Everybody’s been asking where in the world is Kate Middleton.
Suspicions over the Princess of Wales’ whereabouts had apparently been swirling among those who keep a close eye on Royal Family updates, but shit hit the fan when Kensington Palace shared an altered photo of Middleton and her three children on the U.K.’s Mother’s Day.
Social media users called out the doctored image. Then Kensington Palace’s X account took down the photograph and shared a tweet signed by C, seemingly short for Catherine, apologizing for the photo editing.
Instagram added a warning to the photo, which is still on the platform, noting that it had been altered.
Middleton underwent a planned abdominal surgery in January. Kensington Palace released a statement saying her royal duties were paused until after Easter.
I mean, I kind of get it from a public interest perspective. You don’t have to be a fan of “The Crown” to know the royal family has had their fair share of scandal. And for some women who’ve married into the family (see: Princess Diana and Meghan Markle), they’ve probably had even more burdens to bear than the public is privy to.
But there’s one thing I don’t get, which I discuss in this week’s “I Know That’s Right.” Rumors about what actually is happening with Middleton have taken on a life of their own. One suggests that the princess is fleeing her marriage, alleging that Prince William is having an affair. Another speculates that Middleton is dead and has even made it to late-night TV. Some rumors are clearly internet fanfiction and memes (many using AI to poke fun at the bad photo editing that led us here).
The fact of the matter is that we just don’t know what’s going on. And with Kensington Palace’s credibility taking yet another hit, it’s unclear if we’ll know what’s really going on even after the March 31 recovery date the palace gave. Though folks may be suspicious of what’s really going on, Middleton is a grown woman who signed up to be a part of the royal family’s troubling legacy. And if she wants to leave, maybe Tyler Perry has an extra room for her at his compound.
Regardless, we don’t have to give her a hypothetical death sentence in the process of talking about this.