TIMELINE | Where in the world is Kate Middleton?

While many tune in to reality TV for hot gossip, scandals and catfights, no Big Brother housemate or Love Islander can hold a candle to the twists and turns of the real housewives and husbands of Buckingham Palace.

Most recently, the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, has become meme and tabloid fodder since her abdominal surgery. Now known as Kate-gate her absence from royal duties has seen fans and casual followers of the royals latching on to scuttlebutts and conspiracies that even the palace can't ignore.

To better understand what is fact and what is fiction, we look at the long timeline of events leading up to all parties involved in the complicated maze of whispers in the royal grapevine.

A ROYAL FRIEND, 2011

While Kate and William prepared to tie the knot, the butterflies were afloat in her sister Pippa Middleton's stomach as she kicked off a public speaking tour with her new beau Thomas Kingston. According to People, the pair dated briefly but would keep a close friendship over the years.

A ROYAL FRIEND-IN-LAW, 2015

It would not be long until Kingston would be spotted courting Lady Gabriella Windsor (daughter to Prince Michael of Kent, cousin to Elizabeth II), whom he dated shortly after parting ways with Pippa. In March 2015, the pair made their first public appearance and wed in May 2019.

Kingston remained a close friend of the royals, and was seen out and about with King Charles and Camilla before his passing in 2024.

THE RURAL RIVAL, MARCH 22 2019

As one of the lavish manors royal family members call home, Anmer Hall became a favourite for Kate and William, who frequented the manor with their three children for school holidays and during Covid-19. A year before the pandemic hit globally, Kate was reportedly involved in a heated dispute with one of her countryside galpals, Rose Hanbury.

The friendship is no surprise as Hanbury is the marchioness (wife of marquess, a nobleman ranking below a duke and above an earl) of Cholmondeley. The pronunciation (chum-lee) has been a long-standing joke, reignited as internet gossip ignited rumours of an affair between Hanbury and William. The spat between the Kate and Hanbury in 2019 earned the marchioness the title of being the duchess' “rural rival”.

The Sun spoke to sources close to William, who said he took a direct role in mending the friendship, saying “they used to be close, but that is not the case any more. William wants to play peacemaker so the two couples can remain friends, given they live so close to each other and share many mutual friends. But Kate has been clear that she doesn’t want to see them any more and wants William to phase them out, despite their social status.”

FREE WILLY, MARCH/APRIL 2019

As with all celebrity scandals of the modern age, the wild streets of Twitter (now known as X) would be riddled with rumours, the biggest one being spread by TV personality and columnist Giles Coren.

“I know about the affair. Everybody knows about the affair, darling. Even us Jews,” he posted in the since-deleted Tweet. Shortly after, The Daily Beast reported there was pressure from the palace to have the post removed.

A blind item on gossip site DeuxMoi earned William “the Prince of Pegging” title as it alleged that was how intimate Hanbury and the Prince were. An In Touch reporter from the States would get a one-way ticket to the UK, where she would link the rural rivalry to William’s cheating.

CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN CROWN, APRIL 2019

The Daily Beast reared its investigative head again when it found out the palace was dishing out fewer royal waves and more lawsuits against the tabloids that made any mention about the alleged affair. Squashing any further reports, Hanbury would be seen attending the State Banquet at Buckingham Palace with Kate present, despite her alleged demands to “phase them out”.

THE GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PAST, DECEMBER 2023

Things would seem hunky dory for the duchess and prince, especially with their last joint appearance last year at Christmas. Kate was seen with her children and Prince William at St Mary Magdalene Church. Her shared Instagram with William also featured no new images other than a shoot with the young royals and a compilation of their appearances in 2023. Since then, the Instagram account has mainly posted statements and items about William's appearances.

CARMAGEDDON, JANUARY 2024

On January 16, Kate was admitted to hospital for a planned abdominal surgery. The news was announced along with King Charles' surprising hospitalisation for an enlarged prostate. The statements after her successful surgery would suggest she was to remain in care for 10 to 14 days and would only resume her royal duties after Easter.

While the palace would attempt to quell concerns with constant updates, the many cars arriving at and departing from the hospital would become memes and reactionary fodder for social media users, who even compared these to shots of Prince Philip before his passing in 2021.

A DEATH IN THE ROYAL FAMILY, FEBRUARY 25 2024

Things became dour as King Charles was diagnosed with cancer and there were no updates on Kate's health. Rumours about William's infidelity with Hanbury made a return as he soldiered on with solo appearances while Kate was healing from surgery. This would also see speculations reported in The New Yorker about Kate going for a BBL (Brazilian butt lift) procedure, and on the 25th of that month, Kingston is announced to have passed due to a “traumatic head wound”.

The announcement was made two days after his passing, with The Telegraph reporting that he had lunch with is mother and father before allegedly shooting himself.

A PERSONAL ENGAGEMENT, FEBRUARY 27

Rumours would run amok when William unexpectedly pulled out of royal duties. Neither he nor Camilla, who was helping fill in for Prince Charles, would attend the memorial service or funeral of King Constantine II of Greece, who is William's godfather. His funeral was held on February 27.

The only communication from the palace would explain that it was due to a “personal matter” that was never disclosed.

THE ROYAL UPDATE, FEBRUARY 29 

With royal conspiracies dominating the internet, the palace released new information on Kate's health stating she was fine and they were following the previously announced dates for her recovery.

“Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the Princess' recovery and we'd only be providing significant updates. That guidance stands,” said a royal spokesperson.

UNAUTHORISED SPOTTINGS, MARCH 4

Three months and nearly 12 weeks since her last appearance, Kate made her 2024 debut to the public in a TMZ paparazzi snap. A number of publications chose not to publish the image after a request from Kate for privacy, but royal reporter Emily Andrews would post on X that Kensington Palace “exerted huge pressure on the British media NOT to publish the pic”. 

The rumour mill would go into a tailspin when the Royal Army posted that she would attend one of its annual events. However, the post would be deleted without any explanation.

UNFREE WILLY, MARCH 6

Feeling pressure to again address the public amid concerns for Kate, a royal statement said William would not have the time to engage the prattle as “his focus is on his work and not on social media”.

PHOTOSHOP-GATE, MARCH 10

The ultimate knell to the palace's clear and timeous statements would be a Mother's Day post on the future king and queen's Instagram account. Claiming that it was taken by William at Kensington Palace, the image seemingly features the three children surrounding Kate with numerous accounts of digital rendering and editing.

After the intense scrutiny it received, the Associated Press (nonprofit news agency), among other photographic agencies, sent out requests to its clients to remove it due to the image having been manipulated.

“AP’s editorial standards state that images must be accurate. AP does not use altered or digitally manipulated image,” a statement read.

And what did Kate have to say? Signing a letter off as “C” for her full name Catherine (which only made things worse with those who believed she may not have been behind the apology), she said she was experimenting with Photoshop.

“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.”

Shortly after the apology was issued, she was spotted again in another grainy image with William, this time in a car.

KATE'S "BABY", MARCH 12

Fuelled by a lack of transparency by the aloof royals, speculation started to point to an affair between Kate and the late Kingston, who was buried on the 12th. The funeral had been delayed by his wife as she wanted him to rest on the fifth-year anniversary of their first public appearance.

No comment has been made since the rumour kicked off.