LONDON (AP) – Public displays of affection on a royal video? My, how times have changed!
When the Princess of Wales announced that she had completed chemotherapy treatment in a soft-focus, Insta-ready video, she ventured into realms not previously inhabited by Britain’s royal family, traditionally known for the stiff-upper-lip, “never complain, never explain” ethos of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Here was the most popular royal, a public figure usually known simply as Kate, using the tools of social media to share the fact that for all her wealth and privilege, her life had been upended by cancer, just like millions of other people.
But it wasn’t just what she said, it was how she said it. Unlike earlier updates on Kate’s health, which sounded like factual news reports, this had an entirely different tone. The slickly produced mini-movie released on Monday showed the princess hugging Prince William and their three young children and sharing intimate moments at home with her parents.
There’s even a chaste kiss on her cheek.
“It is a real break,’’ said royal historian George Gross at King’s College London. “But I think people will look at it and won’t necessarily realise that. I think they will think: This is just right, this is normal. That’s what a family does.”
A TRADITION OF SECRECY
Kate’s video marks the royal family’s latest experiment with greater openness since King Charles III assumed the throne in 2022. That has been tested repeatedly this year as both Charles and Kate were treated for serious health problems, then later announced they were undergoing cancer treatment.
For centuries, Britain’s royal family withheld news of illness for fear it might weaken their authority. That reticence and secrecy lingered even after they became constitutional figureheads.
The British public wasn’t told that King George VI, Charles’ grandfather, had lung cancer before his death at the age of 56 in February 1952. The public death announcement said only that the king had “passed peacefully away in his sleep”.
King George V died in 1936, after suffering from heart and lung disease. Far from being open about the king’s health, palace officials manipulated the timing of his death to gain more favourable coverage. Diary extracts published 50 years later revealed that the king’s physician injected the terminally ill monarch with morphine and cocaine to speed his death – partly so it could be announced in the morning newspapers “rather than the less appropriate evening journals”.
Charles has made a point of being more open than his mother, Elizabeth, whom Buckingham Palace described as suffering from “mobility issues” in the months before her death.
In January, the palace said Charles would enter a London hospital for treatment for an enlarged prostate. A few weeks later, the king said he would step away from public duties while he received treatment for an undisclosed type of cancer. Those announcements, however, were made in factual releases issued by the palace press office.
A NEW GENERATION OF ROYALS
But Kate and William, both 42, are of a new generation that is more comfortable sharing personal issues on social media.
Kate’s video was shot by William Warr, creative director of Detail Films, which says it combines film production techniques and strategic marketing to create “beautiful branded films.”
“We exist to help brands tell stories that speak to their audience,” the firm says on its website.
In the video, Kate described how difficult the past nine months had been for her family and expressed “relief” at completing her course of treatment.
“Life as you know it can change in an instant, and we have had to find a way to navigate the stormy waters and road unknown,’’ she said in the video, which was shot in a woodland near the family’s summer home in Norfolk.
Some see the film as a reflection of a family bonded in a crisis, as many do when facing illness – sharing their thoughts with others.
“It is a love story,” former BBC royal correspondent Michael Cole told TalkTV. “You’re seeing it there. You’re seeing what it means to a family.’’
Public relations and crisis consultant Mark Borkowski described the film as “a tectonic shift in how the royal family controls its image”. “Kate’s journey is profound and deeply personal, but they’ve learned that emotion can be controlled – and weaponised – in small, potent doses,’’ he said.
“By doing this through a polished film, they maintain dignity and control while still appearing relatable.” – Kim Cook
