Harry and Meghan have reached out to Prince William and Kate following her shock cancer diagnosis.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are said to have had ‘private’ contact with the Prince and Princess of Wales last night.

It is not clear whether the contact was a phone call, a video call or a series of messages of support. It is not known whether Harry would fly back to Britain.

Last night it was also claimed in the United States that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex only learned about Kate’s condition at the same time the world heard the news.

In addition, sources also told the New York Post that the couple had “no idea” about Kate’s illness.

The contact between the two brothers was revealed by ITV Royal Editor Chris Ship.

The 39-year-old Duke of Sussex has previously described Kate as the ‘big sister I never had’ when she got engaged to William 11 years ago.

However, his relationship with the Prince and Princess of Wales has broken down following the bitter aftermath of Megxit.

Kate last met Harry after the Queen’s death in September 2022, when they went on a walk around Windsor with their husbands.

The Princess of Wales announced her diagnosis in a video message yesterday, explaining that the cancer was discovered after her abdominal surgery.

She said: ‘The operation was successful but tests after the operation revealed cancer was present.

‘You can imagine that this took time. It took me time to recover from major surgery before I could start my treatment.

‘But most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that suits them and to reassure them that I will be fine.’

Hours after the news, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex released a short statement wishing the Princess of Wales and her family “health and healing.”

The couple said they hoped Kate and her family could “do this privately and in peace.”

Last month, Harry returned to Britain after taking an emergency flight from the US to visit the king following his cancer diagnosis.

The Duke cleared his diary and made the trip alone, leaving Meghan and their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet at home in California.

But there was no reconciliation between Harry and his brother, the Prince of Wales, during the visit, after the duke spent about 45 minutes at Clarence House to see Charles.

He last appeared alongside the Windsors and Waleses at the king’s coronation, but immediately afterwards rushed home to celebrate his son’s fourth birthday.

Since stepping down as working royals in 2020 and moving to California with their family, the Sussexes have made accusations and grievances against the monarchy and members of Harry’s family.

The Duke’s allegations against his family seemed unrelenting in the wake of Megxit with his interview with Oprah and, in the months after the Queen’s death, his Netflix documentary and memoir Spare.

There were allegations of racism regarding Archie’s skin color before he was born – with the comments ultimately said to have come from two senior royals – and it is claimed that Kensington Palace lied to protect William over reports that he was Harry would have bullied from the royal family.

The Duke also accused William of physically attacking him and throwing him into a dog litter box after Meghan, teasing him about his panic attacks and encouraging him, along with Kate, to wear a Nazi uniform to a fancy dress party.

While Charles and Harry are said to still talk to each other, William has reportedly not been in contact with his brother for quite some time.

Princess Kate MiddletonThe cancer diagnosis was revealed to the royal family at the end of February, and here’s why Prince William had to miss the memorial service in honor of his godfather, a source said We weekly.

“Kate had to have abdominal surgery and that’s when they found out she had cancer,” a source said Us on Friday, March 22. “The day the family found out was the day William canceled his godfather’s memorial service King Constantine of Greece.”

On February 27, members of the royal family were due to attend a memorial service at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor for the late Constantine, who died in January 2023. However, Kensington Palace released a last-minute statement revealing that William, 41, would not be attending ‘due to a personal matter’.

There were still questions about Kate’s health as she recovered from a planned abdominal surgery that had taken place the month before. On Friday, Kate’s cancer diagnosis was revealed in a video released worldwide.

A message from Catherine, Princess of Wales pic.twitter.com/5LQT1qGarK

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 22, 2024

“In January I underwent major abdominal surgery in London and at the time my condition was thought to be non-cancerous,” she said during Friday’s statement. “The operation was successful, but tests after the operation revealed that cancer was present. My medical team therefore recommended that I undergo preventative chemotherapy, and I am now in the early stages of that treatment.”

She added: “We hope you understand that as a family we now need some time, space and privacy while I complete my treatment. My work has always brought me a deep sense of joy, and I look forward to being back when I am able. But for now I have to focus on a full recovery.”

The royal family has been “processing the information” since receiving news of her diagnosis, the same source said Us.

The insider added: “They wanted to wait to tell the world the news until their children were off school over the Easter holidays so they had time to process the news before the whole world was talking about it. They do not reveal which type of cancer it is.”

Kate’s health has been making headlines since news of her abdominal surgery broke in January. At the time, Kensington Palace announced she would be stepping back from her public duties until after the Easter holidays.

Despite keeping it quiet in recent months, Kate has been spotted several times. She was first seen on March 4 sitting next to her mother, Carole Middleton, in the passenger seat of a car. Days later, Kate was spotted in the backseat of a separate vehicle with William by her side.

On March 16, William and Kate had a public outing at the Windsor Farm Shop that made major headlines. The Prince and Princess of Wales appeared to be in good spirits as they spent the day together, according to a video captured by an eyewitness.

“Kate looked happy and relaxed,” said the eyewitness, who has since been identified Nelson Silva, told TMZ at the time, noting that she and William looked like a “normal” couple. “They look happy just being able to go to a store and have fun,” Silva added. ‘Kate seemed relieved as if going to the store was a success. It felt natural.”

Finally, the world can stop speculating and coming up with countless fantastic conspiracy theories or tasteless ‘jokes’ about what happened to Kate Middleton.

I’m sure there are plenty of people who were embarrassed when the news broke of her cancer diagnosis on Friday. But the one person I think of in all of this, the one person my heart goes out to in every way, is Prince William.

This poor man.

From his parents’ divorce when he was just ten years old, to their subsequent divorce, quickly followed by the untimely death of his adoring, adored mother, we have witnessed time and time again how life threw hardships at him.

In recent years he has dealt with increasing disagreements with his only sibling Harry and sister-in-law Meghan, his father’s cancer, and now this – an unexpected and tragic burden on top of everything else.

The distance from Harry is undoubtedly felt particularly keenly.

After all, he’s the only person who fully understands what this is like. The only person to have endured both divorce and the death of a parent, in such a devastating public setting, is irreconcilably estranged.

There were certainly too many stones thrown, too much pain and too many injuries for Harry to provide any comfort or strength to William.

William who now carries the weight of the crown as his 75-year-old father undergoes his own treatment for cancer; William must support his young family like never before.

As someone who has danced with cancer myself, I know how overwhelming it is for your partner. My husband was terrified when I was diagnosed with malignant melanoma in 2014, much more terrified, he later told me, than I seemed.

Our children were 14, 13 and the twins were 11. While everyone gathered around me, few thought to contact my husband.

He stepped in to care for the children, driving them back and forth, making sure their lives continued to progress normally, all the while worrying about what might happen to me.

When friends called him, they asked about me, and like William, he bore much of the burden alone, putting on a brave face, knowing he had to be strong for all of us.

We now know that the prince pulled out of his godfather King Constantine’s memorial service at 11am last month because he had just heard of Kate’s cancer. Two days later he was back at work and showed tremendous courage and devotion to duty.

We will hear endless speculation about Kate in the coming days, but few think about the partners and everything they have to go through when their loved one is struck by a serious illness.

William’s pain is even deeper right now considering his three young children: George, 10, Charlotte, 8, and Louis, just 5.

They are not much younger than William was when his mother died, and that trauma and grief, the specific fear of losing a mother, is undoubtedly something he will bend heaven and earth to protect them.

We don’t have a prognosis for Kate. She says that she is receiving preventive chemotherapy, that she feels ‘good’ and is ‘getting stronger every day’. We are all thinking of her and praying.

But illness is a great equalizer.

No matter how much help the Waleses have, how many nannies or nurses there are, William must now be a steadfast force for his children and wife.

And while Kate may need space to break down, to lie awake at night with fear dancing around her head, William will feel like he needs to be a rock, as all partners must do when their loved ones are so seriously affected are.

This is as much William’s struggle as it is Kate’s, but he, as stoic and kind in public as his mother always was, will now be under pressure to keep that mask on at home too.

No matter how scared he is, he can’t show it.

He has to keep smiling for the children and reassure them that mommy will be fine.

Children are remarkably observant: if he lets his fears surface, they will notice them, so he must keep it all deeply hidden while surrounding them with the safety, security, and love they need right now.

He is not only a husband, a father and a prince; his main role at this time is caregiver.

Whatever your life revolved around – family, work, charities, royal garden parties – everything stops when hospitals and doctors take over your daily life.

Considering everything William has been through in his life, we can only hope that he has trusted friends and loved ones to care for him as well.

They need to let him know that no matter how stoic he has to be for Kate and their children, he needs to know that he can crack, to let out that scared fifteen-year-old boy who just lost his mother.

Prince William found out his wife Kate had cancer before he pulled out of attending King Constantine of Greece’s memorial service.

The Prince of Wales’s absence from the St George’s Chapel event at Windsor Castle on February 27 had raised eyebrows, but tonight’s revelation about the princess’s health has shed new light on why he stayed away.

Kate had only just been diagnosed with cancer ahead of beginning chemotherapy, it was revealed tonight – after Buckingham Palace had initially said the previous month her condition was non-cancerous.

Royal aides are now expected to rally around William all the more as he steps back from frontline duties and looks after the couple’s children as his wife recuperates.

The prince has already been adjusting his royal duties to devote even more time to his family after Kate was first admitted to the London Clinic in January.

The couple have both been dedicated to doing their fair share of the school run each morning and afternoon since their three children began attending £24,000-a-year Lambrook School near Ascot in Berkshire in September 2022.

The co-ed institution is not far from the family’s Frogmore Cottage home on the Windsor estate – and is also convenient for visits by the princess’s parents.

Carole and Michael Middleton live just 33 miles away in Bucklebury, Berkshire, and the strong mother-daughter bond has been a key feature of troubled recent months.

Kate’s siblings Pippa, 40, and James, 36, are also close at hand in Bucklebury. 

William’s decision not to attend the memorial service for King Constantine came as a surprise at the time, with the reason described as ‘personal reasons’.

Also missing was his father King Charles, himself receiving treatment for cancer.

Queen Camilla was instead the most senior member of the Royal Family in attendance, with William’s uncle Prince Andrew also enjoying a prominent role as he led fellow royals on foot to the service.

Constantine was the godfather of William, who is said to have called the Greek royal family to apologise for not being there. 

The Prince was due to read from Revelation 21:1-7, a popular reading for funerals that begins ‘Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth’.

He had cleared his diary of official duties to help support Kate’s recovery, although did visit a homelessness charity’s base in Sheffield on Tuesday this week.

The couple were seen being driven from Windsor on March 11, although only William attended that afternoon’s Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey in central London while Kate continued on to a private appointment elsewhere.

Their children Prince George, 10, eight-year-old Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, five, all attend Lambrook School which starts its summer term on April 17. 

Royal experts have said the parents chose Lambrook because they wanted their children to have a ‘different kind of schooling’ to their own. 

George and Charlotte were previously pupils at Thomas’s Battersea while Louis attended Willcocks Nursery in Kensington, both schools in London.

William and Kate were pictured strolling into Lambrook School’s grounds hand-in-hand with their children for their first day there in September 2022.

They are believed to have been sharing ‘school run’ duties but William has now been taking on more responsibilities – as have Kate’s parents Carole, 69, and Michael, 74.

Earlier this month Carole was snapped at the wheel of a car driving her daughter – pictured for the first time in two months – around Windsor Castle.

The photos were published by US gossip website TMZ but not in the UK after Kensington Palace appealed for her to be able to recuperate in private.

Insiders who knew the Middleton children at school have said her family was renowned for ‘doing everything to the very highest of standards’.

A fellow parent told Tatler recently: ‘There were huge picnics on sports days, the smartest tennis rackets — that kind of thing.

‘It made the rest of us all feel rather hopeless. Ultimately, Carole has played a blinder as a mother – not only are all of her children unfairly good-looking, they are also famously charming.

‘Always the first to write a thank-you letter, they dance all night and are still the first up in the morning, plumping cushions and washing up.’

Two years ago, Carole and Michael Middleton made a sombre appearance as they joined senior members of the Royal Family for the late Queen Elizabeth II’s committal service. 

Months later, they were seen in high spirits as they arrived at Westminster Abbey for the coronation of King Charles III – arriving alongside their children Pippa and James.

Kate’s mother has also always been on hand to support Kate for her annual ‘Together At Christmas’ Carol Service – a known passion project of the princess’s. 

Other get-togethers have seen the mother and daughter huddled up alongside each other at Royal Ascot – and in summer 2022, Kate was seen blowing her parents a kiss as the family attended Wimbledon.

Kate, William and their children have their main home as four-bedroom Adelaide Cottage on the Windsor grounds in Berkshire, with no live-in staff although they do have a nanny, housekeeper and security team living nearby.

The Grade II listed property is owned by the Crown Estate and the couple are said to be paying ‘market rent’.

Lambrook School has just 610 boys and girls aged three to 13 and is mixed so all three children can attend together, cutting down on school runs and security teams.

It offers boarding but George, Charlotte and Louis have all been day pupils there.

The Good Schools Guide says the prep school has a ‘heart of gold’ and offers pupils ‘total freedom to explore, provided you’ve got your wellies on’.

It boasts of ‘first-class teaching and superb facilities’ including a 25-metre swimming pool, a nine-hole golf course, an Astroturf, squash court and a new £6million Queen’s Building for ICT and academic learning.

The prospectus quotes one parent calling it ‘the most magical place for our children to spend time, and they can often be seen rosy-cheeked and perfecting handstands, throwing balls or racing to the three stumps’.

School sources have described William and Kate as being ‘like a normal mum and dad’ who throw themselves into events at Lambrook. 

Hello! magazine reported the royal couple take part in all the important school activities, including ‘queueing for the tombola’ in a recent fundraising drive.

The future King and Queen are described as discreetly slipping into events such as carol concerts, fitting occasions around their busy schedules.

Now that invitations have been sent out for the wedding of Duke of Westminster Hugh Grosvenor, a society guessing game is developing over whether Harry will appear at the June event.

If he does, it would be the first time he and William have lived under the same roof since their father’s coronation.

Sources report that 33-year-old Grosvenor remains neutral, maintains a good relationship with both and leaves it to them to resolve their family drama.

However, the home team could have an advantage. The Duke is the godfather of Prince George, who could be a page boy on the big day at Chester Cathedral.

Perhaps Harry could replicate his attendance at the Diana Legacy Awards last week when he appeared via video.

After seeing Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins, Rupert Everett developed a childhood obsession.

Dressed in his mother’s clothes, he told other children that he was Julie’s daughter.

“One of the reasons I went to a child psychiatrist was because my parents of other children discovered that I was telling them that I was not my parents’ child.”

Rupert tells podcast Rosebud, adding that he told Julie about his cheating when he was starring with her in Hollywood. ‘She always sent me Christmas cards signed ‘Mummy.’

Confirmed as new presenter on Radio 4’s Today, Emma Barnett once objected to being reminded of the crimes of her father Ian, who was previously jailed for running brothels in Manchester.

“I wanted to say what I wanted to say and move on,” Barnett noted icily in a 2019 interview.

‘I am now in the public eye, but I don’t think this is a question that is necessary, fair or right.’

Interviewer Decca Aitkenhead commented: ‘I’d like to know what Barnett would say to that, if she wasn’t the interviewee but the interviewer.’

The late King’s Speech writer David Seidler had to wait 25 years to write the script after Queen Mother‘s permission.

She replied, “Please, not in my lifetime.”

The memory of these events is still too painful.’ David recalled, “So I waited. But I thought, ‘How much longer? A few years at most?’

It was an older lady. But it was 25 years later, just shy of 102 years, that she left this mortal realm.”

Rupert Oldham-Reid, senior adviser to Rishi Sunak in Downing Street, announces in The Times that he has named his new daughter Antigone Elizabeth Anna… ‘sister of Peregrine Yorck von Wulffen and Otto the dog’.

Does he have a giraffe?

West End star Jodie Prenger repeatedly rehearsed how to address the late queen before meeting her.

“I had such a hard time making sure I spoke properly and said, ‘Hell-aywww Your Majesty,’ and then I finally said, ‘Hi, Your Highness!’ I sounded so Northern I might as well have shaken her hand while holding a patty!’

By Nathan Schmidt for Nca Newswire

Published: 02:56 EDT, March 22, 2024 | Updated: 03:16 EDT, March 22, 2024

Prince William’s impact on charities is “very personal” and he often works behind the scenes with homeless people, the CEO of one of the groups he works with has revealed.

Mick Clarke, chief executive of the homeless charity The Passage, said the Prince of Wales, 41, has “the ability to listen, talk and put people at ease.”

Speak with TatlerIn a piece exploring William’s future as king, Mr Clarke explained that the royal family has quietly volunteered for the charity on several occasions.

Other experts also discussed William’s commentary on the conflict in the Middle East and how, like his father, he will continue to “hold the space to speak out sparingly on carefully chosen issues.”

The future king, 41, a patron of more than 30 charities, first visited the Passage as a child with his mother Princess Diana – something he says he was ‘deeply moved’ by.

Speaking to Tatler, Mr Clarke said: ‘William’s impact is deeply personal’ […]

‘Two weeks before Christmas, the Prince came to our Resource Center in Victoria for a Christmas lunch for 150 people.

‘He would stay for an hour, helping with serving, washing dishes and talking to people. He ended up staying for two and a quarter minutes, during which time he went from table to table talking to everyone.”

‘William has the ability to listen, talk and put people at ease. During the lockdown of November 2020, he came to help three times.

‘It gave the team a boost that he took the time; it was his way of saying, “I support you; You’re doing a great job.’

In December, William praised the work of The Passage and said he was “deeply moved” when he visited the charity with Princess Diana as a child.

He shared a video explaining the charity’s ‘amazing work’, including ‘life-changing’ work to prevent homelessness and human trafficking, which was posted on X on ICAP’s 31st charity day.

“Having a place to call home is so precious. Every day, the Passage works tirelessly to achieve a society where homelessness does not exist and where everyone has a place to call home,” he said.

Tatler’s article, written by former BBC Royal Correspondent, Wesley Kerr OBE, also looks at how William can continue as king.

Speaking to Mr Kerr, The Times Royal Correspondent Valentine Lowe said William is ‘shaping’ the future of the company in a more relaxed way than his father.

‘He [The Prince of Wales] seeks its own way to be recognizable, to benefit everyone, in the context of a centuries-old institution undergoing significant challenges and turmoil, as head of a nation divided by difficult times, conflicts abroad and social and political uncertainty,” he said.

‘Charles is sympathetic to William’s approach and his desire to make time with his young family sacred. They are confidantes, as evidenced by the night of Queen Elizabeth’s death; they were both at Birkhall with Camilla, discussing funeral arrangements, while the rest of the grieving family were nearby at Balmoral, hosted by the Princess Royal.

‘Charles has spent almost sixty years in public life and is the most important statesman of our time, having been in the spotlight even longer than Joe Biden.

But will the so-called ‘call me William’ approach be successful?

The prince has certainly led the way in ditching the stiff upper lip and taking a more practical approach to assignments.

In October he hugged his way through a room of Windrush veterans as he celebrated the Caribbean who helped rebuild post-war Britain – but drew the line at kissing.

The Prince of Wales was mobbed by well-wishers at the Grange Pavilion community center in Cardiff, but cheekily told them: ‘I draw the line at kissing!’

Later, as guests posed for a group photo, William laughed with Kate as they moved to a back row and led the Windrush veterans to the front, but the room erupted when the prince joked: “Who’s pinching my bum?”

Mr Low believes the royal family has put a lot of thought into its ‘call me William’ approach to the throne, wondering whether it would work if ‘the whole point of the royal family is mystical and different’ but he is keen to modernize the throne. monarchy.

It was a difficult start to the year for the future king. His father, King Charles, is currently undergoing treatment for cancer, while his wife, Princess of Wales, is recovering from abdominal surgery.

Kate Middleton has been working from home on an early years project that has been hailed as her ‘life’s work’ as she recovers from abdominal surgery.

The Princess of Wales, 42, launched the Royal Foundation Center for Early Childhood (RFCEC) Shaping Us project in January last year, aiming to highlight the importance of early childhood development in children.

Kensington Palace has confirmed that Kate will continue to work on the project while she recovers at home; the Center has funded a trial of a baby observation tool for health visitors to monitor young people’s social and emotional development.

The princess personally suggested the instrument could be used in Britain after seeing a similar system during a royal visit to Denmark, reports suggest. This means that she is very involved in the process and its results, which will be published today.

The news that she is being briefed suggests that she could be preparing to return to work as planned; Kensington Palace has insisted since January that she is ‘unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter’.

View the full article in the May issue of Tatler available from Thursday, March 28 via digital download and on newsstands

• Prince William and Kate were seen at The Windsor Farm Shop on Saturday

By Eirian Jane Prosser

Published: 3:03 PM EDT, March 19, 2024 | Updated: 3:15 PM EDT, March 19, 2024

The Princess of Wales may have made a subtle hint she will be ready to return to work soon after donning a shirt from England Rugby team –  one of her patronages –  during a trip to a farm shop with Prince William.

Kate Middleton, 42, opted for black leggings, £128 Adidas Ultra Boost 20 Sneakers and an England Rugby Icon Hoodie Mens in Black & Orange for the shopping trip to the Windsor Farm Shop on Saturday lunchtime.

The snap was taken ahead of England’s game against on France in the Six Nations later that evening, perhaps suggesting Kate was picking up food to watch the match with her family. 

Kate has been patron of the Rugby Football League and the Rugby Football Union since 2022, and often cheers on the England team.

She has missed the whole Six Nations tournament due to her recovery at home, but is perhaps showing a sign of support from home. 

Kate took over the roles from her brother-in-law Prince Harry who used to enjoy cheering on England before he was forced to give up the patronage as part of the Megxit agreement. 

Kate, who grew up watching rugby with her family, is known as one of the sportiest members of the Royal Family and has gamely taken on her husband in everything from dragon boating to wind buggy racing at royal engagements.

‘[The Duke and Duchess] are famously competitive with each other and this will be no different – probably even more so now that they have an invested interest in the outcome of the game,’ a source said when Kate’s patronage was announced. 

It’s the first footage of the royal since her abdominal surgery in January, which also puts to bed concerns about her health and discredits bizarre and baseless conspiracy theories being spread about her online. 

The mother-of-three is said to be believed to royal duty after Easter, when her children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five, go back to school.

She is also royal patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and is a frequent visitor to the Wimbledon Championships.

Less well known is her love of rugby.  Her sister, Pippa, wrote in Vanity Fair magazine in 2014: ‘Rugby was a big thing for our family, we’d plan our weekends around the big matches.’

A clip published by The Sun, also shows the royals carrying their own shopping.

Body language expert Judi James has told MailOnline that Kate was exuding body confidence and showed no ‘frailty’ – in an appearance that was deliberately ‘reassuring fans and quashing all the toxic rumours’ swirling around her.

She said: ‘Kate walks ahead of William, taking large enough strides to suggest no hint of any ongoing frailty. While William keeps his face partially hidden under his cap and his head lowered, Kate’s body language here suggests a desire to be seen.

‘This is quite extraordinary body language behaviour for a leading royal out “incognito” in public and it suggests a point is, quite naturally, being made in terms of reassuring fans and quashing all the toxic rumours.

‘Her head is up and her long hair is billowing while she wears a cheek-rounded smile that seems to signal she is completely upbeat and cheerful’.

Judi added: ‘It is completely stunning to see the most sought-after woman in the world and the subject of speculation and rumours on social media suddenly appearing like this looking not just healthy, full of energy and incredibly happy but also making no apparent attempt to hide while out in public’.

Kensington Palace has not commented on the film where Kate strides from the Windsor Farm Shop – much loved by the couple and set up by William’s late grandfather Prince Philip – while carrying a substantial shopping bag on Saturday afternoon.

The couple had gone there for supplies having reportedly spent the morning watching their three children – George, 10, Charlotte, eight, and Louis, five, play sport.

Kate and William were not accompanied by their three children. 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 comes amid reports that Kensington Palace is working with PR gurus to devise a Kate’s schedule when she returns to work.

Her new private secretary Lt Col Tom White and Williams private secretary Ian Patrick are believed to be part of a senior team working around the clock after outlandish rumours swirled around her absence from the public eye, The Mirror reports.

A source told the publication: ‘The teams are working round the clock to devise the Princess of Wales’s back-to-work plan after weeks of immense pressure. They all know that the world will be watching after weeks of heightened speculation and often outlandish commentary on social media.’ 

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!’ ‘

He told TMZ: ‘I noticed a couple choosing loaves of bread and the woman turned her face and I felt like I had seen the face before. It was familiar.

‘I went to my car and as they came out of the shop I just filmed them. I think they walked out through a gate out of the grounds. They just vanished and I didn’t see a car.

‘Kate looked happy and relaxed. They look happy just to be able to go to a shop and mingle.

‘Kate looked relieved, like it was a success going to a shop. It felt natural.’

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.

Prince William celebrated his wife Kate’s work with young children today as he joined a conference to help end homelessness.

The Prince of Wales agreed to selfies from well-wishers and hailed a former rough sleeper who had turned his life round as ‘brave’ for telling his story.

William, 41, joined a Homewards Sheffield Local Coalition meeting at the Millennium Gallery in the South Yorkshire city to discuss ways to end homelessness.

When the topic of childhood was raised by Sheffield City Council chief executive Kate Josephs, William immediately remarked about the success of Kate’s early years projects.

Holding his palms out and smiling, he said: ‘That’s my wife’s area, she needs to be sat here.’

The Prince arrived in Sheffield city centre by car and walked through the Winter Garden – an urban glasshouse.

Leigh Stinchcombe, 33, grabbed William for a selfie and said afterwards he was a ‘big fan’ of the prince.

William held Leigh’s coffee mug and helped work the phone before patting him gently on the shoulder and shaking hands.

Sitting in the Millennium Gallery’s conference space with the coalition, William heard from project worker Chris Lynam, 41, who described how he had turned his life around after he ended up homeless then in jail seven years ago.

William said: ‘I want to say how brave you are to be here telling your story, it’s amazing where you are.’

The prince asked his aides to get Mr Lynam’s contact details so they could stay in touch.

William also asked the experts for their opinions about the extent of family homelessness in the city of Sheffield and impact of drug addiction on leading to rough sleeping.

He also discussed how early intervention can turn around lives and asked Mr Lynam to explain during his ‘journey’ the moments when people ‘stepped in’ to help.

Looking animated, William said: ‘You guys know this better than I do, but there is no one-size or one solution that fits all. I see it almost as an umbrella and all your ideas, wisdom and experiences together, and we can mix around and produce something.’

Two members of the coalition grabbed William after he left the room to bend his ear about their ideas for stopping homelessness.

Mr Lynam, who also served in the Navy and spent time in jail for crimes including arson and burglary, said afterwards: ‘He was a nice man and really listened. I liked him.’

The Prince was in Sheffield this morning to unveil major commitments to his Homewards initiative, to end the scourge of homeless in the UK.

Family homeliness has been an increasing issue in recent years for the city, which was announced as one of the six flagship Homewards locations where William and his team are working to eradicate the issue within the next five years.

His approach, bringing key players in the field together – from home builders to landlords, local councils, charities to those with lived experience of the problem- was praised by Scott Black, COO of house builder Places for People, one of the country’s biggest landlords who has pledged five homes for homeless families in Sheffield.

Mr Black told him: ‘Your convening power and your vision, together with our collective resources around the table and our experience in what we do, we believe we can end homeless in Sheffield for good. Thank you for being the catalyst for that change and the opportunity for us to do our past.

‘Your Royal Highness, coming together we can do so much more. We can deliver much needed, more affordable house particularly for homeless families here in Sheffield. I am absolutely convinced it is possible.

‘And also to provide more wrap-around services that are so desperately needed so that we can break that generational cycle for the most vulnerable in society.’

‘No, thank you,’ said William. ‘I appreciate that but this has been a team effort. It’s the only way it’s going to work. This is the start of the journey, this is just the beginning. I am excited you are all sat round the table and are here.’

William’s pledge of end homeless in the UK is one of his biggest personal passions and something he had pledged his commitment to for life.

Today he unveiled a link-up with DIY giant Homebase which has pledged a major investment of £1million to support Homewards in furnishing and decorating new house in projects.

In a second major initiative, William revealed that local Sheffield landlords have committed to provide 31 homes as a start for families at risk of, or experiencing, homeless in the city.

Damian McGloughlin, chief executive of Homebase, told the Prince: ‘I personally feel very strongly our products can help here. My pledge is that we want to support [Homewards] with £1million over the next five years for starter kits for people that are going to be using them [the new housing].

‘Bricks and mortar is just one part of it but it’s what is inside the homes too, bringing them to life in terms of wellbeing and being a safe haven. I feel really passionate about this.

‘The more people doing this together, the more companies, the more partnerships, will really get this movement going. My team really cares about this.’

William also spoke to the executive director of Sheffield City Council, Ajman Ali, and expressed his sympathy that they, like councils up and down the country, were dealing with one crisis after another, without the opportunity to look up and plan solutions further down the line which stop people becoming homeless in the first place.

Mr Ali agreed that umbrella organisations such as Homewards would be invaluable in enabling them to do that and ensure that people did not become homeless in the first place.

The prince also asked one long-term landlord who has always been willing to work with the homeless: ‘What’s the long-term risks, why are some landlord reluctant to get along with this? What are the challenges for them?’

Vicky Keyworth, director of Letzmove, explained that the gap between rent being due and house benefit or other credits being paid can result in in gaps of four or five months in them being paid, which adds to the reluctance of renting to those in need of social housing.

Steve Thavan, of Keystone Property Group, said it was the first time he had seen ‘such an amazing collection of people’ around a table trying to sort the issue together.

William said: ‘What I’m really excited about is we can bring together so many different parts of social that can all with this issue, that maybe you don’t always get the chance to sit down together.

‘So pooling your resources , your experiences and wisdom all together can unlock many more doors and quicker. You are all working in your little worlds trying desperately to do it but don’t really have the traction you might like.’

Earlier William spoke to several people with lived experience of homelessness and those working with them.

‘What’s your experience of homelessness guys? What are your lived experiences in this area?’

He was told that there was still a lot of stigma around it, with many vulnerable clients badly needing long-term wrap-around care instead of the statutory six weeks that is so often offered.

“Yes, that’s something we hear a lot,’ the prince said. ‘That wraparound care is critical. People come from so many difficult backgrounds.

‘The needs are diverse and great. Hopefully we are starting to challenge the stigma around social housing. Things are changing.

‘Can I ask what the big challenges in Sheffield are? What do we with Homewards need to do get things off the ground in Sheffield. What key things do you want me to leave with?’

He was told that many experiencing homeless had suffered deep personal trauma that they needed support for.

“Yes, consistency in support is something that needs to be changed as well,’ William said thoughtfully. ‘I hear a lot about people having to explain their stories to a new person each time.’

He added: ‘You don’t see the hidden homeless of families. You see a lot of people sleeping rough, but not the other stories. We are trying to bring these other facets out.’

One of those he spoke to was influencer and campaigner Kwajo Tweneboa, 25, from Croydon, South London, who said he was ‘blown away’ by William’s determination to use his position to bring about systemic change.

Mr Tweneboa has personally experienced family homeless since the age of 12 – finding himself living in a storage container with his family at one point – and has devoted his life to highlighting the often truly horrific stories of those suffering from sub-standard social housing.

He said: ‘People up and down the country are living in slum-like conditions. There are not enough solutions – and when I spoke to William’s team I thought ‘yes, they get this’. They want to do something. Those living in poor conditions do not often have their voices heard. He hears them.

‘I have been travelling up and down the country highlighting their stories. I have visited homes riddled with damp and mould, a lady with a young child living with a cockroach infestation so bad for ten years that I left with cockroaches on me.

‘And people are ashamed and they are scared that they will not only be judge if they complain, but they may have their children taken off them.

‘William could focus on so many different issues. While he may not have experienced first-hand homelessness or living in poor conditions with cockroaches or mice, the fact that he has recognised that people living up and down the country who are and wants to put their name behind supporting solutions to these problems is really important.

‘It’s the biggest emergency that this country faces at the moment, with a huge knock-on effect on other services. He is one of the most famous people on the planet. He is absolutely to be applauded.’

Before he left William chatted at length with a group of users at The Learning Zone library area about everything from their love of Elvis to his wife.

Peter Brownley, 61, told him that he was a huge fan of the Royal Family and had sent the Princess of Wales a get well soon card.

‘You really are very kind,’ the prince said.