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Kate Middleton marks Mother’s Day in the UK by sharing a picturesque video nod to Mother Nature. On Sunday, the Princess of Wales shared a heartwarming post to commemorate the special holiday in the UK. Via her Instagram page, the mom of three shared a video showcasing various aspects of nature, from greenery and shrubs to varying weather conditions and the vast ocean. The royal crowned it with the most beautiful caption, singing odes to Mother Nature.
The clip briefly featured Kate in one scene, which captured her hands resting on a tree stem, seemingly taking in its essence. Another scene featured a sweet moment between William and Kate. While the former strolled through the grass barefoot, with their dog, Orla, and another dog trailing behind him, Kate followed in the background, operating the camera. Although Kate Middleton’s Mother’s Day post indeed had all the elements to pass for a classic, missing from the clip was the one thing royal fans couldn’t wait to see: An actual shot of the Wales family members.
Kate Middleton’s Mother’s Day Video Deemed a Swipe at Harry and Meghan
In years past, the prince and princess have made sure to delight fans with a beautiful family shot commemorating the UK holiday. However, rather than a photo, the proud mom opted for a video celebrating nature, teasing only glimpses of their body parts, almost like an intentional move to keep their faces off the camera.
Several royal fans, who have long anticipated a post from Kate Middleton after her critically-panned photoshop flop on last year’s Mother’s Day, were left disappointed. Many turned to Reddit to voice exactly what they thought of the princess’ video. One Reddit user implied there was more to Kate Middleton’s Mother’s Day video than met the eye. According to them, the lack of a photo this year was a “genius move from Kate” to serve one purpose: Keeping Prince Harry and Meghan Markle embroiled in negative press. The user wrote,
“Genius move from Catherine: UK Mother’s Day message celebrating Mother Nature. So a photo of the Waleses wouldn’t distract from the Harry Sentebale Situation and keeps it top of mind.”
Several Royal fans agreed with this ideology, noting that the Sussex couple have been a thorn in the flesh for Kate and the royal family for years. Hence, the royal couldn’t pass off a chance to slight them in return. With Harry embroiled in a controversy involving Sentebale, a charity he founded in 2006 in honor of his late mom, the Sussexes would most likely be at their low point for a long time, unless something more evocative, like a new photo from Kate, distracts from the whole scandal. One Reddit user reacted,
“I had the very same thought – it’s a shame that they’ve had to do this, but I understand the many probable reasons why they chose to. I used to look forward to seeing their Mother’s Day photo.”
Another penned,
“This way she is not going to be ripped apart by the squaddies, they were probably obsessively waiting for Catherine’s post to deflect from the Sentebale scandal.”
Proponents of the “beef” theory pinpointed obvious references to the Sussexes in the video, including an image of “the Sussex coastline” thrown into the clip, and a shot of a ladybug crawling on a grass, which was supposedly a dig at the “Pinterest-inspired crostini depicting ladybugs” which Meghan made on her cooking show.
Kate’s Post Had a Secret Message to the Press
Meanwhile, some fans disputed the claims that Kate Middleton’s UK Mother’s Day video had anything to do with Harry and Meghan, as they simply intended to do something different this year, and were not as petty. They suggested a better theory to explain Kate’s video choice. This second theory, supported by the majority of fans, implied that the clip was, in fact, Kate’s revenge on the press for brutally dragging her last year at the onset of her cancer battle. A netizen suggested,
“I think she didn’t post photos of herself and the kids because she’s sick and tired of everything she posts being microscopically examined.”
Taking on Kate’s role, another wrote,
“After the crap last year, the press would not get one single picture directly from me, ever again. [If] they want to see my family, they can go to Insta and share what I post. The press was disgraceful last year.”
A third comment read,
“Actually, when I saw the post I said…Good for Catherine…she is rightfully salty as her last Mother’s Day photo got ripped apart by the press worldwide for photoshopping a private family photo…A big well-deserved FU to the press.”
A fourth added,
“Genius move. Well played, Catherine and William, and your advisors.”
Kate Middleton wasn’t the only royal family member who made headlines for her UK Mother’s Day post. Meghan Markle drew attention with her photo of a citrus pie shared on her Instagram page along with a caption acknowledging the UK Holiday and her family tradition. The post earned Meghan backlash from those criticizing her for establishing connections to a country she rejected.
Meanwhile, Kate Middleton also got her fair share of Mother’s Day backlash last year, when she uploaded a family photo of herself and her kids via Instagram. The pic, shared at the height of the duchess’ 2024 health crisis, which had the world concerned about her sudden disappearance, quickly intensified the suspicions as eagle-eyed observers discovered signs the supposed image of Kate and her kids was, in fact, photoshop-generated.
The princess released a follow-up post admitting to digitally altering the image, and apologizing for the “deceit.” She came clean about her cancer diagnosis shortly after, but the distressing comments about her from media outlets and public figures condemning her secrecy remain forever engraved on the internet.
