Prince William teases Kate Middleton: ‘Pretty much ruined it’

THE Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have stepped out for their first joint royal engagement since the birth of their third child.

THE Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have stepped out for their first joint event together after Catherine made her long-awaited return from maternity leave.

The parents, who welcomed their third child Louis on April 23, attended the first Global Ministerial Mental Health Summit in London.

They met with contemporary artist Dario Vargas, who offered them the opportunity to have a go at painting. Prince William urged his wife to go first, claiming that “she’s the arty one”.

However, after she’d had her turn, he drew laughs as he pointed out that she’d “pretty much ruined the picture”.

The Duke and Duchess’ artistic skills were put to the test. Credit: Eddie Mulholland/Pool Photo via AP

Catherine wore a stunning, long-sleeved lilac dress by designer Emilia Wickstead, which shes’s worn before, paired with nude heels and a pale lavender handbag.

Prince William wore a classic black and white suit.

Unusually, both were wearing recycled outfits that they had worn previously at the exact same event during their tour of Germany in July 2017.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, waves to onlookers outside the Global Ministerial Mental Health Summit at London County Hall. Picture: Getty

The couple looked excited to be out together again as fans waved flags and cheered.

Catherine returned to royal duties following her six-month maternity leave last week when she visited the Sayers Croft Forest School and Wildlife Garden at Paddington Recreation Ground, which are helping the emotional and physical wellbeing of children.

The royal couple at their first joint engagement since the birth of Prince Louis. Picture: Getty

The mental health summit, co-hosted by the UK Government and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, saw a raft of experts and political figures come together in a bid to better mental health and address the stigma surrounding it.

Kate and William attended the Children, Young People and the Next Generation workshop, where they were heard two case studies from Slovenia and the USA.

Prince William and his wife Catherine are passionate about changing the conversation around mental health.

Mental health is an issue close to the royal family’s heart, after Kate, William and Prince

Harry spearheaded The Heads Together campaign through their official charity The Royal Foundation in 2016.

The campaign, which has enabled experienced charities to work together, continues to encourage a healthy conversation around mental illness.

As part of the campaign, the first Marathon for Mental Health was held in the UK last year which Mind charity CEO Paul Farmer heralded as “changing the conversation around mental health in Britain” like “nothing he had witnessed”.

Catherine recycled one of her Emilia Wickstead dresses for the event.

In the lead up to the 2017 marathon, Harry revealed he’d sought counselling after two years of “total chaos” during his 20s as he struggled with the death of his mother, Princess Diana.

Meanwhile just last month, Will opened up about his struggles after witnessing the suffering that his former job as an air ambulance pilot exposed him to.

The royal family’s honesty has been hailed as a game changer that’s encouraged people with mental illness to speak up.

The Duchess of Cambridge charmed schoolkids last week on her first solo engagement since the birth of her third child.

The Heads Together campaign was selected as the 2017 Virgin Money London Marathon Charity of the Year.

The trio have continued to tackle mental illness through various projects including the Mentally Healthy Schools website that Catherine launched and the Mental Health at Work campaign that Will revealed.

Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex is also a passionate advocate for mental health, and has joined new husband Harry at various events since becoming a patron of The Royal Foundation.