This is what was inside the secret notes Kate Middleton hid around London to mark the Hold Still launch

One lucky Londoner has shared what's inside the secret notes Kate Middleton left around the city

One lucky Londoners has shared what's inside the secret notes Kate Middleton left around the city
(Image credit: Samir Hussein / Contributor / Getty Images)

Kate Middleton has hidden copies of her new photography book at random locations around London, bookmarked with a secret note from the royal icon herself. 


Kate Middleton has invited her London fans to a treasure hunt—and the prize is bound to have them scavenging the streets. 

On Friday, the Duchess of Cambridge had 150 hardbacks of Hold Still: A Portrait of our Nation in 2020 scattered around the English capital for members of the public to discover and enjoy. 

The budding photographer kicked off the launch of the book at her home in Kensington Palace, releasing a video of herself placing a copy by one of the estate's many statues. 

The Duchess stunned in red as she stepped out to promote the photography book launch, looking every bit her usual elegant self in an Eponine coat and pleated skirt. And while this particular outfit isn't exactly cheap (the boutique coat alone costs over £1,500 and is already sold out), many of Kate Middleton's dresses can be found right on the high street, along with her sophisticated micro bag from DeMellier.

Duchess of Cambridge

(Image credit: Neil Mockford / Contributor/ Getty Images)
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THE NANO MONTREAL IN DEEP TOFFEE SMOOTH, $395 (£295) | DEMELLIER

As seen on Kate Middleton, DeMellier's micro bag is the perfect size for everyday essentials—available in nine shades of soft leather sourced in Italy and Spain.

Hold Still, which was published by the National Portrait Gallery, features 100 portraits captured over the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK. It has been released in partnership with the Book Fairies, an organization that promotes distributing books in public places to encourage reading and share ideas. Finders of one of the hidden copies of Hold Still, which have all been adorned with a 'gold book fairy sticker' and 'gold ribbon', will also get their hands on a letter from the duchess herself. 

One lucky person to come across the book is Krish Krup, a Twitter employee living in London. The Italian native took to social media to share the news, posting photos of evidence to prove his discovery. 

Krish also uploaded a photo of the enclosed letter from Kate Middleton, which was printed on Kensington Palace stationery and signed by the duchess. 

In the typed note, Kate explains that Hold Still "documents a photography project which captured a portrait of our nation as we lived through the first COVID-19 lockdown last year." She goes on to add that the "images tell the stories of the challenges we all faced, but also how we came together in the most extraordinary of times." 

The note also asks the finder to leave the book in their community for someone else to enjoy after they've finished looking through it, in keeping with the Book Fairies' mission to circulate reading material to as many people as possible.  

Luckily, Kate didn't say anything about redistributing the letter—meaning Krish won't need to part with his royal memorabilia any time soon. 

Emma Dooney
Lifestyle News Writer

Hailing from the lovely city of Dublin, Emma mainly covers the Royal Family and the entertainment world, as well as the occasional health and wellness feature. Always up for a good conversation, she has a passion for interviewing everyone from A-list celebrities to the local GP - or just about anyone who will chat to her, really.


Emma holds an MA in International Journalism from City, University of London, and a BA in English Literature from Trinity College Dublin.