The Princess of Wales took to social media last week to apologise for the confusion surrounding the photo, and is reportedly “very sad” that it led to outrage online. Questions over whether the snap was Photoshopped quickly turned into theories about her whereabouts as she continues to recover from surgery, with experts labelling the rumours “hateful comments and cheap shots”.
The Sun photographer Arthur Edwards claimed the Princess would find the speculation “upsetting”, as friends of the Waleses told The Sunday Times the couple were well aware of the coverage and countless social media posts about them.
According to one insider, the rumours about their marriage were “cruel”. Royal watchers had noted Kate was not wearing her wedding ring in the edited snap, though she doesn’t always wear her diamond-and-sapphire engagement ring.
The couple are reportedly feeling “shaken”, with one friend telling the outlet they had hoped people would respect their privacy following Kate’s surgery.
“It’s not that they didn’t think there would be lots of speculation and interest, but they had confidence that people would give them the space they asked for, which they did for about a month,” one said.
The Princess of Wales was last seen in public with her family at a Christmas Day service last year. Photo / Getty Images
Another claimed it was “hypocritical” for photo agencies to condemn Kate for editing because they have a history of “image cropping and photo altering to tell a story”.
According to The Sunday Times, the couple are spending time at Adelaide Cottage as Kate recovers.
William is reportedly worried his wife is experiencing a similar situation to what his mother, Princess Diana, went through at the hands of the media and the public. Another source claims Kate is considering speaking out about her diagnosis in the future, though she’s not expected to return to public engagements until after Easter.
Royal fans were concerned when Prince William pulled out of an appearance at a memorial service last week due to a “personal matter”. Shortly afterwards, the sweet Mother’s Day photo was shared — but it wasn’t long until questions were raised over the obviously edited snap.
Several photo agencies then issued an official notice to recall the photo due to concerns it had been “edited at the source”.
Despite the photo controversy, the royals are expected to continue with the tradition of releasing a new portrait for each of their children’s birthdays.
According to The Times, William and Kate plan to issue a new photo of their youngest child, Prince Louis, to mark his 6th birthday on April 23, though it has not been confirmed by the palace.
It’s not clear whether Kate will take the photo, as she often does, or employ an official royal photographer.
