Kate and Carole Driving Around Windsor...Was It Planned?

Why I think this was very probably a deliberate photo-op (which is NOT a criticism).

Yesterday, as bizarre conspiracies about Kate’s whereabouts hit fever pitch, a picture of the Princess of Wales hit the internet. American outlets published two photos of Kate being driven by her mom Carole in an Audi around the Windsor environs. Immediately, there were conspiracies on conspiracies, so let’s just jump in.

An initial question was raised: is this actually Kate? It kind of looks like Pippa. I, too, thought it was Pippa on first glance, partly because I did not expect a picture of Kate. But they also look very similar at this (poor) resolution. But on closer inspection, I think it is clearly Kate.

Some people thought she looked too robust others too frail. I think she looks tired, which is to be expected given the health challenges she has been through (and is still in the midst of). Someone put the picture through a program that “cleaned it up,” and is trying to argue the cleaner image proves it is not Kate, but programs that clean up photos like this actually distort the image.

There is no doubt in mind that this is a Kate, and we will proceed on that assumption. Now, was this was a planned candid?

My first reaction was that this photo is a photo-op. In this context, I am defining