Kate Middleton’s Health Issues Sparked This Odd Internet Rumor That the Palace Had To Address

Hasn’t Kate Middleton gone through enough already? Well, apparently not after an internet rumor about the Princess of Wales’ health required a response from sources at Kensington Palace. It appears the story about her health started with a report from the Spanish news outlet, Fiesta, and it eventually got out of hand. 

Journalist Concha Calleja hosts the popular TV program, but her “seemingly authoritative claims” that Kate was in a coma made the rounds on social media and beyond, according to The Times. She said that after the planned abdominal surgery, the Princess of Wales’ life “was in great danger” and Calleja swears she heard this news from “an aide from the Royal Household in a completely off-the-record manner.” The Spanish journalist had quite a colorful tale to tell her viewers, too.

“The doctors had to take drastic decisions at that moment because of the complications that arose,” she said. “The decision was to put her in an induced coma. They had to intubate her. There were serious complications that they didn’t expect because the operation went well, but the postoperative period didn’t go so well.” The journalist even indicated that she had insight into Kate’s recovery care with “practically an entire hospital is being set up” at Adelaide Cottage at Windsor. 

Calleja believes that Kate’s ailment began on Dec. 28 when she was first taken to the hospital for several days and the surgery was scheduled — all of which is completely unverified. Kensington Palace has done its best to respect Kate’s medical privacy while she is recovering at home, but Calleja stepped over the line, and they are reported quite upset. “It’s total nonsense,” a royal insider told the U.K. outlet. “No attempt was made by that journalist to fact-check anything that she said with anyone in the household. It’s fundamentally, totally made-up, and I’ll use polite English here: it’s absolutely not the case.”

The day after the Spanish TV personality made her claims, Kate was released from The London Clinic after 13 days under their care. While she isn’t expected to make any public appearances until somewhere around Easter, the Princess of Wales is reportedly answering emails to stay ahead of her springtime duties. Kate and King Charles III, who had his own recent medical issues, seem to have the support of royal author Robert Hardman who applauded the way the palace handled both of their health scares. 

“In both the Princess and the King’s cases, this shows a handling of very personal, very delicate matters that you wouldn’t have seen in the past. It would have been a much more guarded response,” he shared with People. “It shows they are adapting to the times. Yes, the public has a right to know some things, but not everything.”

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