Prince William and Kate release gorgeous new pics to mark their 10-year wedding anniversary

As the Duke of Duchess of Cambridge tastefully control the public celebration of their wedding anniversary, it is hard not to look back on the fairytale wedding that started it all.

Chatting to a young colleague earlier this week about the momentous milestone reached by William and Kate, she said: "Wow, 10 years is a really long time." To which I replied: "Ten years goes really fast when you are married." The look she gave me made me realise she had no idea what I was talking about - also she was 12 at the time. My advanced years aside, it was a glimpse at the impact the lavish nuptials and lasting partnership has had on us all.

From young children to the more mature, everyone has a story of where they were or what they were doing when Kate walked down the aisle at Westminster Abbey, her white dress trailing elegantly behind her. The dress, designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, is worthy of a tribute article all its own. The stunning wedding gown hit the right notes of royal elegance and timeless sophistication, while managing to be just elaborate enough, without seeming over the top.

Now, 10 years on and three children later, William and Kate have shared two adorable portraits of themselves to commemorate this significant milestone.

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Ten years of marriage is traditionally celebrated with tin. Which doesn't sound all that exciting to a humble journalist living in Auckland, but I imagine if you had royal resources at your disposal, like William does, you would be able to muster up a fairly decent gift.

The second photo of the couple, shared on the official royal family Instagram page, shows William and Kate hugging and smiling, with the simple caption: "Taken this week ahead of The Duke and Duchess' 10th wedding anniversary."

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Less than a week ago the royal Instagram also treated us to a ridiculously adorable photo of Louis, William and Kate's youngest child, in honour of the little cutie's third birthday.

The image, taken by the Duchess of Cambridge herself as Louis headed to his first day of nursery school, show the youngest royal looking delighted and he also appears to be a near replica of older brother, George, at the same age.

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Hopefully, in 10 years' time we will be celebrating another significant marriage milestone reached by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. They have come this far in a marriage lived under a microscope, with family disasters dropping like bombs around them. If they can weather all of that and still be smiling, they can survive just about anything, together.