Royal expert Christopher Anderson is sharing his thoughts on how the palace has handled Princess Kate Middleton’s months-long recovery from abdominal surgery.
“I don’t know if it’s the royal family I’d blame for this mess, that would be the palace,” Anderson, the bestselling author of books including The King: The Life of Charles III and William and Kate: A Royal Love Story, exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, March 5.
The biographer weighed in on photos obtained by TMZ of a sunglasses-clad Kate, 42, sitting in the passenger seat of a car alongside her mother, Carole Middleton, on Monday, March 4. The snaps marked the first time the Princess of Wales was seen out and about since undergoing the procedure in January.
“I’ve been asked if [those photos were] staged by the palace to assuage people’s fears and get rid of all the conspiracy theories that have been swirling around the royal family lately. And I think it’s quite the opposite,” Anderson said. “I think if you look at the expression on her face, she was caught unawares and unhappy. It’s amazing to me that the palace can be so tone deaf about this, not only in the handling of Catherine, but also in the handling of [King Charles III] and his medical situation, which is in tandem with this.”
On January 17, the same day that Buckingham Palace announced that Charles, 75, would undergo a “corrective procedure” for an enlarged prostate, Kensington Palace announced that Kate had undergone a “planned” abdominal surgery at The London Clinic and would remain in the hospital for ten to 14 days. The statement also noted that Kate wouldn’t participate in any royal engagements until after Easter.
“From the get-go, it was very fishy.” Anderson said of Kate’s recovery period. “You can have open heart surgery and be out in a week. And then months under wraps, what’s going on?”
While the public has been provided with some updates on Charles’ health —Buckingham Palace announced last month that “a form of cancer” was discovered while the monarch received treatment for an enlarged prostate — less is known about Kate’s condition.
The uncertainty has sparked social media theories about the royal’s whereabouts, which a spokesperson for Kate shut down.
“Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates,” the rep told Us Weekly in a statement on Thursday, February 29, noting that Kate is doing “well” as she recuperates. “That guidance stands.”
Anderson thinks that the spokesperson’s update is just making things “worse and worse” for the royal family.
“This last statement they issued was basically rapping everyone on the knuckles for daring to question them [and] didn’t explain anything,” he said. “And yes, they said from the beginning she’d be out of commission, but never why, and I don’t think that’s acceptable, frankly.”
Anderson added that “the British people have a right to know” what’s going on with the princess.
“I think they could be a lot more forthright about what her condition was, what the surgery was for, and why she has to be recuperating for such a lengthy period,” he said. “They could have carted her out a couple of times and had her stand on the steps of the palace or in Windsor or wherever and smile for the cameras and just be her charming self. And I think that would remedy the situation to some extent.”
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
