The Princess of Wales attended her first Buckingham Palace garden party in a recycled dress in butter yellow – the shade of the season – but another part of her outfit had a connection to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

The Princess of Wales made an unexpected nod to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle with a surprise detail on her latest outing. Kate surprised guests by joining husband Prince William, at a Buckingham Palace garden party – her first one in two years.

The princess, who is in remission from cancer, missed the whole of the 2024 garden party season while undergoing treatment during what William described as a “brutal” year. Kate, whose attendance was not announced in advance as is the custom for garden parties, was dressed in a butter yellow Emilia Wickstead dress and hat by Philip Treacy.

Kate talks to guests as she wears an Emilia Wickstead dress and Philip Treacy hat (Image: PA)

Both pieces she had worn before – and it turns out the hat has a connection to her estranged brother-in-law Harry and his wife Meghan. That’s because the hat, complete with yellow flowers, is exactly the same as the one she wore to the Sussexes’ wedding.

It also comes just days after Harry and Meghan celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary, with Meghan marking the day with a selection of personal family photos on Instagram. Kate also wore the same hat at Trooping the Colour in 2019.

Meanwhile, Kate’s dress yesterday, which was in a colour dubbed the shade of the season, was also a repeat. She last wore it to a service at St Paul’s Cathedral during the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

Kate wears the same hat at Harry and Meghan’s wedding in 2018 (Image: Getty Images)

Her diamond earrings had also been seen before, as she opted to wear a pair from Robinson Pelham that she had worn on her wedding day in 2011 after receiving them as a gift from her parents.

During yesterday’s party, William and Kate met guests from a number of their patronages, military affiliations and passion projects, including Homewards, Action for Children and Ty Hafan, as well as Duchy of Cornwall tenants.

Among them was the family of aspiring photographer Liz Hatton, who died in November from an aggressive cancer called desmoplastic small round cell tumour.

Kate has emotional reunion with the family of Liz Hatton(Image: PA)

The 17-year-old, from Harrogate, North Yorkshire, was pictured being hugged by Kate at Windsor Castle just weeks before she died after being invited to take pictures of William at an investiture.

Also at the event were William’s cousins, Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall, with Kensington Palace saying the prince and princess had specially invited the younger generation of the royal family to accompany them.

Other attendees included Holocaust survivor Steven Frank, who was photographed by Kate in 2020 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust, and fundraising youngster Tony Hudgell.

The Princess of Wales at a Buckingham Palace garden party(Image: PA)

Ten-year-old Tony, who is a double amputee and previously met Kate at the Evelina London Children’s Day Surgery Unit, missed a garden party last year after getting stuck in traffic on his way there, prompting another invitation from the Palace this year. Kate last appeared at a royal garden party in May 2023, just days after the King’s Coronation, when the social event was staged in celebration of the historic occasion.

Some 7,500 guests mingled in the spring sunshine on the neatly manicured lawn of the royal residence on Tuesday, as William, Kate, and other members of the royal family stood on the West Terrace for the National Anthem. The official engagement marks another step in Kate’s gradual return to post-cancer public duties.