Prince William jokes about ‘missing’ wife Kate Middleton, returns to royal duties: Watch

Prince William is back in the spotlight! The Duke of Cambridge returned to royal duties this week alongside his father King Charles, both all smiles. The appearance came shortly after fake news of the King's passing caused a stir on the internet. However, all eyes were on William's solo appearance. While William flashed a bright smile and addressed important issues, royal watchers couldn't help but notice Kate's absence. William even cracked a lighthearted joke about his missing other half!

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Prince William returns to Royal duties

The day after a video surfaced claiming Kate Middleton was at Windsor Farm alongside William, the Prince returned to his royal duties. In a video that quickly went viral, the heir apparent was seen chatting with the public as he stepped out. According to OK magazine, William was seen visiting the Millennium Gallery in North England, where he was reportedly discussing ways to tackle homelessness with the local Homewards Sheffield Co-op.

In the footage, William appeared all smiles as he posed for the camera, even cracking a lighthearted joke about Kate. Responding to one of his guest’s queries, he said, “That’s my wife’s area, she needs to sit here.” This is William’s first official work engagement, after his alleged recent sighting alongside his wife at the farm market.

‘That ain’t Kate’ claims

The Princess of Wales has been enveloped in conflicting theories this month, emerging from her recent illness that required treatment at a renowned UK hospital. Despite Kensington Palace announcing her absence from duties until Easter, speculation about her disappearance quickly spread online. This speculation was further fueled by a recent Photoshop scandal and subsequent apology. The Windsor Farm video was released with the aim of dispelling the rumors of Kate’s absence, but it didn’t do much to quiet the internet’s critics, who were quick to point out that the person in the video was not Kate, but a double.

Also read: Kate Middleton's Windsor car photo sparks new photoshop controversy on internet: 'Doesn't look like her'

Previously, Bravo’s Andy Cohen took to social media to respond to the footage by saying, “That’s not Kate.” A few hours later, a BBC sports reporter said that the woman in the footage with Prince William “is a double.” In a since-deleted post on her social media account, Sonja Mclaughlan said that the woman spotted shopping in Windsor “clearly isn’t Kate” and expressed “concern that newspapers are reporting this as fact.”

The now-deleted post read, "Disturbing that newspapers like The Times are reporting this as a fact. Headline ‘Kate seen in public for the first time when it’s clearly not her. As someone has said. Could be couple of lookalikes making mischief”