Why was Prince William missing from wife Kate’s cancer video?

IT’S curious the role that benches – heavy, expensive, most likely teak benches – have played in royal history. So delighted was Meghan the Duchess of Sussex with the poem she wrote for husband Prince Harry the Duke of Sussex’s first Father’s Day after the birth of their son Prince Archie she turned it into a children’s book called, what else, The Bench.

From a bench, the couple delivered their highly controversial intervention into US politics in the lead-up to the 2020 Presidential election. (The palace tutting could practically be heard from space.)

Now, another bench has racked up more than 180 million views in the space of 24 hours thanks to the fact that Kate, the Princess of Wales, chose this setting to tell the world that she has cancer. It’s a revelation that, even after a full day and night of processing and ruminating and discussing, is still shocking and feels extraordinary in a horrible way.

This bench however, Kate’s bench, is remarkable not just for what she said from it but for who was not adoringly also perched on it.

Why was Prince William the Prince of Wales, husband of the year according to the myriad glowing accounts circulating in the UK press today, not plonked on the uncomfortable wooden slats, dutifully by his wife’s side too?

New details have emerged about how this decision was made, with multiple reports detailing that this was the princess’ own choice.

Of Kate doing the emotional video on her own, a royal source told the Sunday Times’ royal editor Roya Nikkhah, “this was her as a strong woman sharing an innately strong message to the nation. She didn’t need anyone sitting next to her. He has been supporting her and the family in the background.”

“She’s got a steely determination inside her,” one source who knows her well told the Telegraph’s Camilla Tominey.

“Once she’s put her mind to something, there’s no stopping her. She’s tough.”

Let’s all agree that it is absolutely super-duper that the Princess of Wales is a “strong woman” who has “steely determination” and is unabashedly “tough”. I am thrilled to my feminist socks (what, you aren’t wearing yours?) that Kate did not feel the “need” to have her man dutifully standing by her side for this watershed moment like some gender-swapped country song.

Quick, someone play Beyoncé’s Run the World!

The 42-year-old mother-of-three might be more than capable of executing this history-making, worldshaking video entirely solo, but is “need” what this is really about?

The princess might not “need” him propping her up and giving us his trademark concerned, listening face, but the symbolism of this tableau would have been incredibly powerful.

For one thing, William could have appeared on the bench, and it would not have undermined her strength and her independence or the incredible resilience she projected during what must be a traumatic and extremely difficult time.

That is, having William there too would not have detracted from her message or made her look like some sort of weakling who desperately needed her husband to keep her upright.

Imagine, Kate could have delivered her very same message, which she reportedly wrote herself, while her husband of nearly 13 years was by her side wearing his well-worn furrowed brow, radiating loving succour and husbandly devotion. (Mills & Boon – call me.)

The message this image would have conveyed to the world would have been tremendously meaningful – that this is Kate’s fight, but William is backing her up every inch of the way.