Kensington Palace has addressed concerns about the Princess of Wales' health after being out of the public eye for two months and undergoing abdominal surgery.
In a new statement, a Palace spokesperson sought to reassure well-wishers after speculation broke out on social media questioning the Princess's possible whereabouts. Kate hasn't been seen in public since Christmas Day.
The royal spokesperson said: “Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates. That guidance stands.” They did, however, add that Kate continues to do "well".
The palace was referring to a statement published on January 17, in which it was announced that the Princess had undergone surgery and that she planned to return to royal engagements after Easter, which falls on Sunday.
That statement read: “The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate. She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; and her wish that her personal medical information remains private. Kensington Palace will, therefore, only provide updates on Her Royal Highness’ progress when there is significant new information to share. The Princess of Wales wishes to apologise to all those concerned for the fact that she has to postpone her upcoming engagements. She looks forward to reinstating as many as possible, as soon as possible.”
A similar update was shared earlier this week after Prince William was forced to pull out of a royal event due to a "personal matter". The Prince of Wales had been due to attend a memorial service on Wednesday for the late King Constantine of Greece, who was also his godfather, at Windsor Castle but decided not to attend.
However, according to a royal source, William's absence from the event was understood not to be in relation to the Princess of Wales' continued recovery at home in Windsor from abdominal surgery. The source said: "The Princess of Wales continues to be doing well."
William, who was due to deliver a reading, called the Greek royal family who were attending the service in St George's Chapel to let them know he was unable to attend. It now means Camilla is leading the royals at the service for the last King of Greece, who was a close friend of King Charles.
The vacuum left by her removing herself from public life has sent online sleuths into overdrive. Apparently frustrated by the lack of updates, a number of wacky theories have emerged over where she is.
The mum-of-three, 41, has not been seen in public since the Royal Family’s annual stroll to the church service in Sandringham on Christmas Day. The news was met with concern by royal fans but, as the weeks have gone by, many have grown frustrated with the lack of official updates.
The truth is the Princess is still recovering from abdominal surgery. But that has not stopped people sharing their own theories on "where Kate is" on social media. One particularly bizarre theory suggested the Princess is actually in Miami where she is recuperating from a Brazilian butt lift. One person has researched how long it takes to recover from the procedure and found it is around two to three months - the same amount of time as the Princess is expected to be away from the public eye.
Others on social media are joking that she has found work at the Willy Wonka Chocolate Experience in Glasgow, which has drawn scorn from unimpressed parents and their children. Another theory suggested Kate is Banksy, while yet another said she had donated a kidney to the King.
One person compared her to Manchester United forward Jadon Sancho, on loan in Germany, joking: “My theory on why Kate Middleton hasn't been seen for so long is she's being forced to train separately after refusing to apologise to Erik ten Hag for claiming that the manager was untruthful regarding her exclusion from the squad earlier in the season.”
Another joked: “The Kate Middleton reveal on Masked Singer is going to make all of us look silly.” Another pointed out: “Not a single Banksy since Kate Middleton disappeared. Coincidence?”
Kate usually enjoys good health but was previously admitted to hospital while pregnant after suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum – severe morning sickness. Like the rest of the Royal Family, she has had a busy, turbulent past couple of years, with the Platinum Jubilee and the late Queen’s death in 2022, and the coronation in 2023, as well as adjusting to her new role as the Princess of Wales.
Earlier today, Prince William told young people that he and wife Kate have become "extremely concerned about the rise is anti-semitism" while visiting a synagogue.
The prince spoke out while on a trip to the Western Marble Arch Synagogue - which was meant to happen in January for National Holocaust Day but postponed after the Princess of Wales underwent abdominal surgery - to meet young people representing Jewish students and others helping to combat antisemitism among the next generation to "reassure you all that people do care".
Students told William, who pulled out of a memorial service earlier this week due to a personal matter, the abuse had been "never-ending" and "dehumanising" and "it's never been like this before". William told them: "Anti-semitism has no place in society. Prejudice has no place in society. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I want you all to know you can talk about it and your experiences.
"Both Catherine and I are extremely concerned about the rise in anti-semitism that you guys have talked about this morning and I'm just so sorry if any of you have had to experience that, it has no place. That's why I'm here today to reassure you all that people do care and people do listen and we can't let that go."
Holocaust survivor Renee Salt, 94, sat with William and quietly spoke about her experiences at a Nazi concentration camp. William asked: "How did you manage?" Renee replied: "It wasn't easy. Somehow I survived." William reached out and held her hand when she described how her family were affected by the rise in antisemitism in recent months. Renee said the antisemitism was the worst she has witnessed since the Nazis in World War II. William said: "I'm so sorry it's got to this stage, it will get better."
Cases of antisemitism have been on the rise since the October 7 raids by the Palestinian militant group Hamas killed about 1,200 and saw around 250 people taken hostage. The future king's visit to the Western Marble Arch Synagogue came after he called for the fighting in the Israel-Hamas war to end "as soon as possible". He said it was "critical that aid gets in and the hostages are released", in an impassioned statement released as he visited the London headquarters of the British Red Cross (BRC), which is playing a key humanitarian role in the region.