John Oliver has shared his thoughts on rumours about Kate Middleton’s whereabouts, joking that it feels like the royal family is “handling it badly in an impressive way at this point,” E! News reports.
The Last Week Tonight host John Oliver shared his candid thoughts on the controversy surrounding Kate Middleton, especially when it comes to the family photo she shared on March 10, which was pulled from news sites for being “manipulated,” E! News added.
“I was out. I thought ‘Let’s all just ignore this, we’ve moved on,’ until the Photoshop thing,” he said on the March 12 episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. “Feels like you’re almost handling it badly in an impressive way at this point.”
Host Andy Cohen asked, “Isn’t their motto, ‘Never complain. Never explain?'” to which Oliver joked, “There is a non-zero chance she died 18 months ago. They might be Weekend at Bernie’s-ing this situation.”
After poking fun at comparisons to the ’80s classic about two guys pretending their boss isn’t dead, the comedian clarified that he’s not sure what’s actually going on with the Princess of Wales.
“I’m not saying it happened!” he exclaimed. “I’m saying it’s non-zero. Until proved otherwise. Until you see her with a copy of the day’s newspaper.”
@enewsMove over#SherlockHolmes, there’s a new detective in town.#JohnOliver#AndyCohen#KateMiddleton? original sound.
Although John Oliver was clearly joking, many have expressed for concern for Kate’s whereabouts, especially as the 42-year-old has not made a formal public appearance since undergoing abdominal surgery in January.
Kensington Palace originally stated that she is not due to resume her royal duties until after Easter, and so far Kate has only been photographed driving around twice: once with her mother on March 4, and again with husband Prince William on March 11.
The same day, Kate addressed her Photoshop controversy by admitting that she had been experimenting with editing the photo, which featured her with children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5.
In light of the altered image, the royals have lost some credibility, including with the Agence France-Presse (AFP), which announced that it no longer views Kensington Palace as a trusted source.
“At this moment in time, AFP’s trust in handout pictures from the [Kensington] Palace has been compromised,” global news director Phil Chetwynd shared in a March 14 statement to E! News. “We cannot say they are a trusted source for handout pictures. We still require further explanations.”
In the meantime, Kate’s rep maintains that she is doing “well,” while William’s rep has said that “his focus is on his work.”