Inside William’s special bond with ‘second mum’ Carole Middleton, built on ‘tennis, TV and cheese on toast’ at her Bucklebury safe haven – and the loving family normality he and brother Harry so craved

When Carole Middleton’s heel got stuck in the grass at Royal Ascot yesterday, it was fitting that it was her beloved son-in-law who came to the rescue.

Prince William gave ‘second mother’ Carole a helping hand as she steadied herself before the pair chatted jovially with the other guests.

The natural moment, captured in a charming series of photos, was a moving reminder of the close bond the prince has forged with the Middletons – and in particular with matriarch Carole.

She has enjoyed watching him blossom from the young, sometimes hot-headed prince into the loyal husband, father and future king that he is today.

In what was her first public appearance since her daughter Kate’s cancer diagnosis, Carole was at Ascot yesterday with her husband Michael.

With the Princess of Wales absent as she continued the treatment, William’s close bond with his in-laws was evident.

The Prince of Wales is said to have ‘adopted’ the Middleton family shortly after he started dating Kate in the early 2000s – and Carole is now an indispensable part of the Welsh family unit.

She enjoys making Prince William his favorite snack of cheese on toast and stocks up on the sea salt chocolate he likes.

This is evident from the way she constantly made herself available to the family when Kate was expecting Princess Charlotte.

She lived with them for many days at Anmer Hall – their home on the Sandringham estate which they swapped for Adelaide Cottage in Windsor in 2022.

Carole provided the fabrics and wallpaper for the family’s nursery and made William his favorite snack: cheese on toast, which he ate in front of the television.

She also stocked up on the prince’s favorite sea salt chocolates.

According to a source, Kate and William formed an “insular unit” with Carole and her husband Michael.

They added: ‘You could say that unlike most couples with a bunch of in-laws, Kate and William feel most comfortable and happiest when her parents are around. The tensions disappear and there is a festive atmosphere.’

When Kate felt sick and exhausted during her pregnancy, it was her mother she relied on for support.

It was also said that Carole helped William decide what to wear during engagements.

Another source said of William’s love for Carole: ‘He is in love with her abilities, her tenacity, high energy levels, her excellent organizational skills and her networking.’

“She knows better than anyone what makes Kate happy, what kind of staff she interacts with, and understands her overriding need for loyalty and privacy. Carole leaves nothing to chance.’

In her 2022 book The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor – the Truth and the Turmoil, royal commentator Tina Brown described how William ‘adopted’ the Middleton family after just a year of dating Kate.

An acquaintance told Brown, “He wasn’t just into her, he was into them. A warm nest with a complete nuclear family and apparently wonderfully uncomplicated.

‘The father played the father, the mother the tiger mother of the province, but he also saw how the daughters and James got along with their parents – and wanted to get along. What a contrast.’

William, who had a choice of several palaces to spend his weekends in, enjoyed nothing more than “tennis, TV and the comfort of Carole in the Middleton manse,” Brown said.

The Prince’s love for the entire Middleton family was evident from his decision in 2011 to spend Christmas at their country home in Bucklebury, West Berkshire, rather than with the royal family.

William was such a regular at the Middletons’ home that he brought his quad bike there from Highgrove.

He also took the family on holiday, including to the island of Mustique, once a favorite of Princess Margaret.

And his bond with Carole was evident when she joined Kate when she made her first official public appearance at William’s passing out parade at Sandhurst in 2007.

Michael, meanwhile, became a kind of ‘surrogate father’, according to Brown.

An acquaintance said: ‘If your own father always organizes dinners for fifty people on Catherine the Great’s porcelain or whatever, it’s not very relaxing.

‘Whereas the Middletons were like a pipe and slippers, with the radio on, which is a bit of a William and Kate world.’

Carole and Michael have also built a very close bond with their grandchildren.

They were the first members of the family to visit Prince George when he was born in 2013 and have been a constant presence in his life since.

A month after the birth of the young royal, Michael volunteered to take the first photo of his new grandson so that William and Kate didn’t have to hire an outside photographer.

In 2014, Carole joined William and Kate on their tour of Australia and New Zealand so she could help care for George with the couple’s nanny, Maria Borrallo.

And the Middletons’ country home in Bucklebury is just a 45-minute drive from Adelaide Cottage.

It means that Carole and Michael are ready to help raise the children in Wales.

While King Charles and Camilla are close to George, his maternal grandparents have more time on their hands for obvious reasons.

Following Kate’s cancer diagnosis earlier this year, it was Carole and Michael’s continued support that allowed William to continue fulfilling some royal duties – even while his father, the King, is also battling the disease.

In April, William was spotted at a pub in Norfolk with his mother-in-law. It was another sign of how close they are.

During the Easter holidays, Carole stayed with the Wales again,” said the Mail’s Richard Eden.

Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine, previously said: ‘Carole and Michael are as much family to William as they are to Catherine.

‘He loves having Carole around to help as she has been with the children from the start and it is easy and reassuring to have her invaluable help.

‘Both with the children and with keeping Catherine well. She’s a strong woman!’

Yesterday, after William helped his mother-in-law pull her heel out of the grass, the pair walked away together to join the other guests.

The Prince of Wales was later spotted deep in a jovial conversation with Carole, Michael and Zara Tindall.

William arrived at Royal Ascot with Queen Camilla in a rare joint outing for the couple at a social function.