- The Prince and Princess visited the shop after watching their children play sport
Smiling and strolling with her husband, a new image of the Princess of Wales will reassure fans she is making a good recovery from her abdominal surgery.
The picture captured by a member of the public on Saturday shows William, 41, and Kate, 42, visiting the Windsor Farm Shop, a short drive from their Berkshire home.
Looking healthy, happy and relaxed, the princess carries her own shopping bag and laughingly chats with her husband as the pair exit the shop and return to their car, according to the image published by The Sun.
They were not accompanied by their three children, Prince George, ten, Princess Charlotte, eight, and five-year-old Prince Louis.
The couple have, in recent weeks, been left deeply distressed by wild social media speculation and gossip about Kate’s health and whereabouts.
This has since been reported by publications ranging from the New York Times to British Vogue – and even become the subject of cruel mockery on prime time American television.
Global superstars such as Kim Kardashian have added fuel to the fire with posts about Kate’s ‘disappearance’ to their millions of fans.
The debacle over the princess’ well-meaning Mother’s Day photograph, which she later admitted to having tried to edit, only added to the swirl of speculation.
This was preceded by William’s sudden announcement he was pulling out of his godfather’s memorial service last month on what was only described as a ‘personal matter’ just 45 minutes before he had been due to give a reading.
Against the backdrop of the King’s cancer diagnosis, the drama has created a febrile atmosphere of gossip and conjecture around the Royal Family.
Sources close to the Wales’ have told the Mail they have found the speculation hugely hurtful and hard to deal with, but were determined to focus on what was important to them – their family and the princess’ recovery.
It is anticipated that the new image, showing the couple going about their normal lives, will go some way to calming many of the wilder rumours that have gripped people across the globe.
The snap was taken at 12.43pm on Saturday by a member of the public who was also at the farm shop, just a mile’s drive from the Wales’ Adelaide Cottage home, on their Apple iPhone 12 Pro phone.
The person concerned said they were visiting the shop to ‘kill time’ while on the way to meet someone to buy an item from Facebook when they recognised William and Kate and were struck by how ‘happy’ they looked.
They spotted the couple again in the car park and decided to capture the moment to share with their own delighted family.
‘When I went inside I looked around and noticed them. They all looked happy,’ the person, who wishes to remain anonymous, said.
‘To be honest I don’t follow this type of news but I shared [it] with my family – they were like ‘oh, she’s alive!’ ‘
The prince and princess are both dressed casually, each carrying a white shopping bag in their left hand.
Kate sports black leggings, tucked into socks and trainers, with a zip-up top and is wearing her hair loose.
William is wearing blue jeans, trainers and a jacket with a baseball cap pulled low down over his forehead.
As they chat, the pair – who will celebrate 13 years of marriage in April – couldn’t look happier.
And the fact that the princess seems to be walking with such ease suggests that she is very much on the mend.
On January 17 Kensington Palace announced that Kate had been admitted to The London Clinic in Marylebone, Central London, the previous day for ‘planned abdominal surgery’.
It said the operation had been successful but would result in a two-week stay in hospital before a period of lengthy recuperation at home.
Her spokesman added that, based on the current medical advice, she was unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter.
That advice has not changed.
A spokesman stated that it was the Princess’ personal wish to keep her medical information private and said it would only provide an update if there were ‘significant new information to share’.
However their clear statement failed to stop social media and overseas publications, websites and television from speculating wildly about the Princess’ whereabouts and what may have happened to her. The hashtag #whereiskate began trending.
Even the BBC website tackled the issue, highlighting the outlandish speculation under the title: ‘Royal dilemma as public curiosity over Kate’s health grows.’
Some of it has been farcical, including the much-repeated rumour that she is recuperating from a ‘Brazilian bum lift’ or hiding away after a bad haircut.
Other claims, however, have been downright offensive – including that made by a journalist on Spanish television that she has been in a coma that gained huge international traction and had to be openly denied by Kensington Palace.
However trolls and conspiracy theorists have continued used her absence and the lawlessness of social media to spread deeply sinister and highly libellous claims to this day.
A spokesman recently re-iterated their previous advice that they were not going to provide a ‘running commentary’ on the Princess’ health.
‘From our perspective, we were very clear from our statement at the start of this in January that the Princess of Wales planned to be out of public action until after Easter and that hasn’t changed,’ they said.
James Parker is a UK-based entertainment aficionado who delves into the glitz and glamour of the entertainment industry. From Hollywood to the West End, he offers readers an insider’s perspective on the world of movies, music, and pop culture.
