Have you been wondering what’s been happening behind closed doors at Windsor? If so, you’re not alone. Ever since Kate Middleton’s last public appearance, people have been curious about her health and whereabouts. In mid-January, the Princess of Wales underwent a “planned” abdominal surgery. Since then, the Palace has remained tight-lipped about her exact health state, only reassuring the public that she is “doing well.” They have also stated that they will only share details when something significant occurs.

Recently, there was a glimmer of hope for those eagerly awaiting Kate’s return to royal duties. The Minister of Defense confirmed that she would be attending the Trooping the Colour dress rehearsal ceremony on June 8, leading up to the main event on June 15. However, it was later revealed that this announcement was a mistake. The potential return of the Princess of Wales had been deleted from an Army website without consultation from Kensington Palace.

Victoria Ward, a royal reporter for the Telegraph, shared on X that “It seems the MoD jumped the gun with this announcement and that Kensington Palace was not consulted…we will have to wait to see if the PoW will be well enough to attend.”

What’s more surprising is that the event’s overview mentioned Kate’s presence multiple times. Phrases like “Trooping the Colour reviewed by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales is identical to Trooping the Colour reviewed by His Majesty The King” and “Trooping the Colour reviewed by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales also includes 250 soldiers from the Foot Guards” were included. It even mentioned that “The soldiers will be inspected by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales, Colonel Irish Guards.” However, all traces of Kate’s involvement were eventually removed from the website.

This extended absence from the public eye is highly unusual for a royal of Kate’s rank. The last photo the public saw of her was one taken by TMZ, which some suspect was staged. She also shared a photo of herself with her children on Mother’s Day. However, it was later discovered that the image had been edited in certain parts. News agencies were advised not to use the photo, and the Associated Press even issued a statement saying, “The Associated Press initially published the photo, which was issued by Kensington Palace. The AP later retracted the image because at closer inspection, it appears that the source had manipulated the image in a way that did not meet AP’s photo standards. The photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s left hand.”

Although the Palace did not comment on the edited photo, Kate herself took to the couple’s official X account to address the situation. She wrote, “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.”

Kensington Palace later confirmed that they “would not be reissuing the original unedited photograph of Kate and her children.” The mystery surrounding Kate’s whereabouts continues, but we hope to see her back in the public eye soon.

Stay tuned for more updates on the Princess of Wales’ return to royal duties!