Kate Middleton’s robust yr from Harry to well being forward of Trooping the Colour

Kate Middleton hasn’t had the best of years but now hopefully things are on the up.

The Princess of Wales tonight announced she will be present with her family at the Trooping the Colour in London tomorrow to mark the Sovereign’s official birthday.

It will be the first time she’ll have been seen in public since before her bombshell cancer diagnosis in March.

The much-loved royal admitted she has “good days and bad days” and “isn’t out of the woods yet” but said she is looking forward to making an appearance alongside her children on the balcony as she continues chemotherapy.

READ MORE: Kate Middleton shares date of huge return to public life – and it’s really soon

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She thanked well-wishers for their love and support as many royal fans hope to see a better year ahead than the last as we take a look back.

Prince Harry ‘feud’

In Prince Harry’s book Spare, he said Kate was unfair to Meghan Markle, making her feel unwelcome.

He told of a bridesmaids’ dress incident that upset Meghan and claimed Kate wanted an apology after saying Meghan had “baby brain” post-baby Louis and pulled a face when Meghan used her lipgloss.

Harry and his brother, Prince William seem to have remained on frosty terms ever since with their father, King Charles III unable to fit Harry into his busy schedule during his recent visit to the UK for the Invictus Games.

Money troubles for Kate’s family

After the festivities of the Coronation, Kate was busy supporting her mum Carole in May. Carole had to sell her business due to challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic. The company, Party Pieces, was started in 1987 to help create fun parties for kids.

It sold things like party decorations, tableware and personalised gifts and was run from a barn near Carole and Michael Middleton’s home in Berkshire. The company officially became incorporated back in September 2019. But when the Covid-19 pandemic hit, it faced lots of problems, according to administrator Interpath.

A company called Teddy Tastic Bear Co Ltd, which is owned by someone named James Sinclair, ended up buying it.

Scobie book

An explosive Royal book, launched in August 2023, made a startling claim that the Royal Family is in a “fight for survival”. The book named ‘Endgame’ crafted by Omid Scobie, sent shockwaves with its eye-opening assertions. No royals were spared in his critique which included Charles, William and even Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh.

The author did not have kind words about Kate either. He described her as a ‘part-time’ working Royal and has been nicknamed ‘Katie Keen’, suggesting the palace press hides her lighter workload by claiming she is “keen to learn”. The book even branded the future queen as ‘cold’ and alleged she ignored Meghan Markle’s mental health “cries for help” despite being an advocate for mental health wellbeing.

However, one of the more shocking revelations was the book fanning the flames of a racial controversy. Both the King and Kate were implicated in the dispute involving Harry, Meghan and their son Archie. This racial tension, which publicly surfaced first in the Sussexes’ 2021 Oprah interview, was reignited by Scobie in Endgame. He claimed that two, instead of one Royal member had allegedly raised “concerns” about the skin colour of Prince Archie before he was born.

Scobie claimed that two names were mentioned in private letters between Meghan and the King, but these names didn’t appear in the UK version of his book. However, a quickly withdrawn Dutch edition did name two high-ranking royals, including Kate, in relation to the claim.

Scobie first denied including the names, but later confessed they were in an early, unapproved version sent to Dutch publishers. People asked for Harry and Meghan to separate themselves from the book, but the couple didn’t make any public statement. Both Buckingham and Kensington Palace chose not to comment.

Kensington Palace shared that Kate would be taking a break from her public duties after her ‘successful’ tummy operation at The London Clinic on January 16. They made it clear that Kate wanted her personal health information to stay private. At that time, it was believed the procedure wasn’t cancer-related.

Mother’s Day picture

On Mother’s Day the first official photo of Kate since her operation, showing her smiling with her children, George, Charlotte and Louis, was released. With the sweet photo, Kate wrote a message saying, “Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months.

“Wishing everyone a Happy Mother’s Day. C”. But soon after, some keen-eyed people found a few mistakes in the picture. News companies like PA, AP, Reuters, AFP and Getty Images told other media outlets around the world to not use the photo. This is called a ‘kill notification’ its like taking back a photo that was already given out.

The Associated Press said, “At closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image.” They also mentioned an “inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s left hand”. Afterwards, there were many talks about this and Kensington Palace felt they needed to clear things up. So, on March 11, Kate said sorry.

She explained: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C”.

Crazy ‘body double’ theories

Kate was spotted in public for the first time since her surgery last Saturday, enjoying a laid-back outing near their Windsor home. A video taken by a customer showed Kate and Will at the Windsor Farm Shop. Nelson Silva, 40, who filmed the video, dismissed the ‘silly’ conspiracy theories that popped up online, with people wondering if it was the real Kate.

Conspiracy buffs spread wild rumours that the Princess of Wales had been replaced by a body double. In less than a day, these false stories had gathered over 12 million views on site X and more than 11 million on TikTok.

Nelson told The Sun, who published the video: “This is a video clearly showing her and William. I saw them with my own eyes. It was a completely chilled situation. What more do you need to leave her alone? I thought after this was released they’d stop. But these people are so caught up in the drama now.”

Medical records ‘breach’

Elsewhere, hospital bosses are looking into claims that Kate’s privacy was violated while she was a patient at The London Clinic, in Marylebone, Central London, in January. It’s reported that at least one staff member tried to sneak a peek at the future Queen’s private medical records during her 13-night stay at the clinic.

Kate had successful abdominal surgery at the clinic and was discharged on January 29. King Charles, 75, was also treated at the same centre at the same time for an enlarged prostate. It’s believed that Kate has been informed about the alleged incident.

An insider told the Mirror that the security slip-up at the posh 56-room hospital is a big blow because it’s known for looking after Royals without any trouble. They said: “Senior hospital bosses contacted Kensington Palace immediately after the incident was brought to their attention and assured the palace there would be a full investigation.

“The whole medical staff have been left utterly shocked and distraught over the allegations and were very hurt that a trusted colleague could have possibly been responsible for such a breach of trust and ethics.” It’s against the law for NHS or private hospital workers to peek at patient files without getting the okay from the person in charge of keeping the data safe.

A spokesperson from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said: “We can confirm that we have received a breach report and are assessing the information provided.” The London clinic didn’t want to talk about what happened but did say: “We firmly believe that all our patients, no matter their status, deserve total privacy and confidentiality regarding their medical information.”

The hospital let the Palace know about the incident as soon as they found out, sources mentioned. Kensington Palace has said: “This is a matter for The London Clinic.”

Cancer shock

In a heart-wrenching message on Friday, March 22, Kate revealed she has been diagnosed with cancer and is currently undergoing preventative treatment. She said: “I wanted to say thank you, personally, for all the lovely messages of support and for understanding while I’ve been recovering from surgery.

“It’s been a really tough few months for our whole family, but I’ve had an amazing medical team looking after me, and I’m so thankful for them. In January, I had major tummy surgery in London and at that time, they thought my condition wasn’t cancerous. The surgery went well. But, tests after the operation found out there was cancer. So, my doctors said I should have some preventative chemotherapy and I’ve just started that treatment.

“This was a big shock, of course, and William and I have been trying to deal with this privately for our young family. As you can guess, this has taken time. It took me time to recover from the big surgery before starting my treatment. But, most importantly, it took us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that’s right for them, and to reassure them that I’m going to be ok.”

In her latest statement, she said: “I have been blown away by all the kind messages of support and encouragement over the last couple of months.

“It really has made the world of difference to William and me and has helped us both through some of the harder times.

“I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days.

“On those bad days you feel weak, tired and you have to give in to your body resting.

“But on the good days, when you feel stronger, you want to make the most of feeling well. My treatment is ongoing and will be for a few more months.”

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