Following Kate Middleton’s video in which she opened up of her cancer diagnosis, the speculations and rumors regarding her health and whereabouts were finally put to rest.
Her planned abdominal surgery that was announced by the Palace in mid-January was a hot topic especially because the Princess of Wales was nowhere to be seen long after the procedure. People wondered what was going on behind closed doors and why there were no statements issued from the Palace about her exact health state.
It was only after the media pressure that they wrote the Princess of Wales was doing well, which at the time didn’t serve as much of an assurance to the public.
This was until TMZ released a photo of Kate and her mother, which was followed by a photo of the princess posted on her social media on Mother’s Day.
The photo, on which she posed with her children on the patio, should have likely served as proof that Kate was indeed doing well, but shortly after it was published, experts noticed it was edited.
As a result, news agencies issued a “kill notice” and the princess took “the blame” for manipulating the photo.
While some dubbed Kate’s move of issuing an apology as brave, others, especially experts, said the Palace threw her under the bus.
Royal reporter Neil Sean argued that Kate “was probably in the rush” and most likely didn’t look closer at the details.
“I believe someone else did the Photoshop 100%. And I think that she’s being very gracious in accepting the blame,” Sean told Fox. “I think she is humiliated in some respects but doesn’t really understand what this fuss is about,” he said.
The royal reporter continued, “A lot of those particular agencies have been looking for slip-ups for years, because remember, before they would sell the rights to that picture. Catherine and William have bypassed it by doing their own picture. Now, it could be that they’ll have to revert back, at least for the next couple of pictures, to alleviate any claims of any misdemeanor type stuff. It’s going to be a mess for a while.”
Further, he said he believed the agencies created a fuzz about the photo as an attempt “to bully” Kate into providing them with more details.
“I think Catherine and the team genuinely thought, ‘Put a picture out on Mother’s Day; that will stop people nagging about where she is, why isn’t she speaking, all that sort of stuff.’ And what happened was the picture that they put together, they thought, ‘Well, we’ll just clean that up, make it look a little bit fresher.’ And now suddenly you’ve got a furor,” he concluded at the time.
But it weren’t just the news agencies that caused a stir. In fact, some experts believe that Harry and Meghan are partially to be blamed for fueling speculations surrounding the Princess of Wales, even though they haven’t publicly spoken about her.
According to Kinsey Schofield, a royal expert, the Sussexes have “warped” the public’s expectation regarding what the royal family should share with the public.
“I think this is a reflection of Harry and Meghan oversharing for the last four [years],” Schofield told Sky News about the many speculations and conspiracy theories about Kate’s health.
“I mean, for the last four years, we had a book, we had a reality show, we had multiple sit-down interviews. When Meghan Markle had her miscarriage, she announced it through the New York Times, like she wrote an op-ed announcing her miscarriage, and I just think it’s warped our expectations when it comes to… What we expect to hear about the British Royal family.”
The royal expert added, “It feels like Harry and Meghan have made it in a way more okay for us to try to push the envelope and try to ask for more when it comes to the privacy of the real working royals.”
On March 22, Kate finally spoke of her health and revealed that upon running tests following her surgery, doctors discovered the presence of cancer.
“My medical team, therefore, advised that I should undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy, and I am now in the early stages of that treatment. This, of course, came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family,” Kate said among the rest.
“We hope that you will understand that, as a family, we now need some time, space and privacy while I complete my treatment. My work has always brought me a deep sense of joy and I look forward to being back when I am able. But for now I must focus on making a full recovery,” the princess added.
That the public and the media are demanding from the royals to share details from their personal life publicly would become the new “normal” according to a former long-time royal aide. According to them, the scandal with the Mother’s Day photo is just an example of that, adding that in one way, Kate has been ‘cursed.’
“There was no malintent. But it unleashed up a pent-up feeling that people wanted information — unfortunately, that’s the curse of being a modern royal” the former longtime palace aide said. “It was a complex reaction.”
“[The royal family] is vulnerable at the moment, and there will be an even greater appreciation that they are human beings with frailties like the rest of us,” the former palace aide continued. “They are so dedicated to their roles. I think you will find when Kate makes a full recovery, she will come back even more passionate.”
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