Kate Middleton Skips Trooping The Color To Avoid Upstaging King Charles: Royal Expert
Kate Middleton will likely skip this year's Trooping the Colour because she doesn't want to take away attention from King Charles III during his birthday parade, according to a royal expert.
The Princess of Wales has been away from the spotlight since undergoing abdominal surgery in January and subsequently being diagnosed with cancer.
Amid her treatment, Middleton missed the rehearsal of the Irish Guards, who are leading this year's Trooping the Colour, over the weekend.
While Kensington Palace has not yet said whether or not Princess Kate will attend the King's birthday parade this Saturday, GB News royal correspondent Cameron Walker said he believes it is "incredibly unlikely" that Middleton would make an in-person appearance at the upcoming celebration.
"Kensington Palace has not ruled out a balcony appearance. But I think it's incredibly unlikely. The reason being is the King's birthday parade, and I think if she did appear on the balcony, it would upstage that event," Walker said on GB News.
The royal correspondent added that speculating on when Middleton will return to public duties only puts "unnecessary pressure" on her amid her battle with cancer.
"Kensington Palace has always said they will provide an update when there is one. The princess herself has asked for the space and the privacy to recover. And I think speculation puts unnecessary pressure on the princess," Walker said.
He continued, "At the end of the day, she's a human being, and I think she's been through a lot since January...perhaps, a lot of us would say we need to respect her wishes."
Rumors about Middleton's health and whereabouts swirled for months after she disappeared from the public eye following the royal family's Christmas Day church service in Sandringham in December 2023 and her abdominal surgery the following month.
In late March, Middleton released a video message announcing that she had been diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer and was undergoing preventative chemotherapy.
Kensington Palace has released few updates on Middleton since then. The last came in late May, when it confirmed in a statement to the BBC that Middleton was not yet ready to return to work.
As honorary Colonel of the Irish Guards, Middleton was expected to play a major role in this year's Trooping the Colour.
However, the palace announced last month that she would not take the salute at the Colonel's Review for the Irish Guards -- which took place a week before the big parade.
On Saturday, the Irish Guards shared via X, formerly Twitter, a letter from Middleton in which she apologized for missing the rehearsal.
"I appreciate everyone trooping this year has been practicing for months, and dedicating many hours to ensuring their uniforms and drill are immaculate," she wrote.
Middleton continued, "Being your colonel remains a great honor and I am very sorry that I'm unable to take the salute at this year's Colonel's Review. Please pass my apologies to the whole Regiment, however, I do hope that I am able to represent you all once again very soon. Please send my very best wishes and good luck to all involved."
