Prince William and Kate Middleton's days in London were numbered from the start and his favourite painting is most surprising proof yet
The Prince of Wales used to look at this piece of art in Princess Diana's home and feel 'transported' to somewhere else entirely
Of all the hints that Apartment 1A at Kensington Palace was never going to be the Prince and Princess of Wales's home forever, I wasn't expecting the one revealed by Prince William in his guest edited issue of Country Life. He and Kate lived in the 20-room residence for nine years and they still use it as their base when they're in London.
Kensington Palace was also one of the Prince of Wales's main homes growing up and he's said one of the paintings Princess Diana had displayed on the walls "transported" him to a place he was "longing" to be instead. The picture is The Fox in the Snow by Dutch artist Rien Poortvliet and it shows a red fox in the woods, with a magpie perched above it in the tree branches.
"My mother had this painting in our home and I remember looking at it countless times when I was growing up. It hung in London, but somehow it always transported me to the countryside, which is where I was longing to be," William writes in his edition.
Alongside Kensington Palace, he was also raised at Highgrove House and perhaps splitting time between the two satisfied that "longing" for a while. The Prince and Princess of Wales tried this approach initially too, spending term time in London and then holidays at Anmer Hall in Norfolk.
However, it clearly wasn't enough for the countryside-loving couple and they moved their family to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor in 2022, before settling in at nearby Forest Lodge three years later. This is rumoured to be their "forever home" and looking at The Fox in the Snow now, William can "easily" imagine "stepping into the scene".
He says, "It feels as if I've been walking the dogs on a snowy day and have ducked into the woods for shelter. Then, suddenly, I come across a fox and a magpie co-existing in their natural habitat. There's something wonderfully familiar about it."
The future King is now living where the portrait always "transported" him to as a child - the countryside. Even when he ascends the throne, many reports have suggested he and Kate will stay at private Forest Lodge rather than moving into an official residence.
King Charles and Queen Camilla live at Clarence House and won't be relocating to Buckingham Palace after the renovations, with a spokesperson confirming, "His Majesty retains huge affection for Buckingham Palace and a deep respect for its role in royal and public life. It will be a buzzing hive of royal activity in every other way".
They've set a precedent for making things more low-key, but Clarence House is still in London and opens to the public for a limited period each year. Forest Lodge is very different and royal Ingrid Seward suggests in Catherine & Diana that the Princess of Wales could encourage her husband to keep things modest.
"[Will they] stay small in Forest Lodge, or go the whole hog and decide to keep Sandringham, Balmoral and all the other smaller houses light and warm and staffed through the long winter nights?" she asks. "The voice of Catherine, whose mother was brought up in a council flat, in William's ear might suggest that keeping things relatively modest is in tune with the times."
