Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Held a Tarantula Named Charlotte

The life of a British royal is a strange one. Sure, there are the lavish carriage rides among screaming crowds, the gorgeous state dinners dripping in jewels, the pomp and circumstance of presenting various honors. Then there are the mundane engagements, unveiling plaques and opening community centers in sleepy little towns. Then there are the offbeat photo ops in which, say, Queen Elizabeth II visits the Iron Throne of Westeros or walks through a grocery store.

Yesterday, the woman formerly known as Kate Middleton—Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge—held a tarantula, while her husband looked on from a safe distance in what I can only assume was mild horror. Kate in fact actually asked to hold the spider, the Mirror reported; she spotted her and asked “Ooh, please can I hold the tarantula? What’s her name?” The spider’s name was Charlotte, and Kate in fact seemed delighted with this creature, which is, quite frankly, a bit of a surprise.

One day you’re meeting James Bond, the next you’re holding a tarantula.

As part of an official visit to Northern Ireland, Will and Kate stopped by the Ulster University Magee Campus to chat with nursing students about Covid-19 and also visited a petting zoo organized by a group called KidzFarm to help students with anxiety. They revealed during the visit that they acquired “lots of animals” over the course of the pandemic, including some chickens. I will say it is very funny (though unlikely) to imagine the Cambridges presiding over a menagerie of extremely goth pets.

Not to be left out, her husband also held an animal: a snake. “George is going to be so upset,” because apparently he loves snakes.

I am happy to report that there is video.