New Kate Middleton video and photos spark conspiracy theories again

Kate Middleton has not been seen in public since her surgery in January. (file)

New Delhi:

Where is Kate Middleton? This question has dominated social media for weeks, sparking wild theories. New photos, apparently of the Princess of Wales at a farmers market, haven't completely removed the doubts.

A photo and video published by a British tabloid newspaper the sunIt shows a couple walking through a market in Windsor – and is claimed to be a smiling Kate Middleton and her husband, Prince William. “Great to see you, Kate,” The Sun said on Monday evening, alongside what it claimed were photos of the princess – wearing leggings and a black T-shirt.

Great to see (via @the sun ) Kate laughs and jokes with William on the shopping trip. She's obviously recovering well. This should end a lot of conspiracy theories… pic.twitter.com/UM57fkbXix

– Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 18, 2024

“I didn't feel like they were hiding their identity. But they didn't quite know how people were going to react because there was a buzz about where they were and I felt like they just wanted to be quick there.” Nelson Silva, who took the video, told The Sun:

“Kate looked happy and relaxed. They look happy just because they were able to go into a store and socialize. Kate looked comfortable as if going into a store had been successful. It seemed natural,” he said.

Another newspaper, the Daily Mail, praised the “photo that will silence conspiracy theorists” and said it would “reassure fans that she is recovering well from abdominal surgery.”

The new photos come just a week after the uproar over the palace officially releasing edited photos of Kate. They later issued the order to kill the image after several news agencies claimed the image had been morphed.

Kate Middleton, 42, has not been seen in public since having abdominal surgery for a non-cancerous but unspecified condition on January 16.

Other than some blurry photos, she has not been seen since, and in recent weeks social media has been full of speculation about her health, generating global headlines and rumours.

Instead of allaying fears about her health, the edited photo released by Kensington Palace sent the rumor mill into overdrive as the media rushed to pull the photo with a notice of the killing.

Kate apologized but faced criticism even from the normally supportive media.

The new video from the farmers market also sparked controversy on social media as eagle-eyed viewers pointed out a number of issues with the media. Some said the image looked too grainy in an age where every phone has a 4K or HD camera.

Royal Family: Please leave Princess Kate alone as she is recovering from a very serious abdominal surgery

Kate outside the farm shop:

pic.twitter.com/RIQCZ5lcOE

— Ari 🍉 (@zegleranidala) March 18, 2024

I'm watching the video of Kate Middleton being spotted and I know full well that this is not Kate Middleton pic.twitter.com/xinWKgBtYN

– 𝐼𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓅𝑒𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝒱𝒶𝓇𝒾𝒶𝒷𝓁𝑒 (@TytianaAzarie) March 19, 2024

I'm watching the video of Kate Middleton being spotted and I know full well that this is not Kate Middleton pic.twitter.com/xinWKgBtYN

– 𝐼𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓅𝑒𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝒱𝒶𝓇𝒾𝒶𝒷𝓁𝑒 (@TytianaAzarie) March 19, 2024

Other conspiracy theorists also felt that the woman who was taken was not Kate Middleton, but rather a body double.