Princess Kate hasn’t attended the Cheltenham Festival since 2013, when she was pregnant with Prince George, but Carole Middleton was happy to step in for her daughter as the royals attended the horse racing event on Wednesday, March 11. Queen Camilla, Princess Anne and Zara and Mike Tindall gathered at the Cheltenham Racecourse for the country-chic event, and Carole seamlessly fit in with the Royal Family, even wrapping her arms around hug-averse Princess Anne.
Bundled up in a gray coat and the same blue Hicks & Brown fedora owned by the Princess of Wales, Middleton casually toted a black ostrich skin Hermès Birkin bag as she hobnobbed with the royals. In a series of photos from the event, Carole embraces Princess Anne as they watch the races from the royal box—and unlike the time she swerved a hug at a rugby match last month, the Princess Royal was all smiles.
