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On a delightful occasion, Martin Kemp and his wife, Shirlie Kemp, had the honor of welcoming Catherine, the Princess of Wales, into their home for a quintessentially British treat of “tea and biscuits.” During her visit, they surprised the Princess with a thoughtful gift, marking a memorable encounter.
This meeting came about largely due to their son, Roman Kemp, who, in 2023, collaborated closely with the Princess on the mental health initiative, Shaping Us. This campaign, which Roman and the now 43-year-old future Queen spearheaded, focuses on highlighting the critical impact of early childhood experiences on adult life.
Catherine, Princess of Wales
Reflecting on his involvement, Roman shared with The Sun on Sunday how the initial steps for the collaboration unfolded. “A member of the palace team reached out to me to arrange a Zoom call to discuss the project,” he recounted. To his surprise, the meeting turned out to be a one-on-one conversation with the Princess herself, a moment he hadn’t anticipated.
Roman recalled to The Sun on Sunday newspaper: “A member of the palace team asked me if they could set up a Zoom call to discuss the details.
“I was expecting a load of people on the call and couldn’t believe it when it turned out to be just me and her.
“She asked whether we could do the filming at my house. I was like, ‘My parents’ house is much nicer, let’s do it there.’
“So my mum raced out and got a load of nice things in, and suddenly the future Queen is having tea and biscuits with her and my dad!”
The Kemps could not believe it when Princess Catherine took off her shoes and roamed around their house in her socks.
Roman continued: “I remember when she arrived, she could see everyone else had taken their shoes off, so she offered to take hers off.
“It was surreal. Somehow you never expect to see a member of the Royal Family in their socks!”
Former Spandau Ballet bassist Martin, 64, and ex-Wham! backing vocalist Shirlie, 63, gifted the Princess of Wales fresh apple juice – which the Kemps press in their garden – and it got the royal seal of approval from Princess Catherine and her eldest child, 12 year old Prince George.
Roman remembered: “Later, my parents gave her some of the apple juice which they press in their garden to take home as a little gift.
“A few weeks later, she wrote a lovely letter which my mum has kept thanking them and saying that Prince George loved the juice and is there any chance of more!”
The TV presenter loved working with Princess Catherine – who sent Roman a thank you note, which he framed and displays on his wall at home.
He said: “Working with her was amazing. She very kindly wrote me a thank-you note, too, which I have framed on my wall at home.”
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