2022, which showed the couple dressed down holding hands with their children on a walk in Norfolk. In 2021, the card featured a photo of the family relaxing on a private holiday in Jordan.

The location of that year's snap was especially poignant for Kate - she spent a small part of her childhood years in Jordan, where her dad Mike worked for British Airways. Meanwhile, the Wales' 2020 Christmas card showed them all huddled together in casual clothes at Anmer Hall, their country home close to the Sandringham estate in Norfolk.

The release of the card comes at the end of a highly challenging year for the family following Kate's cancer diagnosis and subsequent chemotherapy treatment. In Kate's highly personal video from several months ago, where she revealed her chemotherapy treatment had finished she said that she was doing all she could to remain "cancer free".

She also spoke of how she was "looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months". In recent weeks, she has attend Remembrance weekend events while in the summer she was at Wimbledon for the men's final and she also made an appearance at Trooping the Colour in June. Kate also took part in the Qatar state visit to the UK in early December as part of her gradual return to royal duties.

Earlier this month at her Christmas Carol Concert at Westminster Abbey, the princess also reflected on ther tough 2024. She was heard telling singer Paloma Faith: "I didn’t know this year was going to be the year I’ve just had." When Faith replied "the unplanned", Kate said: "The unplanned, exactly. But I think lots of people this year have had such challenging times."

Menwhile, back in early November, William also reflected on the year, which not only saw Kate receive a cancer diagnosis but his father King Charles too. During a trip to Cape Town for his Earthshot Prize Awards, he spoke of his pride in his father Charles, 74, and his wife Kate, 42, for the bravery they have shown throughout their ordeal. However, the future king said of his annus horribilis – which is Latin for terrible year: "Honestly? It’s been dreadful. It’s probably been the hardest year in my life.

"So, trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult. But I’m so proud of my wife, I’m proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done. But from a personal family point of view, it’s been brutal."