On Christmas Day, the Kensington Palace staff posted a special message from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Ordinarily, we would have seen William and Kate on Christmas Day, either at Sandringham (Norfolk) or Bucklebury (Middleton Manor). But not this year. By all accounts, it seems like the Cambridges spent Christmas in Anmer Hall, but they weren’t photographed going to church or anything like that. My guess is that they just stayed inside and had a quiet Christmas without Carole and Mike Middleton. So, loneliness was possibly on their minds, which is why they posted this message on Instagram:
This Christmas our thoughts are with those of you who are spending today alone, those of you who are grief stricken from the loss of a loved one and those of you on the frontline who are somehow mustering the energy to put your own lives on hold and at risk to look after the rest of us.
Wishing you a merry Christmas doesn’t feel right this year, so instead we’re wishing for a better 2021.
And for those who are struggling today, there is support out there if you need it: @giveusashoutinsta, @MindCharity, @SamartiansCharity, @CalmZone, @SilverlineUK, @ourfrontline, @nhscharitiestogether, @royalvolservice
It’s a nice message and the substance of it is similar to what many public figures have said this holiday season: check in with people who are alone for Christmas, etc. I am feeling nitpicky about this message though, and not just from the Cambridges! Yes, I’m sure lots of people were alone on Christmas because of the pandemic. I’m sure many people were lonely. But those two things are not the same (alone/lonely). I also feel like there’s a lot of unnecessary “alone” shaming happening, under the passive-aggressive guise of “you poor lonely, pathetic person.” Many people chose to be alone over the holidays to maintain social distancing, for the greater good. Many people chose to be alone because their families are toxic. And plenty of people who spent their holiday with their toxic relatives/significant others need help too.
Plus, the message of “our thoughts are with the frontline workers” just feels tone-deaf to me from the Cambridges because they were literally wandering around maskless and breathing on people for much of the year.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Instagram.
I suspect Kate’s thoughts were with the Net-a-Porter sales and William’s thoughts were with Rose.
Kate and William’s thought were to copy Meg and Harry when again, through the Sussex, they forgot how they had never mention any organizations/patronages through all those covid months. It took the sussexes xmas card going to an animal refuge for them to scramble this together. They are such a disappointment every time
They have nothing tangible to offer beyond that anyway. Bless their incandescent, ineffectual, non tangible impact producing hearts.
I thought it was rebuke to Charles/Cam’s “Merry Christmas” that was put out there.
The one where you can literally SEE their breath… *shudders*
It makes me feel ill each time. The worst was her sitting, standing and crouching right next to TERMINALLY ILL CHILDREN at that sunflower pot transfer hospice engagement this summer.
William later admitting he had COVID makes everything worse too.
William also concealed that he had COVID at the time he had it. Seems very arrogant to me,
That grossed me out! Eek!
Thoughts and prayers. Not surprised, here in the US its a well trod line from capital Republicans instead of actual action.
The famous line before inaction! When we have a shooting in the US, there are many of those, all the hypocrites and useless politicians will come with the useless line “our thoughts and prayers are with ….” before they go back to doing nothing about guns in the US
I am like “you can shove your thoughts and prayers and keep them to yourselves”. I feel it is a line used for those who do NOTHING and don’t want to help.
After the massive tone deaf blunders, I just don’t buy the chutney they are selling.
I see what you did there 😉
Hahahahahahahaha
“…you poor lonely, pathetic person…” This, 100%. As someone that is and has been single for the majority of their adult life, this. It’s like the idea that you’re happy in life and just as ‘okay’ as everyone else never enters their minds, because someone isn’t sitting on the couch with you while you [both] scroll mindlessly for something to watch. Actually had a college professor tell me that “people who eat alone are just sad and lonely.” Needless to say, no one liked that guy.
I think it was written by one of their American social media people anyway. Don’t Brits say “Happy Christmas” not “merry”?
Yes. And Meghan got hammered in the press and by the Camb trolls for saying Merry Christmas in one of their posts. So gauche. So American. She’ll never fit in!! /s
But once again, not a whisper when the Cambs do the exact same thing 🙄
And yet there’s a huge campaign amongst right wing British and American people to continue saying merry/happy Christmas instead of Happy Holidays because of white g*noc*de or whatever the f they believe.
I usually say Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year when talking to UK/ Irish/ European colleagues. If I’m not saying happy new year also then I interchangeably use Merry or Happy before Christmas.
If I’m talking to American colleagues I write Happy Holidays as it seems to be what they prefer. Also if they say that to me first then I say it back.
Keen Kate I say Happy Christmas because that is the one I celebrate. I am perfectly happy for other people to say Happy whatever they celebrate and for me to reciprocate. Would you have us all saying Happy Holiday when we were celebrating a festival? Bland and pointless.
I think this statement was released right after H&Ms Christmas card that says Merry Christmas.
And yet the Cambridge stans are always insisting that Harry and Meghan are publicity seeking and trying to take away attention from the other royals!
I don’t understand their one sided competition at all. There are plenty of good causes to go round. The fact is H and M draw lasting global attention to any cause. Not Harry and Not Meghan also draw attention but sadly can’t seem to generate that lasting engagement because we know they’ve never really given their hearts to anything. 23 years after Diana’s death we are still talking about her work with HIV and landmines.
@ER, you make a very valid point about Diana, her work and the longevity of what she did. Unfortunately you are correct: Wills and Kate don’t care and it shows. That will forever be their Achilles heel unless something changes. And I don;t see that happening.
Nice message, but someone else wrote it/put it together, they most likely don’t really care and this was to compete with the Sussex card.
if this was the case, it failed
I don’t know if the RF realizes it, H&M farts, it is reported in so many countries, even in countries I would have never expected……As far as I am concerned, I hope Meg and Archie never go back to the uk; Harry can go by himself. I know she will to visit the Hubb ladies and her patronages but if there is one thing this pandemic proves is that, you can do a lot remotely!
The type of coverage H&M outside the uk, is what TQ herself should get; yet at best people are indifferent to her outside of the uk. We will see how long that lasts but H&M with or without knowing are building something to compare the uk rf to
When things have improved in the UK/world, I hope Meghan and Harry make a secret visit to the UK to visit charities (and then post about it afterwards!). I want the Hubb ladies to say that Archie is a really happy, cute and well behaved boy.
This message rang false and just tells me that Kate and Will have PTSD from the Pandemic Choo Choo tour criticism so they are even afraid of saying Merry Christmas. Their outward personas have yet to reflect the gravitas of how the pandemic has affected the masses so this message seems wildly out of place coming from them. Instead, it’s a duck to avoid criticism.
PTSD? I don’t think they have much self awareness. They’re probably as snug as Andrew and think it was a success, as Andrew thought for his interview. Gold standard remember?
*smug
I agree that the Cambridges have no self-awareness but they did get bad publicity in the papers for the pandemic choo choo and the Illuminate walk at Sandringham and you bet Willileaks is aware of even the slightest tidbit of bad press that lands anywhere near his golden boy, son of Diana, happy family man image. He keeps up so he can retaliate and redirect the negative attention onto Harry and Meghan.
Thoughts are typically all they offer. Nebulous thoughts and thanks. Next year they should consider making their actions reflective of their thoughts.
I think their behavior over the past few weeks (not even looking at the entire past year, just the past few weeks) has been so atrocious that it weakens these kinds of messages from them. The Pandemic Express, going maskless on the red carpet at the Pantoland event, and then the light walk with the Wessexes – I think its all left a bad taste in many people’s mouths and a message about your thoughts being with the front line workers is no longer enough. If your thoughts were with them , you would have taken Covid seriously from the beginning.
100% this. The lack of self awareness, the off-the-charts smugness, the ridiculously tired one-upping of these two has me at such a low level of disgust when I see their faces.
The Kate stans were rabid and British media were all raised eyebrows over Merry Christmas v Happy Christmas last year from the Sussexes and suddenly it’s acceptable
This is why their fandom is a mess full of people who think Archie is a doll. They have no values besides bowing and scraping to titles and money.
The fandom does not understand why H and M don’t release many photos after they make such comments. The latest is that they insult Archie by saying he looks like TOm Markle. And they put up all these emojis about how GREAT the Cambridges are , so much in love etc etc
@Tessa. They’re full of pigeon love. They should put up pigeon emojis for Will and Kate.
The fandom and the rota think that badgering and nitpicking the Sussexes will magically make them gatekeepers of whether the Sussexes do well. Instead it puts their own racism and crazy out on full display.
I am 💯 convinced that all the British royal family have already had their Covid vaccines, hence why they go mask less and care even less than they did before . I think it one thing they can both agree on is missing Carole this Christmas, Kate misses her running her life and Willywandering rose bush trimming misses her lap. Although I am betting he is missing that rose bush more . Their statement would have been more believable especially with the links at the end of those two didn’t do everything in their power to destroy Harry and Meghan mental health and the health of Their unborn son Archie back then. And still continue to
Seeing as they all went dark on Christmas day, I wouldn’t be surprised if the family did just they liked with no regard to rules about family gatherings.
It was very unusual.
After Covid express and Christmas walk-gate, I think they’ll be glad to not have to trot themselves out for a while. They haven’t exactly been hitting it out of the ballpark.
And perhaps they should have thought about the front line workers when they went on their Thomas The Tank Engine jollies around the UK.
“And perhaps they should have thought about the front line workers when they went on their Thomas The Tank Engine jollies around the UK.”
This is pure gold!
The sentiment applies every year actually. Many people are lonely or have lost loved ones but I don’t think it’s wrong to say Merry Christmas. Someone is obsessed with his brother.
He really is. The constant one-upping is so disturbing at this point. It tells me so much about Will, because while I do think Kate shares in the competitiveness, I sense that he is the one determined to be “the beloved” by all. It’s pathetic and they predictably do it every single time Harry or Meghan sneezes.
Why does it feel wrong to say Merry Christmas all of a sudden? Wasn’t the whole point of Pandemic Express to spread festive cheer? Didn’t they just release a full narrated video of them wishing people a Merry Christmas and giving gifts to children? But the day after the Sussexes say “Merry Christmas” it’s all of a sudden feels wrong to say so? Ok.
It’s only wrong after the release of the Sussexes Christmas card. It was so obvious.
This rings pretty hollow considering they did an unnecessary train tour of the UK and breathed in people’s and children’s faces just weeks before the entire country went into lockdown to curb the spread of the new COVID variant. It made them both look so bad and I don’t really care to hear messages about being alone on Christmas. They don’t mean it, they just feel affected because they like everyone else is forced to stay home and not see relatives for Christmas.
Gail They have not had jabs, except possibly the Queen and Duke who are entitled to it because of their age.
At the moment, in the UK,the Covid vaccines are COMPLETELY run by the NHS I.e. we get them for nothing and no private scheme has them.