On the 10th of June 2020, the Duchess of Cambridge (Kate Middleton) published a short video on her social media channels encouraging people to submit their photographs to her Hold Still project. She also showed some of the entries during the short video.
A transcript, in case you do not wish to turn up the audio:
I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everybody who’s taken part and contributed to Hold Still. I’ve seen some amazing images and I just wanted to share some of those images with you today. The first image I wanted to show you was this one, which I think is fantastic and I think a lot of families out there can probably relate to this, which is a sweet little girl in the background trying to sing Elsa’s Let It Go ….
[Video fades to Kate holding up a second photo] It’s called “Distance Gaming” and this ingenious six-year-old girl is here photographed with her granny playing a game, I think, of noughts and crosses it looks like… but what a great idea. [Kate holds up a third photo]. This was another great image, I thought, and it shows how communities are coming together. I think this sort of shows such a fun idea. It’s a shame there’s no audio to go with this one. [Kate holds the final photo.] And this last image, I think, is hugely moving and very emotional and I think the name says it all really, “The Man Behind The Mask”. We mustn’t forget the human side and the reality of what lots of the Key Workers and those on the front line are going through at this time.
In a second video (recorded at the same time as the first), the Duchess puts out a final call for submissions:
The transcript:
There have been so many amazing entries to Hold Still over the last few weeks. From families up and down the country showing how they’re adapting to life during lockdown through to some of the most amazing NHS and social care staff putting their lives on the line to save the lives of others. But it isn’t too late to take part, so please take a moment to capture what life’s like for you because together, I hope we can build a lasting illustration of just how our country pulled together during the pandemic. I can’t wait to share the final 100 images with you.
Hold Still is a photography project spearheaded by Kate and hosted by the National Portrait Gallery, of which the Duchess is Patron. The project captures the spirit and feelings of the nation during the Coronavirus pandemic. People of all ages from across the UK were encouraged to submit a photographic portrait to the project. The photographs were taken during lockdown and had to focus on one of three core themes: helpers and heroes, your new normal and acts of kindness.
The coronavirus pandemic has affected all of us in some way, and I launched Hold Still with the National Portrait Gallery to give everyone an opportunity to share their own stories, so that together we could create a collective portrait of our nation that would record our experiences during lockdown.
– The Duchess of Cambridge writing in The Sunday Times
Kate’s outfit:
In both videos, Kate wore her Stella McCartney Ridley dress in blue. (Pictured below during the 2014 Commonwealth Games.)
The dress features unique seam detailing on the front and back. The figure-skimming pencil skirt hits above the knee. The dress also has short sleeves and a hidden zip closure at the back. The bright blue colour is called ‘Ultra Blue’ by Stella McCartney. The dress is at least eight years old and is no longer available to purchase from the designer. However, you can usually find the dress (both new and used) on eBay.
Kate’s worn the dress several times since she first debuted it in 2012 (I think this is it’s sixth public outing!)
Above: Kate wearing the dress to the National Portrait Gallery’s Road To 2012: Aiming High exh ibition. The exhibition featured images of athletes and staff in the build-up to the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Kate wore her new hoop drop earrings with the blue dress. They’re from Accessorize, the style name is ‘Twisted Circle Drop‘.
Although gold-coloured, the earrings are made from 100% brass. They retailed for £5 (around $6.40 USD). Sadly, Accessorize no longer stock the earrings. But you can find them on eBay (new) from various resellers.
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