This is Part II of the Mail’s article about and for Prince William’s 40th birthday. Part I was devoted to how William feels about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. That was a huge chunk of the Mail piece, but notably, there’s a lot of work being done to talk about the Cambridge marriage and how, despite rumors to the contrary, William and Kate are fine. It does feel like acknowledging those “rumors” actually emphasizes that the royal reporters have been hearing it too, and for now they’re keeping their mouths shut because KP gives them so much in the way of leaks and commissioned stories. The minute KP shuts down their access though, I wonder what Rebecca English will write? Some highlights:

William hasn’t always been as dull and dutiful as some would think. ‘Let’s just say that, like his younger brother, William enjoyed himself immensely in his teens and 20s. Unlike Harry, though, he was never caught!’

His future in the Firm: ‘He hasn’t rubbed his hands in glee [at what is to come], but has looked at it in a dutiful way,’ says Lowther-Pinkerton. ‘One of the lovely things I remember early on was this sense of disbelief that people were really interested in who he was or what he was doing. But he quickly decided that if they were, he was going to turn it to whatever good use he could.’

He loves being a husband & father: ‘He just loves being a dad and having a settled family around him. Having children always puts things into perspective, and doubly so for him,’ says one friend. ‘Whatever happens ‘at work’, he has to go home and be a ‘normal’ person for the sake of his kids, which has made him more at peace with the reality of his other life.’

The Keen Anchor: Throughout all of this, Kate, 40, has been not just his wife, but his best friend and ‘anchor’. Their relationship has, inevitably, been picked over at length and subjected to scrutiny and gossip. I have discussed this with several in William’s circle and all are of the same opinion. ‘It’s just b******s,’ says one. ‘They honestly couldn’t be happier as a couple. You can’t get a cigarette paper between them. They are so tight, just inseparable.’

The inseparable Keens: ‘They spend all their time together. They lunch together every day, they sit and watch television together every evening. They do go out and see their own friends, of course, but they spend an inordinate amount of time together and live a very conventional married life,’ says one who knows them well. ‘They aren’t a flashy couple — he likes his motorbikes but that’s about it. They are both very outdoorsy people and spend every minute they aren’t working with their children. That’s what they really care about.’

William admires Kate: ‘When you speak to William, he’s actually quite puritanical in his attitude when he talks about his parents’ marriage and what went wrong. It hugely affected the way he approached his own relationship with Catherine and why it took so long for him to settle down. He wanted it to be with the right person and [for it to last] for ever. William is very conscious that if it wasn’t for him, the man she fell in love with, Catherine would be living a nice life in the country and bringing up a family away from the spotlight. There’s a bit of snobbery, sadly, when you marry in from outside. It’s a lot better now than it was, but William is still very protective of his wife. The way he sees it, she is as important to the institution as he is. He genuinely admires the way she has just dug her heels in and stuck with it.’

William the Incandescent: There are some I know who have had angry run-ins with him over the years and describe him as controlling and suspicious — someone who sees an ‘agenda’ everywhere, particularly in terms of the palace machinery (something he has in common with Harry). But those individuals, it should be stressed, are few and dealt with William as a younger man, when he was still railing against authority — and, particularly, his father.

[From The Daily Mail]

I’m not sure “William seethed with rage constantly, but that was in his 20s” is the right cover story? Especially since the other half of English’s article is about how angry William is with Harry and Meghan. As for all of the stuff about Kate and their family… what William is communicating is that he’s not divorcing Kate. It’s that simple. Their marriage won’t be over until he says, and right now, he’s fine with Kate and they have their arrangement worked out. And no, they aren’t attached at the hip. The move to Windsor will only re-emphasize how little time they spend together. This has always been the case – it’s clear that Carole Middleton and Nanny Maria are raising the kids, while Kate obsesses over her Diana and Meghan look-books and William is ass-deep in Norfolk rose bushes.

Oh, and this is really funny to me: “There’s a bit of snobbery, sadly, when you marry in from outside. It’s a lot better now than it was, but William is still very protective of his wife…” This is William acknowledging that Kate is still unpopular and unaccepted by the aristocrats. Maybe Kate wouldn’t be victimized by Toff snobbery if she wasn’t trying to bully William’s aristocratic mistresses?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid and Instar.