William, Kate mark wedding anniversary with baby wait

London, Apr 29: Prince William and wife Kate Middleton on Wednesday marked their fourth wedding anniversary with the wait for their second baby.

The couple have reportedly planned a low-key celebration of the special day at their Kensington Palace residence. Kate, who is now believed to be around five days overdue, was seen in a relaxed mood driving Prince George to his regular swim at Buckingham Palace.

Swimming is said to help bring on labour, leading to speculation that the Duchess of Cambridge may have joined her son in the pool after she was seen behind the wheel of her Range Rover.

She later drove back to her Kensington Palace home, with a royal protection officer in the passenger seat and Prince George and his nanny in the back seat, to continue waiting for the arrival of her second child.

Meanwhile, Royal protection officers, who carry concealed weapons at all times, are already stationed at the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital where Kate is due to give birth any time now.

The armed officers will also patrol the corridors of the Lindo Wing once she is inside, according to former head of royalty protection Dai Davies.

"The Duchess is overdue so it's not surprising that they are there. It is similar to a royal visit, when the police will be at the venue ahead of the royal family's arrival, only in this instance they don't know when that arrival is going to be," Davies was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.

"They have to make sure the area is secure, they will have carried out sweeps inside and they will be making sure they are familiar with the geography, the entrances and exits, and what options they have if an incident arises. There will be a security detail there 24/7 for as long as it takes," he said.

According to him, despite the emergence of Islamic State terrorists, it was the threat of a "fixated individual" obsessed with the royal family which posed the more likely danger.

The world's media and royal watchers have been swarming outside St Mary's Hospital awaiting the royal birth. Kate and William have not found out if they are having a boy or girl but bookies are favouring a girl named Alice.

PTI