The British royal saga never seems to be over. This year started with the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, being conspicuous by her absence, raising questions about her missing status.
Where is Kate Middleton?
For the past couple of weeks, the Internet has been agog with curiosity regarding the disappearance of Britain’s beloved Princess of Wales from public events. Since her abdominal surgery a month ago, Kate Middleton has been away from the public eye, quietly convalescing at her Adelaide Cottage in Windsor Home Park. The rumours that all might not be well with the Princess sparked off when Prince William gave a miss to his godfather King Constantine’s memorial service, citing “personal matters” despite living a stone’s throw away from St. George Chapel, where it is being held.
Conspiracies Abound!
When it comes to the British royals, there is no end to conspiracy theories or rumours surrounding them. Kate’s absence from public has once again set the rumour mill chugging as to why the Princess has been out of the public eye for so long.
Kate Middleton’s health has been a focal point of discussion among the British, especially since no updates about her health have been issued by the Palace. The speculation regarding her absence has ranged from genuine concern to downright ludicrous.
The Princess of Wales has been trending on the Internet for the past week or so, given her disappearance from public, with people coming out with wild speculations, jokes about a cosmetic procedure gone wrong, and memes theorizing her absence from public. One X user posted on his X account, @Palmer2theMax: “I love that the two working theories on Kate Middleton’s disappearance are “Brazilian butt lift” and “she’s growing out bangs”.
Another, @bridget_palmer, wrote, “I’ve also seen William’s bad temper landed her in the hospital. Or that she’s dead. Theories are WILD.” The clear indication being to William’s short temper.
Meanwhile, Sarasaurus @saralikeclara has listed out the following Kate Middleton theories:
- Secret baby (ginger)
- Game of hide & seek got out of hand
- Self-immolated 4 Palestine
- Eloped with Princess Eugenie
- Locked in bathroom
- Becoming non-binary
- Joined ISIS
- Mission 2 moon
- Growing our hair colour disaster
The most bizarre rumour, however, was shared by Morello @Swazi_Cheri. She wrote: “I am thoroughly enjoying all the Kate Middleton conspiracy theories. I have no interest in the royals but the story about her recovering from donating a kidney to Charles in exchange for becoming queen one day is sending me.
There have been, however, some serious concerns doing the rounds about the royal family. Recently, a Spanish journalist, Concha Calleja, claimed she was informed by a source within the royal family that Princess Kate was suffering from serious complications post surgery, which required drastic measures to keep her alive. “The decision,” she informed Fiesta, a Spanish news show, “was to put her in an induced coma. They had to intubate her.”
The Kensington Palace, which had earlier maintained it would share an update only when there was any “significant new information to share”, quickly issued a statement calling Calleja’s claims false.
Some theories suggest that all may not be well in the Kate-William paradise. Rumours have been abounding for some time now about Kate and William’s strained relationship and their impending divorce. The reason is attributed to William’s illicit affair.
The Royal Secret
The British royals have always courted controversies, whether it was Edward VIII abdicating his throne for the love of his life, Wallis Simpson, a twice-divorced American, or the troubled marriage of Charles III and Princess Diana, which resulted in divorce with Charles marrying his long-time love interest Camilla Parker-Bowels, while Princess Diana had a series of affairs before her life came to a tragic end in a Paris car crash.
The last few years have been especially taxing for the royals, with Prince Harry marrying American television star Meghan Markle following their dramatic exit from the royal household and then the death of Queen Elizabeth II. As was true of any royal family anywhere in the world, British royal history also guarded some dark secrets that caught the fancy of the people when Netflix made a television series on the same, aptly named The Crown. Besides highlighting the turbulent history of the royals, the series generated a worldwide interest in the workings and private lives of the British royals.
Unlike King Charles III, who has been candid about his illnesses, he was diagnosed with an enlarged prostate and has been battling cancer, the secrecy around Kate’s health (it has not been disclosed what kind of abdominal surgery she has had) and lack of information regarding her well-being have fired the imaginations of commentators and speculators to come up with such wild theories. And while the theories have gained momentum on the internet, the palace has chosen to keep mum.
- Kiss_Wedding_Prince_William_of_Wales_Kate_Middleton.jpg: John Pannellderivative work: César, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons ↩︎
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