Kate Middleton has landed on her feet as the monarchy’s brightest star, and Prince William is clearly enjoying the view.
“It’s not just about duty,” British broadcaster and photographer Helena Chard told Fox News Digital. “Prince William is not only proud, but he is smitten. He watches Princess Catherine and lights up. After more than a decade of marriage and three children, he is still completely enchanted by her.”
“Few marriages have deepened in public admiration the way theirs has,” Chard said. “They have achieved something very difficult â they have carved out a private life that works, and a public life that works. That balance is a great success.”
Chard’s comments came shortly after former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond told The Mirror that the Prince and Princess of Wales have emerged as a power couple for the royal family, with Kate as its crown jewel.
“William and Catherine definitely have â and which spawned Di-mania,” Bond told the outlet. “People today are equally mesmerized by the new Princess of Wales, so tall, so elegant and so chatty, but William just seems to purr with pride that his wife is such a star.”
Christopher Andersen, author of “Kate!,” agreed.
WATCH: KATE MIDDLETON IS THE MONARCHY’S SECRET WEAPON: AUTHOR
“The British people adore Kate in the same way they adored Princess Diana, the daughter-in-law she never met,” Andersen told Fox News Digital. “But rather than be jealous of his wife the way of Diana’s popularity, William is more than content to let Kate shine. In fact, there are times when he is perfectly happy to bask in her reflected glory.”
“Kate has been William’s rock for a quarter-century, and vice versa,” Andersen continued. “What they have is the real thing. And I think gave them a whole new perspective on life and a renewed appreciation of each other. It’s all well and good to be proper and stiff in that British way, but why go to such lengths to hide their deep affection for each other? The spontaneous hugs, the loving looks â why wouldn’t William be bursting with pride?”
“Kate continues to prove she is the royal family’s Mary Poppins â ‘practically perfect in every way,'” Andersen added.
Bond told the Mirror that while William is “pretty dashing and gets his fair share of crowd worship,” his reaction to Kate’s popularity contrasts sharply with that of his parents.
During the kings marriage to , royal watchers and photographers would clamor just to get a glimpse of her. Reports over the years have said Charles struggled with the attention Diana received.
In her controversial 1995 “Panorama” interview, Diana recalled a royal tour in 1983, saying, “We’d be going round Australia, for instance, and all you could hear was, ‘Oh, she’s on the other side.'”
“Now, if you’re a man like my husband, a proud man, you mind about that if you hear it every day for four weeks,” Diana said. “And you feel low about it, instead of feeling happy an
