108 thoughts on “Royal Round Up: William & Harry to honor Diana, Kate articles, QEII feeds elephants”

1. THE ELEPHANTS! There’s a picture of HM looking utterly delighted to feed the elephant, it’s cute.

   I was reading about Charles’ recently engagements in Cumbria visiting community projects and stuff (like fixing up pubs, and creating a community centre for the whole area), I wish it got more publicity because him visiting and encouraging the communities to continue is a great thing for them.

   I couldn’t care less about this Diana documentary. If William wants to honor his mother’s memory so much how about not hiding behind her dying when he was 16 and emulating her service. Nah. Too difficult. I find it an interesting sort of obsession the media still has with her and how W&H play it for PR. It’s disconcerting at best, gross at worst. She’s been dead twenty years, let the woman rest in peace for once.

   I could totally see Kate chatting up on mommy blogs and crap because it’s not as if she does anything else. I mean, all the talk is she just sits around watching TV or shopping (a friend of mine whose mom knows a former RPO says that’s basically all he ever saw Kate doing/heard of her being interested in, she told me a few stories this guy told her!).

   Can’t believe about the, what, 12th striped top that’s identical. Mostly because it’s heinously expensive and exactly the same as the other ones, paid for by the taxpayer.

   1. I think Kate is far too cautious to give too much information in the internet. She would have no use of it. When she has a problem, she will go to mommy.
      With TV, I heard this too.I think she really makes sure she has enough free time, that’s what she had at her family’s house. She and her siblings had surely never hard work at home.

   2. I love HM interacting with animals. First the COWS! and now elephants. Love it.

      1. Cows! Just the best. The pictures from the Zoo are gorgeous. I’m so glad they get some fun outings.

   3. My heart sank with the news of two Diana programs; neither will provide an objective view 20 years on, just more forelock-tugging puffery to soothe William and Harry and keep a myth alive. An incredibly egocentric act on their part. That approach ultimately does a disservice to the memory of a complex, flawed woman. Those who loved her don’t need her reality smothered in saccharine; they saw past her flaws and accepted them. Ellie, I agree, the best way for William and Harry to honor their mother’s memory is to work hard; they don’t. They dick around, with too much time on their hands.

      Without ever hearing that Kate just vegged out all day, it’s what I suspected. William too; I could see him playing with x-box all day. They appear so disengaged with the world on the few occasions they venture out, uninformed, no life to them. I recall the dinner with Michelle and Barack Obama, two vibrant intelligent people spending an evening with a couple shirking work at every opportunity. Oi vey.

      Buying almost identical striped tops year in, year out is a trifle unimaginative, but if a striped Breton top is her jam, well, okay.

      1. I think the saccharine is what people want, expect, especially coming at it from a non-British POV. People worship her and think she was a saint, which is why I’m sort of ‘meh’ on Diana though I admire her work; people working at hospitals, and AIDS centers, did complain because she showed up and used these ill people as her personal PR team, basically, and just showed up with hardly any notice with a film crew/press pack. People forget that sort of thing because of the impact her work with AIDS infected people and land mines was. I do think Harry follows that example far more than William, and the one time he’s mentioned Diana recently during that land mine event was poignant and real and an example as opposed to “poor me my mom died,” it was “look at the things my mom did, I want to help continue that”.

         Nothing will ever view her as basically…a real human being, it will all be trite.

         1. The BBC could just rerun Christopher Hitchen’s “Diana:The Mourning After”. That was a great analysis of the public mourning and the people who didn’t want to participate in it. There were enough saccharine stories done at the time of her death. Why bother making another one?

            1. Found it on youtube; thanks for the tip.

            2. Christopher Hitches is missed. By me anyway!

   4. Omg, Ellie please tell us any other good stories about Kate the RPO told. It’s the only way we find out anything more human about Kate, good or bad.

      1. Nothing interesting except Kate was all about shopping. Constantly. Go out to shop. Shop online. Watch TV. Think about shopping. That vapid, and incredibly grand and difficult.

         Same sort of stories we’ve heard before, you know? But verified. lol

         1. What’s more interesting is that our collective take on Kate as vapid, lazy, haughty, difficult, doing little else but shopping is accurate. And all we’ve had to inform our opinions are public appearances and gut reaction.

         2. Was this after the wedding, and not during the drawn-out doormat years? As much as I criticize Kate, I’ve always found it difficult to believe stories that she acts high and mighty around others, but if he found her to be “incredibly grand and difficult,” that makes me put more stock in those rumors.

            1. I have read “grand” used to describe Kate several times since the wedding. And “prickly” too. So I’m inclined to believe it.

            2. If I survived on a grape and 20 Marlboro Lights a day I’d be prickly too.

            3. I thought that Prince Gangnam Style’s man-baby buddies found Kate to be very cold and unfriendly during the dating/waiting years. We all know they did not think she had the right pedigree.

            4. This was definitely after the wedding.

               I mean, I don’t know how true it is, but I don’t think my friend or her family would lie. Just like I don’t think my university professor who attended St Andrews at the same time as W&K would lie about what he heard or his unfortunate experiences running into W.

      2. Chutney Kate is very common classless flasher human than the grand family , nonsense her carol pipa the middeltons PR – she is more like shopping /on blogs about her laziness, than parent site with Nanny Maria taking care of kids! More waste of… much free time laziness instead of duties helping the needy.

         Whiny Wllnot handing out awards for compassion … what a hoot – considering he knows nothing about duty charities and the needy he so ignore with his “i am a prince” the hen party decoy with Duchy taxpayers funded entitlements for 4 + in-laws!

   5. I loved the elephants! That was the best made my day. Elephant are amazing wonderful animals

      1. Same here. I love how they take care of each other, show emotion in death and are intelligent. Plus, they are beautiful.

   6. Ugh in so many ways. The mumsnet “source” is so contradictive. I’m sick of Diana’s name (although I adore her but realize she had issues) because journalists using it for click-bait. Charles is a pendetic old fart but I love his work ethic and creativity and desire to do something meaningful. Kate’s cut and paste wardrobe WTF after seeing her FOR YEARS shopping endlessly.

      On a positive note – ELEPHANTS FOREVER YES!!!!!

   7. An RPO shouldn’t be divulging any information on who they’re protecting; like a doctor shouldn’t release medical information.

      1. Ex-RPO, they weren’t serving currently from what I was told. So no fishy business.

         Like I said, I was told this by a friend so it could be true, could be not, but none of it is particularly earth-shattering or surprising considering it just corroborates what people say about her.

         1. I get what Jessica’s saying and being an ex doesn’t make it better. My ex doctor shouldn’t go around discussing my medical records. I would think the RPOs have NDAs and shouldn’t be talking. Isn’t that the reason some dude got fired before the wedding in 2011? Because he went off on Facebook?

            1. Your medical records contain sensitive information and it’s not the same as a former RPO saying in a general way that Kate doesn’t actually do much. He isn’t revealing how to access KP or providing specific patterns for her security to be vulnerable.

            2. She can’t sue or anything but ethically I think it’s inappropriate. Across the board security guards, bodyguards, etc. shouldn’t speak on who they have protected because of there unusual level.of access.

2. Those two are over 90 years old! Philip is almost 100 and he stands straight. A friend of mine says, it’s because they never had to work hard but I think it needs more than that. You have to take good care of yourself. I admire them both for their work ethic.Even if it’s no hard work, it’s their work and they do it for long years.
   Kate writing in a chat is hilarious, she would never do such a thing.I can’t imagine which article writer thinks we believe such nonsense x)

   1. Well, genetics plays a part in the Queen and Phillip’s longevity, plus they also enjoy the very best medical care available. Neither has to worry about housing, food or heating; they live extraordinarily well, which also positively impacts one’s well-being. Imagine if every elderly person had access to even a sliver of those advantages? Or any of us, for that matter?

      1. I also think having a sense of purpose that gets you out of bed each day can help you live longer. The body and mind are connected. If the mind thinks there is no reason to live, the body might one day agree.

         1. So true. To strive to do something, however small, keeps us all going.

         2. +1 JET texas

         3. Well said, JET

         4. Plus +1 from me too, JET! One has to have that fire in the belly that motivates them because if not, what’s the point in living?

      2. Agree!

         But comparing to the likes of lazy cannot Willnot – the 90s Monarch and her generation are superior.

3. Kate posting on Mummy blogs?

   *snort*

   …and then she woke up?

   I’d rather watch Her Majesty giving bananas to an elephant!

   (Y’all smelling a “planted story” in the Mirror? I’m not talking about the elephant and the Queen btw)

   1. “Planted” like KP’s people put this out there? I think it’s probably some dumb magazine making stuff up (I’ve never heard of Reveal mag) and the Mirror quoting it for clicks. But I think the shade the Mirror threw at Kate’s lack of speeches is funny.

      1. I was wondering if it was a planted story by Middleton PR to try and make Kate look good? Like those “hands on” Mummy Kate stories we get every now and again.

         1. More like the “just like us” stories as a lot of women talk parenting on the internet and get advice or ideas. I sure have.

            1. And it shows that she stands up to william!! Haha when her public demeanor is that of a submissive woman. Same with the article that said unlike Charles she’s the only to call him out when he’s wrong. Riiiiiggghhhhtt. I believe that. No one has stood up to William thus the terrible petulant man that we have now

         2. I doubt the plant would have been to Reveal mag, though. They’d do a well known UK royal paper like the DM or Express like they usually do. The fact that the source of the quote is from some mag I’ve never heard of makes me think it’s not true and not a purposeful plant.

4. I’m rather interested to hear people’s perspectives of twenty years ago. It was such a raw and emotional time for us as a nation. I got engaged the night Diana died, woke up the morning after my own engagement party by my Mum telling me what had happened. Oh I cried and cried. But there was so much conflicting media over Diana, her death, her relationships so I do want to know more about people’s memories of it without the raw emotion of the situation. Maybe a final word on it all will be cathartic for everyone? We shall see.

   But I am more pleased that we have a permanent and suitable memorial to her. I don’t want her airbrushed from national life because she was inconvenient. She was loved by many for all her faults.

   1. I was almost eleven when she died, so had little knowledge of her except she was a princess, she was pretty, and her husband was basically Satan incarnate and William was cute. Haha. Oh, how the times change… I admire her charity work but I have no connection with her being so young when she died despite my already burgeoning interest in history and royalty.

      My mother worshiped her and thought she was the best, and the rest of ’em were evil, and William is her heir and spitting image and the bestest ever and Kate is SO wonderful and intelligent because the media tells us so.

      My British family feel the same: they think W&K can do no wrong and are perfect, and despise Charles and want him gone for good.

      Yikes.

      1. I had just turned 8 and had no idea why my mom got up super early to watch a funeral on TV. I didn’t know about Diana until after she died.

         1. Wow…..with no disrespect you have really surprised me. I thought you were at least ten years older. Xx

      2. Oh my position has changed so much over time. I still love her. She was fascinating, troubled, beautiful and inspirational but I no longer believe the narrative that PoW is the bad guy in all this. His story, her story and somewhere in the middle is the truth. Essentially two gifted people who were just totally wrong for each other. I also now like and admire Camilla very much.

         But now all the hysteria is gone I do wonder what those closest to it all now feel. I hope that these programmes explore that in a fair and balanced way. Failing that I think it will give us greater insight into current relationships.

         Twenty years. Wow it just doesn’t feel like that to me. I do wonder had she lived could she have guided William better. Harry seems to have thrived with her memory whereas William carries a lot more baggage. And I do wonder what she would have made of William, the Middletons, Harry and Meghan etc…..people talk about how she would never have let the Middleton’s get their claws into William but I don’t know how she could have stopped it. William is every bit as stubborn and flying on his own misguided instinct as she was.

         1. I recall when the news came over the radio; it was a mid-Sunday afternoon in New Zealand (about 4.00am UK time). First, it was an announcement that Diana had been injured in a car crash; a little later, that she had died. No-one could believe it. We’d had the news for hours before the British woke up to that terrible news.

            I share your observations about the main players. However, since William and Harry have commissioned the programs and selected people to speak about her, including themselves, the die is cast: manufactured myth will persist. Until someone of great courage can give a fair, balanced appraisal. It’s more a tragedy for the people at the core.

            It’s hard to know how Diana would have handled the Middleton’s. Had she lived and William had made his way to St Andrews rather than the US as Diana had planned, he may not have been so vulnerable to the Middleton’s version of rosy, cosy family life, nor Carole’s version of (s)mothering. And what would Diana have done with her own life?

            1. I want to believe Diana would have fared well later in life, but because of her poor choices before her death I don’t believe all would be well. Diana was so desperate for affection and acceptance yet chose so poorly in her quest to find it, a classic borderline personality. Very tragic and difficult to assuage those crushing feelings of inadequacy and emptiness.

               As for the Midds, I don’t think they would be in W’s life now. Carole fills some sort of

            2. I think you’re right. The last year or two were erratic and it was clear that things were going to spin completely out of control at some point. She was an adult with a child’s needs for love and security. I don’t know who could have filled that void, or what could have given her contentment. Charles would have known her best but he, too, was so damaged.

         2. Mrs BBV, excellent written post. I so agree with so much of what you wrote. There definitely was much more to the marriage story than just Diana’s side. Charles and Diana both had baggage they brought to the marriage. Sadly just weren’t a match that they so needed in each other and seeking help was a tad bit taboo back then and especially for Royals. It is too bad that William has not grown as Harry has. William needs the mental therapy that he is touting that others should pursue. He could bring so much to the table. Thank you for your thought provoking analysis.

            1. What I find said with Charles and Diana, and the feud, is everything I have read was before she died they were getting on well and did care for one another, perhaps loved one another, in their way. Certainly Charles was very upset by her death. Just a tragic mismatch for both of them pushed into it by other people in their lives when these two sensitive, damaged people needed people to help them, but together, they were a mess who couldn’t help one another or themselves.

            2. Ellie he was absolutely devastated. I think part was his own guilt that he hadn’t done more to help her, part he saw tragedy ahead for her the way her life was (he is quoted as saying he always believed she would come back to him broken in some way and needing his help) and devastated for the boys losing their mother. Of course he also knew that everyone was going to blame him (he discussed that as length with Marc Bolland) and he knew that her death also jeopardised the peace he had found with Camilla as well. He is believed to have told Camilla he grieved for what she had become and that Royal life had turned her from a jolly, uncomplicated girl into what she became. I think as that point he failed to understand that he was never a jolly, uncomplicated girl. She has so much emotional baggage and I’m certain she developed some very noticeable characteristics of BPD. She certainly hits most of the markers on DSM-IV mental disorders scale for BPD.

               Diana being mercurial Diana I’m sure would have continued the cycle of falling out with him, making up with him all her life and I think he was just exhausted by the emotional rollacoaster that she was. Being with a BPD sufferer is very, very draining as they never reach emotional equilibrium for very long. The cycle perpetuates continually again and again no matter how much therapy you have because those inner demons or schemas as they’re referred to are always there. It’s interesting that when Diana was seeing Susie Orbach before her death about the time that Charles threw Camilla’s birthday party Diana said that all the grief she thought she’d worked through was resurfacing……that is BPD to a T. And someone as emotionally sensitive as PoW would never have coped with the magnitude of emotions that BPD suffers exhibit. No wonder he felt so helpless.

            3. I’d never thought Diana possibly could have had BLD. Could explain it. Also her upbringing and the abuse in that family explain a lot, as well. The Spencers seem like absolute peaches, note the massive dose of sarcasm.

               It’s so sad because she had so many gifts yet squandered them at the same time. One moment she’s your best friend; the second she hates you…

         3. I am old enough to have gotten up early to have a party, including cake, with girlfriends to watch the wedding. It truly seemed like a fairy tale. When she died, I watched the funeral and talked on the phone with these same, widely scattered friends. None of us believed in fairy tales any more.

            Though shocked and sad, I was not surprised by her early death. Her life seemed to have been spiralling out of control with increasingly tawdry companions. I was however surprised at the British reaction.

            My friends and I also predicted that William would have a lot of problems, mostly stemming from his mother’s inappropriate use of him as a tool in her bitter fight with Charles. I wonder if those boys got proper counseling after their mother’s death.

            And I am firmly in the let her rest in peace camp. Two tv shows twenty years later is unnecessary.

            1. Diana’s use of William as an emotional sounding board is probably one of the most damaging things she did as a mother. As much as she loved her boys she did use them as pawns in the battleground of a broken marriage and with the press. No wonder William is so misguided. In some ways luckily for Harry he was just too young to realise what was going on and that’s probably what’s left him relatively unscathed and a freer spirit. I know there are many more factors that contribute to their personalities than that but it’s no coincidence that Diana dumped her baggage on William and he’s the one with the difficult personality and the more strained relationship with his father.

            2. +1

            3. My parents used me as a tool between them in their divorce and it was so incredibly damaging, I can’t imagine how much worse it would have been for William. Then, add in his naturally surly personality, it’s recipe for disaster.

            4. Another one whose mother used me inappropriately during her divorce. I was 16 and she told me things I should never have known, and then when I didn’t marry until I was over 30 she blamed herself but also me. Ugh. But at some point you all (meaning me, William, Harry, anyone else in that position) have to take responsibility for your own life and get help when and if you need it.

               I am old – turning 65 next birthday. I remember the wedding, the funeral, her life. I thought she was mentally ill but at the same time gifted in terms of her life with respect to her charities. And she was so beautiful!

               I will add that I have become a huge fan of Camilla. I even remember when Camilla and Charles were dating – way before all of this transpired. And, as an old woman married well over 30 years I am totally against infidelity. But Camilla has proven to me that she loves Charles and is able and willing to take on the role that being his wife entails.

               Sorry for the long post. Love this thread and all of you! And thanks to our host for all your efforts! This website is a shining star on the internet – you are smart and a hard worker (so many carefully researched posts!) and seriously one of my most frequented places to go on the web, so you attract a very intelligent and educated following. Cheers to you all!

               Carry on…

   2. Mrs BBV, I was devastated by the news of Diana’s death. I thought her so lovely. I lived in Chicago at the time and regular tv was interrupted by the news around 11 pm on a Saturday night (I think).

      But I do remember stories about Diana acting erratically during the last year of her life, as Herazeus has chronicled in this blog. I was confused and a little embarrassed for her during that Bashaar (sp?) interview.

      Frankly, I wish people would stop blaming Charles. Both were extremely damaged before the marriage which played out in the marriage. Constant Charles and Camilla bashing accomplishs nothing. And the memorials to her–I understand Brits wanting something to mark her life and death, but I’m not that interested.

      1. I totally agree!

         Di passing was sad RIP – but she was an adult, still living like royal at a palace/KP); whiny bill and Prince Harry was loved, care for by their father and the Royals that bill middelton seem to enjoy!

         Since waity/carol middelton, reminder of Di and attackimg POW is how carol keep bill stuck to useless Chutney and middeltons – same as the kids used for PR climbing. This won’t end well

   3. I was in London doing a college semester abroad. We had gone out drinking and came back early in the morning to our flat and the news was trickling in. Over the next two weeks, I honestly thought people had lost their minds, and the media was stirring it up for ratings (I was a Communications and English major, so this story became my graduate thesis: royalty and their communication styles). I went to her funeral as a tourist. I couldn’t believe people were crying, weeping, sobbing publicly about someone they hadn’t met. I thought Earl Spencer’s speech was a good speech technically (the way it was constructed, I’ve studied a lot of speeches) but in reality his words were BS. Her death became a circus, a spectacle. It all seemed really weird, and Christopher Hitchens was the only voice of sanity (to my ears) during that time.

      I knew nothing of Diana up to that point, but became obsessed with the BRF after that. Upon reading all the Diana books out there, I felt bad for Charles. Reading her autobiography (the Morton book) I thought she was crazy, and I don’t understand how others read that book and walked away thinking she was a sympathetic figure. She really needed mental help, it seems. My memories of her death are a time of confusion. I wrote in my diary that I thought people would look back on that time with embarrassment.

   4. The night of Diana’s death was my first night home with my newborn son, and I was up alone trying to nurse him and watching CNN. I remember so clearly how they said at first that the worst of her injuries was a broken arm, and then, later, the shocking breaking news that she had died. I was so hormonal, and sitting there with my new baby knowing that Diana would never see her own boys again, it’s hard to describe how emotional I was.

      I couldn’t believe that the next morning the Queen insisted that the boys attend church as was planned. If Charles had had his wits about him, he should have stood up to her and let them stay home and grieve. But also, I couldn’t believe that the British public was faulting the Queen for not bringing the boys to London sooner, for some sort of public viewing. In that, I thought the Queen was correct. If any event made William and Harry resent their public roles, I think it was those first hours and days after Diana’s death, being forced to be in public while dealing with great private pain.

      1. I blame the Queen for the debacle that ended up forcing a public mea culpa from the boys to appease the public.

         It was well known at the time that HM disliked Diana for all the stunt queening of the last few years that only served to embarrass or wrongfoot the family.

         And not giving a toss about Diana, she didn’t see why she should acknowledge her death.

         I’m pretty sure that IF she hadn’t let her feelings lead her actions and hiding behind protocol to justify them, the very public parading of the boys wouldn’t have happened.

         Right from the start, the family attended church at Balmoral during which there was no acknowledgement whatsoever of the tragedy the world was reeling from.

         The Balmoral service is, like all CoE services, at 10.30am or 11am. Plenty of time to tell the priest to include a prayer for Diana in his regular prayer for HM.

         Right there. Major mistake.

         2nd mistake was the complete silence of the Palace. No statement to acknowledge that she had died or even awareness that she had died. For all anyone knew, they didn’t know that she had died.

         Charles collecting her body was the only public knowledge that they knew she had died.

         It took Tony Blair, to give a statement to the press for the public to know that the establishment knew she had died.

         And still no statement from the Palace.

         Mistake no 3 was the lack of a flag on any govt buildings, and more importantly at any royal residence. Not even a half mast flag.

         Then the Palace puts out a half-witted statement saying flag was for sovereign alone and no one else and since Diana wasn’t a member of the family, no flag for her.

         Mistake no 4 was speculation about the funeral whereby the Palace initially insisted that Diana being a private citizen and ex-member of the royal family would have a pricate funeral. When this was met with public outrage, they said she would have a semi-private funeral and when that wouldn’t do, they gave in and dusted off the Queen Mother’s funeral plans and adapted them for Diana.

         Mistake no 5 was that the vacuum created by the Queen’s complete silence/ public response to the death allowed the media to whip the public into a frenzy. This was the one occassion where silence was not golden. And she let it go on too long.

         It got so bad that the Queen was eventually forced to come back to London and give that meally mouthed press conference. The entire episode gave impression thst she was dragged back rather than coming down of her own volition.

         We actually thought that when she stepped outside the palace gates, that she would be attacked because of the hysteria which felt ominous, and for others to step in and provide leadership she clearly lacked. It also allowed the public to see her as cold hearted woman who cared more for protocol than for the boys.

         And the only way to appease the masses was by parading those boys.

         The idea that she was shielding the boys and that’s why she stayed in Scotland may be true, but it was the Palace PR that spun that line AFTER the event to explain the fact that we nearly had a constitutional crisis on the mishandling of Diana’s death and clear demonstration of her lack of leadership.

         It was also needed to paper over the fact thst she’d appeared to be dragged to give Diana a public sign of her passing because if she’d had her way, Diana’s death would have been as insignificantly noted and excuted as any minor member of the family.

         The line about needing to shield the boys has been repeated so many times that it feels true, but make no mistake, those boys were paraded to save the family.

         1. The Queen may be seen as a nice little old smiley lady with the funny hats. But make no mistake, she is a greedy, cold-hearted person and raised selfish children where 3 out of the 4 had marriages that ended in divorce due to emotional neglect of their spouses. The Queen had to use PR to turn around the public perception of the Royal Family. Now with this semi-unauthorized biography of Charles coming out, which largely paints Diana as an immature, emotionally needy nutcase (not denying that Diana didn’t have her faults, but don’t forget the good that she did too), the revisionist history of the Queen being thsi great and benevolent leader who’s passing the crown down to a phenomenal and benevolent Charles, is complete. Should tell you a bit about the people that raised them. Sure, while she does her god-given duty of hand waving and ribbon cutting, the Queen is no leader. Actually, Britain’s political and economic standing in the world has fallen under her 60yr watch.

            1. YES! A terrible Queen!

      2. Hera…..what do you think would have been William’s fate if Diana had lived? Where do you stand in the view that Diana would have seen off the Middletons? And yes HM really did let her personal feelings cloud her judgement that week. Xx

         1. Mrs BBV: it’s a complicated question. Remembering Diana as we do, i think the Middletons wouldn’t have been successful in luring William away from his family.

            Diana wouldn’t have stood for that on a personal note and on a work duty note.

            That said, when i first assessed Kate, i thought that William took the template of his mother, and picked someone completely opposite to that. He hated Diana’s public persona and as we’ve since found out, wanted someone who could prioritise him completely to the exclusion of everything and everybody else.

            On that note, i think we might have had a more hardworking Kate because Diana wouldn’t accept her, but who also prioritised William because that is what *he* wants.

            Carole wouldn’t have the stranglehold she does, and would be sidelined. As Carole wants to be the power behind the throne, she would have no choice in the matter because Diana would have ensured that Kate and William went no further if the alternative was a William basking in the maternal love of someone else. – see Tiggy and nanny Barnes.

            Assuming that Kate was still able to catch William’s eye, it would have been a passing fling because of their known history and the fact that Carole wouldn’t have been allowed to play ‘cosy families’ with him. I remain firmly convinced that he married Carole more than he married Kate. Without her, there is no relationship with Kate.

            In summary, i don’t think the Middletons would have prevailed, and if they did, would have been completely sidelined.

            1. I agree 100% percent with you, no Carol no marriage.

      3. Didn’t Charles demand to go get her body and HM did not want him to, but he stood up to her for once and said it was basically the right thing to do, bring her home, and he would do it?

         I think HM tried to do the best for W&H by just protecting them in the insular Balmoral world but it didn’t work at all with the world at large.

         The hysteria post-Diana fascinates me, as I was so young at the time. I cannot imagine people acting this way about someone they hadn’t known and throwing stones at the Queen who I think definitely made mistakes but probably had the wellbeing of the boys at heart and honestly, Diana was no longer a family member, so I can see why she didn’t see that it was their problem. It was a family thing for the boys, and for the Spencers, not a big public to-do. But she severely misjudged the hysterical feelings of the nation…

         I wonder what Charles would have done. He seems far more in tune with people, but he goes about in the world and talks to others and seems to for all his other faults ‘get it’ for lack of a better term.

         1. Yup. That was a weird time. Approaching mass hysteria and mob rule. A near constitutional crisis over HM not mourning correctly in public.

      4. Lizzie, I watched the news in absolute shock that night with my month old firstborn in my arms. And a few days later Mother Teresa passed away as well. We lost so much that week. Champions for humanity despite their own human struggles. Lionesses- and they don’t come around often. I believe Malala is one, that young women humbles me every time she speaks. An old and wise and fiercely just soul.

   5. I was 17 years old. What should’ve been my Senior year of high school but wasn’t (ah well) and we were entering Labor Day weekend. It was a Saturday night and I was switched back and forth between listening to the radio and a cassette tape on my Walk-Man. Towards the end, when I’d briefly switched back to “radio”, I heard a blip about some car crash and immediately rolled my eyes, thinking it was some celebrity in Hollywood and went to bed.

      The following morning, I got up early to switch the phone line so that I could log into my AOL account. The headline announced that Diana had died. My jaw dropped and I blanched. My mom had gotten the newspaper and the announcement in the Tampa Tribune was in big black bold letters: “DIANA DEAD” and kept on going to various royal message boards. The following Tuesday, when I went back to school, my journalism teacher used that headline (and the one from the St. Petersburg Times) as a compare and contrast to explain which one was better and why. She explained that the St Pete Times headline was better because it was much more subtle in its deliverance.

      The following Saturday (September 6th), was the funeral and I wanted to watch it live but good gravy I could not get my butt up that early so I watched snippets throughout the day. September 6, 1997 was also the one year post-transplant anniversary for my friend, Erik. He and I were the only heart/double lung recipients of 1996 for our transplant center so since our families were close, I called him to congratulate him.

      Earlier that week Mother Teresa had passed away which was also a great shock to many people. While on the phone with Erik’s mom, right before I hung up, I said, “First Princess Diana, now Mother Teresa….who’s next?” and I hung up the phone. With the receiver still in my hand the phone rang.

      It was the mother of my transplant friend, Jennifer, whose health had been declining and she wasn’t even 18 months post transplant. Though she lived in Indiana (and I in Florida) we kept in touch and visited earlier her and her family that summer. Anyway, Jennifer’s mother, Jane, asked to speak with my mom and I handed her the phone. Mom talked to Jane, hung up, and told me that Jennifer had died 30 minutes earlier. I immediately felt shame for the words I’d spoken to Erik’s mom, right before we hung up and it took me many years to get over that.

      I saved the articles surrounding Diana’s death and that’s when my interest in the royals escalated.

      1. P.S. Please note that I do not still own those saved articles surrounding Diana’s death (the funeral and whatnot). I threw those out years ago but my interest in the royals has remained the same though the rose-colored glasses have been removed. 😉

      2. I was watching television on NBC and recall the first news about the crash but then not much else. Then at around midnight eastern time I recall Brian Williams interrupting whatever was on (I think an SNL rerun) and announcing she had died. Although I don’t follow the royals this was a shock and I even woke up my parents to tell them.

         I then stayed up pretty late as they were going over what they knew. I recall feeling bad for the kids.

         As for the aftermath, I do recall how people were mad that protocol was being put before feeling. Even if Diana was not officially in the BRF anymore, she was the mother of a future king and the public was not impressed with old school stuffiness.

         The Helen Mirren movie The Queen captures the aftermath fairly well.

5. I’m probably a little late,I just heard that Camilla Luddington gave birth to a little girl 🙂
   I hope it’s ok that I post it here, I always think of Kate when I see her (because of the british movie).

6. Oh I love the elephants!!!

7. I find it sad that William has known Carole longer than his own mother. Or, almost that much time. It is also sad that Diana shared so many of her issues with William. Sadder still, that a woman like Carole could prey on his vulnerability for the sake of having her daughter gain him as a Prince. That’s my opinion, anyway. Had Diana lived, I doubt William would have married Kate Middleton.

   I don’t blame William or Harry for wanting to have their Mum remembered as the 20th Anniversary of her passing approaches. She was the world to them and she served a serious role in British History. Still, I would hope it — or they — the two documentaries — be fair and show Diana as a real person, and a Princess. She had her flaws, but she carried on and behaved well at so many appearances. She broke down barriers on many issues that were important to her. She treated AIDS patients with love and dignity and changed people’s minds about what not to fear from them. She worked to call attention to the horrors of land mines and she did what she could to raise money for causes that captured her heart. I was a child and will never forget my mother telling us that Princess Diana had died in a terrible accident. I remember wondering how something so bad could happen to someone so good. It was only later on that I found out how sad and lonely a woman she was. And, that bad things do happen to good people. Essentially, I will always think that Diana was a good person.

   Letting Diana lie in peace is one thing, but forgetting her is quite another. There are still so many people in the world today who loved and admired her. Turning a dark light on her existence would do nothing. Showing again, just how important and special she was is important at such tough times in the world. I do believe it should be done with understanding of who she really was, though. People can have flaws and still be revered for other things they accomplish.

   As for QE and the elephants- just wonderful!

   And, Kate on the mommy blogs? That, I cannot imagine. Although, didn’t some people here think that Carole might have been lurking recently right here.

   The stories about Kate at home are intriguing. TV and shopping. Do the kids fit in anywhere?

   1. That’s also what I think. He wouldn’t have married Kate if Diana would still live.He was much to vulnerabel and affected by Kate’s family. But if fate would have lead him to Kate, even with Diana, Carole would have a much harder time intriguing in all their lives.

   2. I agree with you, but so many more urgent deadly issues in the world today.

      Yes, honour her care compassion for humanity but she need to RIP . The History – her son Prince Harry honours her with his similar caring of people less fortunate – its there. I feel Prince Harry wants to move on from the sadness and has. It’s whiny bill carol waity middeltons wont leave her alone – keeping this rivalry wedding issues onging to enable themselves bill, over the POW/RF.

8. Personally, I kinda believe the stories about Kate’s participation on mommy sites. I don’t think she has many (if any) close female friends and these sites can provide a sense of friendship and support that is lacking in her life. As someone who doesn’t have many (if any) close friends I know I’ve really valued the friendship and support I’ve found here at KMR so I can certainly imagine Kate looking for the same things as well. Plus, it sounds like her and William clash over parenting styles and I imagine William isn’t a pleasant person to have a disagreement with so these sites probably help bolster her confidence as well.

9. I’m a bit confused about the Diana Award, From what I’ve read, this charity was established in 1999, but yet they’re just making their first Legacy Award almost 20 years later? And, looking at their website, it seems that they’ve given out Diana Awards in the past–so is this legacy award different in some key way?

   It would be very interesting to know the extent of William and Harry’s involvement with this charity, whose projects are very similar to the royal foundation’s. It seems William and Kate have participated in a few things over the past couple of years, and Harry had his first solo engagement with the Diana Award about six months ago. But I think it’s odd that The Diana Award website has no links to its financial statements, nor could I find any ratings for the charity after a quick google search. Also, I couldn’t find any reference to the Diana Award on the royal foundation’s own website.

   Also, I think some of the media coverage for this award is a bit misleading–much of it seems to suggest that this award comes directly from William and Harry themselves. In a number of articles, you have to read completely through to the end to see that they are presenting on behalf of another charity.

10. Funny you should bring up all of Kate’s similar looking tops – when I read the post about the Trio attending the London Marathon, I was thinking you could make a drinking game based on Kate’s wardrobe and the Trio’s actions, but I didn’t want to take away from the seriousness of the topic of Heads Together and mental health.

    I can see why Kate would buy an item in the same style if it suits her. My mom and I also favor similar styles and colors, so we text each other when we’re out shopping to show each other what we’re eyeing and talk sense into each other if need be. That way, we’re not spending our own hard-earned money on something that we already have in our closets. I’ve managed to train myself into the mindset that if I already own a particular item, then it’s a waste of space and money to buy a similar item unless I plan to replace the item I already have (the only exception being blue jeans). I can’t say if I’d be any different if I had Kate’s clothing budget. I’d probably keep the mindset but purchase nicer brands that lasted longer.

    On a more positive note, that middle picture of Queen Elizabeth and the elephant is adorable! They look like they are completely delighted to meet each other.

11. Does anyone think W&K will release photos of G&C for Easter?

    1. I would say that entirely depends on what mood William wakes up in on Easter Sunday. Xx

       1. Oh, Mrs. BBV, how I want to say something totally inappropriate to your comment, but I will stay silent.

       2. Sigh…sad but true Mrs BBV.

    2. Considering what happened last Easter, they should release photos but that’s just my opinion. 😉

       1. Lol?

    3. I doubt it. The big question is if the Middleton’s do the Easter stroll. I think it’s been a couple years since William and Kate have done Easter with the queen.
       We’ll probably get the bday pic then next sighting will be at pippa’s wedding. I’m hoping for finally a Harry with his niece and nephew pic
       I’m actually shocked that after the ski debacle we weren’t given pics/pap strolls with the kids to distract

       1. Apparently Harry is in Toronto :
          – I don’t know if he will be with the Queen

          http://www.eonline.com/news/843341/prince-harry-secretly-visits-meghan-markle-ahead-of-easter

       2. At this rate we’ll only be “seeing” the kids 3 times a year as it’s been 4 months since the last sighting at Christmas. What a great way to foster an affection with the British and Commonwealth people.

          1. I’m thinking William doesn’t want to foster a relationship. He’s not doing them any favors. George always looks scared when out in public. It’s one thing to want to protect your kids from constant scrutiny and flashes another to essentially hide them away so you can use them when you need them to get you out of trouble. How nice would it have been to do a Mother’s Day pic but nope
             Other Royal family’s appear to have instagram/FB accounts that aren’t intrusive and makes everyone happy
             I feel more connected/interested in Madeleine’s kids and that’s due to her effort to put out pics of the kids.

    4. Depends. Do they have any scandals that they need the kids to distract the public away from?

    5. I expect the next time we’ll see them is Pippa’s wedding. MAYBE Charlotte’s birthday.

       A shame they keep them so cloistered.

       1. If we don’t get a photo for Charlotte’s birthday I will be very pissed.

          1. I want to see how she looks. They’re such cute kids, I’d like to get to know them like we know Estelle, and Leonore, and Nicolas.

             I have a soft spot for George. What a sweet little guy.

             Hiding them is to their detriment…

             Part of me wonders if we won’t get anything for her birthday due to the wedding.

          2. I was thinking the same thing… I mean if it wasn’t for the fact that they chose to spend Christmas with the Middleton, we would have not seen the kids, how they have grown etc…

12. http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/princess-diana-memorial-garden-opened-at-kensington-palace-to-mark-20th-anniversary-of-death-a3514086.html

    http://www.itv.com/news/2017-04-13/memorial-garden-marks-20-years-since-death-of-diana-princess-of-wales/

    https://www.timeout.com/london/blog/in-pictures-a-princess-diana-memorial-garden-has-opened-at-kensington-palace-041317

    The garden opened today…..it looks rather beautiful. The head gardener says he tried to take inspiration from the dress collection inside the Palace, used flowers he knew the Princess liked and has planned for it to evolve right the way through to September.

    1. That’s actually quite lovely

    2. Big Diana fan here. The garden is gorgeous. I would love to see it in person. Thanks for posting this Mrs BBV : )

    3. Oohhh, that is beautiful. Very appropriate.

13. I wonder if part of the reason Harry and William started focusing on mental health was due to their mother. It is well known now that Diana struggled and didn’t get the help she needed. I wonder if that partially motivates them and the narrative that people need to talk about it since they saw first hand what not getting help does? If that is a reason they will never mention it, even though it gives them more of a common ground with others. Just a thought

14. Har-Bear is in TO this weekend according to The Kit (a newspaper affiliate here in TO)

    http://thekit.ca/news/drop-everything-prince-harry-is-in-toronto/

    1. Good for him though I’d prefer to see him at Easter services with HM.

       Hope he has a nice time with Meghan.

       1. Oh I’m sure he will ?One of the many problems with LD relationships (especially ones that start that way) it’s mainly about the sexy times! It’s like visiting a city, you see all the wonders but usually never any of the frustrations with the town until you live there.
          I don’t know how long she’s under contract but until she’s able to move there it’ll still be in the shiny new state. It’s when you see someone daily that things that you initially thought were cute/endearing now start to wear on you. That’s the true test

          1. Yup, that’s precisely what I think of it. They have fun and don’t get to know the real ‘you,’ so to speak, are always on good behavior, etcetera. LDRs seem very very difficult to me.

15. OMG, she is reading this:/

16. Off topic but I just discovered how awesome Clarence House twitter feed is! They post things in the language of places they’re visiting too. The difference between theirs and KP’s is night and day.
    You’d think the 30 yr old’s would have the better sm team

17. Is H in toronto to vist M? I thought they broke up?

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