That Kate has had a tough time of things lately should come as news to absolutely no one. The Princess of Wales underwent what Kensington Palace termed a “planned abdominal procedure” in late January, thereafter remaining in hospital for 13 days before returning home to continue her recovery.

Concerning though news of the future Queen’s health woes was, the whole saga need not have ever reached the controversial and downright nutty heights that is has.

Yet a lack of information from the royals, coupled with the fact that Kate hadn’t been seen on film or in photograph since Christmas, meant that the public grew restless. What followed was a deluge of conspiracy theories that have become all the more bizarre for each passing week.

Then, just when it seemed as though the whole situation could hardly get more suspicious, the photo of Kate and her children, intended to mark Mother’s Day in the UK, was withdrawn over fears that it had been “manipulated”.

Needless to say, that stoked the fires of conjecture no end, and there remains a great many unanswered questions as to Kate’s well being, not to mention the potential date of her eventual return to royal duties.

Suffice it to say that it’s not been the easiest period of the Princess’s life since she became a fully fledged working royal.

One person who knows exactly what it’s like to be the subject of wild claims and outlandish gossip is Meghan Markle. Meghan and Kate aren’t thought to see eye to eye these days – an inevitable result of the nature of Meghan and Harry’s exit from the royal sphere – but one royal expert has gone on record as stating that the former has been in contact with the latter.

Speaking to the Daily Mirror, royal expert and author Tom Quinn said: “It’s definitely a good time for Meghan to try to build bridges with her sister-in-law and there has been some contact, but it’s been formal rather than sisterly – again, there is always the problem that Meghan can’t be trusted.”

Though once destined to share similar burdens as the respective wives of Princes William and Harry, Kate and Meghan now lead very different lives. Following their infamous exit from royal life, and subsequent move across the Atlantic to the US, Meghan and Harry have taken any number of shots at The Firm, including a number of troubling allegations made during an explosive sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021.

Kate, meanwhile, remains a pivotal member of the Royal Family, with many of the opinion that it is she and William who are tasked with leading the monarchy into the future