Part of me thinks that the recent glut of anti-Cambridge stories in the UK press is simply boredom. Like, the UK press wants to be able to write about the Cambridges, as they are the most gossip-worthy of all the royals, but the Cambridges are pretty much in hiding so we’re getting all of these stories about Kate being “in isolation” and how she’s “struggled” to adapt to royal life. Making it worse, perhaps, is the fact that Team Cambridge really doesn’t have much to do these days, so they’re trying to get people excited about William and Kate maybe doing one event in October, ahead of their Mustique vacation in November. And maybe they’ll do a Caribbean tour next year. Maybe. Speaking of that very alleged 2016 tour, we previously heard that Will and Kate would bring their kids on tour. Not so much.
An official overseas visit is on the horizon for Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge, née Kate Middleton, according to a senior royal source. Disappointing royal fans worldwide, though, the source tells HELLO! it is unlikely the Duke and Duchess’ two adorable tots, baby Princess Charlotte and her big brother Prince George, will be accompanying their parents on the trip in 2016.
“It was a one-off to take George to Australia and New Zealand last year and it is looking highly unlikely they will take their children with them on their next tour,” the Palace aide told HELLO! magazine. We are looking at either spring or autumn, but have not ruled out the possibility of them doing both.”
It is still undecided where on the map William and Kate will be welcomed, though there is speculation that the Caribbean is a strong contender.
“We are aware of the report about the Caribbean, but the location is yet to be decided,” said the source. “There are other considerations, such as where the Foreign Office – who have a big say on these matters – want them to go.”
The royal couple have kept joint royal duties to a minimum following the birth of their daughter Charlotte in May.
This sounds like it’s someone in Will & Kate’s office, right? What in the world do those people do all day besides phone up Hello Magazine to tamper down expectations over and over? As for Will and Kate not bringing George and Charlotte along when they tour… it’s interesting, and I suspect that will be the case for several reasons. One, that’s a built-in excuse for keeping the tour really short, because Will and Kate have to “get back to see their kids.” Two, the UK press has complained specifically about all of the kid-friendly photo-ops George gets overseas and how few photo-ops he gets at home. So on that, at least the Cambridges are showing a little bit on consistency – no photo-ops ever, for commonwealth or kingdom. George must be at that age where he’ll really start offending people on tour too.
Third point… I don’t really have a problem with Will and Kate leaving their kids in the care of Carole Middleton and Nanny Maria for a week or so to do a tour. I prefer that to Will and Kate leaving George in the care of a then just-hired nanny so they could jet off for a vacation when George was just a baby.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I couldn’t agree more with your theories Kaiser.
I also wouldn’t blame her if they wanted to keep the tour short so they could go back to their babies, that’s normal for any parent. It would be a nice change if that was the case and they openly admitted it.
I think leaving the kids at home will be an excuse for her to get out of the whole thing. She may say one of the kids is sick or she is still breast feeding or something.
But isn’t there a vacation scheduled just after the tour?
The tour will be boring without Prince George along making his grumpy faces! Lol
Love him.
William and Kate alone are just boring. Her dresses and possible hem fly ups and panty flashes will get all the headlines with no George along.
Plus, this way they can get some hardcore vacationing in.
Nailed it!
Really. It’s awfully tough to do a few appearances AND find time to do some deep sea scuba diving. Without the kids, they will have lots more time.
So… from what I’m reading they weren’t invited? Not to bring Haz into this but from what I’ve read is that specific royals are asked by the host nations to come & all that jazz?
Yes thats true – the Chinese originally asked for Harry, they got the petulant Princeling instead.
Who wouldn’t prefer Harry? He’s got all his mother’s charm and actually likes meeting people.
They weren’t invited to Australia and New Zealand either. That tour was all their own idea, according to one of the spokesmen.
This reads very strangely, if this “source” is to be believed (lots of salt). No one has requested them, they’re just casting about for somewhere they want to go like last time.
Exactly. Or maybe the tropical island beaches are in greater need of attention than we realize? Last time I was there we only needed to book the resort 3 months in advance.
Won’t someone think of the tropical paradises?!?!?!?
Perfect opportunity to squeeze some off days in the Caribbean too.
Of course they won’t – wouldn’t do to pass up on a free holiday that they can take time out for themselves. These 2 will jump at any chance for a freebie holiday.
Hear hear Betti so true
Without kids she will have both hands free to play with her hair and keep her skirts down.
LOL……………love your comment – very true! She’ll also have many opportunities to flash Big Blue.
And scuba dive. Don’t forget scuba dive. But she’ll have to leave her ring on the boat, as barracudas love shiny things!!!
Barracudas are horribly scary when scuba diving. That was a nightmare when I saw 1. Their “smile” is the stuff of nightmares. Didn’t bother me past that, but ugh.
#poorjason needs a holiday himself. Poor guy has experienced hard labour this summer.
We need to make #poorjason a thing. I give him 6 more months before he books it out of there. It’s not worth it!
I think #poorjason needs a vacation from these two!! We should take up a fund to send him to a stress-reducing spa!
That’s too bad- I mean, it would have been nice to see the family meet the press outside on a comfortable rug like Charles and Diana in AUS when William was a baby. It’s a controlled setting so I don’t see how William could be offended?
Kaiser, how thoughtful of you to remind us of her nude-to-the-waist flash with this photo. Such devilish picture selections!
Ooooh, the judginess of that last sentence. I plan on traveling overseas and leaving my baby in the hands of reliable childcare after he is born. (He’ll be about six months old, not a newborn, but the Judgy Mommy Brigade often advocates public stoning of any woman who leaves her infant in the first year to travel.) That’s the point of going to a reliable and reputable agency, sitting through intensive interviews and pouring over resumes and references. A poor couple was recently in the news because their baby died on its first day of daycare, while its mother was simply a few miles away at work. Your physic proximity, or the fact that you’re working instead of traveling for pleasure, won’t necessarily prevent something going wrong. Also, compared to how the Queen herself raised her children (several nannies and planned “appointments” with her children, long absences, boarding schools, limited physical affection and never when out in public, etc.), I think leaving the child(ren) with nannies was par for the course among the British aristocracy, so maybe in comparison W & K are warm and fuzzy, attentive parents. Whatever. I tire of the competitive, “I’m a bigger martyr so I’m a better parent” Mommy Wars. As for the rest of this post, I think the tone is spot-on. I’m quite tired of them and think they’re the most pointless royals in Europe. William and Kate are in a unique position to help people, but they appear too insular and selfish to bother. So much for that British devotion to “duty.”
William gets offended at everything. These 2 are really the pits. I expect neither of them have much truck with their 2 children so it doesn’t make any difference. Kate looks rather old in that second photo…..more like 50.
I don’t think he’s offended by the taxpayer cash flow.
Then she’s a good looking 50. Good of you to bring something positive to the table 😉
Yeah India, I had so much hope for them during year 2011. And I was willing to give them a grace period, you know, allow them to get used to married life and having babies, but in their world, it’s so easy to bring their children if they feel they really need to be there for them 24/7 during the early years.
They could have brought the nannies and other help when visiting WW2 Vets and they could have stayed at a secure building nearby if they didn’t want the press to photograph them. Even two hours time away from the children would have made all the difference to WW2 Vets meeting them and knowing they cared enough to see them and thank them for their service.
They both left the kids so W&K could have a full day at Wimbledon. They are not inseparable and do not spend 24/7 with them.
Her inability to show at even one of the four commemoration events (WWII and London bombings), but showing up at Wimbledon in the same time frame? Inexcusable.
Notasugarhere
I didn’t know they’d spent the entire day at Wimbledon thanks for the info. Some tennis fans just go morning depending on time of matches.
Citresse
Six hours. Based on her presence at the court, She Who Can’t Work Coz She’s Breastfeeding didn’t leave for a considerable amount of time to breast pump. Six hours at tennis but couldn’t be bothered to pitch up at not even one memorial.
But guys!
She only sees her personal trainer who is in HIGH demand once or twice a week. And that morning was a scheduling conflict with her trainer. She didn’t cancel the veteran event because she had the sight to not double book herself.
All sarcasm aside that was her true reason to not go. Her fans made up the bfing or can’t be away from her children excuse.
@FLORC: She only sees her personal trainer who is in HIGH demand once or twice a week.
———————————————————————————————————————
LOL FLORC, surely you jest!!?? She sees her trainer multiple times a week – it wouldn’t surprise me if it was daily.
She does. She’s aged dramatically in the past few years which is why I think there’s something else going on … she just seems SO stressed and unhappy (judging by her absences and looks in the non-smiling; caught off-guard, photos).
I’m as annoyed with them doing bugger all, and the constant excuses, as the next person; but I do worry for her. As I’ve commented previously, I don’t think she realised what she was wishing for when she married William, his family and the job … because unlike most of us who can have off-days and live life without constant scrutiny, the reality is very different for her.
I thought Sophie (Wessex) was a good friend to her, as they often seemed to hang out in the earlier days of her marriage and she was pictured visiting her a couple of times (along with Edward) in hospital when she had HG the first time, but even she seems to be keeping her distance now.
I don’t particularly like Kate based on all the gossip that’s out there … who knows if it’s true or not but where there’s smoke, there’s fire … but I do feel very, very sorry for her and really hope she has at least one person on her side. Nobody deserves to be unhappy and feel like a prisoner in their own existence. And I don’t think her trashy family and pushy mother, brother and sister are exactly helping the situation.
I don’t think she personally faces daily scrutiny as she spends most of her time doing private activities anyways (shopping, hair salon, exercise training, sports games, etc.).
When she does go out on an actual work visit, it’s usually to some place where she can play dress up or to some light and fun event, like the yachting one recently. Every time, she gets thanked continuously with big smiles and everybody there tries their best to make her and William happy and glad to have visited. They bend over backwards to make sure that it’s always fun for them. How many other people get that kind of treatment every time they go to work?
I don’t know why Kate doesn’t try to make friends with the other younger Royals. It’s been said that she and Pippa were very rude to the York sisters, even making one of them cry. One reason I read for her animosity with them is that one of them is friends with the sister who is the sister to one of William’s old girlfriend whom he wanted to marry. If Kate wanted to be friends with the Yorks, then she should just give up this alleged jealousy and try to make nice.
I wonder if the alleged Sophie issue is because Kate made a spectacle of herself and Sophie by laughing it up at a memorial event and bringing Sophie into the mini-scandal. It made both of them look bad. I think Sophie was trying to be friendly by laughing at whatever joke Kate was making, but it back-fired on her.
Then there’s that Federer’s wife incident at Wimbledon that was caught on tape. She shot ‘thunder eyes’ at his wife and some people have said they saw her laughing with Pippa at the wife, including possibly fat-shaming or making fun of her appearance. I just think Kate’s not a girl’s girl.
I also think Kate is not a person who regards friendships outside of the family as something important unless it gets them something in return. I’ve read from people here that she dropped friends who weren’t part of William’s inner circle.
I’m sure there are many ‘respectable’ or ‘acceptable’ people in the higher social levels that would want to be Kate’s friend and that she could be the Queen Bee of any social circle she creates. There must be so many of them that have small children and they could have mommy-and-children play-dates at AH or wherever.
I read that mama Carole was very particular about how her kids were brought up and how and whom they interacted with. But even so, there has to be people she can interact with now as an adult, right?
Does one ever hear of Kate going over to somebody else’s house for a friendly, private visit? Why not? Surely other Royals have private friendships involving going out to see each other. Why doesn’t Kate do this too? During the times when William dumped her, she’s been pap’d with friends going out to nightclubs in skimpy clothes. Where are they now? Not classy enough for the Duchess?
I think Kate has the full support of her family. I doubt mama Carole lets her be alone too much. She also has full physical support from her staff. It’s also said that she does have some (approved) friends whose clothing style she copies.
I don’t think she’s a prisoner in her own existence. I think she’s always had a very simple-minded life and wasn’t interested in things outside of social climbing and landing a rich and titled husband. From her continuous time off from work, she could have taken the opportunity to expand her interests with classes, socializing with people in the village, or sitting in on some meetings with her charities and allying herself with influential women friends. But my guess is that she doesn’t want to.
She’s taken cooking classes in the past few years. She does regular sessions with her trainer. But it’s not like she’s a mind that’s been stifled and that she’s itching to go out and do things beyond what appeals to her vanity and whatever fun is going on, imo.
Though I think she might be upset that she didn’t go to St. Bart’s last week with her family. But she’s gone on vacation with them before with baby George in tow and without William around. So it’s not like she can’t do this, but I think what is different this time around is that W&K announced that she can’t go out to work because she’s on maternity leave, so it might look bad that she’s seen out in the Caribbeans in August as well as it being let out that she’s going there anyways in November. And now there’s this story that she’s going back in Spring. So it would look like too many vacations for a mother who says she can’t work because she’s just had a baby. Even though, she and William went to a paid-for vacation in the Maldives without baby George. Oh. So many contradictions. It’s as curvy as a Slinky.
And she and Harry used to be close and laugh all of the time. At the Trooping the Color, it seemed quite frosty even though they were both in the same carriage and it was just awkward on the balcony. They didn’t even look at each other, while Harry and William still seemed very close at the polo match.
I, too, wonder what’s going on. Personally, I think Harry thinks they are lazy do-nothings, and that Kate is getting the blame for that from him. And I bet he hates her family always being there, and pushing his father away.
Harry was never really close to Kate. He welcomed her in as Williams wife and was friendly with her and enjoyed a good laugh with her at events and treats her warmly and with respect as his brothers wife.
Tilly, Most people on this blog don’t feel sorry for her, but I do as well. Do you think Willy treats her any better than a common ho, probably not. I blame Carole for so much, but for some reason I don’t blame her dad, I think he was ambivalent about Willy for some time, and would rather she had not married Willy. When HM said “It will end in tears” boy that was an understatement!
I’m curious, when did the Queen say that?
Vava: That quote was widely circulated after WK reunited in 2007 following Kate’s media tour 2007.
Palace sources planted a story in the media that allegedly HM wasn’t happy about the reunion, and felt ‘it would end in tears’.
Following that quote came a slew of articles that said that in reuniting with Kate, William had painted himself into a corner and would have to marry Kate otherwise forever be branded a cad for leading her on.
Not sure but have been after the engagement announcement – even TQ could she that she was lazy and had no interest in doing anything other than shop and wait for Willy to call. She never used the time during the GF years to learn to adapt to the life she ran after – she just tipped off and mugged for the paps.
She used to be very guarded but since the wedding she’s let that down and her emotions are more obvious now. You can tell from her expressions and body language when she’s bored and wants to be elsewhere, she can be very engaging if its something that interests her like Wimbledon and film premiere’s.
The smug is strong with this one.
So, basically this tour is the Maldives all over again, except this time the Commonwealth will be picking up the tab? Well played, Cambridges. Make it appear as if you’re working when in reality, you’re just on vacation. Or still on vacation from your reality.
Ugh! I don’t mind them that much but basically LOVE PG Tips. Let us see the babies you dumb twats. It’s the only reason people like me are still supporting you. UGH.
Why do people call him PG Tips?
I love his little grumpy face … he’s full of so much character!!! 🙂
Brand of Tea called PG Tips. Someone in a comments section (maybe DM) used it and it caught like most of the Cambridge related nick names.
It started on Royal Dish.
Sooo… a taxpayer paid, kid-free holiday? Why am I not surprised? If true, I’m now definitely expecting them to quietly slip off on a ski holiday as soon as they return to the UK. Or slip off to Mustique. Either way, there is no way they’ll miss the chance to “recover” from such an exhausting “tour.”
Psst, SG, Rutherford touched down in France yesterday. Court tomorrow. Everybody get out their tinfoil tiaras for the next round of court conspiracies from her team.
@ notasugarhere
She should remind them that because they treated her so respectfully last time, it supported her breaking their orders. #KellyThink
Yaaassss – I’m getting the popcorn ready! 😀
I am a sometimes defender of Kate and this is just annoying to me. I can understand not wanting long lense “creeper” photos of George and Charlotte playing and living their “middle class” lifestyle but these are not normal English children; one will be King, for godsake. Trotting the kiddies out for controlled appearances like a low-pressure Caribbean tour is the least they can do in exchange for their privileged (from birth) lifestyle.
“We are aware of the report about the Caribbean, but the location is yet to be decided,” said the source. “There are other considerations, such as where the Foreign Office – who have a big say on these matters – want them to go.”
Yet to be decided. Does that mean that the Caribbeans don’t know why they should pay for the visit just because W&K want to go there for free?
The Foreign Office – Upthread, it’s mentioned that William decided to go to China even though they requested Harry and that it was W&K who invited themselves to Australia/NZ (paid for by the latter).
So I wonder if the Caribbeans actually invited W&K to come for an all-inclusive ‘work’ trip. Why would they want to spend a lot of money on people who go there regularly and keep the area in the worldwide news? They don’t need to spend any money on advertisement that they’re getting for free anyways.
And I think Edward & Sophie have been to the Caribbean a couple of times in the last few years. I wouldn’t think they’d need/want more royal visits just now. It must get expensive.
They are trying for the best possible invites abroad. Dubai perhaps (?) but clearly they would prefer a tropical destination. They have been a let down to watch. Judgemental, yep clearly I am but after all their engagement and marriage hype it seemed like they were going to be a more modern type of royalty and closer to the people. If anything, they seem more removed than the old guard and less interested in helping out or advocating for those who subsidize their lavish lifestyle. Too bad.
Meh, I assume it’s logistically MUCH easier, safer and cheaper to leave them at home, especially now that there’s two of them. Since when are babies required for diplomatic tours, anyway?
>>>George must be at that age where he’ll really start offending people on tour too.
What kind of super asshole gets offended by a toddler? What could a tiny child even do that would be offensive to the general public? Fall asleep? Jesus…
That picture of them getting off the plane – Kate looks like she works forthe airline. So clueless.
So much buttony goodness in that photo–the ridiculous hat, the skirts flying, Kate tottering down those steps in heels holding the photo prop, er, I mean PGTips, and William ever so helpfully carrying nothing.
Royaloonies, Victoria and Daniel are expecting their second child!!!!!!!!!