It seems like every day brings a wild new conspiracy theory about Kate Middleton. Ever since a photograph of the Princess of Wales and her three children was released – then found to be edited – following speculation surrounding her health, the rumour mill has been spiralling out of control.
Online speculation was only exacerbated when Kate and William were allegedly spotted out at a farm shop in Windsor earlier this week. One TikTok video, captioned ‘It’s NOT Kate’ and featuring zoomed in ‘proof’, has been viewed 1.2m times at the time of writing.
From ‘Swiftie Theories’ on the matter to elaborate disappearance rumours, the story is becoming increasingly far-fetched in the UK. But the strange frenzy surrounding ‘Kate-gate’ has gone global, and is now gaining traction in the US. Talk shows have dedicated entire segments to the news, while A-list celebrities have been alluding to the story on social media – and then facing the wrath of royal fans.
In a nod to the internet sleuths going viral, Kim Kardashian recently posted a carousel of nine images of herself on Instagram with the caption ‘On my way to go find Kate’. Meanwhile, Blake Lively entered the sphere with her own Instagram post promoting new products for her drinks company, Betty Buzz.
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The caption for the photo, which is intentionally photoshopped with outsized hands and superimposed lemons, reads: ‘I’m so excited to share this new photo I just took today to announce our 4 new @bettybuzz & @bettybooze products! Now you know why I’ve been MIA.’
These nods to the royal story have received mixed responses, with some fans viewing it as light-hearted fun and others suggesting that the posts are ‘mocking’ and ‘bullying’ an unwell woman. The backlash on Blake’s post ranges from straightforward disapproval (with comments like ‘This is in such bad taste’, ‘Not funny at all. Surprised that you have joined this “trend”’) to more toxic trolling.
It’s a similar story in the comments section of Kim’s post. While the top comments seem to take a more laid back approach – ‘Omg that caption is going to stir up so much more drama 😂’ and ‘Not on my way to find Kate LMFAOOOOO’ – a backlash has also been swirling. ‘Really? Had to get on the Kate Middleton train. I knew there was a reason I stopped watching your show’ says one sceptic, while another reads simply: ‘Stay in your lane Kim’.
Whatever your perspective, it seems that the internet is far from tired of this unusual story.
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