Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton are notoriously private about their homes (absolutely fair enough), although we have been lucky enough to get small glimpses of them recently during the royals' various quarantined video calls. One of which had people questioning their unusual Zoom name.
However, given that we're a tad nosy, a new video showing the exterior and *incredible* garden of Kate's parents' home in the small village of Bucklebury, West Berkshire, has come as a very welcome surprise.
The video, which was posted by Kate's younger brother, James Middleton, on his Instagram account begins with him sat in the back of what looks like a truck, explaining that his fiancé, Alizee Thevenet, has never seen him without a beard before – and that now's the time to shave it off. "Alizee and myself were due to get married this month, she's never seen me without a beard so I thought it was about time."
James then does a quick shave in front of the camera, until he's totally bare-faced. Next, he hops off the back of the truck and heads back towards the garden of the Middleton's home, Bucklebury Manor, where it's believed he and Alizee are staying with his parents, Carole and Michael, during lockdown.
And oh my goodness, what a home it is! James pans the camera to reveal Alizee, Carole and Michael drinking wine in the most incredible garden with tonnes of gorgeous flowers in bloom.
The beautiful Georgian-style manor, with an expansive garden (meaning there's plenty of room for little George, Charlotte and Louis to play in when they visit), isn't the house that Kate, James and their sister Pippa grew up in. It's believed that Kate's parents, Carole and Michael, purchased it in 2012 and it's where Prince George spent the first few weeks of his life.
Everyone's clicking on...
Kate's more modest childhood home was a four-bedroomed house in Bradfield, Berkshire, (pictured below) where she lived from birth up until the age of 13 (bar when the family moved abroad for short periods). It was sold for £495,000 in 2011.
By the looks of things, Bucklebury Manor, an 18-acre estate, is a pretty idyllic place to be during these unprecedented times – which have seen us all spending a lot more time at home. Shout out to the Middletons for that cute bunting we spotted too!
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Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
