Rose Hanbury responded via her lawyers over rampant speculation that she had an affair with Prince William, leading Kate Middleton to leave the public eye for some months.
It’s not the first time that rumors surrounding Will and the Marchioness of Cholmondeley have emerged. In 2019, the Sun claimed that Kate and Rose had a falling out, leading some folks to speculate that an affair between the two hopelessly posh families was to blame (leading the palace to reportedly threaten legal action).
Fast-forward to King Charles’s coronation, and the Cholmondeleys were pretty involved. Rose’s husband, David Cholmondeley, was appointed Charles’s “lord-in-waiting,” and one of their twin sons similarly took on the definitely real and very serious role of page of honor for the ceremony.
However, amid the #Katespiracy that ensued after the Princess’s months-long departure from the public eye due to a “planned abdominal surgery,” the affair rumors have come back. Yes, some people think that her departure is actually the fallout of Will’s repeated philandering.
Stephen Colbert even discussed the rumors directly on his show last week, joking in his opening monologue, “I think we all know who the alleged other woman is. Say it with me: the Marchioness of Chul-mun-duh-lay! What a beautiful name that I’m being told right now that I pronounced incorrectly. It is in fact pronounced ‘Chum-lee.’ Counterpoint: No, it’s not. Learn English, England.”
So, when Business Insider reached out to Rose’s lawyers this weekend for comment on the whole thing, they said, “The rumors are completely false.”
Alas, I have been told that Kensington Palace doesn’t comment on Will and Kate’s personal lives.