Christmas cards tell two royal stories
Remember that painfully tense 1992 Snowdon portrait of Diana, Charles and their two sons on a ‘‘casual’’ family picnic? Even the pony looked as though it had just trotted out of John Frieda. The derisive snorts fell like blows upon all involved. Mulberry ad! Ralph Lauren product placement!
How interesting then, to see the Cambridges revisiting similar territory for their 2018 Christmas card. Similar, and yet contextually, so very different, the work of a photographer who specialises in a natural looking (but still airbrushed) informality.
Matt Porteous, who took the portrait, has photographed them before and they clearly trust him to capture their down to earth(ish) approach to family life. Kate even manages a dimply smile.
Having hitherto resisted Displays of Public Affection, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have noticeably relaxed since Harry and Meghan became attached at the hands. Perched next to one another on a branch of a tree in the grounds of Anmer Hall, their home in Norfolk, you’d almost think they’re having fun.
Their arms seem to just miss being entwined because Prince George (another outing in full length trousers; if that doesn’t create an internet sensation, William’s daringly unbuttoned shirt should) is using them as climbing frames. His sister Princess Charlotte, meanwhile, is experimenting with a few supermodel poses that require her parents to serve as drape-worthy props. Suffice to say, the chemistry between the five of them is hard to resist, even for hardened cynics.
It’s uncannily like looking at a normal family. This is the nature of its genius.
It also demonstrates how far the nation’s idea of what a young Royal family should represent has evolved, nudged in no small part by the Cambridges’ assiduously cultivated normality – not, most commentators agree, an affectation, but a genuine desire. – Telegraph Group