Pippa Middleton, sister of the Duchess of Cambridge, joined a pheasant shooting party at Carlton Towers.

A spokeswoman for Carlton Towers, which is the Yorkshire seat of the Duke of Norfolk in the village of Carlton 14 miles south of York, said: “Pippa Middleton attended a shoot at Carlton Towers from Friday, January 6, to Sunday, January 8, along with a party of around 24 guests who arrived on the Friday night from London.

“Miss Middleton attended as a friend of one of the party. The weekend’s shoot was hosted by Lord and Lady Gerald Fitzalan Howard, owners of Carlton Towers, and took place on the estate.

All the guests stayed in the 16 newly decorated bedrooms recently designed by Lady Gerald.”