The Duchess of Cambridge launched her “Five Big Insights” results about 11 days ago. She did a three-day social media blitz with a “speech” and a series of whiz-bam-boom videos meant to highlight the insights Kate gained from the results of her “five big questions” survey and a separate poll (which was needed because Kate’s five big questions were too basic). The point is that Kate’s staff somehow coaxed her into doing flashy busy work and once it was over, she went back to doing nothing. She went dark for a full week. It was the strangest thing. Granted, I understand that we’re in a pandemic and Kate was likely discouraged from doing in-person events to merely highlight the giant busy-work turd of “five big insights,” but there were other options besides “going dark for a week.”
So, it’s interesting that Kensington Palace staffers have somehow coaxed both Kate and William out to do some “work” now. They are spending three days on the Royal Train (which still exists) for a tour designed to “thank” frontline workers:
Kate Middleton and Prince William are taking the Royal Train for a three-day tour around Britain to salute those who have led the way in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Departing on Sunday, the couple will make stops in England, Scotland and Wales (traveling 1,250 miles in the process!) to meet frontline workers, volunteers, care home staff, teachers, schoolchildren and young people to hear about their “experiences, sacrifices and the inspiring work they have done throughout this challenging year,” their office says.
Staying overnight on the train as they go, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will make stops in towns and cities around the country, celebrating the resilience of communities as they prepare for Christmas – and also pay tribute to those who have coped with the worst that the COVID-19 crisis has brought. More than 60,000 people have died in the U.K. after contracting the virus.
“The Duke and Duchess are very much looking forward to shining a spotlight on the incredible work that has been done across the country throughout this difficult year and to sharing their gratitude on behalf of the nation for all those supporting their local communities ahead of the Christmas holidays,” a spokesperson for the couple said in a statement.
Many of the events that William and Kate are to take part in will celebrate local spirit and demonstrate the impact of the public’s generosity this year. The couple plans to showcase organizations and initiatives that have been supported by community relief funds, including NHS Charities Together. Prince William and Princess Kate also hope to highlight the art, heritage and live performance sector, which has been supported throughout the pandemic by the Government’s $2.1 billion Culture Recovery Fund. There will be a number of festive performances over the three-day tour from local artists, their office says.
So it’s just a real tour, only they’re traveling by train rather than car or helicopter. This is apparently the first time they’ve used the Royal Train, and I’ll admit… a whistle-stop tour – where they only stay on the train – might actually be smarter than whatever this is. And they’re only going for three days? How substantive can those stops really be, especially if they’re trying to sprint through Wales, England and Scotland?
According to Camilla Tominey, this was all Will & Kate’s idea:
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge ‘are taking it upon themselves to keep the nation’s spirit up’ with their UK-wide train tour, a royal expert has claimed. Insiders have revealed the couple hope their tour of the country will ‘lighten the nation’s mood’ ahead of Christmas.
Sources told The Telegraph’s Camilla Tominey: ‘What this year has done has reinforced the value of the royal family as natural actors of state. They are not celebrities – they are there, effectively, to thank people on the public’s behalf.’
Meanwhile an insider said the couple had been ‘itching to get out and about.’
The f–king point is that people need to stay home and NOT get out and about. My ass has been at home and my ass is going to stay there until my ass is vaccinated. I think frontline workers deserve all the flowers, thanks and praise we can give them. But I wonder if Will and Kate’s Train tour is going to end up being a series of super-spreader events (at worst) or if they’ll actually be a giant nuisance and time-suck for frontline workers (at best).
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
I wonder what royalists who are oh so keen to discuss “timing” and “optics” have to say about this obvious, very poorly timed attention grab. It’s likely become apparent to W&K that when they’re unseen, they’re unheard and not cared about, so they have to remind the public that they exist. Fair enough, their job is to preserve the monarchy under the guise of altruism.
Their execution of this can go very good or very bad, but in any case it’ll be an uphill battle to demonstrate that this isn’t a complete waste of resources. Hopefully Kate’s team is smart enough to only pack repeats.
I wonder how much they will pad the engagement count.
Has anyone asked if William and Kate actually raise anyone’s morale?
Yes she has. She looks very much fuller in the face and has the botox shine on the forehead. And fresh hair extensions for sure. I think this tour is another “bullsh*t” job; they’re only doing it because they have to, all for appearances. And I don’t believe Cameltoe Meany for a minute; she’s a known liar. This was not Kate and William’s idea. It’s the equivalent of Melania’s “I have to do SOMEthing for Christmas decorations.” Just spare us the hideous green outfits this time around. Thanks. “Huge yawn”
It isn’t that it’s a terrible idea (although whether or not W&K “raise anyone’s spirits” is up for debate) but the timing sure is. Wait until the pandemic is OVER and these poor people can actually go outside and relax and enjoy themselves for the first time in two years, or however long it ends up being. But if they did that, they couldn’t pad their end-of-year numbers with a ton of engagements from this “tour.”
I keep reading tweets, articles, and hearing front line workers on the radio here in the US who are saying, “it doesn’t matter how much you clap for us, or put signs up saying you appreciate us, or post memes thanking us if you don’t stay home as much as you’re able and wear a mask if you have to go out.” Do the medical workers in the UK want this? Are they saying similar things over there? It just seems so ill advised to go to a bunch of meet and greets and all these other cultural/town spirit type of events around Christmas which I’m imaging are going to be things like town tree lightings or Christmas plays put on by little kids. It sounds like Will and Kate are trying to do a “thank you visits to the medical community” tour AND a “highlight Christmas things that the peasants are doing” tour at the same time. And really, neither sound like a great thing. So much travel, to 3 separate countries, with multiple engagements and no time to quarantine.
@AmyToo I’m an American but I cannot imagine that medical workers in the UK support this. Hopefully they will speak up about how damaging it could be and the whole farce will be cancelled.
How about donate a massive amount of cash to the NHS? That’s a morale boost for everyone without any superspreader events.
Royal visits are usually a massive chore for the visited. They have to make sure everything is just so, have an entourage of hangers on to keep track of and have to stand around waiting to bow and curtsey to this lazy pair instead of doing their jobs. Its true that the concern for the Royals is no one cares about them that much. Once The Crown is over, no one under 70 will give them a second thought until 2022!
@Dollycoa those were my thoughts too. I’m an essential worker (not medical, but social services) and I thought: “What wouldn’t get done while I made sure I wore and said the right thing? How many extra hours, in addition to the extra hours I put in anyway, would I have to do to make sure all is cleaned up?” Honestly, I’d try and have to be away, because it wouldn’t do anything for me and what I need for resiliency. Plus, being a Native woman, I learned to refuse being someone’s photo op a long time ago. However, best wishes to those who may be cheered by them visiting.
The comments to the BBC tweet about this were decidedly anti-Cambridge which I thought was interesting. This is such a dumb idea right now. Maybe in 6 months, sure. But right now, with various lockdown measures in place, people stressed financially, etc – a visit from W&K isn’t going to lift people’s spirits, especially with Brexit looming. “Hey we have a pandemic and Brexit but look at the future future king, who laughed about coronavirus, okay, I feel better!”
even comments on the Daily Fail are suprisingly anti-KP…
as much as they hate H&M.. the comments about this in the DM are a sight to behold.. i would have never thought i would read such hatred about KP
This little choochoo train tour is a perfect metaphor for the UK right now.
After seeing that top photo a few times, I’ve concluded that Kate had some work done. I don’t know what, and she looks good, but also very different. She’s sort of shifting from mousy to hot-ish evil villain.
That’s what I was thinking. That brow is now super arched and pointy. She’s had more than one evil-joker moments.
Yes! I thought she was looking different here and “hottish evil villain” sums it up perfectly
She’s sculpting her face with fillers. Her face looks artificially put together at this point. She’s at the point where she needs to let herself visually age more because the work looks too obvious. I think her eyes also look different.
Yes, I think she looks like a Madame Tussaud’s figure of herself.
I agree she’s had lots of work done. But also, she has a very asymmetrical face and this is becoming more and more apparent with age/gravity of aging (think: Harrison Ford’s young vs old face). I saw a photo of her where two pics were created using each half of her face and the asymmetry was really apparent.
Yeah she’s had so much done this year
Little bit melania esq
She did something to her eyes a few years ago because they were more hooded when she was younger and now they aren’t. There was a trip to France a few years ago, I think after Charlotte was born but prior to Louis. And now that she has no body fat in her face, the fillers seem even more obvious.
She does look like a Madame Tussaud’s figure.
The sad thing is the work is making her look older and not younger.
Kate looks better and younger with a bit of weight on her face – her makeup (esp her eyeliner) also ages her.
When you look back at photo’s from the Waitying years v’s now the difference is startling. She has aged so much in the 10 years she’s been married. I don’t think married and royal life has been what she expected it to be.
I usually don’t notice when people have “work” done, but I didn’t even recognize Unable for a minute. Yikes 🙄
She looks fine, just…so different.
How many people will be congregating to watch the train go by or arrive somewhere? It’s a train it’s not like it would be hard to track where it was going and where it would arrive. And, yes, how many different people can they thank on a hasty 3 day tour? Of course, all their fans are claiming it is “essential” work. Are they going to quarantine when they get back home? Wouldn’t that quarantine run into Christmas? So would they see their kids much during the holidays? Or will the kids get to travel on the train? It would look more impressive to me if they sent some sort of Christmas bonus to all the workers and stayed home like everyone else is supposed to do.
@Equality it sounds like the exact opposite of everything medical workers have been begging the public to do for months. I truly don’t understand how these two can be so dense.
Especially once you take into account the fact that William first made a joke about Covid, then concealed his own diagnosis, to much derision. Is he really the right person for this thank-you tour?!
I have a feeling William might try to talk about his own covid diagnosis and put his foot in it. Either joking about how his illness was really not bad at all, more like a cold, really. Or maybe making it seem like he was terrified for his life and worried that he would die, and it was so very difficult for him which would sound disingenuous since he wasn’t hospitalized and because he’s the FFK, he would have been getting the very, very best care the whole time. Or maybe something about how important contact tracing is—even though he kept his diagnosis a secret so we don’t really know when he got sick and who he was around. Just…. something, I’m sure, based on how he always manages to say something offensive/insensitive.
@Amy Too exactly. He can’t completely ignore the fact that he himself had it, but anything he says about his own experience will come across badly because of how poorly he handled the entire thing from start to finish.
The best thing William could do right now is stay home and stay quiet. Let the kids do a little televised “thank you” or something but this tour is so ill-conceived.
@ equality, @ Lorelei, @Amy, I agree with all of you, though I am 2 days late. This is the opposite of what they should be doing!! Is this just so Unable can sport all of her awful work done? I cannot imagine a WORSE time to go out to the public!! There is STILL a pandemic raging across the world, and UK, but these nitwits thought of this??? Who are they kidding?? I think an enormous increase in pay, plus an additional bonus and a magnitude of paid time off is the ONLY thing that would boost morale for the UK health care workers. This is nothing but an ill advised attempt to pomp themselves UP from their lack of work ethic. I cannot believe that they are THIS idiotic, but I guess they are!!
anything to get their numbers up and wear pretty clothes before year end, or people will start asking themselves ‘what is the point of monarchy’?
What IS the point? An American here.
“OK, so now that everyone despises Charles and Camilla, let’s get out there and look like the next King and Queen!”
🙄
Are they competing with Charles at this point or with the Queen? I’m sure that in her Christmas address she will thank the front line workers, so it kind of seems like they are trying to one-up her.
I don’t think they’d get to use her Royal Train cars w/out her permission, so she probably told them to get off their lazy arses and be seen. If they continue to hide, MORE people will surely say, “What the hell do they DO, that we’re paying hundreds of millions of pounds to keep their lazy arses in luxury while we do without!”
Wasn’t the the QM who said they have to be seen to be believed, or something like that?
Frankly, HCW and essential workers would more appreciate money or a day off than a wave from these two barreling through their villages/cities.
I think that’s the case Snuffles. The royal stock has taken a hit and these two will try and make them look less despicable. Unfortunately for them W &K have their own situation with Meghan and Harry, so lots of luck kids!
This is such a bad idea.
This is the kind of stuff they should be doing all the time. For the rest of their lives as royals. So long as they follow all protocols and don’t become disease vectors, this is a good idea. They aren’t project people. We saw the big splashy rollout of kates big thing, but then what? What are the goals of the project? What will it achieve? We already know the answer— to prop Kate up and make her look busy. But this kind of thing could be their ticket to remaining popular. Go out, see the people, let them see you. It’s not glamorous, and I think will and Kate want the glamor and celebrity. But this kind of work is the only way to build their personal royal brand. If you’re a traditionalist then you need to do traditional things. After the pandemic, the Cambridges need to live on that damned train. They will need to cheer up all the people who voted for Brexit and will lose their jobs in response.
Or it could really highlight the difference between the tax funded royals and the underfunded and overworked frontline workers.
So be it. It’s the truth
The idea is fine but the timing is awful. They just ended their lockdown in some parts but not all parts of the UK a few days ago and people congregating together is still not recommended. There will be a bunch of people without masks showing up and they will be doing super spreader events like trump. The UK still has really bad covid numbers and no one has been been vaccinated yet so this is really the dumbest and most dangerous thing they could be doing right now. Billy and Cathy haven’t been wearing masks consistently themselves so there is no way this is going to be a safe journey.
If they did this later next year it would be fine. The vaccine is supposed to come out Tuesday and front line workers are busy preparing for that. They don’t need this tour to happen. They are incredibly busy right now.
ITA – esp given he had COVID. This will blow up in the faces as no one will turn up or it will turn into a super spreader event and people get COVID because of their need for press attention.
Also part of me thinks they are being made to do this by Granny and Chuck – both of whom want to get out and about but can’t.
That is what will & kate are best at but it isn’t any work of substance now is it? Absolutely no organization or charity will benefit from merely a visit. Projects are needed to actually help the cause you are passionate about. The reason why will &kate are so bad at them is because they never have actually done any ground work with charities and they are simply not that passionate about it.
@ Celcilia, spot on!!
Did they have to find a justification for Kate’s new coats? I’m pretty sure healthcare frontline workers would rather have proper funding, ppe, etc rather than a thank you tour. So they’re crossing between tiers, which is against the rules, but when has rules ever apply to the royals? Will Will make jokes about COVID again? Will he say it’s overblown? Hmmm…
The Daily Mail are going into overdrive with their Royal.propaganda. One of them was how ‘ frugal’ Kate was for wearing a £1000 coate twice in 2 years!
This could either go really well or really bad. I don’t think the idea of the tour itself is bad but it’s something that I think, could be done next year spring and do a longer tour (like a week or something)
Royal visits even “low-key” ones do take a lot of planning and possibly even disruption. Unless the front line workers are die-hard royalists, I don’t know how appreciative front line workers will be. Especially in Scotland when the independence movement is growing.
But if it helps said workers and improves morale and they want a visit from the Cambridges then it’s what they want.
I don’t see how doing super spreader events can be a good thing right now. And what about the train staff? They will be exposed to way more people than they need to for the ego of these two.
Move this to June or July and it’s a better idea. Right now it’s no different than the trump ego rallies.
That’s what I said. It’s not a good idea now but maybe next year Spring (or even Summer like you said) would be a much better idea
yeah, once the UK was firmly on the road to recovery this would have been a really good idea. for once, it seems w&k were too eager to “work”
All of the money wasted on this “tour” could go towards funding. This is so tone deaf. They are getting dragged on social media for this. Not surprised.
Yes! This!
100% Ginger!!! Presumably this tour is funded by the tax payer – funds could be put to much better use.
Exactly.
Frontline workers need supplies and rest. They’re overworked to illegal amounts, underpaid and underfunded. If they have any time off it’s to do laundry, shop for household supplies/food and decompress/sleep. Not to applaud W and K that show up to say thank you for PR purposes. They could easily fundraiser for supplies from home.
@Wiglet Watcher, if their true intention was to thank these workers, they could do some sort of televised special like the Christmas one they did last year with Mary Berry. They could get their message out in a safe way with everyone still following guidelines to stay inside. They could also include the children.
But no, they need their egos fluffed (along with the obligatory photo ops of Kate grinning as children hand her flowers) and they need to quickly up their end-of-year numbers with a ton of “engagements” from this tour.
This is really gross, actually. It’s completely disrespecting everything that medical workers have been begging the public to do for months now.
Well said, Lorelei!!! i couldn’t agree more with these sentiments.
@Lorelei, yes it is clearly not about helping the workers. No matter the precautions they may take, their presence will likely hinder or actually disrupt actual essential workers.
Imagine if they used their platform to highlight healthcare workers, thank them via zoom for the work they do, and help people understand the importance of staying home. With their purported interest in mental health issues, they could interview an expert on the signs of burnout, strategies for coping, and links for seeking help. Literally anything other than crisscrossing the country and interacting with large groups of people, lol.
I think they may be trying to compete with the headlines of a certain American royal couple, but this is not gonna do it.
@ Lorelei, @ Carmen, @ Jay, you all make excellent points!!
And Jay, I applaud your comments about using this time to support the health care workers, importance of staying home and the home run on mental health!! Isn’t that one of THEIR supposed charities or platform? Why don’t they use this time to expand on the mental health of the taxing hours and the death that the front line workers are enduring everyday? When they see people they know personally affected by the coronavirus or when it’s takes the life of people they know? They could have taken the initiative on the mental health aspect from the comfort of one of their palatial palaces!!
Im baffled by why its so hard for her to work. Its not even like she has a real job, in the traditional, 9-5 sense. Is it too much to show up and be present? Even if you wanted to use the, she never really had a job, so she doesnt have a work ethic, excuse, there are plenty of aristocratic/socialite women that dont work and have never worked yet throw themselves into philanthropic activities. I just dont understand how someone can be so loosey goosey about doing anything. What the heck is she doing all day to not work? I would be bored out of my mind.
My guess is shopping, cooking, working out/tennis and going to the hairdressers or something. But with the pandemic, I’m guessing working out/tennis (she has her own tennis court at Anmer), cooking and online shopping
A while ago it was said what she does all day in a pro Kate article. Basically, she wakes up, cleans up, drinks an organic smoothie of vegetables, works out with her trainer, plays tennis, shops, maintains her appearance with hair, nails, skin appointments. Does some work talking to her staff about her schedule.
I admit I’m also weirdly fascinated by this question. What does she DO all day? She’s not dealing with the kids, laundry, cooking (I imagine she may cook but only when she wants and what she wants, I.e. she’s not meal planning and grocery shopping every week), cleaning – she’s not working in terms of her royal role – we don’t hear about her volunteering at the school or anything – so what does she do? I know some wealthy women who don’t have a job and have a nanny etc. they are still busy – involved with the schools, fundraising, etc. they have hobbies – they take painting classes or play golf etc. they don’t shop all day every day. But it seems that’s what Kate does. It’s very weird to me.
Given the glacial state of affairs between her and PWT, I’m a bit surprised she hasn’t thrown herself more into philanthropic activities. If I had a husband who ignored me and trimmed rose bushes for a hobby, and I didn’t want to leave the marriage (and in her place, I would in a heartbeat, but she’s got her eyes on that prize coronet), I’d do anything to keep my mind off the lousy state of of my marriage — like philanthropy or nonprofit work or SOMETHING, anything.
This is interesting.
Kate never worked harder at anything more than catching that ring. She knows how to work. Once single she courted the tabloids and made sure to be seen. Diana sort of did this by throwing herself into work, but saw Charles was never going to give her praise and the end result of her success backfired on her as the BRF left her in the cold. I think Kate took notes on that. To upstage William is to threaten her easy way of life.
If she maintains a physical appearance he likes and never upstages him with substance they can coexist. She will never work until William tells her she must. And William will never work more than he can get away with.
What she does seems to be what she’s always done. Appease those who take care of her. Perfect for the archaic, racist, misogynistic BRF
This is what Diana did – throw herself into her work. If Kate wants to stay married she has to maintain a tricky balance between cosplaying Diana to the public at large to maintain popularity and never, ever under any circumstances bearing the slightest resemblance to Diana to the Royal Family.
The last thing she will ever do is start doing charity work that could lead to William’s (lack of) work being compared to her higher numbers. If she ever does it’s because she has given up on the marriage, is expecting William to divorce her and wants to come off as Diana Mark 2 in the public perception of the divorce.
Also she needs entire days not being seen so the Botox and fillers can start to settle.
So they’re going to stage a series of events… that will likely bring out crowds of people and help spread the virus.
You know what REALLY helps frontline workers? Staying home unless you have to go out, and then wearing a mask and social distancing if you do. NOT becoming a COVID patient really helps.
Exactly this. They are so stupid about what this pandemic is actually doing to frontline workers.
Agreed!! This is a make-work tour, nothing more.
It’s more to get their engagement numbers up. They always do a flurry of events this month because their numbers are always pathetic.
@Ginger: ITA, although they’re too dumb to realize that this is the ONE year that lower numbers would have been expected, due to the pandemic. Instead they do this, which is only going to make things worse. Incredible
All kate had to do was do a “ read a bedtime story with the FFQK” spot once a week during the pandemic and occasionally seed it with appearances by her kids and people would have been saying she was just like the Queen in ww2. That’s ALL she would have had to do. And if she had also done a gardening segment or bingo call two times a month she would have been nominated for sainthood. Could have done a segment of her and Carol Middleton making masks for the elderly….Would have taken less than two hours per week. Including hair and make up (priorities people!). Who the heck is advising these idiots.
Kate’s people need to read your suggestions Ellen because they actually would get her great press.
If their staff read and actually implemented the comments here over the years, both of them could look a lot better right now. Every week, someone here immediately has a better idea than whatever it is they’re doing.
Just a few days ago, Amy Too (I think!) suggested they could have made a coffee table book of all of the photographs from Kate’s recent project to actually raise some money instead of just providing an opportunity to make Kate look busy. Their jobs could be done simply by following some of the advice we give for free on CB!
I am constantly amazed at how dumb they and their staff are. This is the one year where low numbers could be justified!
Having events where crowds gather is stupid and dangerous. Why not another holiday tv event but maybe focused on raising funds to support mental health programs for front-line workers? Bring a mix of celebrities and Will and Kate. Add some non-famous British people who are raising funds/taking actions within their communities during covid. A bit on what you can do for the frontline workers in your family or communities(ex. My parents have been doing the grocery shopping for my sister who is an MLT and runs a lab)… finally reiterate the safety precautions everyone should take.
Again, how are they so bad at everything? I just…
So which part of ‘don’t travel between areas in different tiers’ is this following? Never mind taking worker away from their essential jobs or essential rest/downtime. Oh dear. Could they not have announced this now and done it in the spring? That’s usually their approach.
Will and Kate have always wanted to come across as relatable and this proves that the rules for regular people don’t apply to them.
It really shows how out of touch they are with the “normal people” and once again the rules that apply to everyone else don’t apply to them.
What frontline workers really want is for people to stay home. That includes the duke and duchess of keenness. They don’t need superspreader events to over burden the system.
Just do a virtual to say thank you. I went on Omid Scobie’s Twitter and the Cambridges got dragged for this: William’s dumb joke in Ireland for one. It would be interesting if Bill mentions his own COVID experience.
THey need to set an example and Stay Home.
Seriously?!? Can you imagine, a giant super spreader tour transporting Covid to first responders and school children. I completely believe this was Will & Kate’s idea. Bonus they can spread it to the kids and Kate’s family after it is over. OMG this is a terrible idea. Do they not believe these folks are busy. Mind numbingly, emotionally drained, no sleep busy. They are supposed to take time off from the precious few days off to go to this? Stay home?!? Highlight the front line essential workers via Zoom or after the vaccine is out and the hospitals do not have patients in beds lining the halls.
The timing is absolutely baffling. Will they isolate afterward and not spend Christmas with their children? No. What about the train employees? Not to mention any crowds that show up. This is a joke and I hope that some actual medical professionals speak up and say publicly what a bad idea it is right now, and would work a lot better once everyone had been vaccinated and these poor workers had some time to rest.
Maybe it’s an excuse not to see the Queen at Christmas. They’d love to see each other but their duties to the country mean it’s impossible (swelling orchestral music in the background).
The Queen can then say in her Christmas speech that she’s been separated from her beloved family (that she never sees unless there’s a photographer around) JUST LIKE YOU.
The problem is all these little “social distancing” events aren’t actually, and half the people that show up either don’t wear a mask or wear improperly. These events are very much the problem.
Also, Camilla Tominey’s “They’re not celebrities!” reminds me of all of the recent “The Crown is fiction!” coming from the palace. If it wasn’t even in question, no one would feel like need to dispute it like that.
At this point in time they are absolutely just celebrities. They have no real power whatsoever and Kate especially is known only for her clothes & hair.
“Prince William and Princess Kate also hope to highlight the art, heritage and live performance sector, which has been supported throughout the pandemic by the Government’s $2.1 billion Culture Recovery Fund.”
I wish our government has a similar fund. I know so many who make their living through live art (musicians, actors, etc), and they are really struggling right now.
all this because her maj took meghan on the choo choo train overnight first
I thought exactly the same thing @Elle.
There was an article not too long ago about Meghan and the Queen’s trip and all of a sudden Kate wants to go on the Royal train. Gosh, it must be a coincidence? Right? 😉
If they really wanted to thank the front line medical staff then give them a raise! Clapping for Carers is nice, but does it pay the bills?
there have been a few articles about meghan going on the royal train first
the cambs seem like the kind of people who would itemise their grudges – maybe they’re ticking off a list : )
but yes you’re absolutely correct that a raise would be more welcome
or even an abdication and wealth redistribution lol
I notice she’s “Princess Kate” again now that Meghan is gone. Interesting. They were the “Duke and duchess of Cambridge” for quite awhile.
And the stupid thing is that she isn’t Princess Kate – she’s Princess William if anything.
I know Diana was always called Princess Diana but the press didn’t switch to calling her that 10 years into the marriage after using her proper title previously.
Either they are use as a distraction for a scandal that will be blown next week or their spy told them the sussexes have new project to be launch.
I’m surprised they are not taking the children along and have Little George say a few words. These two are unbelievably clueless.
Would the kids still be doing school, though? I guess they could do virtual school on the train. But I think bringing the kids would mean bringing nannies and more protection officers and would probably generate huge crowds. All things I would want to avoid right now. Though I would want them to avoid even going on this tour themselves.
The stans are all for this even though the vaccinating has not yet happened in the UK. Totally out of touch.
They’re excited about the outfits.
It better be all repeats. If not that’s even dumber.
That’s what doesn’t make sense. Aren’t they starting the vaccinations now, so you would think frontline workers would be busy with that.
PBS recently ran a series on Royal travel and did an episode on the royal train. It’s very nice and luxurious and costs a lot to run. It also screws up local train travel because the entire rail system has to adjust to it. That’s why it’s rarely used these days and only on special occasions. This is more a reward and embiggening for them than anything else.
Actually, that is the one thing where the timing does work. So few trains are running at the moment due to WFH (less than half the usual number last time I looked though that may have increased at the end of lockdown) it should be relatively easy to fit in the Royal Train.
I see the stan talking point is that the government asked them to do this and they can’t say no. That sounds like bull. The UK government is not telling everyone to travel across tiers for non essential reasons. This is a William ego project that was approved by the Queen… hence the use of the train. This family is so out of touch they have no clue what the front line workers actually need. Having to wait hours and dress up for these numpties to say empty thank yous is not what they want.
Meanwhile the mayor of Toronto is tweeting for people to just stay home. And Canada has a fraction of the cases and deaths compared to the UK. With way less population density too. This is a mess.
I live an hour outside TO and our shops and malls were packed all weekend long. Nobody is listening. Where are the fines being handed out to people who are in lockdown who are shopping in districts that aren’t on lockdown? It’s disappointing.
These two are idiots. I don’t know what else to say about them but please f off for good. And I’m so grossed out by that picture of Willy Wonka wearing his mask and his legs all close and tucking in his pepperette.
The lockdown needs to be the entire province. Or at least south western Ontario. People are only going to drive so far to shop. Ford has been a failure and has been pushing the responsibility on the municipalities to deal with this. And even then places like York region and not doing a lockdown despite their numbers being as bad as Toronto and Peel.
But even as stupid as Ford is, he’s not doing a train tour of ontario to make people “feel better”.
OMG, pepperette!!! Best name yet for Willie’s Royal Scepter.
“The royal train costs around £114 a mile to use, according to the annual financial statement from the monarchy.” (ITV)
£114 x 1250 miles = £142,500 or over $191.5K
not including funds for her hairdresser, all the new clothes she will parade out, probably getting clothes made right now to mimic a nurse or doctor. And Billy’s bald head will require a shine and polish.
Of all the ridiculous, ill thought out idiocies…front line workers are too effing busy front-lining to take the time out of their exhaustive 20 hour days caring for the sick and dying to go wave at a train carrying two rich entitled twats around England to say “thenk you veddy much”.
This is nothing but a knee-jerk reaction to the drubbing the BRF has been taking from season 4 of The Queen.
It is not just the negativity of the Crown, It is the way William and Kate treated Harry and Meghan. NOt everybody thinks William was “right” not by a long shot.
Seeing royals/politicians use taxpayer funds to VACATION is not okay and why kind of message does that send?! WE ALL NEED TO STAY PUT! I lost two uncles and we can’t be together but they can go wave at people and somehow that will
“Lift spirits” ?! share your taxpayer funds with the taxpayers that’s all we want or need not some horse faced racist royals riding the hogwarts express
Many in the US traveled on Thanksgiving despite the warnings. It is said there will be another spike of COVID due to the travel. William and Kate are wildly out of touch; IT will be Kate’s hair and clothing and how she recycles her expensive clothes.
This is a spectacularly bad idea. They are clearly going to do nothing with their lives except try to compete against those “celebrities” in the family on the west coast of the US. I wonder if it will ever dawn on them that it is a one-sided competition?
I hope that everything possible is done to keep people safe and healthy.
This tour is really about ensuring that the press gets good copy before the end of the year because they will be missing out on Christmas photos this year. This tour would have made sense 6 months from now when hopefully the pandemic is receding, not during a national lockdown.
Now this makes sense. They are being forced by the press to perform. No Sussex pictures this season and no church walk means pickings are slim for the RR’s. I bet they have the kids out handing out gifts to seniors before this is over too.
I’ll never underestimate their need to grab headlines but I wouldn’t be surprised if the media was pushing for some activity. That being said, this is ill timed. Why not do this when majority of the country has had the vaccine and the country can begin to get back to normal? If Katie or her stylist has even a single brain cell, they’ll leave any new clothing items in the closet.
what would had been great Covid and PR wise: Kate cooking chutney, cookies and other xmas pies and delivering baskets for nurses and elderly of the Amner’s area. Sending a message to all aristocrat, including Rose, to get on and DO something real.
They probably all have been fundraising. From what I understand, the aristo’s like outdoing each other on the charity front, and have for a long time.
What if Kate shared her chutney recipe or a favorite cookie recipe with a video of her and the kids making it? That would be a huge win, esp since they could edit the video however they wanted (so could edit out mistakes whatever). I don’t understand the point of this train trip when she lets such easy PR wins slip by.
I love how we all pretend that the chutney story is real seeing as it only showed up in a DM story and she’s never shown any evidence of being able to cook anything in the decade and a half she’s been covered.
Also, most aristocrats who have large properties to maintain (like Rose Hanbury and her husband) usually do have a full time job in doing so. Think general manager of a hotel / farm manager. Particularly at the moment when a significant source of income (visitors to the property) are cut off, they and others like them may well be actually working hard to try and keep things afloat. I’m not saying they are – I don’t know them – but I don’t think it can necessarily be said they aren’t.
It makes Will and Kate even less understandable – the people they socialise with don’t sit around all day. Why do Will and Kate think they should be able to?
They’re doing this tour so that it would be the equivalent of the Queen supporting the troops during the war as a mechanic. They would then hope to have a romanticised black and white shot of their support against the Covid war immortalised. The poor things fighting the same war in their gilded royal train. Any chance there’s a golden piano in it?
I wonder how many frontline workers have to reschedule their rest days just to accommodate this silliness.
Forgive their student debt and give medical frontliners a permanent raise. Cut the funding to the royal family. But of course this won’t happen. Best of luck to UK taxpayers.
They really are the Duke and Duchess of Clueless!! How much time will they be able to spend at each stop if they are going to three countries in three days (a little over 1,200 miles total)? And how much time will essential workers have to spend preparing for a 15-minute (at most!) pop-in? How much will it cost the taxpayers, many of whom have had to take paycuts or have lost their jobs?
The thought is good, but as many have said, the timing is bad. If they want to thank first responders and essential workers, why not do something closer to home, like delivering homemade pasta or chutney to the schools and hospitals near Anmer now? Isn’t there a children’s hospital or charity Kate was involved in at the beginning of her marriage, one that Ed Sheeran took over? Right now, the best way we can thank essential workers is stay out of their way. Then, once this is over or at least more under control, do a REAL Royal train tour over a week or so, actually spending time with people once it’s safer to do so.
Speaking a a frontline nurse here in Canada, I have to say that this tour is a monumentally stupid and self-serving idea given that we all should d be self-isolating. Currently, I go to work, often pulling 16 hour shifts, to help keep people alive. I haven’t seen friends and family in person much since it’s become colder here, though phone calls and zooming are frequent. My only other outing is to the grocery store at 7am on Saturdays, when there there are fewer shoppers, to get supplies. I leave my parents’ groceries on their front step as they are seniors with health conditions so they stay safely at home. I’m sure many of us are experiencing the same sad and heartbreaking routine.
The precautions we have all been forced to take is because this pandemic has presented us with a life and death situation. You’d think that the Royal Family would play their part in setting an example a positive example in how to keep everyone safe. Many people have suffered sad and lonely deaths and yet, all I see are Willnot and Cannot selfishly putting their family’s PR problems and lack of engagement numbers ahead of the health and safety of the British public.They should be ashamed!!! This tour should be boycotted and they deserve to be called out for their heartlessness and arrogance.
Chrissy
You have my empathy. I was a nurse In Maine and left because of COVID. More the government and administrative choices that made helping patients so difficult. You have no life. 16 hour shifts are the minimum because shift reports always run long, charting always takes a while and your relief might be late to report. You go in on your day off for mandatory cdc meetings. You barely have time to buy food so everything is amazon or door dash. And this happens because people don’t respect the stay at home orders or masks mandates.
I hope you’re taking care of yourself and your mental health.
Thanks for doing what you do Chrissy. I can’t imagine the endless work you have with this pandemic. Part of staying home means fewer people in the hospitals and so this tour just shows how careless and ignorant Kate and William are about the work that first responders have been doing because they want to get some PR and they will create situations where more people are exposed to the virus. Thoughtless and shallow, but not a surprise with those two.
Thanks for your support, Wiglet Watcher and Nic19. Coming to Celebitchy brightens my day, not only for the laughs and snark, but also the empathy and compassion so many of you express. It means so much to know that someone has your back. Peace to all and hope that this nightmare ends sooner rather than later.
Chrissy
The vaccines look promising. By summer next year we will know for certain.
I think a delivery to people alone for xmas, families, etc of food is really what would be done if one actually thought of having a positive effect on OTHERS and not for themselves
1) Lol how often are we gonna hear that these two don’t want to be celebs. It’s a way of underhandedly criticizing Meghan – but it’s obvious they’re green with envy.
2) This is definitely a wiglet fashion show to distract from The Crown.
3) What concerns me is that if this tour turns into a super-spreader – the UK media may not cover the spike in cases… Which would be textbook censorship. Much better to stay home / do local volunteering.
4) I agree with Kaiser re – “they’ve been itching to get out”. Flippin’ heck we all need a vacation!
This is actually a great idea … to celebrate the end of the Pandemic. Wait till it’s officially over and then schedule a month-long train tour all over the U.K. with meaningful events to celebrate communities and thank essential and front-line workers.
And make the pre-Christmas tour an annual, week-long thing. Dress up the train with holiday lights, or as the Polar Express or whatever, and go from town to town lighting holiday trees and bringing gifts of food and toys for families in need. When the pandemic is OVER and it’s time to give thanks and celebrate, that is.
People will eat that stuff up and the Keens would be so beloved, they’d barely have to do anything else all year. Wins all around.
Isn’t England functioning under a shut down or curfew. Why are these two encouraging people to leave the safety of their homes to see them?
It’s sad that Princess Sofia of Sweden literally went to work on the front lines at a hospital and Kate and Will sat around bored Zooming in their giant houses, finally coming up with “I know! A train trip!”
Bad idea, but I understand why it’s being done. Charles & HM are too old for this. Charles & Camilla are being hammered by the Crown. That leaves the Cambridges, who probably don’t want to do this but have no choice because the only other couple that could have done this is in California.
Healthcare workers: What we’d really like is if everyone stayed home and stopped trying to kill each other by spreading this deadly virus.
Cambridges: We’re going to honour our healthcare workers by doing a whirlwind tour across Britain, gathering large crowds everywhere we go, and demanding already-stressed healthcare systems come to an effing standstill so we can get a decent photo opp.
Healthcare workers: Hmm, that seems to be the opposite of what we were looking for, actually. Well, will you at least be raising some money to support us?
Cambridges: Certainly not, our presence is a gift! In fact, your tax dollars are paying for it, so technically you are paying us to come interrupt your work. You’re welcome.
Healthcare workers: This is unbelievable. Hey, many of us are understandably struggling with stress and burnout, isn’t mental health sort of your —
Cambridges: Whoa, I’m going to stop you right there. THIS tour is to LIFT the spirits of ALL Britain, in just three days! We do not have time to talk about your sadness. UGH. We want smiling, heartwarming photos so the press will have something to cover other than the American actress and her husband. We’ll be in and out in like, two minutes, tops, just enough to disrupt your day and spread this virus. Laters!
They are getting dragged to hell and back on Twitter. Whatever they’d hoped to accomplish with this has backfired spectacularly. It’s already being called “The Pandemic Express.”
Another home run for KP PR 😂
Even more interesting are the negative comments in the DM. It must be really bad if that crowd take issue with the super spreader covid train tour.
The Twitter backlash is hilarious and sad. People correctly pointing out that these SPONGERS are taking a fricking luxury trip to “thank” hard workers, like it’s a prize to meet the future future Cheater in Waiting and The Bewigged Brood Mare.
News flash KP, no one wants to see Baldy’s yellow teeth or Waity’s insane bulging eyes and insincere Joker grin. Also his touching of Kate’s back as she boarded the train, like he’s pretending he doesn’t hate her and wouldn’t rather be abed with Rose Who.
They really think that if they just pretend that it’s the olden days when the plebes dressed up to wave at their betters as the train goes by, then everything will be fine. Nothing about this idea says anything other than ‘hey, we’re spectacularly out of touch but aren’t we just so fancy looking & exciting.’ This kind of nonsense only appeals to a very small set of people, and their refusal to acknowledge that will be this family’s undoing.
Or as we Midwesterners call it, driving to Spring Break in Florida.
Cheek implants and some kind of eye work. Plus the usual fillers that she gets.
An end of the year photo-op-nothing more.
Kate’s got that Khloe look going on. It’s…something.
Natural actors, not celebrities. Wow. They just can’t get Meghan out of their system.
Train tour? This is the type of things politicians use to do before elections. The Royal company is so shady. Support government that rewards meritocracy, not nepotism, people work harder, behave and have more drive when they know they have to try instead of sit on their ass regardless thinking of ways to look good.
I dont understand the need for 3 days of a nothing tour. UK is crippling with the virus, the media is full of Charles not being nice to Diana. So the only shot they got to divert for a few days is with a tour to thank the health workers. Again. Health workers should be thanked, yes. But at this point, it feels like a PR tour disguised in a thank-you-health-worker-tour. I dont think their team would encourage a tour, that is why they’re trying to take creditfor all of this. And I believe them, because there is absolutely no creativity and and all intellectual laziness about 3 day tour to thank the workers, again. They just needed to creeo into news cycle. My French art teacher used to say: “c’est du déjà-vu, du réchauffé”. It feels exactly like that: déjà-vu and “already warmed up”. I wish there would be more oumph, more pizzazz, more bang, more boom to this couple. They are so boriiiiiiiing.
The day before this train trip was announced I read an article about how the Queen had invited Meghan on the train but never Kate. Kate must have read it too.
She’s looking good I must say, different, I guess time out from that old hag as authority can only agree with her. I remember Meghan used to look at her worse in some picture next to Q. So it’s not just racism.