Kate Middleton Is Queen Elizabeth’s New Favorite, According to Royal Expert

Kate Middleton is reportedly Queen Elizabeth’s new favorite, and the Queen has a good reason for being fond of her. A body language expert recently claimed that Queen Elizabeth’s body language when she’s with Kate shows how much more relaxed she is when around the Duchess of Cambridge than any other member of the royal family.

According to body language expert Judi James, Queen Elizabeth feels a sense of pride and pleasure toward her granddaughter-in-law because she never tries to upstage her during their public outings. Queen Elizabeth and Kate visited a Balmoral church on Sunday for a church service. On their way to Crathie Kirk, they were spotted sitting in the rear seats together and happily chatting with each other.

After analyzing the photos of Queen Elizabeth and Kate while inside the car, James said that the two female royals only exuded happiness and relaxation while enjoying each other’s company. “Given the criticism and rumored scandals swirling around some of the other members of her family, it’s probably no surprise the Queen’s body language with Kate here suggests a rather relaxed looking sense of pride and pleasure,” James said.

The body language expert said Kate also exuded the same aura in the photos, suggesting that she’s comfortable with Queen Elizabeth. “Kate’s beaming smile with rounded cheeks and a symmetric display of her upper teeth suggests she is equally happy in the Queen’s company. Although her subtle, flat-palmed wave hints she’s keen to not upstage her grandmother-in-law,” she said.

Kate became a member of the royal family in 2011 after marrying Prince William. Since then, she has evolved from being just the wife of the Duke of Cambridge to being the monarch’s trusted companion. “Her trait of using very active listening signals, including subtle eye checks to ensure her very elderly relative is comfortable and happy, never seem to stray into the realms of the kind of fussing the Queen is allergic to,” said Judi.

Previous reports claimed that Queen Elizabeth favors Meghan Markle more than Kate. Since the Sussexes’ split from the Cambridges, however, royal followers have never again seen the Duchess of Sussex accompany the Queen in her public outings.