Royal Baby: Duchess" labour "progressing normally" The Duchess of Cambridge was admitted to hospital in the early stages of labour this morning and is "progressing as normal," Kensington Palace has said. Kate and husband William arrived at the private Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in London by car without a police escort just before 6am. The news that "the Great Kate Wait" - as bored journalists have dubbed their vigil outside the hospital - was finally over was announced in a brief statement from Kensington Palace at 7.30am after rumours began circulating that Kate had been spotted. The statement read: "Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge has been admitted this morning to St Mary's Hospital, Paddington, London, in the early stages of labour. The Duchess travelled by car from Kensington Palace to the Lindo Wing at St Mary's Hospital with The Duke of Cambridge. Kate is planning to have a natural birth and a spokesman added that "things are progressing as normal." The Duchess is being tended by a top medical team led by the Queen's former gynaecologist Marcus Setchell, who delivered the Countess of Wessex's two children. Assisting him is Alan Farthing, the former fiance of murdered TV presenter Jill Dando, who is the Queen's current gynaecologist. The world's press have been camped outside St Mary's in Paddington for days in anticipation of the birth and even the Queen has joked about the imminent arrival of the newest member of her family, saying she hoped the baby was born before she went on holiday later this week. The hospital's Lindo Wing is a private obstetric unit, with prices starting at just under £5,000 for a normal delivery package over 24 hours, with consultants" fees around £6,000 extra depending on the care required. The Duke and his younger brother, Prince Harry, were born in the Lindo Wing and the Prince and Princess of Wales famously posed on the building's steps in 1982 holding baby William in turn. 12-hour labour expected The Duchess of Cambridge should expect to be in labour for around half a day, experts said. Consultant obstetrician Patrick O'Brien said that the average length of labour for a first-time mother is about 12 hours. At 7.30am Kensington Palace announced that Kate had been admitted to St Mary's Hospital in London in the early stages of labour - but it is unknown how long she was in labour for before going to hospital. Mr O'Brien, spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said: "With first baby, you usually dilate about a centimetre an hour and you've got to get from closed to 10 centimetres - which is fully dilated - so that's about 10 hours. When you reach fully dilated usually you wait for an hour or so to allow the baby's head to come as low as possible, so about 12 hours is the average, sometimes quicker, sometimes slower, but that's what you have to budget for. Alexandra bookies" favourite in name race Bookmakers witnessed a betting frenzy as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge edged closer to welcoming their baby into the world. Coral said the royal baby was the biggest non-sporting betting event in the company's history and punters were rushing to wager money on every aspect. Nicola McGeady, spokeswoman for the firm, said: "The whole world has been waiting for Kate to go into labour and now that she has, we have witnessed another betting frenzy. Punters have been anxiously clutching onto their betting slips for months now and if the money talks, the baby will be called Alexandra, with brown hair, weighing 7lb to 7lb 15oz, an outcome which will prove a nightmare result for the bookies. The favourites at William Hill for a girl's name are Alexandra (7/4), Charlotte (6/1) and Diana (12/1), while the most popular boy's names are George (8/1) and James (10/1).