Being invited to the Royal Box at Wimbledon is a dream come true for many.
The coveted seats come with an unparalleled view of some of the greatest tennis matches and the chance to rub shoulders with royalty and A-list celebrities.
Scottish jazz singer Natalie Rushdie recently shared her experience sitting in the Royal Box, which included an encounter with the Princess of Wales.
Sitting in the royal box at Wimbledon
At 37, the singer found herself among the few fortunate guests to score a seat in this coveted spot in 2023.
The Royal Box has hosted an impressive array of guests over the years. These include Queen Elizabeth, Meghan Markle, Pippa Middleton and Queen Camilla.
A friend of the late Dame Deborah James, Natalie was invited to perform at her funeral. She later released a charity single in her honour, earning support from Prince William.
Natalie opened up to Hello about the luxury experience, and what it was like meeting notable figures like Kate, Roger Federer and Prince Michael of Kent.
Guests are invited to a sit-down lunch before the tennis matches start. “Roger Federer and Princess Catherine came in last, and the whole room went silent when she came in. She’s just so beautiful in real life… Calm, just so refined. She came in, she said hello to everyone,” Natalie recalled.
The lavish lunch menu featured an impressive spread of luxury meat and seafood, including halibut, Galloway beef and Cornish lobster tail.
This was followed by a quintessentially British dessert of strawberries and cream, peach crémeux and a selection of cheeses.
Meeting Kate Middleton
The singer later had the opportunity to express her gratitude to Kate. It came after the Prince and Princess of Wales had endorsed Natalie’s charity single.
“I went up to her. I was so nervous. I’m never nervous meeting anyone, but she’s really so beautiful in real life. We spoke about the single, and she asked how it was going and how it came about. There’s very much star quality about her. There’s a sparkle when she enters the room. Everyone genuinely is in awe of her. She’s so kind, takes the time to speak to everyone, and very much makes everyone feel at ease.”
However, Kate may not attend Wimbledon this year due to her chemotherapy.
The All England Club is offering Kate “as much flexibility as possible” regarding her attendance.
The private entrance
Natalie’s unique day didn’t stop at lunch. She also attended afternoon tea with Prince Michael of Kent, Lady Gabriella and her late husband, Thomas Kingston.
The singer described the experience as being “like Cinderella.”
Detailing other perks of the Royal Box experience, Natalie revealed: “You go for a separate entrance. You go underneath into a car park, and you drive into Wimbledon, and the grounds are massive. And so you drive in these and then you drive to basically a lift, and then you come up on this lift, and it comes out in the Royal Box, and it’s absolutely beautiful.”
Guests are treated to ‘special Wimbledon chocolates’ with their coffee upon arrival. Upon leaving, they are given a photograph to commemorate their visit. Natalie said she “don’t remember getting a goodie bag, but you get a special photograph and the programme”.
Read more: Wimbledon bosses ‘working’ with Princess of Wales and ‘hopeful’ she’ll be in attendance
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