Us Weekly released more of their cover story this week, which is all about how Prince William is frozen with anxiety over every part of his life. The first excerpt read like “poor William, his wife and father have cancer, won’t anyone think about how HE suffers?” Maybe people would be more sympathetic towards William if he hadn’t lied and misrepresented for months, thrown his apparently cancer-stricken wife under the bus and been largely shaky and drunk in his few public appearances. I’m just saying. Anyway, Us Weekly also wants to point out that William is dealing with crushing pressure to be the face of the monarchy, all while trying to do the school run and dealing with debt-ridden in-laws. Us Weekly made a list:
Brothers at War: The fractured relationship between William and his younger brother, Prince Harry, is showing no signs of improvement. (Harry reportedly found out about Kate’s cancer diagnosis along with the rest of the world.) “There hasn’t been more contact between William and Harry,” says a source. “Harry and Meghan reached out to him, but it hasn’t opened up the lines of conversation. They still do not communicate.”
A vulnerable Charles: On February 5, Buckingham Palace revealed Charles had been diagnosed with an unspecified cancer after he underwent treatment for an enlarged prostate a few weeks earlier. In March, royal author Christopher Andersen told Us he believes Charles’ prognosis is “more serious than we are being led to believe,” adding, “William has the double whammy of having to see his father deal with this and his wife.”
A missing princess: The princess’ absence has been keenly felt as she’s remained largely out of the public eye since being diagnosed with cancer following a planned abdominal surgery in mid-January. “The nation is gunning for Kate to get better,” says royal expert Tessa Dunlop. “The monarchy needs her.” Fellow royals expert Gareth Russell says she may attend the annual Trooping the Colour in June but notes “that could change at a moment’s notice.”
Dad duties: While Kate undergoes treatment, William has his hands full at home with George, Louis and Charlotte. He’s said to be taking them to and from school, and during their recent spring break, the hands-on dad spent time painting with them and doing archery. “They all [also] love to play cards,” says a source. “That’s something that Kate can be involved with as well and that they’ve always loved to do as a family.”
His in-laws’ debt: According to reports, Kate’s parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, are in debt for more than $300,000 after selling their children’s party supplies company, Party Pieces, in 2023 after 36 years in business. “It’s been devastating for the family, but Carole will be most concerned about Kate’s well-being right now,” says royal commentator Afua Hagan. “She will be pulling out all the stops to shield Kate from this.”
Face of the Monarchy: Despite some help from Queen Camilla and his aunt and uncle, Princess Sophie and Prince Edward, William is currently the most public-facing royal by a mile, attending a series of meetings and events, including the BAFTAs, solo. “The whole fate of the monarchy rests on his shoulders,” says Andersen. “I’m sure it’s a crushing weight, and it’s happening much earlier than he thought it would.”
“Carole and Michael Middleton, are in debt for more than $300,000” – it’s much more than that, the $300K figure is solely what they owe to the insolvency firm which arranged the fire sale of Party Pieces. The sale of Party Pieces was arranged so that the Middletons and PP’s new owner are not on the hook for the $3 million debt Party Pieces racked up. It’s also interesting that this whole piece is “poor William, look at everything on his plate” EXCEPT for the Middletons. William’s already declared that the Middletons’ grift is none of his business and none of his responsibility.
Re: the kids and William’s “dad duties” – I still have not seen one credible report about Nanny Maria and whether she’s still working for the Wales family. Maria’s name has been largely missing from the reporting this year, to the point where you’d think that only Carole and William are responsible for those kids. So… anyway… weird vibes all around. As I’ve said before (like on last week’s podcast), I truly do not have a conspiracy which explains everything we’ve witnessed around the Windsors this year.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.