Princess Kate reveals major lifestyle change since her cancer battle

The Prince and Princess of Wales pulled some pints and took part in brewing at the Bermondsey Beer Mile.

The Prince and Princess of Wales visited Bermondsey Beer Mile (Image: AP)

The Princess of Wales let her husband do the beer tasting today as she revealed she has cut back on alcohol “since my diagnosis”. Catherine, 44, was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer at the start of 2024 and underwent six months of chemotherapy. She is now in remission and has resumed a normal schedule of royal engagements.

The princess made the comments as the couple got stuck in by pulling pints and taking part in brewing as they visited the famous Bermondsey Beer Mile this afternoon. William and Catherine, who earlier visited Borough Market, popped by Faber Beerhall, where they were invited to try some beer and cider.

But the princess politely declined and told owner Hannah Rhodes: “Since my diagnosis, I haven’t had much alcohol.” She added: “It’s something I have to be a lot more conscious of now.” Rhodes, who offered Kate a soft drink instead, said: “Fair enough.”

The Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Southwark Brewing Company (Image: AP)

Princess Kate and Prince William draft beer as they visit the Southwark Brewing Company (Image: AP)

Turning to Prince William, Kate patted her husband’s knee and said: “But you like your cider, don’t you?”

William then tried a fleet of beers and ciders, some of which came from Rhodes’ brand Hiver, which uses honey from bee hives as a replacement for sugar in the fermentation process.

The princess, who is known to be a beekeeper with hives at her Norfolk home of Anmer Hall, tried some of the honey by dipping a stick into a jar.

Earlier, the future king and queen tried their hand at brewing at nearby Southwark Brewing Company, a craft beer company further down the Bermondsey Beer Mile, which was founded in 2014 as one of the area’s first small-batch breweries under the railway arches.

Greeting Peter Jackson, 66, they were shown how to ascend a ladder where William wore black rubber gloves to add hops to the “kettle”.

The Princess of Wales stirs in a brewhouse kettle as she tours the brewery (Image: AP)

After tipping the hops in, William said: “It smells like horse feed as you’re doing it. There’s a real mixture of smells.”

Jackson joked: “Yes. It’s good that it changes by the time it gets to your glass.” Catherine then went up the ladder to stir them in.

They then had a competition to see who could pull the best pint, which was declared to be better than the owner.

Peter Jackson told them: “Do you know what? You can come back on Saturday for a shift.”

He then pulled out his mobile phone to make a video call to his son, Will Jackson, an accountant who was celebrating his 34th birthday in Manchester.

After showing Jackson how to start the call on his phone, the prince said: “William, happy birthday. I hope you’ve got a good party tonight.”

When told he was off to a restaurant to celebrate, the prince said: “Is your dad paying? We’re just in here trying not to ruin his brewery. We’ve just been given a pint-pulling contest.”

The Princess of Wales checks a brewhouse kettle as she tours the brewery (Image: AP)

Earlier, the couple made a surprise visit to London’s Borough Market today, touring the stalls in the iconic food market and even serving crumble and custard to unsuspecting shoppers.

The previously unannounced visit saw the couple spend time at an award-winning cheese stall, a coffee shop helping homelessness and a famous dessert business.

They were put to work chopping cheese, making coffees and serving crumble and custard to customers.

Londoners and tourists grabbing an early lunch couldn’t believe their eyes when they spotted William and Catherine walking around the market on Thursday morning, with dozens surrounding them and stopping to say hello and ask for selfies.