A happy birthday to cheeky chappie Lou Bugs

THE Princess of Wales may have mixed emotions this week as the son she still thinks of as her "baby" turns seven.

- BY ANNA POINTER

Prince Louis' birthday on Wednesday is set to be a day of both joy and nostalgia for Kate, 43, who like most mums will feel her youngest is growing up too fast.

Although she is devoted to all three of her children, the princess is thought to have a special rapport with Louis, who she affectionately calls "Lou Bugs".

As former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond said: "You get away with more and are that little bit special as the last-born.

"Catherine probably lets Louis run wild more than she did George. She and William are very experienced parents and I'm sure they love all three equally - but in different ways.

"George because he's the firstborn and has a destiny to fulfil, Charlotte because she's the only girl, and Louis because he's the youngest."

Louis may spend part of his big day with "Grandpa Wales" too, as he and King Charles, 76, are said to have their own unique bond.

Jennie said: "He clearly loves his grandpa and is not at all in awe of the fact he happens to be the King. I think Charles cherishes every moment he can spend with the children.

"That's possibly one reason he spends more time at Windsor nowadays. Louis will no doubt be thoroughly spoiled on his birthday."

Although he is no longer the cute-as-a-button toddler with a mischievous grin and rosy cheeks, Kate once told how she has to remind herself that her son is growing up.

Meeting mums and their newborns at a Surrey maternity unit a couple of summers ago, she told them: "I keep thinking Louis is a baby, but he's a big boy now."

Her nickname for him first slipped out as they toasted marshmallows at The Big Help Out in 2023, when she told him: "Pop that in the fire, Lou Bugs." It was heard again in the video she and William, 42, released to mark the end of her chemotherapy last autumn.

As they trekked through woods, Kate who has since announced her cancer is in remission calls out: "Lou Bugs, you lead the way."