How Prince William's Really Handling Kate's Cancer Diagnosis
Anyone whose spouse has endured a major illness knows the responsibility that comes with serving as a caretaker and as emotional support. Now toss being the crown prince of the U.K. on top of that. That's what Prince William is facing.
Transcript
00:00 "Anyone whose spouse has endured a major illness knows the responsibility that comes with serving
00:05 as a caretaker and as emotional support. Now toss being the Crown Prince of the UK on top
00:11 of that. That's what Prince William is facing."
00:15 After King Charles III shared his cancer diagnosis with the world on February 5th, 2024, his
00:21 eldest son, Prince William, stuck to his duties. The Prince of Wales and heir to the throne
00:26 appeared at royal events such as the 2023 Diana Awards, and he played basketball at
00:31 the opening of a youth charity facility in London.
00:35 All the while, speculation and rumors about his wife, Princess Catherine's well-being,
00:39 spun out of control after she had abdominal surgery in January. On March 22nd, Catherine
00:45 formally announced that she'd spent the last few months out of the public eye because she'd
00:50 been diagnosed with cancer. Following the announcement, sources told People that William
00:54 would be taking a relatively short break from royal duties to support Catherine and their
00:59 children. William wanted to be home as much as possible while his kids were on a break
01:03 from school. He resumed his duties on April 18th, 2024, with a visit to a food bank and
01:09 youth center.
01:11 Prince William has reportedly been a pillar of support for Princess Catherine. Understandably,
01:16 there have been questions about who has been supporting William while he navigates his
01:20 wife and father's cancer diagnoses. Reporter Sarah Louise Robertson told GB News,
01:26 "He's carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders right now."
01:30 Thankfully, William isn't facing things alone. Royal expert Phil Dampier told The Sun that
01:36 the family's longtime nanny, Maria Borrello, as well as William's mother-in-law, Carol
01:41 Middleton, have been tremendous sources of assistance during this time. Dampier said
01:46 the rest of the family is standing by, too, adding,
01:50 "William will be Kate's rock while she is in hospital, but other members of the Royal
01:54 family will be giving her their love and support as well."
01:57 Unless you simply ignore news about the British royal family, you know Prince William and
02:02 Prince Harry's relationship is not in a great spot. Harry and wife Meghan Markle's Oprah
02:07 Winfrey interview, their Netflix documentary series, and Harry's book Spare laid out all
02:12 their dirty laundry for the world. So it's not really surprising that William isn't leaning
02:17 on his younger brother for support.
02:19 "I don't think that we can ever have peace with my family unless the truth is out there."
02:26 With Princess Catherine undergoing cancer treatment, the last thing the family needs
02:30 is any kind of drama from their relatives across the Atlantic. That said, according
02:35 to ITV royal editor Chris Shipp, Harry and Meghan did contact William and Kate. Shipp
02:42 wrote on Ex, formerly known as Twitter,
02:44 "Prince Harry has reached out to his brother, Prince William, after learning of Kate's cancer.
02:50 Harry and Meghan have both been in touch with their brother/sister-in-law but did so privately."
02:55 According to a report from The Independent, a friend of William and Kate's claimed they
02:59 don't want a visit from Harry and Meghan. Evidently, they'd prefer to steer clear of
03:04 all the public attention that would follow.
03:07 Though he temporarily paused his public duties, William didn't stay home that whole time.
03:13 On April 10, 2024, the Daily Mail's Richard Eden shared that he'd heard William and mother-in-law
03:18 Carol Middleton had gone out to a pub close to William and Catherine's home at Anmer Hall.
03:24 A source told Eden,
03:25 "It was all very low-key, with no great fanfare. He just walked in and threw the pub."
03:30 Kate's parents are apparently having some financial trouble, in addition to dealing
03:34 with their daughter's health concerns. According to The Times, Carol and Michael Middleton
03:39 are apparently in a lot of debt because of the way things shook out after they sold their
03:44 company Party Pieces in 2019. Evidently, they owe £260,000 to the company that was tasked
03:51 with handling the insolvency. A source told Us Weekly,
03:55 "It's a very worrying time for the family, but they are not looking for any assistance
04:00 from their children and don't want them to worry."
04:03 On April 11, Prince William took his eldest child, 10-year-old Prince George, to a soccer
04:08 game. Aston Villa took on Lille OSC in a UEFA Europa Conference League quarterfinal. William
04:15 and George were seen clapping, cheering, and chatting as they watched the match, with cameras
04:19 panning over to them. Aston Villa won the match, so they could go home with smiles on
04:24 their faces.
04:25 In the video in which Catherine announced she had cancer, she mentioned that she and
04:29 William made a point to make sure their kids were brought up to speed on her health before
04:33 the news was made public.
04:34 "It has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte, and Louis in a way that's
04:39 appropriate for them and to reassure them that I'm going to be okay."
04:43 The day before attending the Aston Villa match, William posted his first social media update
04:48 since Kate's announcement, and it was football-focused, too. In an Instagram story, the prince praised
04:54 England lioness Rachel Daly after she announced she would be retiring from the sport. He wrote,
04:59 "Thank you for so many unforgettable performances with @lionessrachaldaly. Plenty more goals
05:05 for Villa now."
05:06 William signed off with a "W."
05:09 In a March 25th opinion column for The New York Times, royal author Tina Brown wrote
05:14 about the unimaginable pressure William and Catherine must be feeling. On top of Kate's
05:19 own health concerns, there's the possibility they will ascend the throne faster than previously
05:23 anticipated, given King Charles' cancer diagnosis. Plus, they've got three young children to
05:29 take care of. The timing couldn't be worse. It's something Queen Elizabeth II herself
05:35 experienced when her father, George VI, died and she ascended the throne in 1952 at the
05:41 age of just 25.
05:43 What's more, the relentless media speculation reportedly reminded William of the press hounding
05:47 his mother, Princess Diana, ultimately leading to her own untimely death. Sunday Times royal
05:54 editor Roya Nika told Good Morning Britain,
05:57 "I think he feels he's seeing sort of elements of that being repeated again in terms of sort
06:01 of the demands and screeches at his wife over her medical privacy and that's hurting him."
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