Reasons Royal Watchers Think Kate Middleton's First Official Photo Since Surgery Is Fake

The disturbing conspiracy theories about Kate Middleton have not been quelled by a new, crystal-clear photo of the hitherto silent princess. The picture even features Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis — an important element since Kate's kids also mysteriously went missing for months when she underwent abdominal surgery. However, it's not their presence, but some smaller details in the smiley snapshot (which is worthy of a stock photo gallery) that have royal sleuths crying foul.

Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months.

Wishing everyone a Happy Mother's Day. C

📸 The Prince of Wales, 2024 pic.twitter.com/6DywGBpLLQ

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 10, 2024

Kensington Palace tweeted the photo of Kate and her kids in honor of Mother's Day in the U.K. The brief tweet also (finally!) acknowledged the supporters who have spent the last few months worrying about Kate's physical state. "Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months," it reads. Kate is pictured sitting in a wooden chair with Charlotte perched on its left arm, George behind her, and Louis standing to her right with his fingers crossed. (Hmmm ... what could that mean?!) The foursome is outdoors on a tiled patio, and they look as merry as the day is long. There's no way anyone can insist that actor Katie Holmes is posing as Kate in the pic. However, some users on X, formerly known as Twitter, still think there's something sinister going on based on their observations about the picture's setting (and Kate's left hand).

One of the prevalent rumors about why Catherine, Princess of Wales, made like Rapunzel and went missing from her kingdom isn't that she was locked away in a tower; it's that she and Prince William are deadlocked in divorce negotiations. Kate Middleton's wedding ring is nowhere to be seen in the picture that Kensington Palace released and this has not gone unnoticed by Kate conspiracy theorists. Neither has something that's lurking in the background of the photo: leafy green foliage. "Wow, the trees come into leaf early at Buckingham Palace," reads one tweet. The thinking here seems to be that it's not quite springtime yet and that the trees would still be bare if the photo was snapped recently. Another theory is that the image is an AI fakery. 

Regarding Kate's missing ring, one person posited, "She has lost weight which happens to everyone after major abdominal surgery so her rings will be loose." And there's another crucial clue that some royal watchers seemed to be willfully overlooking: William was credited with taking the photo. This explains his absence in it and debunks the speculation that he and Kate are embroiled in a bitter divorce battle. As for the greenery, another X user shared a photo of William at an outdoor engagement that was taken when he visited Wrexham, Wales, for St. David's Day on March 1 — and there is a very large quantity of chlorophyll behind him.