Raise a glass to Kate … wherever she is.
Kate Middleton , who was unable to attend Sunday’s St. Patrick’s Day parade, gave several soldiers a special treat this year to make up for her absence. The missing princess reportedly gave a local regimental bar in the
UK town of Aldershot nearly $2,500 toward the bill so that members of the
Irish Gaurd could celebrate the holiday at a post-parade party, reports The Daily Mail . Middleton’s generous donation to the men in uniform comes after the Princess of Wales, 42, failed to attend the parade as she continues to recover from the planned abdominal surgery she had in January. The Post reached out to
Kensington Palace for comment. The future
Queen — who had been named the honorary Colonel of the Irish Guard by her father-in-law, King Charles III last year — managed to mark the occasion by posting a behind-the-scenes video of the Irish Guard rehearsing for the big day. “Happy St Patrick’s Day! Here’s a sneak peek of the @irishguards rehearsing for their annual parade. Sláinte to all those celebrating today,” wrote Middleton on
Instagram . Last month, it was speculated that the parade would be Middleton’s first event after her “successful” surgery when several eagle-eyed netizens spotted her name on the list of attendees on the
British Army website. Her name, however, was removed , with Kensington Palace insisting that they had not been consulted about her appearance. This year, the Middleton’s role of handing out shamrock sprigs to the guards was filled by Lady Ghika, the wife of the Regimental Lieutenant Colonel, Major General Sir Christopher Ghika. Middleton, who has mainly been out of the public eye since her surgery at The
London Clinic , is slated to return to royal duties around Easter. The
Duchess Of Cambridge has been the subject of several bizarre conspiracy theories about her whereabouts. She prompted a fresh wave of controversy when she posted a Photoshopped picture of herself and her three children to celebrate the UK’s Mother’s Day . The photo was yanked by several news organizations because it was extensively “manipulated.” As previously reported by The Post,
Prince William , 41, and Middleton were later spotted at a farm shop in Windsor . A source told The Daily Beast that the outing — a move that Kensington Palace hopes will put the wild theories of Middleton’s health to rest — was “the right move .” “Ultimately she is fine and she needed that to be seen,” the insider noted. The Sun obtained footage of the royals leaving the shop, and yet some critics still believed that it was a body double and not Middleton . “There’s nothing you can do these days about a bunch of headbangers who have a vested interest in keeping the conspiracies going,” the source said. Royal expert Grant Harrold, meanwhile, wouldn’t be surprised if the outing wasn’t “purposefully arranged” by palace officials. “It seems quite strange that all of a sudden she is out and about, so I’d have guessed this is some kind of exercise to stop the public worrying about Kate,” he told The Post.