Late-night host Stephen Colbert extended well wishes to Kate, the Princess of Wales, on his show Monday night. His remarks came two weeks after he stirred controversy with a monologue about the rumors surrounding the royal.
Criticism and Apology
Critics slammed Colbert for shedding light on online rumors about Kate amidst her absence from public duties after undergoing abdominal surgery in January. The criticism intensified after Kate’s announcement of her cancer diagnosis.
We do a lot of shows, and I tell a lot of jokes, mostly about what everybody’s talking about… And for the last six weeks to two months, everybody has been talking about the mystery of Kate Middleton’s disappearance from public life.
Colbert extended well wishes to Kate, expressing remorse for any distress his jokes may have caused.
I hold myself to a standard in which I do not make light of someone else’s tragedy
It was after he made a series of jokes during his monologue that included mentioning the conspiracy theories of Kate Middleton getting a divorce and/or she was dead, along with Photoshopped pictures of Middleton as a zombie dating Pete Davidson.
Colbert then followed that up and addressed the Photoshop issue and showed his audience with another picture of Kate skateboarding over a tiger, saying that this was the real “unedited” photo.
Sarah Rose Hanbury or The Marchioness of Cholmondeley also sent out a legal notice towards Stephen Colbert after he said that Prince William and Hanbury are in an alleged affair. To which Hanbury strongly denies saying that the rumours are completely false.
Rumors About Kate
Kate’s absence from public eye, combined with a controversial photo and a lack of updates from Kensington Palace, led to online rumors about her health. However, Kate’s video message confirmed her cancer diagnosis, putting an end to the speculation.
Middleton was last seen on December 25, 2023 as she was walking out of a church joined by her family. A month later it was announced that she was admitted into a London hospital to have a planned abdominal surgery and Kensington palace announced that she would postpone her public details until she has recovered.
It was all well and good that was until a photo surfaced online on Mother’s day of Kate Middleton. The photo was edited, nothing fancy just a few touch-ups here and there but that was enough to spark rumours, jokes, and controversy.
In an interview with Adam Griffith, a Los-Angeles based professional photographer by Vox, he circled a few details about the picture that stood out for him.
Kate eventually apologized and admitted that the photo was indeed edited and the palace has since then called for a retraction from news sites.
Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 11, 2024
About a week ago, Kate Middleton released a video about the truth wherein during her abdominal surgery in January, the doctors found that cancer was present and she is now undergoing preventative measures.
Jokes Made
Comics like Stephen Colbert made a few jokes during his show that angered some people even before her diagnosis while John Oliver issued his own conspiracy theory that Middleton actually passed away. Here’s what John Oliver said,
There is a non-zero chance she died 18 months ago. They might be Weekend at Bernie’s-ing this situation… I’m not saying it happened! I’m saying it’s non-zero. Until proved otherwise. Until you see her with a copy of the day’s newspaper.
Weekend at Bernies is a hit dark comedy 80’s movie about a group of friends pretending that one of them is still alive. After Kate’s Cancer diagnosis, Piers Morgan shot back at John Oliver on X saying,
I hope this smug pr*ck has the decency to apologise for such a disgusting ‘joke.’ https://t.co/Ksmi0wqTGr
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 23, 2024
And on a recent Piers Morgan Uncensored episode, he addressed both Stephen Colbert and John Oliver saying that,
Those two in particular do everything for clicks. They’re not based in truth. At one point, they just wanted to make people laugh. Now, they just want applause for saying the right incendiary thing about the Republicans or the Royals, or whatever their latest target is.
Jokes were not only coming from comedians but also from celebrities like Blake Lively who decided to promote her Betty Buzz Beverage line with a comically edited photo of her own.
Following Kate’s announcement about her cancer, Blake Lively deleted this Instagram post and issued a public apology towards Middleton on Instagram saying,
I’m sure no one cares today but I feel like I have to acknowledge this,” Lively said in a message shared Friday on her Instagram account. “I made a silly post around the ‘photoshop fails’ frenzy, and oh man, that post has me mortified today. I’m sorry. Sending love and well wishes to all, always.
In Kate’s Defense
Right now Kimmel is getting high praises in the online community for being the first one to urge the public not to speculate on Middleton’s condition even before she was diagnosed with cancer.
She had an operation, she had abdominal surgery. Maybe she has a colostomy bag and doesn’t want everybody to see it. I mean, really. People are demanding she get dressed up and march through London so we can have a look at her. Leave this woman alone!
Award-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis also publicly defended Kate with an Instagram post,
View this post on Instagram
We love ALL things comedy from late-night TVs, Sketch shows, and especially live stand-up! So much so, that we’ve dedicated ourselves to providing great comedy shows and stand-up comedians 7 nights a week, so join in here at Big Belly Comedy Club and get ready for a hilarious night!
