When Kensington Palace said the Princess of Wales had undergone "planned abdominal surgery" and would be taking an extended leave of absence from public life while she recovered in January, it was also announced that Prince William would be scaling back his royal workload to support her.
After an initial period of zero engagements immediately after Kate Middleton's surgery and her move from the hospital in London to the family's home on the grounds of Windsor Castle, William resumed a skeleton schedule of visits, attending events connected with his charities and marking important celebrations.
William's presence at these events has generated questions among the media and fans as to whether he will provide any updates on Kate and her recovery. This has been amplified by speculation arising from Kensington Palace's unwillingness to provide a "running commentary" about the princess.
Though William has so far resisted any pressure to discuss his wife's medical condition, he has referred to her in public a few times.
Here, Newsweek looks at everything the prince has said about Kate at public events since her hospitalization.
'Thank You'
William's first major public appearance since the announcement of Kate's surgery (and the news that King Charles III had been diagnosed with cancer) was for the London's Air Ambulance Charity Gala Dinner on February 7.
An ex-member of the air ambulance and several extended royal relations joined William at the event, in addition to fellow pilot and Hollywood A-lister Tom Cruise.
During his speech, the prince expressed his thanks for the support given to himself and his wife since her surgery.
Speech at London's Air Ambulance Charity Gala Dinner—February 7
"I'd like to take this opportunity to say thank you, also, for the kind messages of support for Catherine and for my father, especially in recent days. It means a great deal to us all. It's fair to say the past few weeks have had a rather 'medical' focus. So I thought I'd come to an air ambulance function to get away from it all!"
'Sorry Catherine's Not Here'
On February 18, William attended the BAFTA Film Awards in London, which he normally would have attended with Kate.
In a conversation with a BAFTA member that was caught on camera, the prince said he was "sorry" that Kate wasn't with him and revealed that she would usually watch the nominated films ahead of the show with him.
BAFTA Film Awards—February 18
"I'm sorry Catherine's not here as well. She does love the BATFAs as well. All the [movies] I watch she watches with me, so we go through it and carefully watch them.... I've done the fewest I've ever done before, annoyingly.... I've had other things on my mind."
'Catherine and I'
In late February, William undertook engagements connected with the humanitarian efforts and social impacts resulting from the Israel-Hamas conflict.
For a meeting with young ambassadors of the Holocaust Educational Trust at London's Western Marble Arch Synagogue, the prince said that both he and his wife were "extremely concerned" by the global rise in antisemitism since Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel.
Western Marble Arch Synagogue, London—February 29
"Both Catherine and I are extremely concerned about the rise of antisemitism. I'm just so sorry that any of you have had to experience that. It has no place and it shouldn't happen. So that's why I'm here today, to reassure you all that people do care and do listen and we can't let that keep going."
'That's Really Kind'
As Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate traditionally make a visit to visit the country to celebrate a national day: St. David's Day.
This year, William went solo, though he was overheard referencing his wife while meeting a group of schoolchildren who presented him with a bouquet to take to her.
Ysgol Yr Holl Saint - All Saints Primary School, Wales—March 1
"That's really kind of you, thank you so much. That's really kind. I will pass those on to Catherine."
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
