I’ve covered Tessa Dunlop’s royal musings previously, and all I can say about her is that she’s not a complete hater. She’s defended the Sussexes at times and she’s considered more of an above-the-fray historian rather than a screeching talking head who parrots palace talking points. Well, Dr. Dunlop wrote an interesting piece about the increasingly chaotic and shambolic activities and messages from Kensington Palace. The piece, published in the Independent, is called “The uncomfortable truth about Kate and William that nobody wants to admit.” What is that uncomfortable truth? That William and Kate are bad at this and they don’t want to do it anyway. LOL. Remember how QEII reportedly said “Après moi, le déluge?” This is what she was talking about. Some highlights:
William & Kate have zero credibility: TMZ, the USA’s behemoth showbiz site, insisted the palace has “got caught in a lie … confidence is shot”. Time magazine ran a similar editorial: “The royal family has a trust problem.” Both have a point, but Kensington Palace doesn’t see it like that. And nor do Britain’s supposedly attack-dog tabloids. The same day America demanded accountability, The Sun newspaper urged its readers to “Lay off Kate” and an unusually rueful Daily Mail mused “How did Kate’s photo become a PR disaster?” When British tabloid newspapers, famed for their rude combination of patriotic genuflecting and brutal royal shaming, err on the side of caution, you know there’s a problem. One that runs much deeper than a doctored family photograph.
What happened when Charles & Kate disappeared: Confronted with a personnel vacuum, the rumour mill started to turn. Spirited attempts by Camilla and (part-time) William to fill the gap left behind have done nothing to stem ugly gossip and conspiracy surrounding the disappearance of Kate. The absence of Harry has never been felt so acutely, and with the launch of Meghan’s new business venture, it’s a reminder that regal trappings don’t require royal levels of commitment.
Kate doesn’t want to come back: As Hilary Mantel once observed, Kate seemed “to have been selected for her role of princess because she was irreproachable … she appears precision-made”. If something looks too good to be true, it probably is. Scratch that perfect image and instead try imagining Kate as a stretched middle-aged mum, propping up an old King, a crabby husband and an energetic pack of primary school-aged children. Unwell and in the rush hour of life, it is very possible she doesn’t relish the prospect of returning to her royal rounds under the inscrutable gaze of the British public….Having endured a major operation, the Princess of Wales might not be quite so keen to return to the limelight. Given the obsessive levels of attention that the Mother’s Day photograph received, can you blame her?
British Republicanism & a complacent Huevo: A reset is already taking place, led by her husband, William. With his charismatic younger brother Harry and wife Meghan out of the royal picture, the Prince of Wales could be seen as verging on complacent. Or maybe, this is William, like his brother, just doing things his way. If he doesn’t want to go to the Women’s World Cup Football Final in Australia, he won’t go. Nor will he explain his absence. Ditto his mysterious withdrawal from the ex-Greek monarch’s memorial service, and this week’s refusal to release the original Mother’s Day photograph or provide any sort of credible explanation as its alleged photographer. These days, William is a “working” royal on his terms, and his terms alone.
Will & Kate will do whatever they want: But in the embers of this weird week of royal news, a longer-term existential crisis lurks. Kate and William know that the mainstream media depend on them; if they want to show less of themselves, they can. Royal fans will have to make do, most will try to understand. But what about the younger, more cynical generation who don’t consume news through conventional channels? (Photo-gate blew up on social media, not in the press.)
Gen Z vs the Reluctant King & Queen: Gen-Zers are as likely to wave an anti-monarchy placard as they are to buy a newspaper. For them, posting pictures of non-consensual children on social media feels more cruel than it does cute. What happens when these non-believers grow up and face down a reluctant King and Queen? Republican zeal tends to fade with age; but it’s likely Generation Z will simply mature into royal agnostics, a potentially fatal match for Britain’s future royal family under William, with pots of money and a take-me or leave-me approach. A civilised handshake and it could all be over. Apathy on both sides of the palace wall, not revolution, is the real scourge of modern monarchy.
There’s this thing lately, where William is projecting this “who gonna check me boo” energy and royal commentators are just now figuring that out. The British commentators don’t like to say that William is reluctant, but he is. Even more than that, he’s unprepared, unwilling and too lazy to change or work to become better or more engaging. Why should he? He can do whatever he wants and the British media works overtime to protect him, coddle him and embiggen him. He even got away with throwing his ill wife under the bus. All that being said, the idea of a “reluctant Kate” is fascinating. Is that what this is now – Kate is suddenly even more reticent, even more unwilling to play along? Anyway, the whole thing is a sh-tshow, congrats!
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.