Kate Middleton made her royal comeback this Saturday for the Trooping the Colour after receiving her cancer diagnosis in March. The Princess of Wales seemed happy and waved to excited fans along the streets of London. In a statement, she opened the door to attending more royal events later this summer.
While the royal family celebrates that both Kate and King Charles are now somewhat back to royal duty, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are nowhere to be seen. Reports suggest they weren’t even invited to the big royal event, and with all that’s happened, perhaps that wasn’t a surprise.
However, although they weren’t there, the Sussexes, and foremost Meghan Markle, managed to get herself in the spotlight anyway. Just hours before Kate stepped into public again, the Duchess did something that left many accusing her of stealing the attention of the Princess of Wales by releasing a new product through her lifestyle brand.
The talks surrounding Kate Middleton’s possible return to public life began over a week ago. On Friday, the Princess of Wales gave the world the wonderful news.
Kate Middleton return to royal duty after cancer treatment
In a lengthy statement, the Princess of Wales announced that she was looking forward to attending this year’s Trooping the Colour, making her first royal outing since her abdominal surgery in January and the cancer treatment she has received in the last few months.
“I have been blown away by all the kind messages of support and encouragement over the last couple of months. It really has made the world of difference to William and me and has helped us both through some of the harder times,” Kate said.
The Princess of Wales continued: “I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days. On those bad days you feel weak, tired and you have to give in to your body resting. But on the good days, when you feel stronger, you want to make the most of feeling well.”
“My treatment is ongoing and will be for a few more months. On the days I feel well enough, it is a joy to engage with school life, spend personal time on the things that give me energy and positivity, as well as starting to do a little work from home.”
“I’m looking forward to attending The King’s Birthday Parade this weekend with my family and hope to join a few public engagements over the summer, but equally knowing I am not out of the woods yet.”
Buckingham Palace balcony appearance during Trooping the Colour
She concluded: “I am learning how to be patient, especially with uncertainty. Taking each day as it comes, listening to my body, and allowing myself to take this much needed time to heal. Thank you so much for your continued understanding, and to all of you who have so bravely shared your stories with me.”
On Saturday, Kate Middleton was photographed arriving at Trooping the Colour. Sitting in a car alongside her husband, Prince William, and their three children, she wore a white dress with a black bow and a white hat, her hair in a bun.
The princess waved to the crowd and looked very happy.
In an interview with GB News, Schofield stated that the princess looked “absolutely incredible” and “well” during the big celebration.
“You can’t deny that she looked absolutely incredible. It was like My Fair Lady, she looked like Audrey Hepburn in the outfit. I don’t know if that was the inspiration, but she looks so sophisticated, so smart. It’s what we’ve come to expect from her, I would expect nothing less,” Schofield said.
“She was so engaged with the children in the carriage. All you can think about is the fact that she’s had a lot of special time with them lately, that this family is incredibly bonded,” she added. “She’s had the opportunity to spend a lot of time at home with them, they’re incredibly close and a beautiful family indeed.”
Kate Middleton later appeared on the Buckingham Palace balcony alongside her husband, children, King Charles and Queen Camilla. Finally, after a very challenging year, things returned to somewhat normal.
While Kate has opened up about being at more royal outings this summer, it is not a big guess that she will choose them wisely and not head back to serving the Crown too quickly.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ‘were not invited’ to Trooping the Colour, expert says
As it has been for many years, the royal family has had to deal with the feud with the estranged Sussexes, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The couple have not been involved with the royal family for years, and the last time they were seen alongside the royals was at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in 2022.
It’s been reported that King Charles has invited the two to Balmoral this summer to spend time with the family – and have Archie and Lilibet get to know their cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. But the fact that they weren’t at Trooping the Colour wasn’t a surprise.
According to royal expert Tom Quinn, there have been discussions about inviting Harry and Meghan to Trooping the Colour. However, they felt that even if the Sussexes had accepted an invite, it could have backfired.
“There was a brief discussion among the senior Royals about inviting Harry and Meghan to Trooping the Colour, but the idea was quickly dismissed because even if the couple accepted the invitation there is a feeling that they cast a dark shadow over everything,” Quinn told the Mirror.
It is not known whether Harry and Meghan watched the royal family reuniting on the Buckingham Palace balcony. However, the couple clearly has many other things on their hands at the moment.
Meghan Markle – new lifestyle brand
Some weeks ago, they visited Nigeria on a three-day tour to promote the Invictus Games. Sadly, the royal family reportedly had firm, angry opinions about it.
In the meantime, the Duchess has taken on a new business venture, creating her luxurious brand.
The Duchess launched the lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard in March earlier this year. In the announcement video, shot at the couple’s Montecito mansion, Meghan walked around the beautiful mansion and featured her cooking.
The first product — a lemon-filled gift basket containing fresh fruit jam — was sent to 50 of her friends, many of whom were celebrities. At the time, PR expert Mayah Riaz said Meghan Markle could earn as much as a seven-figure sum within the first year of launching her lifestyle brand.
“So far, the jams have been sent to only 50 people. This suggests that it will be an exclusive and limited edition item,” Riaz told the Mirror.
“It has already been reported a single jam jar could cost three figures. I believe that is entirely likely from what we have seen so far. This is not rare for a celebrity brand.”
The PR expert added, “Therefore, my estimation is that American Riveria Orchard in under a year could make Meghan seven figures. It is entirely possible for the brand to make multi-seven figures by the end of next year,” the PR guru added.
“Meghan was in tears when the brand launched”
Meghan Markle’s lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, will reportedly sell products such as oils, home fragrances, kitchen utensils, and homeware. The brand was intensely hyped when it was announced, and she received hundreds of thousands of followers in the first 24 hours on Instagram.
However, it’s been quiet since then, and Meghan has yet to reveal when the brand will go live. Interest is fading, and some time ago, royal expert Tom Quinn revealed some sad details about Meghan’s company.
Speaking to the Mirror, Quinn claimed that the Duchss was devastated by the public’s reception of her lifestyle brand. Many criticized her for releasing her jam, which hit Meghan Markle hard.
“The one fly in the ointment is Meghan’s new internet brand, America Riviera Orchard. Meghan was in tears when the brand launched, and her new jam was widely mocked for being expensive and nothing special. She has reached the point now where she thinks that anything and everything she does will be unfairly criticized,” Quinn said.
Quinn added that Prince Harry believed “people are unfairly picking on her,.” Moreover, Quinn said she wasn’t prepared for any setback surrounding the American Riviera Orchard.
“She is especially sensitive about any criticism of her luxurious lifestyle in the US – from her point of view, this is something to be admired, not criticized.”
Meghan Markle accused of stealing Kate Middleton spotlight
It’s well-known that Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle weren’t best friends during their time as senior working royal family members. What happened next, as the couple both left the royal family and later accused them of many things through their interviews, the Netflix series and Harry’s book didn’t exactly enhance their relationship, and today, it’s said to be at the bottom.
Now, Meghan Markle is accused of once again trying to steal the spotlight from her former royal colleague.
On Saturday, June 15, just hours before Trooping the Colour, Argentinian polo player Nacho Figuerasa, a close friend of Markle and Prince Harry, revealed the Duchess’s brand’s new raspberry-flavored jam via an Instagram Story.
The announcement’s timing left many royal fans angry and took to social media.
“Try to steal the spotlight from the RF,” one X, formerly known as Twitter, wrote, as per OK! Magazine. “Yet it is still shocking and disgusting.”
A second person added, “Narcissism at its finest,” while a third stated, “No. Meghan can never outshine Princess Kate, not then, now, ever.”
A fourth person concluded, “Who buys jam anyway? It is so easy to make right at home with fresh fruit and a load of sugar!”
Source claims Meghan Markle had nothing do to with it
Although many were furious with Meghan Markle for this, a source close to the Duchess told the Daily Beast that she had nothing to do with it.
The source claimed, “While I am sure the gift packages came with notes requesting social media coverage, you can’t tell Nacho Figueras what to do. So I think it’s certain the timing of his post was his own idea.”
“The larger point here is that the American Riviera Orchard campaign has been phenomenally successful and cost Meghan nothing.”
The source added, “It is a textbook social media campaign. The only problem is that there still seems to be nothing actually for sale, so what is it all for? I guess we will find out.”