The Kate Middleton mystery, explained

Coverage, analysis, and updates of the royal family scandal.

The world seems to be tuned into where exactly Princess Kate is. On March 18, 2024, after weeks of questions from the public, TMZ published footage of her walking out of a farm shop with Prince William. The appearance only fueled more speculation.

Kate was last seen in public on Christmas 2023. Then on January 17, Kensington Palace announced she’d be undergoing abdominal surgery and mentioned that she’d be “unlikely” to resume her public duties until Easter. Her absence from the public eye seemed out of character, especially with her longstanding role as a stalwart for the British royal family. Very quickly, concerns that her planned procedure had gone wrong turned into viral joke theories and conspiracies about her whereabouts. Then, in March, a poorly edited Mother’s Day photo circulated by Kensington Palace — and a subsequent “photo kill” from the Associated Press — turned the whole affair into an international news story.

As Vox’s Constance Grady writes, “This surreal saga is about more than any one illness, any one photograph, or even any one princess.” Follow along here for more coverage and analysis on this global phenomenon.