- New study reinforces theory Covid emerged at Chinese market
- World Bank boosts climate financing by 10 percent
- Bagnaia eyeing summit on home ground in 100th MotoGP
- 'Something was wrong', defendant in French mass rape tells court
- Hezbollah chief admits 'unprecedented' blow in device blasts
- Sales of US existing homes slip slightly in August
- Fear, panic haunt Lebanese after devices explode
- Labuschagne sparks Australia fightback in England ODI opener
- S.Africa's HIV research power couple says fight goes on
- Why is Israel focusing on border with Lebanon?
- Mpox vaccines administered in Rwanda, first in Africa
- US Fed rate cut is 'very positive sign' for economy: Yellen
- Unknown Mozart string trio discovered in Germany
- 'Are we five-year-olds?' F1 drivers won't mind their language
- Brazil judge orders X to reimpose block or face hefty fine
- Munich to rename stadium street after Beckenbauer
- Champions Italy to face Argentina in Davis Cup Final 8
- The winding, fitful path to weight loss drug Ozempic
- Italians defeat American Magic to reach Louis Vuitton Cup final
- Norris has 'nothing to lose' as he hunts Verstappen in Singapore
- Kyiv 'outraged' at Swiss showing of Russian war film
- French city renames Abbe Pierre square after abuse claims
- Footballer charged after huge cannabis seizure at UK airport
- Vatican recognises Medjugorje shrine, but not Virgin's messages
- Bank of England freezes rate after jumbo US cut
- Playing Nadal is 'kind of a nightmare', says Alcaraz
- Portugal tackles last of deadly northern forest fires
- Ton-up Ashwin lifts India to 339-6 against Bangladesh
- Departing NATO chief warns US against 'isolationism'
- Coming winter 'sternest test yet' for Ukraine energy grid
- Evacuations as tail of Storm Boris floods northeast Italy
- Lebanon's Hezbollah reeling after second wave of deadly blasts
- Taiwan recognises same-sex marriages between Chinese, Taiwanese
- Stock markets rally after jumbo US rate cut
- Gabon's ousted leader Bongo says renouncing politics for good
- Lebanon device blasts: what we know about deadly attacks
- Late Harrods owner Al-Fayed accused of rape: BBC
- Hong Kong man sentenced 14 months for wearing 'seditious' T-shirt
- Lebanon's Hezbollah in disarray after second wave of deadly blasts
- Meta and Spotify blast EU decisions on AI
- Hasan takes three as Bangladesh rattle India in first Test
- Two killed during police operation in New Caledonia
- Flood-hit region leaders to meet in Poland to discuss EU aid
- Sri Lanka to vote in first poll since economic collapse
- Hong Kong probe finds Cathay Airbus defect could cause 'extensive' damage
- AI development cannot be left to market whim, UN experts warn
- All Blacks primed for 'hell' of a Wallabies clash
- Zoom fatigue? Try some nature in your background: study
- Japan walkie-talkie maker says investigating after Lebanon blasts
- Slipper to become most-capped Wallaby in All Blacks clash
RBGPF | 5.79% | 60.5 | $ | |
CMSC | -0.14% | 25.02 | $ | |
BP | 1.58% | 32.951 | $ | |
BCC | 4.01% | 142.78 | $ | |
SCS | -6.81% | 13.21 | $ | |
GSK | -1.06% | 41.985 | $ | |
BTI | -0.68% | 37.625 | $ | |
NGG | -1.63% | 68.925 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.1% | 25.005 | $ | |
RELX | 1.54% | 48.11 | $ | |
RIO | 3.56% | 65.23 | $ | |
RYCEF | 5.48% | 6.93 | $ | |
JRI | -0.3% | 13.4 | $ | |
AZN | 0.87% | 79.27 | $ | |
VOD | -1.64% | 10.065 | $ | |
BCE | -0.54% | 35.42 | $ |
Catherine, Princess of Wales praised for cancer video
A slick video by Catherine, Princess of Wales announcing that her chemotherapy has finished marks a dramatic shift in communications for the British royal family, media and commentators said Tuesday.
Kate, as she is widely known, posted the three-minute footage on social media on Tuesday, some six months after she dramatically revealed in another video that she was being treated for the condition.
But the intimate portrait of the 42-year-old princess, her husband Prince William and their young children was notable for its departure from the stiff formality of traditional royal public relations.
"It's groundbreaking, an absolute first, a tectonic shift in how the royal family controls its image," said PR consultant Mark Borkowski.
"Kate's journey is profound and deeply personal, but they've learned that emotion can be controlled –- and weaponised –- in small, potent doses.
"By doing this through a polished film, they maintain dignity and control while still appearing relatable."
The Times likened the video, shot by filmmaker Will Warr in the Norfolk countryside of eastern England where the family has a home, to a Hollywood trailer for the Instagram generation.
The daily assessed it was "the most intimate portrayal of royal family since (Queen Elizabeth II) invited a fly-on-the-wall documentary crew into her home in 1969".
"In 40 years of covering the Royal Family I have never seen anything like Catherine's video. It's a first for the royals," veteran photographer Arthur Edwards wrote in The Sun tabloid.
- Narrative -
Newspapers sought to decode the meaning behind the soft-focus scenes of the young family seeking solace in nature and enjoying each other's company.
Many saw in it a clear sign that the princess, who will be queen when William succeeds his father King Charles III, was carefully attempting to control the narrative of her illness.
"She's the one in the driving seat," said The Times, while Jennie Bond, a former BBC royal correspondent, said she was "putting down her marker" for the future.
"This is how she wants to communicate with people," she told Sky News.
"With this she has shown she wants to be straight with people, she wants to be direct, she wants the message to be quite simple."
The largely positive public response to the video comes after criticism of Kensington Palace, the couple's private office, and its handling of communications about Kate's illness this year.
Speculation ran riot, especially online, after Kate -- one of the world's most photographed women -- was not seen in public for months following abdominal surgery in January.
An attempt to silence the rumours failed in March, when a family portrait, issued by the palace, was found to have been digitally altered, fuelling the chatter.
Kate's announcement that she was being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer followed soon afterwards, prompting widespread public sympathy and support.
Borkowski said the latest video, and Kate's commentary accompanying it, showed the royal family was now "on the front foot".
"They lost control of the cancer narrative by staying silent," he added. "It shows they learnt from earlier mistakes," he added.
Like other senior royals, William and Kate have a strong social media presence, which is seen as essential to maintain the British royal family's relevance and appeal.
Since the late queen's death, Charles has faced vocal protests from republicans who want an elected head of state instead of a hereditary monarch, and a decline in support among younger people.
Royal author Robert Jobson, who has recently published a new biography on Kate, told reporters in London that accountability and transparency was "very important" for the taxpayer-funded royals.
According to The Sun, William, on a visit to Wales on Tuesday, told well-wishers that the end of Kate's chemotherapy was "good news" but added: "There is still a long way to go."
H.Silva--PC