Racy vacation photos, allegations of racism, and rumors of a secret love child. Prince William and Princess Catherine have dodged plenty of controversies over the years — but these scandals have been harder to escape.
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00:00Racy vacation photos, allegations of racism, and rumors of a secret love child,
00:05Prince William and Princess Catherine have dodged plenty of controversies over the years.
00:09But these scandals have been harder to escape.
00:12Prince William and Princess Catherine's love story almost didn't turn out the way it did.
00:16Five years into their high-profile romance, the couple parted ways in 2007. Their breakup
00:20caused a furor in the media and among fans of the young couple, who had been enthusiastic about
00:25seeing Catherine as the Queen of England one day. A host of reasons were offered for William and
00:29Catherine's split, including the prince's wandering eye. A source told The Observer,
00:33"[He broke up with Kate because he's met someone else who's turned his head."
00:36Biographer Christopher Anderson further elaborated, in William and Kate A Royal
00:40Love Story, that intense media scrutiny cast a shadow over their relationship,
00:43leaving Catherine feeling anxious and overwhelmed. However, the split didn't last long.
00:48Only a few weeks later, the beloved duo reconciled. In an interview for ITV News
00:52following their 2010 engagement, the pair reflected on their highly publicized breakup,
00:56with Catherine recalling the unhappiness she had felt. She explained,
01:00"'I really valued that time for me as well, although I didn't think it at the time."
01:04Prince William and Catherine's wedding in 2011 was a highly anticipated event,
01:08with millions of viewers around the globe tuning into the television broadcast. However,
01:12it wasn't just their wedding that caught the public's attention. Moments from their honeymoon
01:16also made their way into the spotlight. Australian magazine Woman's Day was held
01:20responsible for the leak, which included multiple photos of the royal couple on a
01:23private vacation in Seychelles. Though many specifics of William and Catherine's 10-day
01:27getaway were known to the British press, there was reportedly an agreement within
01:31the industry to safeguard the couple's privacy. Nevertheless, a snap of the royal couple in
01:35swimwear made it to the front cover of the magazine over a year after they were taken.
01:39The photo predictably caused a commotion within the palace halls,
01:42with reports indicating the couple's disappointment over the breach of privacy.
01:46Royal life comes with constant scrutiny, but in 2012, William and Catherine faced the downside
01:51of it when some private moments from their marriage were thrust into the public eye.
01:54French magazine Closer published topless photos of the duchess sunbathing while on
01:58vacation in Provence, France. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, an injunction managed
02:02to rein in some of the circulation of the photos, but it didn't entirely stop the scandal from
02:06reaching the public consciousness. William and Catherine took the magazine to court,
02:10suing it for over $2 million. Closer defended its coverage by putting forth that it was in
02:14no case degrading, The New York Times reported. The argument didn't seem to hold much water
02:18since several of the magazine's staff, including its editor, were fined for privacy invasion.
02:23The British royals were ultimately awarded $150,000 in damages in 2017.
02:28William and Catherine's trip to India in 2016 had several noteworthy moments,
02:33some more significant than others. One of these was the royal couple's visit to the historic
02:37Kaziranga National Park. A rich ecological hub, the park is especially prominent for
02:41its large rhinoceros population, some of which the royal visitors had the opportunity to meet.
02:46Photos of William and Catherine feeding baby rhinos and elephants may have endeared some
02:50fans, but plenty of others were upset. Some of the strongest criticism came from journalist
02:55Piers Morgan, who tore into the royal couple's photo op in a piece for Daily Mail. Morgan wrote,
02:59The sight of Kate and William feeding a baby rhino may be cute, but when you consider that
03:03there are two stuffed ones sitting in Sandringham, the hypocrisy makes my stomach churn.
03:07Morgan also delved into the royal family's ties to trophy hunting, adding fuel to his criticism.
03:12His denunciation was especially relevant in the context of the park they were visiting,
03:16where poaching is not uncommon. In fact, NDTV reported that only a few hours after the royal
03:21visit, a rhino was killed in the national park. A key aspect of the narrative surrounding Prince
03:26Harry and Meghan Markle's history-making exit from the British royal family was the supposed
03:30part William and Catherine played in it. The dynamics between the royal fab four were complex,
03:35and were only getting more difficult in the days leading up to Harry and Meghan's departure to the
03:38United States. Royal commentators traced it back to 2018, the year Meghan married into the family.
03:44Murmurs of tension building between William and Harry surfaced, with The Sun reporting on
03:47Harry's move away from Kensington Palace. A source alleged at the time,
03:51Now Harry and Meghan don't want to live next to William and Kate and want to strike out on their
03:55own. That set the stage for a series of stunning public revelations that indicated a growing rift
04:00between the couples. From William snubbing Meghan in the palace to Catherine allegedly making her
04:04cry, speculation flew around the strained internal politics of the next-gen royals.
04:08Harry and Meghan's official step back from royal duties served as a freeway for the rebel couple
04:13to validate several rumors about the feuding family. They opened up about their experiences
04:17in high-profile interviews and projects, including their 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview,
04:22their 2022 Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, and Harry's 2023 memoir, Spare.
04:27I don't think that we can ever have peace with my family unless the truth is out there."
04:33Though the runaway prince has expressed a desire to reconcile with his family,
04:37there's no report of any real improvement in their fractured relations.
04:40Many people may only just be getting to know Rose Hanbury thanks to the buzz that
04:44surrounded Catherine's public absence in early 2024 and the wild theories that followed. However,
04:49royal watchers know that the Marchioness of Cholmondeley, as she is titled,
04:52has been a significant player in high society circles for years. She came to wide prominence
04:56in 2019 when British tabloids suggested a rift between her and Catherine. The two women reportedly
05:02clashed for reasons that remain unclear, with allegations that the Princess of Wales wanted
05:06Rose Hanbury phased out of their countryside group, according to the Daily Beast.
05:09While some commentators challenged the truth behind these claims,
05:12they gave social media users fertile ground to sprout theories of infidelity
05:16that linked Prince William to Hanbury. The royal couple unsurprisingly remained tight-lipped on the
05:20matter, but insiders were willing to offer some insight into William and Catherine's
05:24alleged marital troubles. A source told Us Weekly,
05:26"...it's not unusual to have a few hiccups in a marriage, especially after eight years,
05:30and Kate and William are no different."
05:32When affair rumors between her and William resurfaced in 2024, Hanbury stepped up to
05:36initiate legal action. Her lawyer sent a notice to Stephen Colbert, who joked about it on his talk show.
05:41"...so, I think we all know who the alleged other woman is, say it with me,
05:46the Marchioness of Cholmondeley."
05:50Ever set out to do something good, only for it to backfire and create an utter mess?
05:54William and Catherine got a taste of that experience in 2020 when they undertook a
05:57train tour across the United Kingdom to express gratitude to COVID-19 frontline workers.
06:02The three-day journey was scheduled to cover England, Scotland, and Wales,
06:05and was especially notable as it marked Catherine's first expedition aboard the British
06:09Royal Train. It didn't take long for the situation to turn controversial,
06:13with widespread criticism for William and Catherine breaching pandemic travel restrictions.
06:17Reports from The National revealed explosive details, claiming that the Scottish government
06:21repeatedly notified Buckingham Palace about COVID-19 restrictions affecting William and
06:25Catherine's tour. Politician James Hynde even warned Buckingham Palace in advance, saying,
06:30"...this is obviously likely to have a major impact on the plans you are working on, I am afraid."
06:34However, a statement from the royal side maintained that the governments of all
06:37three countries were looped into the plan and that William and Catherine
06:40were traveling for work purposes and following all the rules.
06:44In 2022, William and Catherine went on a tour around some Caribbean countries to
06:48mark the platinum jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. However, the royal outing was deemed as
06:52nothing short of one PR disaster after another, with things going off script right from the get-go.
06:57Protests in the village of Indian Creek, where the royal couple was scheduled to visit,
07:01affected their first stop in Belize. Next came protests in Jamaica, where demonstrators
07:05highlighted the British monarchy's oppressive history, demanding an apology from the crown for
07:09its legacy of colonization and slavery. William also did little to curb public anger when he said
07:14at an event in Jamaica,
07:15"...slavery was abhorrent, and it should never have happened."
07:19Calls for the British monarch's removal as the head of state overrode the royals'
07:23Jamaican tour, which was also interspersed with other problematic elements. These included a
07:27military parade and an interaction with children through fences that made for controversial photo
07:31ops. A similar state of affairs involving protesters awaited William and Catherine
07:35in the Bahamas. To make matters even thornier, the Sovereign Grant Annual Report showed that
07:40William and Catherine's Caribbean tour was incredibly expensive, with $270,000 spent on
07:45flights alone.
07:46In 2022, William and Catherine embarked on their first visit to the United States
07:50in nearly a decade. It did not, however, go as smoothly as they would have hoped for.
07:54The ill-fated trip happened to coincide with an incident back in Britain that reinforced
07:58allegations around Buckingham Palace's racist tendencies. Lady Susan Hussey, who served as
08:03Queen Elizabeth II's lady-in-waiting, was accused of asking Black charity leader Ngozi Fulani about
08:08her African heritage and the origins of her people. As Fulani told The Independent,
08:12this woman was relentless and determined I am not British.
08:16So I said, I'm from here."
08:19After facing allegations of racism the year before due to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's
08:23interview with Oprah Winfrey, the palace quickly moved to distance itself from the
08:26controversial remarks. The royal aide ultimately stepped down from her position following the
08:31backlash. A spokesperson for William issued a strong statement against racism, which didn't
08:35seem to help his reputation among U.S. audiences. The royal pair was subjected to boos and chants
08:40of USA! USA! at a basketball game they attended in Boston, a snub that received wide media
08:45coverage. Their troubles didn't end there. While William and Catherine attended an event
08:49in Somerville, Massachusetts, several protesters also held up signs that were in opposition to
08:53the monarchy. For anyone with a social media account, it would have been hard to escape
08:58the relentless theorizing that followed Princess Catherine's disappearance from the public eye
09:02in 2024. The mass speculation was set off days after Kensington Palace announced in mid-January
09:07that the Princess of Wales had undergone planned abdominal surgery and requested privacy.
09:11Media reports simultaneously indicated that William was by his wife's side through her
09:15health issues. Even as the palace relayed updates about Catherine's health, her lack
09:19of public appearances stretched long enough to spawn wild conspiracy theories about what
09:23actually happened to her. Social media went ballistic. While some raised the alarm about
09:27Catherine's safety, others speculated about a possible cover-up of some kind of royal scandal.
09:32A botched Photoshop job and an odd clarification by Catherine did little to tame conspiracy
09:37theorists. There was also widespread discussion about William's role in the matter. Many fingers
09:41pointed toward the silent crown prince, with internet users regurgitating old gossip about
09:46an alleged affair with Rose Hanbury, including talk of an illegitimate child that the two shared.
09:50Kate Gate, as the sensation came to be known, saw some resolution when Catherine appeared on
09:54video in March to personally share her cancer diagnosis with the world.
09:58We now need some time, space, and privacy while I complete my treatment."
10:03The message evoked a solemn reaction from viewers, although some were quick to point
10:06out William's absence from the video, even as his wife made a major announcement.