Her pale face was a study in elegance and calm determination. A year ago, the princess of Wales gave her groundbreaking and deeply moving, video message to the world that revealed that cancer was diagnosed with her and was now in the early stages of chemotherapy.
Sitting on a couch with a couch with daffodils behind her, she spoke about the 'huge shock' of the diagnosis and spoke directly with others with cancer: 'For anyone who faces this disease, in whatever form, do not lose faith or hope. You are not alone. '
What a contrast with the recent performances by the princess, when we have seen a glowing person, is really no other word for-Catherine that the Irish guards on St Patrick's Day schedule and claim to smile at her husband at the Commonwealth Day Service and again at the English Wales Rugby International.
It is clear that William and Catherine are happy in a 'much better place' after a tumultuous 12 months.
“It is actually wonderful to see how far they have come,” says a friend.
Her health remains her priority – a diet full of healthy antioxidants, stumbling at the gym and are generally outside, especially with her family, as much as she can.
But although Catherine understandably concentrates on long -term recovery, she was also relaxed enough to enjoy half a pint of Guinness earlier this week when she, beautifully in bottle green, accessorized with twigs of Shamrock, talked to soldiers after the annual parade of the regiment, which she lived as colonel of the Irish.
Two days earlier she was blasted in the midst of the Rugby Team of England when they celebrated the victory over Wales in Cardiff. She is a patron of the Rugby Football Association of England, while William is a patron of the Welsh Rugby Union and the couple has always enjoyed healthy competition with each other.
A year ago, the princess of Wales spent her groundbreaking and deeply moving video message to the world that revealed that cancer was diagnosed with her
What a contrast with the recent performances of the princess, as when we saw a glowing Catherine at the Commonwealth Day Service
Perhaps just like telling is the sight of William who has been cheering this week with the Mercians in Estonia, or on maneuvers with the Mercians. A sense of normality has been recovered.
“I don't think many have seen them happier,” notes an insider.
That is not to stay ahead of ourselves.
At the end of last year I revealed that although Catherine would take a small number of royal commitments during the first half of 2025, there was no hurry to return full -time to royal tasks.
'As cancer survivors will tell you, the recovery is still difficult. Her health really took mistreatment last year. I can't emphasize that enough how good she looks now, “emphasizes a source.
For example, there are no plans for a large foreign visit – although assistants keep an eye on the situation.
'For the time being it is stable when she goes. There is no change of obvious what has been suggested earlier, which is a slow and steady return to royal life, “adds another insider.
But when you consider where she was this time last year, it's a world gone.
Looking back, it is almost impossible to articulate the meaning of her words in that video -both in terms of the widespread public shock that they caused as well as the worthy way in which she chose to give it, unusually in royal circles, a lot on her own conditions.
In the normally buzzing newsroom on the Daily Mail you could have heard a pin falling while colleagues gathered around TV screens to view it at the top of 6 pm news.
I did it too, although I had been sitting still on the news for about two hours, because I had already been informed about her diagnosis and watched the video before it went to the world.
Although Catherine understandably concentrates on long -term recovery, she was also relaxed enough to enjoy a half pint Guinness earlier this week
Two days earlier she was blasted in the midst of the Rugby Team of England when they celebrated the victory on Wales in Cardiff
Social media will remember you, have been in overdrive for weeks with all kinds of outrageous, humiliating and sometimes completely filthy speculation about the reasons for the disappearance of Catherine from public life after a major abdominal surgery in January.
While Kensington Palace (where only a small circle of staff had aware of what actually happened) argued for people to give the princess time and space to recover, the long -term absence of one of the most famous faces in the world had with minimal explanation – inevitable in some ways – in some ways given to more frequent speculation.
In reality it was really all that someone wanted to talk about.
Even my own doctor asked me halfway through a medical appointment when I knew what really happened. Such a long -term stay in the hospital (the princess was a patient in the London Clinic for two weeks) was very unusual, they said, and had fueled a lot of debate in their own staff room.
In reality I already suspected that it was much worse than Kensington Palace had endured.
Indeed, the week before the princess's broadcast, this was confirmed to me by a very well -placed source, who emphasized how serious they believed that her condition had been in the run -up to her operation.
Another contact also revealed that more and more upset and frustrated couple are considering issuing a public explanation.
But even I had no idea, when a message suddenly fell into my inbox at 3.30 pm that Friday afternoon, on March 22, which invited me only 30 minutes later for a confidential media briefing, how serious the situation was.
Afterwards, in the hurry of writing thousands of words in ready for the embargo on the news to lift, I thought nothing special about the timing.
It has now been confirmed that, like any other aspect of the statement, it was absolutely intentional.
At 4 p.m., when our video conference began, the children of the Wales – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – had left the school for the Easter holiday and were on their way to Norfolk, where their parents could keep them away from the inevitable hysteria.
No matter how good the subsequent comment would be, it was something that neither William nor Catherine were willing to spend 'the children' (as she calls them).
“Protecting her children has always been the core of every decision she has made this year,” says a source with knowledge of events.
'I know it is a cliché, but cancer is such a level and I think it would have had Catherine more.
In a video with William and their children, Kate announced that she had ended her chemotherapy treatment
“We didn't see her as a princess, but as an individual was saying there:” I have cancer and have spent in recent months with my children at a point where they could understand that I am not so good. 'I think that many people put their traces. '
I was told that the princess wrote every word of her statement of 371 words herself, without any advice from her press office in Kensington Palace.
“They were absolutely her personal words, it was her story and she wanted to share it,” says a source.
Another adds: 'It was powerful and all the more because it came from her so personally. Only she was able to really come across as she felt.
“The princess also wanted to ensure that what she said, the experience of the many others around the world who also get the same, life -changing diagnosis. That was something that she could only share with them. '
The fact that this was followed with two further personally written and recorded messages in June and September – plus a message on social media in January that revealed that she was happy in remission – only cementt how determined she and William are to keep telling this story in the way they consider needed.
On the one hand, this comes to the sometimes overarching determination of the couple to 'control the story'.
If public figures, depending on public finances, only time will tell whether this is really possible to maintain.
However, there is another reason, sources near the couple have revealed me.
Both they and their team were sincerely shocked by the discovery that this time last year huge parts of the rumor and the suspicions had to do with the manipulation of Russian bots'.
Excellent research last year by the BBC revealed how security researchers believed that a disinformation group established in Russia was deliberately strengthened and added to the razoria of social media-disblocks on the health of the princess.
In the weeks prior to her video message there was a remarkable increase in online rumors and often wanted claims about her health, they said, which contributed to the already unbearable emotional pressure on the pair.
An analysis of the data showed 'characteristic signs' of a coordinated campaign (apparently sharing and adding false claims is easier to do and to follow more difficult than starting wrong information all over again), probably with the aim of destabilizing the royal family, which are seen as a power for unity in the UK.
“It was already a crazy time, but what the couple and their team initially did not realize was that the Russians fed the algorithm,” says a source.
“This was deeply disturbing and contributed to thinking that only something of the princess would personally help combat the wrong information.”
While her return to 'normal' life remains slow and stable, Catherine has indicated that she is already considering spreading her wings.
Although every full-time return to Royal Tasks-included an official foreign travel does not come out in a 'meaningful' way until autumn, during her visit to the Irish guards earlier this week, she said she would like to travel more with her children where possible.
Reminding the official tour of her and William to Australia and New Zealand in 2014 When George was still a baby, she said: “George finds it fascinating that he was in Australia and New Zealand.
'I would like to go back with them [the children] now. It's time to do that. But I love traveling … '
Small conversation might have been, but the comment again emphasizes where the priorities of the princess are.
“She was deeply touched by the public response and is incredibly grateful for their support,” says a source. “More than whatever, what she has experienced, has made her even more grateful for what she has – her husband, her children and her family.”
And this remarkable woman clearly made it determined to lead life on her own conditions.
