James Middleton is marking the fourth wedding anniversary of his marriage to Alizée Thevenet, recalling in his memoir how an unorthodox first encounter with his future sister-in-law helped cement her place in the Middleton family.
In Meet Ella, published earlier this year, James describes how the couple first met and how Alizée, with a “mesmerising French accent,” agreed to a drink as he was leaving London. The engagement was announced on Instagram in October 2019 after he proposed privately in the Lake District. The couple married on Sept. 11, 2021, in Bormes-les-Mimosas, France, at an intimate ceremony that was postponed twice because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Close family and friends attended, including Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince William and their children; the couple's dogs served as flower girls and Alizée wore the wedding gown of James's mother, Carole Middleton.
James devotes a chapter of his book to the moment Alizée first met his family in the Middleton home. He writes that the meeting came about by accident after the couple decided to stay at his parents' house in Bucklebury following a nearby wedding. The next morning, William, Catherine and their three children were visiting. James says Alizée appeared in the kitchen wearing one of his shirts and greeted everyone warmly without pausing to change, a conduct he describes as “wonderfully French.” According to James, the encounter ended with his sister leaning in to whisper, “She’s just great.”
The memoir also ties the couple’s relationship to James’s lifelong connection with dogs. He credits his cocker spaniel Ella with saving his life and later gifted a black spaniel, Orla, to the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2020. James is a noted breeder of cocker spaniels and the family’s animals figure into public appearances; the couple now live in a farmhouse in Berkshire with six dogs and other animals.
Public outings have further integrated Alizée into the wider royal circle. She joined Carole Middleton at Royal Ascot earlier this year and has appeared at other family events, including the Together at Christmas carol service at Westminster Abbey and Wimbledon. The couple announced in July 2023 that they were expecting their first child; their son was born in October 2023.
The Middletons' household anecdotes stand in contrast with other public accounts of early meetings with royal family members. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has spoken publicly about an awkward first meeting with Catherine after she joined the royal family, recounting in the Netflix series Harry & Meghan that she arrived barefoot and wearing ripped jeans and later felt she had to alter aspects of her wardrobe to fit in. Commentators and royal insiders have debated recollections of those early interactions; Rebecca English, the Daily Mail’s royal editor, has said that “recollections may vary.”
James’s memoir and public posts have offered intermittent windows into family life and routines. He has written about running with Alizée as a shared pastime and as a way to clear the air after disagreements. Social-media images and occasional interviews have documented private family moments — from Alpine runs to life on the Berkshire property — while the couple have kept the tone of their public profile measured and largely outside the full glare of royal duty.
Since their wedding, the couple have maintained a low-key profile, balancing family life, small public appearances and James’s advocacy around wellbeing and animal welfare. The anniversary comes amid continued public interest in the extended family’s private dynamics and the small rituals — including the tradition of marking a fourth anniversary with fruit or flowers — that the Middletons have sometimes shared with the public through photographs and memoir excerpts.