Kate Middleton may lose one of her best friends in Peter and Autumn Phillips' divorce

We already knew that the Queen doesn't like royal divorces (open in new tab), but now Kate Middleton will join the list of royals who are probably very disappointed with the latest royal split.

Earlier this year, Peter and Autumn Phillips (open in new tab) announced their decision to divorce. Peter, the son of Princess Anne, is one of Prince Williams' cousins and one of Queen Elizabeth's grandchildren.

The divorce means less time for Kate and Autumn (opens in new tab), who have become incredibly close over the years; in an interview on the ROYALS podcast (opens in new tab), correspondent Angela Mollard described their longtime bond ...

"We've seen them play polo together, and Kate is really good friends with Autumn. In fact, she attended Autumn's wedding alone for the first time in 2008 because Prince William was in Kenya. He was away, they were not engaged at this stage, and the wedding took place at Windsor Castle and she attended as the couple's representative." Since then, she and Autumn have been really good friends.

Spending less time with Autumn not only means finding time outside the royal family to visit old friends. According to Mollard, it would deprive Kate of one of her closest confidants. [It's] very difficult for someone like Kate. I have my own direct family and trusted friends. You have to make sure that what you say doesn't get through," Mollard told the Express (opens in new tab). 'There is a special tenet of secrecy within the Royal Family that makes it difficult to have a more in-depth conversation with someone like Autumn ....... They have to talk generally about everything because they have so many shallow conversations every day.

This is why the relationship between Kate and Autumn (open in new tab) is so important and so unique for the Duchess of Cambridge.

"It must be incredibly valuable for Kate to be able to talk properly with someone like Autumn," added Mollard.

"She has a sister and a mother, but most people only have two or three people they can confide in. We can only hope that relationship doesn't change. Being in the royal family must be incredibly lonely at times. Having allies is very important."

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