The whirlwind of Kate’s absence and subsequent cancer news is one that is sure to go down in history books – especially for the royal family.
Not only did it trigger debate as to the royals and their need for privacy, it also reaffirmed the palace’s strict rules about what information they deliver to the public.
“The royal family’s mantra is never complain, never explain,” Ellie Hall, a journalist who specialises in covering Britain’s king and his court, said in the midst of the controversy.
“That really doesn’t work in a digital age. It doesn’t take much to get the crazy things going.”
Now almost three months on from the social media storm, curiosity is again rousing as to the royal’s whereabouts, especially since it has been months since her originally promised return around Easter.
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Many royal “insiders” and “friends” have attempted to fill the gaps in the mean time, with some recently claiming that she has “turned a corner” amid sightings of her “out and about” with her family, with some even claiming the public will not catch sight of her until next year.
But the truth is, nothing can be trusted if it doesn’t come from the palace, Prince William, or Catherine herself.
They way they handled the situation sent a strong message to the public that nothing but official sources can be trusted, with Kensington Palace spending weeks trying to tame the flames with increasingly stern messages.
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“Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates,” the representative told the New York Post in February, “That guidance stands.”
Another representative told The Sun: “We were very clear from the outset that the Princess of Wales was out until after Easter and Kensington Palace would only be providing updates when something was significant.”
It took a recorded message from Catherine herself, making the royal reveal her truth before she was ready for the world to realise the gravity of their actions.
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She revealed in a video released it had been an “incredibly tough couple of months” after tests following her planned abdominal surgery in January “found cancer had been present”.
“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,” she said.
Months on, now the palace must provide firm and steady warning of the royal’s plans with each announcement, such as in the case of her simply being briefed on a project for her early learning years foundation.
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“The work of The Prince and Princess’ projects is ‘always on,’ and that has been no different for the Centre over the past five months with a great deal of progress being made under [Guy, the center’s director]’s leadership,” her spokesperson said.
“The princess is not expected to return to work until it’s cleared by her medical team,” another told the BBC“Early childhood will continue to be central to her public work.”
William has also resorted to the same response to concerned members of the public, telling everyone that asks that his wife is “doing well”, to the point where it’s not newsworthy anymore. But perhaps that’s intentional.
There has most definitely been a shift in the way the royal family communicate to the public. Now all that’s left to see if this reservation will continue once Catherine returns to public eye – whenever that may be.
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