DHAKA: Prince William’s wife Kate was admitted to hospital on Saturday in the early stages of labor with the couple’s eagerly-awaited second child.

Kensington Palace said, reports The Straits Times.

‘The Duchess of Cambridge was admitted at 6.00 hours to St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, London and is in the early stages of labor,’ the palace press office said in a statement.

‘The Duchess traveled by car from Kensington Palace to the Lindo Wing at St Mary’s Hospital with The Duke of Cambridge,’ it said.

This will be the couple’s second child after Prince George, born in 2013.

He or she will be the fourth in line to the throne after Queen Elizabeth II’s eldest son Prince Charles, his eldest son William, and George.

Prince William was expected to stay by his wife’s side throughout the labor, as he did at George’s birth in July 2013.

Queen Elizabeth, senior royals and Kate’s parents Michael and Carole Middleton will be the first to be informed of the news.

It will then be announced both on the official Kensington Palace Twitter account and in the traditional way – with a royal bulletin displayed on an ornate easel in Buckingham Palace’s forecourt.

Guy Thorpe-Beeston, surgeon-gynaecologist to the royal household and a specialist in high-risk pregnancies, is leading the delivery team.

The world’s media quickly gathered outside St Mary’s Hospital in anticipation of the birth.

Prince William’s office announced on April 21 that he had gone on leave from his job as an air ambulance pilot after completing his training ahead of the birth.

A spokesman for Kensington Palace, the prince’s official residence, said he would not return to work until June 1.

BDST: 1555 HRS, MAY 02, 2015
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