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One of the royal family‘s holiday traditions each year is to walk from the Sandringham House to St. Mary Magdalene Church in Norfolk where they attend the Christmas morning service and greet well-wishers.

During the procession members of the family always smile and wave as they make their way toward the church. But some body language experts noticed “tension” and “stress” between Prince William and the Princess of Wales (formerly known as Kate Middleton) during one walk. Here’s what they picked up on behind the couple’s smiles.

Experts say Prince William and Kate displayed ‘stress’ and ‘tension’ during 2019 walk

Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince George, and Princess Charlotte attend the Christmas Day church service
Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince George, and Princess Charlotte attend the Christmas Day church service | Pool/Samir Hussein/WireImage

The family’s Christmas walk in 2019 marked the first time the Waleses’ eldest children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, joined them. But some noticed that all didn’t seem well between William and his wife.

Behavioral expert Patti Wood, who holds advanced degrees in body language and nonverbal communication and wrote the book SNAP: Making the Most of First Impressions Body Language & Charisma, spoke to Elite Daily at the time about what she saw from the royal couple that day.

Wood observed in photos that the pair appeared to be “at odds” with each other explaining: “The future queen consort’s tight grip on her purse seemed to indicate an underlying tension [and] Kate’s tight jaw appeared to be holding some tension. In contrast, William looks like he’s trying to make eye contact with her. You’re not seeing that mutual gaze or that gaze across their children’s heads. She’s well over a foot and a half away from him.”

Fellow body language expert Traci Brown, who is a certified master practitioner of Neuro Linguistics and a keynote speaker, noted that in one photo William looked “concerned” while Kate’s face was “showing some anger. Her eyebrows are pointing down toward the bridge of her nose … She’s scratching the back of her neck? We get a tingle there when we’re angry.”

Brown suggested that perhaps William and Kate were dealing with a bit of “holiday stress” that was coming through in their body movements as their vibe seemed to be quite “ambiguous.”

Kate’s rift with another family member was exposed during the walk in 2018

One year earlier, there was also some tension between Kate and another royal.

It was something no one gave too much thought to at the time but looking back now signs of a rift between Kate and her sister-in-law, Meghan Markle, were there during the family’s Christmas walk.

Another body language expert, Judi James, analyzed that footage and said that “Meghan had her hand looped into Harry’s arm and her right hand held her bag up in what looked like a barrier gesture between herself and Kate.”

Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle attend Christmas Day church service in Norfolk
Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle attend Christmas Day church service in Norfolk | Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images

James also pointed out that the ladies tried to make it look like things were fine between them with forced smiles and attempts to orchestrate a conversation in front of the cameras.

She told Express: “Meghan turned her head and smiled and Kate also smiled. But as they chatted Kate appeared to have a subtle lower jaw jut and, like her husband, there was a pulling down of the corners of her mouth. If we take away the forced-looking mouth smiles the eye contact could be seen as quite challenging.”

Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.