Princess Kate asked Lady Gabriella Kingston to help with Christmas concert - details
The Princess of Wales enlisted the help of Lady Gabriella Kingston for her Christmas carol service, HELLO! understands.
Kate, 42, hosted the festive soiree at Westminster Abbey on 6 December, where she was joined by her family and members of the royal family.
The Princess, who is recovering from cancer, played a key role in the planning for the carol service, ensuring it was focused around love, kindness and empathy.
But HELLO! understands that Kate asked Lady Gabriella, who is the daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, to join her and the team in the summer to help with the creation of this year's event.
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The British writer, 43, who has a passion for music and released her first songs in 2020, supported the Princess and played an advisory role to the team around the music performances that featured in the service.
A source said about Lady Gabriella: "She was very touched and grateful to the Princess to be asked to contribute to her very special concert, and that she felt honoured to do so."
Kate is understood to have been incredibly grateful for her contribution.
It has been a difficult year for both Kate, who was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, and Lady Gabriella, who tragically lost her husband, Thomas Kingston, in February.
The financier, 45, from a "catastrophic head injury" and a gun was found near his body at his parents' home in the Cotswolds, on 25 February. Just days before attending the carol service, Lady Gabriella attended an inquest into her husband's death at Gloucestershire Coroner's Court.
She was pictured arriving at Westminster Abbey alongside Kate's parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, and Kate's siblings, Pippa Matthews, and James Middleton.
It comes as Kensington Palace has shared some heartfelt details about Royal Carols: Together At Christmas, which will be televised on Christmas Eve.
Kate has recorded a personal introduction as part of the broadcast, which is based on her letter, which all guests at the concert received.
The Princess says in part: "Christmas is one of my favourite times of the year, it is a time for presents, tinsel and mince pies, but it’s also a time to slow down and reflect on the deeper things that connect us all.
"It is when we stop and take ourselves away from the pressures of daily life, that we find the space to live our lives with an open heart, with love, kindness and forgiveness, so much of what the Christmas spirit is all about."
Following the Princess' introduction, the broadcast of the carol service will be narrated by Scottish actress, Kelly Macdonald, and feature three special community films which bring to life the stories of people and organisations who have inspired, counselled and comforted others in their times of need.
In each of the films, the groups are seen receiving letters from the Princess inviting them to attend – and in the case of the Sankofa Songsters sing at – the service at Westminster Abbey.
The three films are Worcestershire Gingerbread Group, which is about a single mum who helped to set up a community for single parents, Beyond Cornwall, which highlights the work of young carers, and Sankofa Songsters, which spotlights an intergenerational choir based in Belong Chester.
The programme will be broadcast on Christmas Eve airing on ITV1 and ITVX at 7:30pm and on Christmas Day at 6:00am. The Service will also be available on ABC in Australia, TVNZ in New Zealand and BritBox in the US and Canada.
