Those close to the Royal Family are delighted that the Princess of Wales has completed her chemotherapy treatment and are hopeful that she remains in remission from an unidentified form of cancer.
But the super-sleek video Kensington Palace released on Monday to convey the update on his health has divided opinion among courtiers and prompted a scathing reaction from some friends of King Charles and Queen Camilla.
Their Majesties have yet to comment on the extraordinary three-minute film, made by Will Warr, who makes most of his money filming advertising campaigns for companies including supermarket giant Tesco and home delivery service Uber Eats. It shows Prince William and Kate frolicking on the beach and in the Norfolk woods with their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
But the highly stylised video certainly laid bare just how radically different Prince William and Kate’s approach to communications has become from the more traditional methods favoured by the King and Queen, and Queen Elizabeth before them.
It is worth noting that while Catherine’s parents, Michael and Carole Middleton, are shown playing cards with their grandchildren at what appears to be Anmer Hall, the Prince and Princess’s home on the King’s Sandringham estate, King Charles and Queen Camilla are nowhere to be seen in the video.
The video showed William and Catherine frolicking on the beach and in the Norfolk woods.
Some of the monarch’s friends are critical. One told me: “It’s no coincidence that the Middletons are in the picture and not the king and queen. I can assure you that Charles and Camilla will not be filmed kissing on a beach (like William and Kate) until hell freezes over. It’s clearly un-royal.”
I spoke to another insider who was even more scathing.
“All that lying down, hugging and kissing – these are not sentimental teenagers,” they said. “It seemed manipulative. It’s the kind of thing Meghan would do.”
“All the time, effort and money that went into making the video could have been much better spent on other things. Why not visit other women undergoing cancer treatment? That’s what Diana would have done.”
While the film delighted and surprised viewers in equal measure, it is not the first time the Kensington Palace media team has posted this kind of glittering extravaganza on social media. In May last year, the Waleses released a five-minute film about the coronation that included behind-the-scenes footage of William and Kate as they prepared for the King’s big day – and once again, their children featured extensively.
“All that lying around, cuddling and kissing – they’re not sentimental teenagers,” a source said. “It seemed manipulative. It’s the kind of thing Meghan would do.”
And last December, the couple’s team published a similarly reworked analysis of the year. At the time, I raised concerns about the strategy, which is being devised by Lee Thompson, who has been appointed as their PR chief in 2022.
She is said to have been tasked with boosting the couple’s profile on social media, where they have 16.8 million followers on Instagram.
In his previous job at major American television network CNBC, Thompson is said to have helped increase its YouTube audience by a staggering 600 percent.
His appointment came after the pair faced criticism – unfairly, in my view – for what was described as a “tone-deaf” tour of the West Indies in March 2022.
In an interview with the Mail’s hit royal chat show Palace Confidential last December, I said: “The fact that Kensington Palace has gone down this route of Hollywood-style videos is quite disturbing to me. William and Kate are vulnerable to PR people who want them to be stylish celebrities. The Royal Family is not that. It’s important to make that distinction.”
I can assure you that Charles and Camilla will not be filmed kissing on a beach, a friend said.
While I think the last video is very cute, I stand by those comments. William and Catherine don’t need to be “Instagram royalty” hungry for “likes” and “interaction” online.
They should follow the example of Queen Elizabeth II, who always wanted to keep up with the latest technologies, but at the same time, maintain the dignity of the monarchy.
I’m sure she would have done what Catherine did with her statement in March, following her cancer diagnosis, and perhaps posted a simple video updating the nation on her health, but no more than that.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman declined to comment. Following the release of Catherine’s video, a spokesman said: “Their Majesties consider the details of the announcement to be wonderful news and will continue to offer all their love, thoughts and support to the Princess on her continued road to full recovery.”
A Kensington Palace spokesman declined to comment on why the Middletons appeared in the video but not Their Majesties.
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