The Prince and Princess of Wales shook hands with Paddington Bear after the Royal Variety Performance on Wednesday night, before Kate shared a hug with Jessie J which the singer said was prompted by their shared experience of cancer.
William and Kate were entertained by a cast of famous faces at the Royal Albert Hall and enjoyed performances by Paddington The Musical’s West End cast and singer-songwriters Jessie J and Laufey.
After the performance, William and Kate met McFly singer Tom Fletcher, who wrote the music and lyrics for the new Paddington musical.
William told Fletcher he thought the performance of the new musical was “fantastic”, before shaking hands with Paddington Bear.
The Prince of Wales shakes hands with Paddington Bear from the London stage musical, alongside Tom Fletcher from McFly at the Royal Albert Hall (Jonathan Buckmaster/Daily Express/PA)
Pointing to the marmalade sandwich in the bear’s paw, the prince said: “Your sandwich looks very nice.”
The royal couple also met Jessie J, who performed I’ll Never Know Why, her new song inspired by losing a friend to suicide.
After her conversation with the princess, who wore a floor-length green velvet gown, the two shared a hug.
The Price Tag singer faced her own cancer surgery in June with a mastectomy for breast cancer.
The 37-year-old, whose real name is Jessica Cornish, later revealed she was due to undergo a second operation and had to postpone her autumn tour.
Jessie J said: “Mum to mum, who has just recently gone through cancer, I just wanted to give her a hug.
“We acknowledged that it’s something that is not easy to go through, especially in the public eye.”
The singer said her outfit, an oversized black hoodie and trousers, had prompted some confusion among attendees at the glitzy, black-tie event.
Jessie J said: “Some people say ‘Oh, you’re not dressed up’, but that’s the whole point. When you feel depressed and you’re on the sofa, you’re not in a sparkling gown, you’re in sweats and you want the world to swallow you up… that’s what I wanted to represent in my own way tonight.”
The Princess of Wales was presented with flowers by twins Emelia (centre) and Olivia Edwards (Jonathan Buckmaster/Daily Express/PA)
The topic of mental health came up in the singer’s discussions with William, who invited her to get involved with his own charity work on the issue.
Sir Stephen Fry, who performed an excerpt from Oscar Wilde’s The Importance Of Being Earnest, discussed his recent Celebrity Traitors appearance with William.
The creator of the celebrity spin-off, Stephen Lambert, previously told the PA news agency that William shared that he and Kate are Traitors fans when he made Lambert an OBE.
Asked by the prince whether he and the Celebrity Traitors cast have stayed in touch, Sir Stephen replied they were bound together by the fact that very few have shared their “bizarre experience”.
He added that Celia Imrie “can’t go anywhere without people calling out ‘wind’s coming!’”, referencing a scene in Celebrity Traitors where the actress was heard audibly passing wind during a stressful mission.
To close the show, a cast of 400 performed a special medley of songs from Les Miserables to mark the musical’s 40th anniversary, during which William could be seen laughing at a joke made at his expense.
Before performing Master Of The House, Monsieur Thenardier gestured towards the Royal Box and quipped: “Oh no, I thought it was going to be the other fella, the one on the coins.”
William and Kate also met 2025 winner of Britain’s Got Talent, magic act Harry Moulding.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the King becoming a member of prestigious magic society the Magic Circle, Moulding filmed part of his act at Buckingham Palace.
Charles gained his honorary life membership to the society in October 1975, after performing a sleight of hand routine using cups and balls.
Harry told Kate: “It was a dream come true doing Buckingham Palace as part of the act, it could not have been more perfect.”
Earlier in the evening, Kate was presented with flowers by nine-year-old twins Emelia and Olivia Edwards, family of staff at Brinsworth House, a care home for entertainment industry workers supported by the Royal Variety Charity.
After asking if they were fans of Paddington, the princess told the girls her children were “very sad” not to attend the show and added she had to tell them children were not allowed to go.
“My kiddies were very sad, we’re going to have to keep it a big secret that I saw you guys,” she said.
“They were very sad not to be joining us.”
The annual Royal Variety Performance was first staged in 1912 for King George V and Queen Mary in aid of the Royal Variety Charity.
The charity provides care and assistance to those working in the entertainment industry, including those suffering with physical or mental health issues.
The show will be screened on ITV in December.
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