As we discussed, this week’s People Magazine cover story is all about the fragility of the British monarchy and how even old-guard monarchists want the Windsors to disclose more about their medical conditions. People’s piece is more focused on King Charles and how the head of state has a constitutional duty to disclose his health and medical issues – weirdly, those people never had the same energy for the late QEII, but whatever. Then at the end of People’s piece, they included the conspiracies and online speculation about the Princess of Wales’s health.
Meanwhile, the lack of clarity surrounding Princess Kate’s abdominal surgery has left a vacuum filled with conspiracy theories about her health and whereabouts.
Although the palace specified that the Princess of Wales was not expected to return to public duties until after Easter, they’ve been forced to issue brief statements about her well-being during recovery in response to rumors. Kate has only been spotted once since the procedure — riding in a car with her mother, Carole Middleton, on March 4.
King Charles and Princess Kate’s time out of the spotlight means it’s been largely up to Queen Camilla, 76, and Prince William, 41, to step up as the faces of the monarchy. While the Queen has stepped in for her husband on numerous occasions in recent weeks, the Prince of Wales has also made public appearances a priority after taking time away to care for his wife and children during her recovery.
“His focus is on his work and not on social media,” a spokesman says.
While I applaud People for at least getting William’s spokesperson on the record with that bitchy, arrogant reply, I do have to ask… um, what work?? William’s focus is on his work, which he doesn’t do because he’s focused on Kate’s recovery, which he can’t focus on because of work. The perfect circle! Meanwhile, he’s probably balls-deep in rose bushes for all we know. Speaking of, there’s absolutely a feeling that Kate and the Middletons are trying to push back on all of the conspiracies. Robert Jobson even got a hot tip that Kate’s recovery is going well:
Royal author Rob Jobson told Hello!: “From what I hear, Kate has got into a routine again and is functioning well, but she doesn’t want to rush things. I have spoken to people close to her and I think she is recovering well but is not quite one hundred per cent.”
He claimed that King Charles is keen to make the focus of the royal family on him, Queen Camilla, Prince William and Kate, and having “two of the star people out of the picture makes that more difficult.”
Rob said that Kate will be warmly welcomed back when she is well enough to return to duties, but currently feels “lucky” to be able to spend time with her family and focus on her recovery.
Meanwhile, Hello!’s royal editor Emily Nash added that Kate’s kids, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five, will be helping her through this time. She wrote: “Kate may not have been on the school run or at sport matches, but she has been able to spend plenty of time with her children at home over the past few weeks and they will have been such a tonic for her. Her family are absolutely at the centre of her world, so being able to have George, Charlotte and Louis at home with her has no doubt really boosted her spirits.”
Here’s the thing – I expected these kinds of PR-fluff pieces for the past two months. I thought we’d hear a lot about how Kate is being brave for her kids and how everyone is pitching in, and Kate couldn’t manage without William. Instead, there’s been radio silence up until this week. There are definitely visible fractures between William and Kate’s separate communications strategies.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
HRH King Charles III, Queen Camilla, William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Prince of Wales receive President of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol during the state visit ceremonial welcome at Horse Guards Parade in London, UK, 21 November 2023,Image: 823428310, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Tim Rooke/Shutterstock / Avalon 
The Mall, London, UK. 21st November 2023. Their Royal Highnesses, The Prince and Princess of Wales, along with South Korean Deputy Prime Minister, Choo Kyung-ho, ride in a carriage procession along The Mall following a formal welcome of The President of the Republic of Korea, His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol, accompanied by the First Lady, Mrs Kim Keon Hee, join Their Majesty’s The King and Queen on Horse Guards Parade on the first full day of the South Korean State Visit to the UK.,Image: 823429105, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Supplied by AVALON – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Madrid: +34 91 533 4289, Model Release: no, Credit line: Photo by Amanda Rose / Avalon 
Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales speaks to crew members during a visit to the RNLI lifeboat station at St Davids, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, west Wales. Featuring: Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales Where: Haverfordwest, United Kingdom When: 08 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
The Prince and Princess of Wales during their visit to the We Are Farming Minds Charity at Kings Pitt Farm in Hereford. Featuring: Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales Where: Hereford, United Kingdom When: 14 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY** 
The Prince of Wales with volunteers by the Hudson River during his visit to the Billion Oyster Project as part of his two-day visit to New York in the United States. Billion Oyster Project is a nonprofit organization on a mission to restore oyster reefs to New York Harbor through public education initiatives. Featuring: William, Prince of Wales Where: New York, United States When: 18 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY** 
The Princess of Wales visits AW Hainsworth in Leeds, a family-owned heritage textile mill which was established in 1783 and manufactures British woollen cloth, high-performing technical textiles, and iconic fabrics. Featuring: Catherine, Princess of Wales Where: Leeds, United Kingdom When: 26 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
The Prince and Princess of Wales, known as the Duke and Duchess of Rothesay when in Scotland, visit DAY1, a Highland based charity in Inverness, Scotland, which provides mentoring, training, personal development and employability services to vulnerable young people. Featuring: Prince William, Catherine, Princess Of Wales Where: Inverness, United Kingdom When: 02 Nov 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY** 
The Prince and Princess of Wales leave Buckingham Palace, central London, on day one of the President of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol’s state visit to the UK. Featuring: Catherine, Princess of Wales and William, Prince of Wales Where: London, United Kingdom When: 21 Nov 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLHLnpmirJOdxm%2BvzqZmcW5gboJ3e8%2BroKeblZTEqrjLopimq4%2BovbDEvrCgpaSZlrq0q8Womq6rj57AoLvNmJ%2Biq4%2BsvLO3vpqlnZeepMGgu82YqqibmZa5oLnEnaCaZw%3D%3D