168: Princess Kate is recovering from surgery, King Charles has cancer

Explicit content warning

02/10/24 • 29 min

Introduction: Minutes 0 to 5:45 I cut my finger and needed stitches. I saw the movie Chandra recommended in our last episode, Anatomy of a Fall, and loved it. May December was OK. I really liked Nyad and it inspired me to work out. We’re looking forward to seeing Poor Things and American Fiction.

Royals: Minutes 5:45 to 24:00 While we were off, Kate was hospitalized for abdominal surgery. The surgery was successful and she will need months of recovery. Right after the news broke about Kate’s surgery, it was reported that Charles was scheduled for treatment for an enlarged prostate. Kate’s medical condition is unclear.

We heard that William’s focus was on his family, that he was visiting Kate and taking care of his kids. However he was only seen at the London clinic where Kate was recovering once. We didn’t hear about the Middletons or Kate’s children visiting her. Charles’ prostate procedure was at the same hospital, and Camilla was seen visiting several times. There was a story that photographers were only allowed outside the hospital for a day during Kate’s hospitalization but Camilla showed that wasn’t true. We heard that Charles visited Kate when they were in the same hospital, but not that William visited Charles.

Camilla was happy to be representing the royal family and did a few events when Charles was hospitalized. There were stories about how she’s the power behind the throne and the last one standing.

William reportedly picked Kate up from the hospital on Monday January 29th at 11 am. She is said to be recovering at home. There weren’t any photos of William at the hospital. Just a few hours later Camilla picked up Charles from the same hospital and they were photographed walking out together.

On Monday February 5th in the afternoon our time we heard that Prince Charles has cancer! At that point he had known for a week. So Camilla’s appearances after his diagnosis and before the announcement to the public looked cold, especially considering the messaging around that.

Stories in the Spanish press claimed Kate’s condition was dire despite the reporting that she was fine and recovering. Palace sources denied that she had been in a coma. The Spanish reporter who broke that story, Concha Calleja, said in an interview after that she trusts her sources and stands by her reporting.

Starting around the time of the King’s prostate procedure, the rota was griping “where’s Harry?” Right after the announcement of Charles’ cancer diagnosis, it was reported that Harry would travel to England. Harry arrived in London on Tuesday, and he went straight to Clarence house. He only met with Charles for 45 minutes, tops, at Clarence House. They met alone, and Camilla was not there. Charles left in a helicopter for Sandringham afterwards. Harry stayed at a hotel Tuesday night and left Wednesday morning.

There’s been a steady chorus of “Harry should come back, and maybe Meghan too” They’re trashing Harry for visiting his dad and making it very clear what they’ll do to the Sussexes.

We know that Harry didn’t see William because we heard that William refused to meet with him and doesn’t trust him. Of course there were stories attacking Harry for daring to come to the UK to see his father.

William stood in for Charles at an investiture service on Wednesday. He did not look sober. That night William went to an air ambulance charity event. A reporter asked a question and he said "We really appreciate everyone’s kind messages." A source told the Daily Mail that’s about all the work we can expect from William for a while. William does not seem willing to do the work to be king and Charles does not want to cede any power to him. William is so focused on hating Harry.

Comments of the Week: Minutes 24:00 to end Chandra’s COTW is from Harper on the post about Prince William not wanting to take on extra responsibilities.

My COTW is from Jais on the post about Tracy Chapman’s performance at the Grammys. Thanks for listening bitches!

Camilla was happy to be representing the royal family and did a few events when Charles was hospitalized. There were stories about how she’s the power behind the throne and the last one standing.

There’s been a steady chorus of “Harry should come back, and maybe Meghan too” They’re trashing Harry for visiting his dad and making it very clear what they’ll do to the Sussexes.

Comments of the Week: Minutes 24:00 to end Chandra’s COTW is from Harper on the post about Prince William not wanting to take on extra responsibilities.

My COTW is from Jais on the post about Tracy Chapman’s performance at the Grammys. Thanks for listening bitches!

Previous Episode

167: Duchess Meghan was invited to the Golden Globes, Globes host Jo Koy bombed

Introduction: Minutes 0 to 10:00 We’ll be off next week due to the Emmy Awards. I have been watching dumb shows like a mini golf competition show called Holey Moley. Chandra watched so many of the prestigious movies over the break including Killers of the Flower Moon, Priscilla, The Holdovers, Saltburn, Past Lives, Asteroid City, Joy Ride, Anatomy of a Fall, Oppenheimer and the Indiana Jones movie! She loved Anatomy of a Fall and is rooting for that movie. It’s a character story and legal drama with a smart script. She also liked The Holdovers and Oppenheimer, but hated Killers of the Flower Moon.

Golden Globes: Minutes 10:00 to 17:45 The Globes were last Sunday. Host Jo Koy bombed and the celebrities gave him a frosty reception. The big TV winners were Succession and The Bear. Oppenheimer won Best Picture – Drama and Poor things won for Musical or Comedy. Barbie won for a new category called Cinematic Achievement. We appreciate how Greta Gerwig took a risk on Barbie.

The biggest stories from the Globes were about the cutaway scenes. Kylie Jenner and Timothee Chalamet did not walk the carpet together but they sat together. They seemed so into each other and kept kissing. Selena Gomez was caught on camera gossiping to Taylor Swift and Miles Teller’s wife Keleigh. A lot of people thought she was saying that Kylie refused to let Selena take a selfie with Timothee but a source told People that wasn’t true. Selena made a comment later that “I told Taylor about two of my friends that hooked up.” There are rumors that it’s Meryl Streep and Martin Short! I hope it’s happening but Martin’s rep said they’re just friends.

Also at the Golden Globes there was a mini Suits reunion. Patrick Adams, Gabriel Macht, Gina Torres and Sarah Rafferty presented. I saw an interview where Gabriel acted like he didn’t know who Meghan was. Gina Torres said in another interview that they don’t have Meghan’s phone number and she’s not on the group chat. Some people think that Gina was fibbing to cover for Meghan. Chandra mentions that the Suits cast is protective of her. Of course she was invited to the Globes.

Royals: Minutes 17:45 to 22:00 The Epstein Files came out recently. I downloaded the first batch and they were mostly court documents for Virginia Guiffre’s case. Prince Andrew is heavily implicated.

Prince Charles is reportedly worried about Andrew but plans to make him pay for security and the renovations to Royal Lodge, which Will and Kate want for themselves. There is a story that Charles is never going to evict Andrew, but that sounds straight from Andrew. William is said to want Charles to come down harder on Andrew while Charles probably doesn’t want to rock the boat.

Comments of the Week: Minutes 22:00 to end Kaiser’s comment of the week is from Erin on the post about the SAG nomination snubs.

My comment of the week is from Blue Nails Betty on the post about doing less in 2024.

Thanks for listening bitches!

Next Episode

169: Princess Kate has been missing for over 60 days, Prince William skipped King Constantine's memorial

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Introduction: Minutes 0 to 7:30 The Oscars are next weekend so we won’t have a podcast unless something huge breaks. Since we last talked Chandra and I both saw American Fiction, that was my favorite. Chandra liked it but wanted it to focus more on Issa Rae’s character. She thought The Zone of Interest was very disturbing, but loved Poor Things. She is also watching Capote vs. The Swans and loves the performances. If Emma Stone takes home the Oscar over Lily Gladstone, Chandra is fine with that.

Royals: Minutes 7:30 to 29:00 In our last podcast we mentioned Charles’ cancer diagnosis and Kate disappearance following abdominal surgery. Kate has not been seen in over 60 days. A Kensington Palace spokesperson gave a snotty statement about it to Page Six that did not reveal much. Their PR is so terrible.

On February 15th the Sussexes made a three day trip to Canada to do events ahead of next year’s winter Invictus Games. Harry had an interview with Good Morning America. The Sussexes also launched Sussex.com and Meghan got a podcast deal with Lemonada media. They’re getting positive coverage apart from silly criticism. Harry was also criticized for answering questions about visiting his father.

At first we heard that William, who is BAFTAs president, was not going to attend the BAFTAs on February 18th. That’s pretty typical for him. However after Harry and Meghan got so much press for their Canada trip, he announced that he was going. A photo went viral where William was talking backstage to actresses, including Ayo Edebiri and Phoebe Dynevor, who were looking at him skeptically. It turned out that Prince William had made a very inappropriate comment to Mia McKenna-Bruce about her movie. He was very unprepared to meet the actresses and admitted to not having watched any of their films.

On Tuesday the 20th, William issued a statement on the Middle East crisis, which no one was asking him about. William was scheduled to visit the British Red Cross and could have just issued a statement about their work instead. On Thursday, February 29th, William went to an event at a synagogue in central London to discuss anti-Semitism. Kate was originally scheduled to go with him to that event. We remember when Kate did an event with Holocaust survivors in 2021 in which she was engaged and charming. After William’s statement on the Middle East and after he looked drunk at an investiture ceremony, Piers Morgan published a story about how William has been drinking wine since he was 13.

On Tuesday February 27th there was a memorial service in London for King Constantine II of Greece, who passed last January. Neither Charles nor William went to the funeral in Greece in 2023. Charles announced ahead of time that he would not make it to this memorial. William was scheduled to give a reading, but canceled less than an hour before. It became international news.

At the service were Camilla, at the head of the procession to the church, and Prince Andrew and Fergie were also upfront. Also there were Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. She’s a notorious racist.

The Kents’ son-in-law, Thomas Kingston, passed away at just 45 in Gloucester on Sunday. His death was not announced for two days and his in laws went to that memorial service before the news got out. The press announced that William’s absence at the memorial wasn’t due to Thomas’s death.

Meanwhile there are all these stories about how the monarchy is fragile and the cracks are showing now. The way the Waleses have bungled their own PR is astounding. Here’s a link to the story Chandra mentioned from The Daily Beast.

Comments of the Week: Minutes 29:00 to end Chandra’s comment of the week is from Walking the Walk on the post about Harry losing his case over royal protection while in the UK.

My comment of the week is from Christine on the post about the Willy Wonka kids experience in Scotland.

Thanks for listening bitches!