Duchess Kate ‘had a good lockdown’ because ‘she’s come out of her shell’

Coronavirus - Sun Jul 5, 2020

Here are more photos from this past weekend, where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge stepped out for an NHS anniversary tea party. Kate wore her prairie Sister Wife garb and William tried to look natural amongst the peasants. Did you know that Kate also wore new earrings to this event? Apparently, she’s never worn these before – they’re Patrick Mavros ‘Ocean Tides’ earrings, created in 18ct gold with a gorgeous milky quartz stone, and a small diamond from the central piece – which is made in a beautiful sea urchin design.” They cost £2400. Did… did Kate need to buy herself a new pair of earrings to go along with all of the new dresses she purchased for the quarantine? Was this her “reward” for Zooming herself into an early grave? Speaking of, the Guardian and other UK outlets did pieces on how Kate “had a good lockdown” because… she Zoomed. That’s it. That’s why she had a good lockdown. Some highlights:

Kate’s the only glamorous one now: “With Meghan gone, the only person who really could provide the glamour factor is Kate,” historian Sarah Gristwood, author of Elizabeth: The Queen and the Crown, told US People magazine, which featured her on its latest cover.

Wow, there are negative headlines about Meghan? Kate’s stock, it seems, is high on both sides of the pond. Hard to ignore is the contrast in tone of the coverage of sisters-in-law Kate and Meghan. Headlines about Kate are brimful of positivity. Stories on Meghan, holed up in Los Angeles, less so.

But Kate isn’t being seen more *because* Meghan was exiled: Royal observers, however, believe Kate’s present high profile is not solely down to Meghan’s absence. Simon Perry, People magazine’s UK-based royal correspondent, believes lockdown has played to Kate’s strengths.“Funnily enough, those interested are seeing more of Kate through these online video calls and quite long TV interviews. You could argue the public has seen more of her than they would on ordinary engagements, when they might get a fleeting look, or a sentence or two. Americans love the royals, and our readers continue to be very interested in Kate. She was on our cover last week, where we talked about the pressures she and William are under because there are a lot of expectations on them.”

A good lockdown: Others believe the future Princess of Wales and Queen Catherine has grown into her role. “She’s had a good lockdown. She’s come out of her shell a bit more. She is still not the best public speaker, but she is definitely getting better, and a bit braver during this crisis about wanting to say things,” said one.

Kate is forever “growing in confidence”: Kate has been Hello! magazine’s cover for the last two editions. Its royal editor, Emily Nash, said: “ I think people feel more connected to her than ever in some ways, because they are hearing more from her directly, whether it’s on video calls or interviews, and she’s opening up more on a personal level. We’re hearing about the highs and lows of homeschooling, how she’s missing her family, she’s struggling to get her two-year-old to behave on FaceTime calls to family – it’s all very relatable stuff. She has definitely grown in confidence and feels able to talk about subjects like early years development and mental health because she has done all the research, and really knows what she’s talking about. There is still the fascination in her wardrobe, of course, but I think people are also paying more attention to what she is saying and doing and the issues she is highlighting.”

[From The Guardian]

This has a similar vibe to the recent People Magazine cover story, which is to say, a redo/mulligan on the Tatler debacle. Kate *did* work during the lockdown and she dutifully Zoomed a couple of times a week, and those Zoom calls were supposed to be the centerpiece of Kate’s 2020 branding. 2020 Kate is a Top CEO who Zooms so hard and works so much, especially now that Meghan is gone, and Kate is so queenly and she cares ever so much about being prim and proper and following protocol, unlike Meghan. That was supposed to be the story. But the Tatler cover blew up in her face and so the busy bees of Kensington Palace have been organizing all of these gentle, soft-focus articles about how Kate the Keen is the most wondrous and delicate, infantilized future queen ever (she’s “braver” about “wanting to say things” you guys). Notice this as well: for all of the recent talk about how Kate had a flawless, amazing lockdown, no one is mentioning the week and a half where she and her people couldn’t STFU about how the Tatler story was mean, and they were going to sue!

Coronavirus - Sun Jul 5, 2020

Coronavirus - Sun Jul 5, 2020

Coronavirus - Sun Jul 5, 2020

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

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148 Responses to “Duchess Kate ‘had a good lockdown’ because ‘she’s come out of her shell’”

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  1. Belli says:

    If anyone has such low expectations of me when I’m nearly 40, I’ll be furious.

    • bub244 says:

      Right?! If the best someone could say about my performance in a job I’ve had for over a decade was ‘well, now she says more than a few sentences’, I would be so unbelievably embarrassed and ashamed.

    • Nic919 says:

      Having met that target I can assure you that it would be insulting to be spoken of like that. It sounds like she is a special needs adult when they talk about her this way or that she has such significant mental health issues that they impede her from functioning as a well adjusted adult. This is abnormal and bizarre to attempt to praise her for doing below minimum expectations of adulting.

      • goofpuff says:

        I know! The words they use really sound like how people talk about a special needs adult that has to overcome significant mental and behavioral issues to do her job. It is really bizarre.

    • Lanie says:

      That’s the first thing I thought before I even scrolled down to the comments. Still looking mediocre after everyone goes out of their way to elevate you, hand pick projects to make you look studious, and runs off a glamorous, confident, more than competent in-law is an embarrassment.

    • Mrs.Krabapple says:

      The most insulting part is how misogynistic it is. Kate is held up as the “standard” by which British women need to be measured, and praised as being so “accomplished” — is this REALLY how the British view women. In this day and age, that patronizing, treat women as infantile dummies, is insulting to women everywhere.

    • Dinah says:

      Are these quotes really from a Guardian article? The newspaper the Royals and their courtiers consider “lefties”?
      Well, if Kate’s PR team has gotten the Guardian journos as far a to write down this piece of crap to boost her image, then there is no hope left for the British media – not even those generally considered intellectual and up-market.

      • Nic919 says:

        I clicked on the guardian article myself yesterday and sadly it is accurate. It read like a DM article.

  2. Laalaa says:

    I know this is mean, and I know she is in her late 30s. But this dress and style makes her look so much older than she is, and her whole energy is very old.
    I don’t think she has to “be young” to be attractive, but she is so bland that her looks is all she has to give at this point (imo).

    • Yvette says:

      @Laalaa … I’ll stand on that platform with you. I know it seems mean, but the first thing I thought when seeing the top closeup photo of Kate with her mouth open, her sleepy eyes, that unfortunate dress, and her furrowed brow is that she looks closer to 50 then 40. She also looks a bit like she just rolled out of bed and threw something on after a hard night of drinking. That’s all I’ve got on her appearance, having said yesterday that her dress looks rather ‘Sarah, Tall and Plain-ish.’ It wasn’t meant to be mean-spirited, just an observation on my part.

      Now, on more steady footing … how in the world could Kate ‘just be coming out of her shell’ after being married to a ‘Crown Prince’ for nearly 10-years?

    • Mac says:

      Princess Mary of Denmark wore the same dress a few months ago. How does a dress this fugly get two royal wears?

      • Jen says:

        A portion of the proceeds from the dress benefits modern-day slavery victims, so I would guess that’s how it attracted them. A rare miss for Mary, but it still looked less dowdy than how Kate styled it.

      • BarbN says:

        Well…I have to say I like the dress, but that’s mostly because I LOVE the blue colors in it. What is more remarkable to me is the one picture where Kate is standing at an angle to the camera, next to William – she is sooo thin-looking! I say this not to shame her in any way, but with real concern for her health and well-being.
        I wonder if she chose a dress like this, busy of print and all covered up, to help hide her thinness?

        I don’t know how anyone can be happy and contented in life if they don’t enjoy eating. But then, I am a Taurus who loves her food (a bit too much, in truth).

        Kate has come out of her “shell”. She has found her “voice”. She has “matured enchantingly”. Dear God, this woman is nearly 40 years old. She’s had the longest childhood I’ve ever heard of. You would think that PW plucked her out of an orphanage in a third-world country to give her a new life as his spouse and future QC.

  3. Emma33 says:

    Whenever I see “top CEO” I say it to myself like Brigid Jones – “Was working like top CEO, but Daniel Cleaver kept distracting me, messaging me about length of skirt. Naughty Daniel. Cute Daniel! No! Must not get distracted, must concentrate like top CEO on my important work”

    • Chrissy says:

      LOL. God, I love that movie. Everyone in that film has more personality that Kate. Even Bridget’s co-worker Phillipa. Rene’s British accent is even better than Kate’s, and she’s a Texan. Bridget’s wardrobe might even be better than Kate’s.

      • Tealie says:

        That’s because her accent is fake af. I can assure you no rich or posh British person speaks like that anymore (i mean even the royal borns; Beatrice, Eugenie, William, Harry don’t !) Her ‘accent’ is very fake and “nouveau riche” – this coming from someone who went to her old British prestigious private school with Princes herself!

      • Meg says:

        Yes! ☺ lol

    • Flying Fish says:

      Oh my Gosh….Yes.
      Yes, and the dress is atrocious.

  4. olala says:

    Omg she is soo bland and old looking. Even if i was given any of her clothes or jewlery for free i would decline 🤣

    • Jordana says:

      @lala I had the same thought. Her dress choices are sad. They age her badly. I think she may be trying to choose “timeless” dresses, so the photos age well…it’s not working.

    • Mrs.Krabapple says:

      Kate has always looked older than her age. But lately her face has been looking very *different* as well. I can guess what she’s been up to during the shutdown.

    • The Recluse says:

      She looked good and relaxed when she still had her pregnancy weight. She really isn’t doing herself any favors health wise by staying so very lean.

    • Dinah says:

      Every time I see Kate in these dresses, I’m wondering – does William finds his wife attractive and sexy in these Little House on the Prairie-style dresses she keeps wearing over and over again? Is this an obsession of him rather than hers? Does this style really turns him on? It’s just crazy that a woman in this modern days and ages choses to dress like an old woman from centuries ago.

      • Nic919 says:

        It’s doubtful that he is the one telling her to dress like this. After all she first got his attention with a see through skirt. It’s more likely she is hiding how skinny she is with these outfits.

      • yinyang says:

        Good question, I’d like to know what William thinks of Kate’s style too.

  5. Florence says:

    Coming out of my shell,
    And I’ve been doing just average
    Gotta gotta Zoom call
    Because I want jewellery.

    It started out with Waitying
    How did it end up like this?
    It was only a bush, it was only a bush

    Now I’m baring my teeth
    And Willy’s walking away
    Whilst I laugh like a loon
    Frumpy dress is new today,
    Now I’m Future Future Queen
    And my hair is blow-dried –
    Meg’s rent-free in my head –

    Bingo calling, got it wrong now
    I top up my fake tan, wow
    Let me keeeeeeeeen
    I just can’t work, I’m so lazyyyyy
    And shopping online.

    Jealousy, stop talking about Meg, please
    Grinning, I’m a CEO, cheese!
    Eyeliner, my small eyes
    Orders are the price I’m paid,
    Buckingham is calling me,
    Cheating Will – no, I’ll be queen,
    Cause I’m Katie the Keen!

    Apologies to The Killers 🙂

  6. Hannah says:

    You know this dress is really BAD when even die hard Keen stans are saying it’s fugly

    • BayTampaBay says:

      The real stupid thing is that dress would have been fine without the white collar and white cuffs. It may have even looked good.

      • Hannah says:

        Amen BTB. You – me: same page. The funny thing is Camilla wore an almost identical dress (pictured on SM on the same day as Keen) but GASP… the dress sat on her knees and showed a bit of leg and the top was unbuttoned a bit so we could actually see a bit of skin. Shock, horror! Where were the Protocol Police to scold the actual Future QC for this horrific violation. Twitter link from Clarence House if anyone wants to see https://twitter.com/ClarenceHouse/status/1280173433582759936/photo/1

    • LittlePenguin says:

      I finally figured out what the her clothes remind me of! The Hutterite women that I sometimes see around in the small towns here and at the markets. Except their dresses don’t have all the extra crap (colours, bows, BUTTONS) that Kate has on her versions. With a kerchief on her head, she would fit right in!

  7. Eleonor says:

    She has been growing in her role for the last 20 years, and she came out of the lockdown with a dress from 1982. Lifegoals?

  8. Rae says:

    Honestly, British press, give it a bloody rest. We get it, you’re fully suckling on RF nipple and are throwing yourself gainfully into trying to paper over the Prince Andrew fissures.

    But, seriously, just give it a rest.

  9. Becks1 says:

    Lordy.

    The line about how people are paying more attention to what she is saying and the issues she is highlight seems to almost be in conflict with the sentences above it about how she is opening up more. People are paying more attention to what she is saying because she’s sharing more family anecdotes. No one cares what she is saying about the issues, even at this point. And that’s because her cute kids are really her only accomplishment as a duchess, and I think everyone has pretty much just accepted that’s how it is. And when you look at it like that – Kate gets good press coverage in part because I think the RRs have just accepted this is how it is. This is who they are stuck with. The top CEO who complains and threatens lawsuits if an article is slightly less than flattering, so they just roll their eyes and write the articles and move on.

    There’s a reason that they all keep talking about Meghan. She sells more papers/gets more clicks – but that happens because she is INTERESTING. People want to hear what she has to say or what to learn about her projects. We don’t watch her videos to see her new earrings.

    • Nic919 says:

      While this article is the usual regurgitation of infantile nonsense, I am surprised to see this type of pap in the Guardian, which tends to lean left and is more progressive of a paper. They tend to hate monarchy in general for its sexism and racism and were the only place where there would be positive articles about Meghan or at least examining the racist media treatment against her. Clearly part of the KP PR was to get these bs articles out in as many different papers as possible. It’s not going to work where the audience in large part doesn’t believe in monarchy in general and Kate is the epitome of a mediocre person being praised for doing nothing.

      • Becks1 says:

        Agreed – if I’m already sort of anti-monarchy, and I read an article about how Kate is coming into her own at 38 and is really getting much better at public speaking and Zoom calls have been so good for her image….I would roll my eyes and wonder what the eff I was paying for.

  10. Seraphina says:

    Those earrings were not made to be worn that God awful dress.
    She looks so thin in the picture Where she and Wills have their hands cupped. Not even that dress can mask her diminishing frame.
    I can’t comment on the stupidity of the fictitious wonderful hard working while making Meghan the villain.

  11. ABritGuest says:

    The Catherine the Great tour even reached the Guardian. That’s interesting. Is it possible to praise Kate on her own merits without mentioning Meghan? And not one mention of these charities she’s leading with? That’s so poor from the Guardian even if written by a royal correspondent (co writer of Finding Freedom) as its meant to be way more pro feminist&pro arts. they couldn’t even mention the National Portrait Galley project!

    • duchess of hazard says:

      @ABritGuest – yeah, it’s strange, especially since the Guardian tends to side eye the BRF. But it gets eye balls, I suppose.

    • Nic919 says:

      The author of the article is Caroline Davies not Carolyn Durand so not the FF co author. But clearly a sycophant.
      I’m surprised that the Guardian would print this. Maybe it was a free article and they didn’t pay for it. It’s very tabloid style so I can see it turning off their usual readership. Kate is exactly why the royals needs to be removed. They are useless humans living on taxpayer munificence who,do the taxpayers themselves suffer. I mean how stupid to wear a new pair of earrings worth 2,400 while the rest of the country is worried about paying the rent or keeping their job. She’s really an idiot.

      • Tealie says:

        I have a feeling it’s one of the puff pieces Kensington Palace paid for to suppress the Tatler article and recover her image

    • MA says:

      That’s the most shocking thing about this. Really lost respect for the Guardian.

  12. Jo73c says:

    £2,400 for earrings so boring I can’t even focus on them when looking directly at them. Literally everything else in the photo is more interesting.

  13. Priscila Bezerra-Fischer says:

    Interesting that Guardian had to speak with mostly media people catering for USA audience in order to present Keen Kate into a good light.

    Tatler’s story just served to show the Cambridges they have no friends, only Middletons and the people they pay to suck up to them. They are placing all their stocks on the conflation between greater visibility= more work and constant self-congratulatory articles as to take the attention away from their less than exemplary behaviour.

    Kate and William have completely different PR strategies for lockdown. She is still selling the same crap as always- mother and wife first, CEO second- while William is really changing his game, from Normal Bill to Wise, Stable, Strong Big Bro .

    In the end, I do not blame Kate for this less than stellar narrative. She is a less than stellar person, so the narrative fits, and she is relatable to all less than stellar middle class, white women that are never asked to do more than necessary and expect all the praise for it, which I can assure you, is a great parcel of the wider audience she plays to.

    As for Willie….he is coming from mistakes after mistakes and mostly comes down to this stupid, one sided war with Harry. He hide his rose bushes by selling himself off, showed his ass with the “Ryan Air” stunt, went full on ” Statesman William” in the attempted Regency Coup at the beggining of lockdown, was the one going bananas and wanting to sue over tatler and now is attempting to court favor with USA press via Kate´s competiveness nature.

    I say that because Willie is stupid, but not dumb. He knows he won the monarchy contest by being born first and that all he needs to do is play the waiting game as to become King. He had the confidence of a typical, mediocre White man that can count on the fmailýs fortune- but Kate- he knows her well. He knows she has to press forward and win at any costs, and he takes full advantage of this, by treating her like crap, cheating on her and now having her dirtying her hands in this ill advised plan to take over the USA to compete with Meghan. William has to know this must annoy the hell out of Harry ( annoyance most of all, since Harry must see Kate as that annyoing fly trying to land on your doughnut) , but since he is not the one being celabrated with people´s magazine ´s profile, he can not be accused of anything.

    • sunny says:

      Yes to all of this comment.

      The bar is so low for Kate. She is just mediocre at many so things. She has no character traits suited for public life- except her steadiness which I think the monarchy needs. It is wild how they continue to infantilize her. She was a royal partner for years before the marriage and now she is almost a decade in and yet is still awful at the job and so lazy. I marvel that a woman of her privilege and education, who could have been exposed to so many interesting things seems to take so little interest in the world around her. What a waste. I guess any drive she had was directed at securing Wills and once that was done she went into retirement.

      I also love your point about Will- the war with Harry is now entirely one-sided. And yes, Will is stupid but not dumb so he is happy to let his equally mediocre and pathetic wife take flak to take away from his weak record as well.

      • Tessa says:

        I see no steadiness in Kate. I always saw her as fake and lazy.

      • kelleybelle says:

        She is actually not even mediocre at many things. She is incapable and terrible at many things. Just sayin’.

      • Tealie says:

        I think parents always raised her and intended her to marry off well rather than do anything, hence why they were happy to fund an ‘Art History’ degree, famous for catering to the empty ambitions of ambitionless rich peoples children along with ‘Liberal Arts’ and the like. AND were happy to fund and risk her chasing after William for 10 years without even having a career or simple job.

      • ArtHistorian says:

        I’ve studied Art History in 2 different countries (Denmark and the UK) and I’ve literally never met anyone who studied this subject just to make time before she married well. There have been some slightly elderly people who studied it after they had retired but that is a different situation.

    • Nic919 says:

      The audience for the Duchess of Karens is much smaller across the pond because there isn’t the reverence for the monarchy that permeates the culture as it does in the UK. Kate will never matter to Americans in the way Diana did and considering she helped treat Meghan like garbage, most will be annoyed that this do nothing Brit went after one of their own. (Bigots excluded of course).

    • Tessa says:

      Kate is not popular in the US. The cover issue of People did not sell, and a lot of copies were left over.

    • February-Pisces says:

      I love the phrase ‘self- congratulatory articles’ as that sums up their press every time they do a tiny bit of work.

      I think William keeps kate ‘insecure’ by constantly making her feel like her position is threatened. Everyone always says ‘they won’t divorce’ but Kate clearly believes it’s a possibility because if her ‘future queen’ status was such a sure thing, she wouldn’t be as crazy and insecure as she is. William is the one who made kate, he is the only one who can end her. Her insecurities come from him and the way he makes her feel. He knows kate has a ‘kill, or be killed’ attitude to her position and would do anything and I mean ANYTHING to keep it.

      Kate and the middletons will eventually be thrown under the bus for Sussexit and William will use that as his ‘get off of jail’ card, to get him off the hook for the smear campaign and to get him out of his marriage. But he won’t play that card just yet.

      • Priscila Bezerra-Fischer says:

        Oh, I am sure she knows and he knows that she already fulfilled her main role. giving him heir and two spares.

        Mind you, William is a child of divorce and RF has seen more than its shares of divorce. They want us to assume William is some sort of stable dude who has been hurt by divorce and would never do this, hence him making Kate wait years, but the facts do not add up.

      • February-Pisces says:

        That’s why when the time comes when he’s finally ready to ditch Kate for good, he will try anything to make himself look like the victim. The rose rumour is already out there meaning Kate is already ahead of the game.

  14. Mara says:

    I’m surprised that anti royalist paper The Guardian published an article like this.
    I suppose it’s meant to be an analysis of optics and UK public perceptions rather than a look at the virtues of Kate herself (although it is oddly worded).

  15. Sofia says:

    9 years in, almost 40 and 3 kids later she’s only NOW becoming more confident?

    Pathetic.

    • Tealie says:

      I can’t imagine being a grown woman I’m going to your working place and saying you’re now ready to actually do your job at 38 she would’ve been homeless on the streets

  16. Paperclip says:

    95 percent of the prints she chooses are just BAD. Perhaps they’d work as blouses with a solid-color pant, but in dresses? Ick.

  17. Ginger says:

    Why do they continue to treat this grown women like an infant?

  18. S808 says:

    She’s 38.

  19. Calibration says:

    There are no words for that article or that dress. The guardian is just disappointing publishing this.

    She’s really doing a Karen Carpenter number with her recent clothing choices. Her weight loss is disturbing

    • clomo says:

      That’s what I see too, she is skin and bones and probably feels it’s the only thing in her life she has control over. She needs help, when I look at her eyes I see someone who has been sad quite a bit, life in a gilded cage is rough.

  20. Margareth says:

    The Guardian and Keen Karen Kate were dragged about that article LMAO

  21. Izzy says:

    I wish people would stop using the tern “good pandemic.” We didn’t go to the movies. We all locked down and put our lives on hold, separated from friends and loved ones, to keep ourselves and each other from catching a serious, potentially fatal illness and from completely overwhelming our healthcare systems. If you’re still alive and healthy, that’s the good part of the pandemic. If you can find a silver lining, like more family time, awesome. But this has been very difficult for many of us to cope with. Then again, she lives in a fking palace with a staff of people constantly telling her how awesomely Zoomy she is, so of course her staff would plant stories using such tone-deaf wording.

    Sorry to be such a grouch.

    • Elle says:

      Thank you.

      That is indeed a very poor phrase.

    • Ginger says:

      I agree Izzy. That headline is awful and very tone deaf. Using a pandemic as PR is pathetic but very on brand with the Cambridge’s.

    • Mara says:

      Not a grouch at all. You’re right, some have found good things in the pandemic (families getting closer, social anxiety sufferers feeling less abnormal) but I don’t think anyone could rationally describe it as a good pandemic.

  22. aquarius64 says:

    KP is still stinging about Tatler I see. And probably pissed at the Sussexes’ Zoom call. The serious press outside the UK will report on Meghan; they won’t bother with Kate because she brings nothing more to the table. You can see it the puff press because no projects of Kate are ever reported – just clothes, jewels and kids. The wife of a future head of state shouldn’t need nine years to grow in confidence; that should have been on “lockdown” before her perceived rival Meghan arrived.

  23. Lizzie says:

    IDK, she seemed pretty confident when she went after William collage, wore a see through dress or was vacationing topless on a yacht with him or cut her best friend from their life. According to Tatler she was pretty confident ‘putting Meghan in her place’.

    These stories are so strange, I get a Brittney vibe.

    • Tessa says:

      She also gave death stares to women who got near William.

      • Lady D says:

        Death stares only work if someone’s looking. I would imagine most of the recipients of her death stares would be looking at William, not her? Think she understands the word futile yet?

    • Digital Unicorn says:

      Yeah, esp when William already had a GF and she didn’t mind that she started off the the ‘bit on the side bedmate’ until the GF found out and dumped him. These 2 deserve each other – both are unpleasant people.

  24. Emily says:

    Sometimes it’s hard to believe these articles praising Kate are written about a 38 year old and not a toddler.

    Praised for coming out her she’ll.

    Kate is not 2 or 13. She’s a grown woman with so much privilege that her voice always mattered and she never had to “find it.”

  25. Suz says:

    So this is the 2020 rendition of “Kate’s finally found her voice.” Great.

  26. starryfish29 says:

    How many times can one person come out of their shell, what is she, the Russian doll of snails?

    • Willz (not THAT one) says:

      LIZZIE BATHORY and STARRYFISH29, you’ve totally made my day. 🤣😂

    • Amy Too says:

      I wonder if she keeps “coming out of her shell” or “finding her voice,” because a shy and infantile woman finally feeling well liked enough to gain a tiny bit of confidence is a nice, feel good story that doesn’t threaten conservatives or the patriarchy. “Oh look, we’ve finally coaxed this poor, sweet, skiddish little woman out of her shell! Aww!” It’s like finally being able to put a lead on a beautiful but skiddish young horse. Whereas “confident woman confidently remains confident,” is threatening, too feminist, and makes her seem too strong and independent. Men and conservatives and the monarchy want it to be framed more like steady, quiet, supporting character Kate is being rewarded for her years of submission by being “allowed” to come out of her shell, have a seat at the table, speak, and have her ideas patronizingly heard. Like a little girl finally being allowed to sit at the adult table and having all the uncles and male cousins patronizingly ask for her opinion on small matters so they can praise her when she responds with the “correct” answers. “Well little Kate, you’re a young lady, now, what are your thoughts on marriage?” “Oh Uncle! I can’t wait to be married and have as many children as possible!” “Very well said, young lady, very well said.” So every time Kate makes it out of her shell, she has to be put back in, over and over and over again, so they can keep writing the feel-good, non threatening story about her “finally (being allowed to) come out of her shell.”

  27. Ariel says:

    I just imagine the British press now, crying at their desks as they write these dull, ridiculous “embiggening” stories about this dull, lazy woman who likes to weirdly cosplay her late mother in law. As they stare at the secret framed picture they keep in their desks of Harry and Megan.

  28. Andrew’s Nemesis says:

    I read in this and the Guardian piece an implicit threat against Wiglets (and Penis with Teeth, by extension): you have been given ample time to step up to the crease and perform well in your role. We are now telling everyone how much more confident you are in your role. Perform as you are expected to in this role as a benefits-recipient of the public’s over-generous largesse, or we will make life a merry hell for you.

    • Andrew’s Nemesis says:

      PS The Guardian article is an enormous pisstake, in the typical British (low key, tongue-in-cheek, deadpan) style.

  29. Tessa says:

    Kate is no shrinking violet, when she and her mother wanted William back she played to the media had weekly photocalls at nightclubs where she wore shorter skirts and was seen with other men. It is a joke that that the woman was said to “come out of her shell.” She just does not like work.

  30. Lisa says:

    That dress is really bad.

  31. Emily says:

    She’s swimming in that dress. I might be jumped on for saying this, but she looks really unwell.

    • Sara says:

      You’re not the only one observing it. I was looking at photos of her from one of the state dinners – where she wore the black velvet gown. She looked really unwell there too. Not just too thin. Just pale and sickly.

  32. February-Pisces says:

    Disappointed in the guardian, I wonder how much they got paid to sell their soul, I know they need the cash cow they are always asking readers for donations. Anyway how many more times are we going to hear about Kate’s ‘new found confidence’? They have been repeating the same message over and over again. She’s been in the royal fold for nearly 2 decades and she still can’t string a sentence together. After nearly 10 years as a working royal she still isn’t working at full capacity. She continues to wear the same overpriced drab clothes and has no memorable projects or achievements. Kate is so determined to be seen as a ‘star’ but you can’t fake genuine star quality.

  33. Cee says:

    She’s come out of her shell so many times now you’d think she’s a snake.

  34. AGreatDane says:

    We do not care about the BRF lol. And that dress is a lot of things, but it is not glamorous.

    • kelleybelle says:

      Glamour is the last bloody thing the BRF should be worried about right now with all that’s going on. Seriously. They need to clean up this MESS and move forward, instead of propping up this incompetent and covering for the pedophile.

  35. DCGirl says:

    I’m so over all the Royals, especially the BRF, when the world is coming apart with inequality and a slew of other problems. But these pieces highlighting how great the lockdown was are gross. Yes, if I lived in a palace with nothing to do but zoom charity events while others looked after my children, I would look great/feel great/be great, too.

    Not having to leave the palace with far fewer events all done at arms-distance is basically W & K’s dream. Very sad.

  36. Lizzie Bathory says:

    In the year 2047, probably: “Kate Middleton, 65, wife of Prince William, 64, and dutiful daughter-in-law to King Charles, 99, is truly coming into her own, sources say. The mother of three has grown increasingly confident after becoming a grandmother for the first time following the birth of Prince George’s first child last year. According to Lady Pippa Collingsworth-Billingsley (who was married to Lord Nigel Collingsworth-Billinsgley for just under 6 weeks following her divorce from James Matthews) ‘Catherine has a newfound sense of purpose now that she is a grandmother. Family has always been important to her, and having a new grandchild is an exciting chance to apply her extensive knowledge of Early Years issues, which she has been quietly researching for decades.’ Now that Kate has found her voice, she is expected to announce several exciting projects in 2048.”

    • Ariel says:

      Exactly. They should send you a check for writing it up for them.

    • VS says:

      You WIN the day for me!!! omg LOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLL

    • Jay says:

      Spot on. We should really develop a bingo card for reading all of these same phrases in articles about Kate year after year (the middle square would be “keen” obv).

  37. Scorpion says:

    Lmao at all the comments on here. Everyone is on fine form today 😂😂😂😂. Poor St Cath of Cambridge, never has a more dull woman existed. Give me Letizia of Spain, or even Mary of Denmark. Maxima of the Netherlands is another one I admire. BTW, she must had quite the lockdown. Shes aged about 10 years since we last saw her….

    • Mara says:

      I don’t know much about royals in other countries. What do you like about Letzia, Mary and Maxima?

  38. Marjorie says:

    Someone who looks like her – swimming in a full-coverage dress – hasn’t come out of any shell. It looks like quite the opposite.

  39. paddingtonjr says:

    My G-D, this woman really is infantilized isn’t she? At nearly 40, she is praised to the heavens for being able to sit through a 5-10 minute Zoom call a few times a week. Am I the only picturing a staff member waving a new piece of jewelry at her behind the scenes to keep her interest up? At this rate, George’s wife will need to be one step above a real doll to not overshadow Kate, although even then, the FFFQ Princess George will most likely be less bland then this FFQ.

  40. Likeyoucare says:

    dear RR, please stop comparing kate with meghan. She is not on the same level or floor or even the universe. The more they compare the more kate looks silly and dumb.

    • kelleybelle says:

      Seriously, Jesus. It took this woman how many years to “come out of her shell.” She needs to lay off the smokes and manic exercise as it is showing in her face. And her top lip seems to have gone AWOL of late. One thing is obvious, if the media is going to these lengths to prop her up, they obviously know she needs it, right?

  41. Charfromdarock says:

    “ Hard to ignore is the contrast in tone of the coverage of sisters-in-law Kate and Meghan. Headlines about Kate are brimful of positivity. Stories on Meghan, holed up in Los Angeles, less so.”

    Yes, it is hard to ignore the contrast in tone by the media. One might even say the RRers have a bias against Meghan for some reason. 🤷‍♀️

    • SomeChick says:

      “Holed up” in LA. Hardly. She’s been out volunteering and doing actual work! That phrase perfectly illustrates that the writer is doing the exact same thing that she’s pointing out!

  42. Marigold says:

    Maybe she is wearing those dresses to hide how thin she is? Who knows. I think she must have an eating disorder. Can she be that thin and be healthy?

    • Mary says:

      @Marigold, my response to your post did not get posted – too hard hitting I guess. I will just say that I totally agree with your speculation and think that Kate is one sick puppy.

    • CrystalBall says:

      I agree completely – she looks aged, frail and clearly unwell. Why isn’t she getting help? They can certainly afford the best. All this is very jarring in light of their party line on the importance of mental health.

    • February-Pisces says:

      From what I’ve heard, she had been getting help for her ED, but it doesn’t seem to be doing much good. So she must want to overcome it to be getting help. But I wonder if her husband gives AF about it, she seems to lose more weight when under stress most likely caused by him, so I’m guessing he’s not bothered about her wellbeing. He will probably only care if it reflects badly on him. Kate is literally thinner than Victoria beckham and VB has always gotten so much stick for being under weight, no one in the press ever mentions Kate’s weight which is weird.

  43. square_bologna says:

    Her smiles look so … strenuous.

  44. Züri says:

    Did they mean those awful clothes by “shell?” Out of that shell and into a bikini? Based on that tan, it does look like it was a good and restful lockdown.

    • Mara says:

      I hope they don’t. I’d hate to think that we’re still at a stage where women are expected to express confidence by wearing revealing clothing. Wear what you want.

  45. Andrea says:

    I am 39—if i am just coming out of my shell now, I am hopeless. Do they not see that stating it has taken her half her life to come out of her shell is a bad look??

  46. cherriepie84 says:

    Holy eyebrows and teefs! No amount of maniacal grinning will hide how strained this woman child is. Most reasonable thinking people are not buying this narrative KP is trying to sell. Give it a rest already.

  47. Jaded says:

    If she came out of her shell there’d be nothing there to see. She is an empty shell, a creation of her overweening, manipulative, social-climbing mother. Kate’s like an blank blackboard, only there to be written on then erased. I think this is at the crux of her problems. She’s been told what to be all her life and doesn’t know who she is. If William had been a better husband instead of a spoiled, bad-tempered brat with wandering dick syndrome, if he had treated her with respect and kindness instead of like a piece of furniture, maybe she would have matured into a more self-confident and interesting person, but as it is she’s clearly struggling. I’m not shaming her unhealthy thinness or haggard complexion when I say she looks rough, I’m suggesting that marriage into the BRF was a big mistake and she’s unable to cope.

    • Fani says:

      Very insightful

    • ArtHistorian says:

      I honestly think that marriage into the BRF is not good for any married-in’s mental health. I think little George might find it a bit difficult to find someone who’d want to marry into that institution (someone who isn’t a mercenary social climber). After the treatment of first Diana and then Meghan, any self-respecting woman would most likely run in the opposite direction.

  48. Lizzie says:

    “With Meghan gone, the only person who really could provide the glamour factor is Kate,”
    Sorry, it doesn’t matter who else is in the room, Kate will never be glamorous. She just doesn’t have it in her, neither does Sophie.
    I have no problem with her being who she is comfortable with, dowdy, but please spare us this drivel that she is glamorous.

  49. yinyang says:

    Of course she liked lockdown, Kate loved hiding behind filters. Wow Kate AND William are looking aged.

  50. Val says:

    I need to not read these stories while I’m eating, lol! Nearly choked!

  51. Dee says:

    Just how many years is the gestation period of a Katie Keen egg?

  52. L4frimaire says:

    I’m genuinely surprised this was written by the Guardian, of all publications. Someone must have called in a favor because this is way below their usual standards. Also, it’s obvious the Cambridge’s carry a serious grudge and can’t get over that Tatler article.

  53. Anne Marie says:

    A 38 year old women coming out of her “shell”?!! The PR team is either too incompetent to realise or are trolling her.

  54. Lulu says:

    Kate is truly an evil person to give her team the green light to sanction these stories in which Meghan is constantly being put down while praising Kate in the same breath. Like what f*ckery is this? She’s actually evil. I can’t ever look at her the same way again. I wish the media would stop infantalising her – she’s clearly not the sweet, shy or proper character in this saga. If there is such a thing as karma, she and her fool of a husband won’t get anyone near the throne.