Princess Kate and Prince William felt "bruised" after a tough scandal, a royal commentator has claimed.
One year after her emotional cancer diagnosis announcement, Kate has emerged from what royal insiders describe as the most challenging period of her life with renewed purpose and determination.
The 43-year-old royal has entered remission after completing chemotherapy treatment last September.
The Mother's Day photo controversy in March 2024 became a painful chapter for the royal couple during an already difficult time.
Royal Family scandal left Princess Kate and Prince William feeling 'bruised'
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When Kate shared a family portrait with her children taken by William, online sleuths quickly spotted irregularities.
Major picture agencies pulled the image from circulation, and Kate was forced to admit to editing the picture.
"There was a real sense then that they felt bruised by it," royal author Robert Hardman told People. "It was treated like some great fraud."
The experience was overwhelming for Kate and her family, occurring while she was secretly undergoing cancer treatment.
Kate's Mother's Day photo had seven glaring errorsKensington Royal / X"If you're Prince William, you find out that both your wife and your father have cancer," Jason Knauf, the prince's former private secretary, said in a rare interview with 60 Minutes Australia.
It was, he added, "absolutely awful - the lowest I've ever seen him."
William reflected on this period during his Earthshot Prize visit to Cape Town in November 2024.
"Trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult," he said. "I'm so proud of my wife, I'm proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done."
Princess Kate faced criticism after editing a family Mother's Day photo
GettyThe hardest moment for Kate came around March 2024, according to Hardman, author of "The Making of a King: King Charles III and the Modern Monarchy".
"She knew she had the disease, but she couldn't talk about it because she wanted to wait until the school holidays. Meanwhile, people were saying horrible things online," he explained.
Ailsa Anderson, former press secretary to the late Queen Elizabeth, described the experience as "like being in the middle of a tornado and not knowing when it was going to calm down."
The royal couple was "besieged by ugly speculation and intrusion," royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith added.
Princess Kate apologised for 'confusion' over the Mother's Day blunderPABy September, there was reason for optimism as Kate completed her chemotherapy treatment.
In January 2025, she received the welcome news that her cancer was in remission.
Since then, her return to public duties has been measured and deliberate, each step taken with renewed purpose.
