DoesKate Middleton’s new right-hand man look familiar?
At the end of February, the Princess of Wales, 42, brought on Lt. Col. Tom White to lead her staff as private secretary, and the news had social media users noting his resemblance to tennis starRoger Federer. While Princess Katehas not been seen in publicfor months amid her private recovery followingabdominal surgeryon Jan. 16, photos of White have sparked online chatter around the resemblance.
“Oh my, he looks like Roger Federer,” one commenter wrote onXwith a heart-eyed emoji, and multiple users agreed that the similarity was uncanny.
Last summer, Princess Katehit the courtwith Federer, 42, for a behind-the-scenes tour of theBall Boys and Girls at Wimbledonprogram, and the twosat courtsidetogether on the second day of the tennis championship. The Princess of Wales is patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, and Federer toldThe New York Timeshe enjoyed watching Wimbledon with her.
“It was so fun sitting next to Princess Catherine. I know her quite well,” said the tennis legend, who retired from the sport in 2022. “She is an avid tennis fan, and she plays herself.”
Kate Middleton and Roger Federer attend Wimbledon on July 04, 2023.Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images
Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images
Although White is new to Princess Kate’s team, he is very familiar with working for the royal family, most recently serving as the lateQueen Elizabeth’s equerry.
Though the Queen scaled back her public appearances in her later years amid the COVID-19 pandemic, White was spotted alongside her at the modified Trooping the Colour celebration in the summer of 2021 and again at the Royal Windsor Horse Show.
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The aide wasalso on handto greet former British Prime MinisterBoris Johnsonat Balmoral Castle on Sept. 6, 2022, where he resigned from the position to pass the role to Liz Truss. The meetings were Queen Elizabeth’s final audiences before her death two days later at age 96.
The Telegraphreported that White went to Princess Kate’s inauguralShaping Us National Symposiumin London in November and was poised to fill a vacancy open for over a year. The Princess of Wales previously leaned onHannah Cockburn-Logieas private secretary from 2020 to 2022, before she reportedly departed for personal reasons. Cockburn-Logie replaced Catherine Quinn in the royal role, who was Kate’s private secretary from 2017 to 2019. At the time, theDaily Mailreported that the two left things on the “best of terms.”
Andrew Milligan - WPA Pool/Getty
The Telegraphdescribed the idea of Princess Kate appointing White as “something of a return to tradition for the household, reflecting the royal family’s close ties to the military and a link with her late grandmother-in-law.”
Princess Kate isn’t the only royal to tap a new leader for her team. At the end of February, her husband,Prince William, brought in Ian Patrick to run his office. A former diplomat, Patrick worked at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in international peacekeeping in Bosnia and Herzegovnia. He is also a trustee of the charity Crohns and Colitis U.K.
On the heels of those appointments will be a CEO-type appointment to head up the couple’s joint teams. The hire has yet to be announced.
Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales attend a ceremonial welcome for The President and the First Lady of the Republic of Korea at Horse Guards Parade on November 21, 2023 in London.Samir Hussein/WireImage
Samir Hussein/WireImage
source: people.com
