Kate Middleton's Killer Legs Couldn't Save Her Nautical Nightmare Dress

While Kate Middleton rocked some of her leggiest looks well before she became the Princess of Wales, the future queen has certainly gotten the internet buzzing with her killer legs on multiple occasions. However, even that wasn't enough to save the nautical nightmare dress Kate wore when she and husband Prince William took part in the naming ceremony for the HMS Glasgow in Scotland on May 22, 2025. Granted, Kate's christening outfit wasn't quite as unflattering as her VE Day concert look, and we do at least appreciate her trying to stay on theme with the navy blue, sailor-like dress she donned for the occasion. But the dress itself is fairly bland (despite its reported £1850 price tag), Kate's hat is conversely doing way too much, and her beige high heels feel a little incongruous.

Nevertheless, the naming ceremony itself seemed to go off without a hitch. "Everything is looking ship shape." the Prince and Princess of Wales wrote in a post to Instagram, adding that it was a "pleasure to meet with members of the Ship's Company and their families, as well as BAE Systems' Shipbuilding Academy apprentices and graduates, and some of the incredibly skillful teams involved in the building of the ship." The comment section also offers some different perspectives on the fashion aspect of it all, with one user writing, "Prince of Wales always looks handsome. Princess of Wales is pure elegance and grace." Another commenter echoed this sentiment, adding that "Catherine is absolutely stunning. She is the epitome of elegance."

Opinions regarding Princess Kate's outfit to aside, the real star of the show at the naming ceremony for the HMS Glasgow was the ship itself. We feel we should bring this up, as the Princess of Wales has made it clear in the past (albeit indirectly) that while she understands her outfits are always going to be a topic of conversation, she'd much rather people's focus be on the work she's doing. "She wants the focus to be on the really important issues, the people and the causes she is spotlighting," a Kensington Palace insider told The Times in early 2025, adding, "There will always be an appreciation of what the princess is wearing from some of the public and she gets that. But do we need to be officially always saying what she is wearing? No. The style is there but it's about the substance."

With that in mind, Kate presiding over the HMS Glasgow's naming ceremony was no doubt quite meaningful for the people of Scotland, where the Princess of Wales is instead known as the Duchess of Rothesay. Per Sky News, the Royal Navy Vessel the first of eight new anti-submarine frigates to be built in Glasgow itself, which is Scotland's most populous city. "In a world that continues to be volatile, we cannot underestimate the importance of this ship and the work we are doing here," BAE Systems managing director Simon Lister said at the ceremony, which involved the time-honored tradition of Kate smashing a bottle against the hull of the ship.