Royal Wedding: Kate Middleton's First Walkabout
LONDON, Feb. 24, 2011— -- Prince William and Kate Middleton will be out and about meeting members of the public in Anglesey, North Wales, today.
This is only the second time Middleton will have been heard speaking in public.
The last time was when the princess-to-be and Prince William announced their engagement in November.
The royal couple will today meet members of the public and Middleton will learn to launch her first boat.
The outing is being seen as an opportunity for her to learn the ropes from William, who is experienced in such matters.
It's Day 1 of Kate's royal life.
"It is a big day," royal author Katie Nicholl said. "She's going to be incredibly nervous today."
Duncan Larcombe, ABC News' royal contributor and royal editor at the Sun newspaper, said, "Not a lot, touch wood, can go wrong. There is tremendous pressure on Kate today."
But why Anglesey for her debut? It's a rainy, remote island famed for castles, choirs and sheep.
Well, because this is where the royal couple live, and where William serves as a search-and-rescue helicopter pilot.
"William's been on duty this week," Larcombe told ABC News. "And on Monday the call came in to rescue a woman who had fallen off the cliff.
"He was involved in winching down paramedics to try and save her and winching her up. She was pronounced dead when they flew her to hospital," Larcombe said. "So a pretty harrowing incident for William."
The prince works alongside the volunteers who staff the lifeboat he's about to name.
"It's fantastic having a prince on our doorstep," volunteer lifeboatman Andy Bell said.
William decided to pay the lifeboatmen a visit after receiving a letter.
"Out of the blue we had a phone call," Heather Abbott of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution said. "Prince William and Miss Middleton had accepted the invitation to come along and name the new life boat. So it was very exciting."
