Kate Middleton and Prince William say farewell to 2024 with collection of touching photos

The Prince and Princess of Wales have signed off from 2024 in a heartwarming new year message on their social media accounts.

Kate and William, both 42, shared highlights in a series of photos from what has been an unimaginably difficult year for the royal family, as they wished their followers a happy new year.

Making just a minimal comment about the last year, in which the Princess underwent chemotherapy after cancerous cells were found in her body during an abdomen operation and William’s father King Charles also underwent cancer treatment, the Kensington Royal account simply used a tick emoji.

It comes after the Prince of Wales opened up about how 2024 had been ‘dreadful’ for his family amid Kate and King Charles’s health battles. 

However the couple’s message for 2025 was more positive as the account wished royal fans a ‘wonderful’ year ahead.

Among the pictures shared by the Waleses were special moments from their family time this year and the few engagements Kate was able to undertake while having chemotherapy.

They included her poignant return to royal duties in meeting the late Liz Hatton, a photography prodigy who passed away last month at the age of 17 after being diagnosed with a rare cancer.

Another highlight was a moment of joy for the family; a family still from the extraordinarily candid clip in which Kate announced she had completed chemotherapy and was focused on remaining ‘cancer-free’.

Elsewhere, a moment of particular significance for the Prince and Princess of Wales, shared in the thread on X, was a snap of Prince William posing with the late Rob Burrow, a Leeds Rhinos rugby star who passed away earlier this year from motor neurone disease. 

In the snap, William beamed alongside Rob’s best friend Kevin Sinfield, who has raised thousands for MND research through extreme physical challenges. Meanwhile Rob sat with his wife Lindsey and daughters Macy and Maya. Both Rob and Kevin posed with their CBE medals which they were awarded in the New Year Honours List 2024.

More poignant memories were shared of Kate’s Carol Concert, filmed earlier in December and broadcast on ITV on Christmas Eve, which was the Princess’s most significant event yet after an incredibly difficult year.

And a similarly significant memory was marked in sharing a photo of the Prince and Princess of Wales visiting bereaved families in Southport in the autumn, just a few months after three little girls Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, were killed at a Taylor Swift dance party.

The joy of the Wales children is also marked in a photo of a selfie that broke the internet this summer, when Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince William met Taylor Swift at Wembley Stadium on one of her Eras Tour dates. 

The new year post on the Prince and Princess of Wales’s official X account marks the significant moments and some more positive memories from a year when Kate all but retired from public life as she underwent treatment for cancer.

The Princess revealed in a moving video clip in March that she had begun chemotherapy after cells were discovered within her body that appeared to be cancerous during an abdominal operation in January.

Her diagnosis came at the same time as King Charles revealed to the nation he too was battling cancer and was having treatment; which meant giving up some public duties.

Meanwhile Prince William, whose wife and father were being treated for serious health conditions, reduced the number of engagements he carried out in order to help care for Kate and the children.

Nonetheless, he flew the flag for the Windsors at several important engagements at home, and also travelled to South Africa later in the year, when Kate had completed chemotherapy, for his annual Earthshot Prize Awards.

During this trip, the royal father-of-three opened up about the year he and his family had battled through amid health woes.

When asked by a member of the public how he’d managed during the unimaginably difficult time, he replied: ‘Honestly? It’s been dreadful.

‘It’s probably been the hardest year in my life. So, trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult.

‘But I’m so proud of my wife, I’m proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done.

‘But from a personal family point of view, it’s been, yeah, it’s been brutal.’

Prince William’s ‘hardest year’ ever: How future king’s annus horribilis has seen him faced with his wife and father’s cancer battles – and his ongoing feud with Harry 

At the end of his trip to Cape Town, after handing out the latest Earthshot Prize, Prince William offered a rare insight into his life, admitting that the past few months have been ‘brutal’.

When asked how the past year had been for him as a husband, father and son, the Prince of Wales, 42, lowered his head and said: ‘Honestly? It’s been dreadful. 

‘It’s probably been the hardest year in my life. So, trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult.

‘But I’m so proud of my wife, I’m proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done.

‘But from a personal family point of view, it’s been, yeah, it’s been brutal.’

Here, FEMAIL looks at how William’s very own annus horribilis has unfolded – from Kate Middleton and the King’s respective cancer battles to his still broken relationship with Prince Harry.

The Princess of Wales is diagnosed with cancer

January should be a time of relaxation for the royal family following a flurry of events over the festive period – but not in 2024.

On January 17, Kensington Palace announced that the Princess of Wales had been admitted to The London Clinic for abdominal surgery – and that she was not expected to return to royal duties until Easter.

The Prince of Wales subsequently took a step back from his royal duties to care for his wife and children.

Anne, The Princess Royal, replaced him at the funeral of former Namibian President Hage Geingob and he pulled out of a memorial service dedicated to his late godfather King Constantine of Greece due to a ‘personal matter’.

While any sort of treatment and recovery can be hard enough for a family, the fervid public interest and speculation made things ever more difficult for The Wales family.

Princess Catherine released a picture of her with her three children to mark Mother’s Day on March 10 – but internet sleuths quickly pointed out that the photograph had been altered.

The image, shared with the media, was quickly withdrawn by international picture agencies later the same day because of concerns that it had been manipulated.

The following day the Princess took the blame for the manipulated photograph and issued a personal apology for the ‘confusion’ caused.

She wrote: ‘Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.’

But this did little to subdue the wild conspiracy theories spiralling online – is the Princess really in a coma? Perhaps she is hiding a particularly bad haircut?

Meanwhile, an investigation was launched at The London Clinic over claims staff had tried to access the Princess’ private medical records.

On March 22, Kate announced that following her abdominal surgery in January, it came as a ‘huge shock’ that tests had identified cancer.

Dressed in a simple striped jersey and jeans, sitting on a wooden bench and surrounded by daffodils, she calmly outlined the story of her ordeal. 

‘It has been an incredibly tough couple of months for our entire family,’ she said.

‘It has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be OK,’ she added.

From April onwards, Prince William put on a brave face as he returned to public work – often remarking to royal fans that his wife is ‘doing well’ and ‘would love to be here’.

On June 15, the Prince and Princess of Wales returned to the spotlight together for the first time since her cancer diagnosis during Trooping the Colour.

In September, the Prince and Princess released a touching video montage of the family enjoying time together over the summer.

Catherine confirmed that she finished chemotherapy and is ‘looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months’ but added her focus is on ‘doing what I can to stay cancer free’.

In a personal message, Kate said: ‘Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long’.

She added: ‘To all those who are continuing their own cancer journey – I remain with you, side by side, hand in hand.’ 

In Cape Town yesterday, Prince William was asked how the Princess is ‘getting on’, to which he smiled and said: ‘She’s doing well. Doing well.’

King Charles is diagnosed with cancer

On February 5, Buckingham Palace released a sombre statement – the King was undergoing treatment for cancer.

After undergoing a routine prostate procedure in January, the King was diagnosed with an unidentified form of cancer but he remained ‘wholly positive’ about the treatment’.

He revealed to then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during their first face-to-face meeting since his diagnosis: ‘I’ve had so many wonderful messages and cards. It’s reduced me to tears most of the time.’

As the heir-to-the-throne, pressure mounted on William to step up and go on solo engagements – although, unbeknownst to the public at this point, he was focused on looking after his wife during her own cancer battle.

As far as we know, Charles is still undergoing treatment for cancer – only pausing for 11 days to partake in his royal Australian tour. 

William’s still tumultuous relationship with Prince Harry

With key members of the royal family stepping back from public-facing duties due to health concerns, Prince William must have keenly felt his brother’s absence.

While Prince Harry reached out to his older brother ‘privately’ following Catherine’s cancer diagnosis, the two brothers have barely spoken to each other since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex left the UK for the US and abandoned royal duties in 2020.

The rift was exacerbated by the publication of Harry’s memoir Spare in January last year that levelled accusations against his family.

After their father’s cancer diagnosis, Prince Harry reportedly returned to the UK in February to see the King for around 45 minutes at Clarence House – but he did not visit William.

The Duke then visited the UK again in May to attend a service at St Paul’s Cathedral marking ten years of the Invictus Games, the sports event he helped to launch for injured soldiers.

However, he did not visit his father or brother while back in London – despite being a stone’s throw from the royal residences in the capital. 

It was reported that the warring brothers both attended their uncle’s funeral service in August – but did not speak to each other or sit next to each other in the pews of St Mary’s Church in Norfolk.

In an unexpected move in late October, William publicly named his brother in an interview about homelessness – the first time he has done so since 2018. He recounted how their mother, the late Princess Diana, had taken both of her young sons to a homeless shelter in London. Many suggested that the public acknowledgment of his brother could be an early olive branch for better relations between the warring siblings.

Princess Anne sustains a head injury

To further drive home the fragility of the monarchy, Anne – lovingly known as the ‘no-nonsense Princess’ – was taken to hospital in June with minor head wounds and concussion.

The former Olympic equestrian was walking on her Gatcombe Park estate when she was hurt.

Although she couldn’t recall how she was injured, her medical team revealed her injuries were consistent with the potential impact from a horse’s head or legs.

The Princess Royal, 74, would go on to miss nine engagements while recovering from her injury.

The King’s sister is the hardest working royal in terms of annual engagements at a time when the King has cut back on events and Prince William has also taken time off to care for his wife.

Her injury undoubtedly put more pressure on Prince William to step up and represent the royal family.

Prince Andrew refuses to leave Royal Lodge 

While several members of the royal family faced health issues, Prince Andrew has continually caused issues for the King and the future King.

The disgraced Duke of York has long been engaged in a battle with his brother, Charles, over his £30million property in Windsor.

The King has long been trying to evict his brother and his ex-wife from the Royal Lodge . 

Earlier this year the Duke of York rejected the opportunity to move to the nearby Frogmore Cottage, which used to be occupied by Harry and Meghan.

Andrew – who remains an outcast from public life amid the fallout from his friendship with pedophile Jeffrey Epstein – continues to be a thorn in the side of the monarchy.

It is unsurprising that Prince William has described this year as ‘brutal’.

But there have been some highlights too… 

The new lines and shadows on his face during his trip to South Africa reveal that the trials and tribulations of the past year have taken their toll. 

For the football fan, the cherry on top of this annus horribilis may have been England’s 2-1 defeat to Spain in July – a devastating loss he saw first hand with his son Prince George at Olympiastadion in Berlin.

But on a lighter note, this year has also seen moments of relief for the future monarch.

Alongside his two eldest children, Prince George and Prince Charlotte, William attended Taylor Swift’s concert in London in June.

The 42-year-old royal enjoyed the American singer’s concert so much that he busted outs some ‘dad dancing’.

The US pop star even posed for a selfie with the William, Louis and Charlotte along with her NFL boyfriend Travis Kelce.

Prince William has also been able to carry out ‘meaningful’ royal work such as his landmark Earthshot Prize environmental awards.

The prince’s ‘green Oscars’ were born out of his frustration at the ‘global pessimism’ around climate change and the environmental crisis. 

Although he has not always enjoyed the extra responsibility that comes with being heir-to-the-throne, he admitted that it has given him the time and freedom to build huge global initiatives. 

He told reporters in Cape Town: ‘That’s the future for me. It’s very important with my role and my platform, that I’m doing something for good. 

‘That I’m helping people’s lives and I’m doing something that is genuinely meaningful.’

The Prince of Wales has further reason to celebrate as his documentary Prince William: We Can End Homelessness has been released on ITVX.

Oh, and he has grown an impressive beard.