Kate Middleton
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GRAZIA was built on its love for a high-low look, and no one does it better than the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, who stole the 2023 British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards’ red carpet on February 19. Resplendent in a white, floor-length, one-shoulder Alexander McQueen gown with long black opera gloves, the royal paired the look with statement earrings from Zara.

Kate Middleton
Princess of Wales Kate Middleton attends the BAFTA British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, in London, on February 19, 2023. (Photo by Chris Jackson / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CHRIS JACKSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

But upon closer inspection, it appears Middleton wore this Sarah Burton for McQueen dress to the same event in 2019, its flower appliqué removed and replaced with a bow for this year’s soirée.

Over the years, the now 41-year-old mother-of-three has had an affinity for the Spanish clothing chain, as evidenced by many photographs of Middleton in Zara blazers, culottes and dresses. But given the UK’s cost of living crisis, this upcycled, revamped look is perhaps the royal’s most timely.

Kate Middleton
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 19:Princess of Wales Kate Middleton attends the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2023 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 19, 2023 in London, England. The Prince of Wales, President of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), and The Princess will attend the Awards ceremony before meeting category winners and EE Rising Star Award nominees. (Photo by Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 19: Princess of Wales Kate Middleton and Prince William, Prince of Wales, attend the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2023 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 19, 2023 in London, England. The Prince of Wales, President of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), and The Princess will attend the Awards ceremony before meeting category winners and EE Rising Star Award nominees. (Photo by Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 19: Princess of Wales Kate Middleton attends the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2023 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 19, 2023 in London, England. The Prince of Wales, President of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), and The Princess will attend the Awards ceremony before meeting category winners and EE Rising Star Award nominees. (Photo by Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton
Princess of Wales Kate Middleton attends the BAFTA British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, in London, on February 19, 2023. (Photo by Chris Jackson / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CHRIS JACKSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Kate Middleton
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 10: (L-R) Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Kate Middleton Duchess of Cambridge attend the EE British Academy Film Awards at Royal Albert Hall on February 10, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)

It’s not the first time Middleton has re-worn a McQueen number. At the inaugural Earthshot Prize in London in 2021, guests were asked to wear a recycled look on the green carpet. The Royal chose to revisit a lilac goddess gown by McQueen which she first wore to the BAFTA Awards in the summer of 2011.

Kate Middleton
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 17: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Kate Middleton Duchess of Cambridge attend the Earthshot Prize 2021 at Alexandra Palace on October 17, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Karwai Tang/WireImage)
Kate Middleton
The Duke And Duchess Of Cambridge On Their Visit To California, UsaThe Duke And Duchess Attend A Bafta Reception, At The Belasco Theatre In Los Angeles. . (Photo by Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Images)

Elsewhere on the carpet, actress Cate Blanchett wore the same John Galliano for Maison Margiela Haute Couture gown that she wore to the 2015 Oscars, with Louis Vuitton jewelry added. Blanchett, 53, took home the BAFTA for Best Actress for her role in TÁR.

Cate Blanchett
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 19: Cate Blanchett poses with the award for Best Actress during the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2023 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 19, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)
Cate Blanchett
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 19: Cate Blanchett poses with the award for Best Actress during the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2023 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 19, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)
Cate Blanchett
HOLLYWOOD, CA – FEBRUARY 22: Cate Blanchett arrives at the 87th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center on February 22, 2015 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Steve Granitz/WireImage)

For the uninitiated, TÁR tells the story of the incredibly layered, world-renowned conductor Lydia Tár. A maestro of orchestral assortments, we meet Lydia via long, drawn-out scenes mere weeks before she is to record the symphony that will elevate her already illustrious career. But it’s the happenings in the conductor’s periphery — her wandering eye which puts pressure on her relationship with her wife, her step-daughter who is being bullied, and her ex-assistant accusing her misconduct — that sees Lydia unravel into a dramatically unchecked individual. While Lydia’s comeuppance remains unclear, Blanchett’s performance, particularly in the last scenes of the film, is pure power.

“It’s a film that has a conductor at its centre but it’s not a film about the classical music world,” Blanchett told the audience at an advanced screening in Sydney in December. “You don’t need to know any terminology at all – just allow that to wash over you. Don’t try and make sense of it!”

Watch Blanchett’s moment below. TÁR is in cinemas now.