Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (
Catherine Elizabeth "
Kate"; nee
Middleton; born 9 January 1982) is the wife of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and a member of the
British Royal Family. The Duke of Cambridge is second in line to the thrones, after his father, of the 16 Commonwealth realms and, should he eventually ascend to them, the Duchess would automatically become the Queen Consort.
Catherine grew up in Chapel Row, a village near Newbury, Berkshire, England. She studied in Scotland at the University of St Andrews, where she met the then Prince William of Wales in 2001. Their engagement was announced on 16 November 2010, and she attended many high-profile royal events before they married on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey. Catherine has created a major impact upon British fashion which has been termed the "Kate Middleton effect", and in 2012, she was selected as one of The 100 Most Influential People in the World by Time Magazine.
French tabloid
Closer magazine published a series of naked photos of
Kate Middleton sunbathing topless on September 2012, sending shockwaves around the world and provoking a stern statement from the palace as the royal family still reels from the Prince Harry naked photo scandal.
In photos, Middleton is seen removing her bikini top; in another, she's seen rubbing suntan lotion on Will's back. In another, William rubs suntan lotion on her almost-bare bottom.