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Prince William slammed for Covid-19 jokes before 'secret' diagnosis: 'Royal family is capable of hiding anything'

'Remember when Prince William joked about Covid being hyped up? And then he got it but didn't tell people how serious it actually was?' said a user

Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge and second in line to the British throne, battled Covid-19 in April 2020 but kept it a secret because he didn’t wish to alarm the public.

Williams tested positive during the darkest days of the pandemic after Prince of Wales Prince Charles and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson fell ill. At the time, up to thousands of Britons were dying of Covid-19 each day and there had been more than 50,000 cases. At the time, he was treated by palace physicians and quarantined at the family home of Anmer Hall in Norfolk. His wife did not fall ill or test positive for the virus. "There were important things going on and I didn't want to worry anyone," the Duke said at an engagement, according to The Sun.

A source told The Sun, “William was hit pretty hard by the virus—it really knocked him for six. At one stage he was struggling to breathe, so obviously, everyone around him was pretty panicked. After seeing medics and testing positive—which was obviously quite a shock given how fit and healthy he is—William was determined it should be business as usual though. He was determined to fulfill his engagements.” The Sun reported that William told one observer at an engagement: “There were important things going on and I didn’t want to worry anyone.”

William allegedly got treated by Buckingham Palace doctors, isolated at his and wife Kate’s rural home, Anmer Hall in Norfolk, continued working and made 14 phone calls and video call engagements. William took a seven-day break from phone calls and video messages from April 9, 2020.

A source told The Sun, “The Queen delivered her ‘We Will Meet Again’ address (on April 5, the day that Boris Johnson was hospitalized) and he just didn’t want to worry people. He felt there were more important things going on in the country.” The news about William’s Covid-19 battle broke the day after Johnson announced the second national lockdown in Britain. And at that point of time, the UK had passed more than one million coronavirus cases.

A palace source told The Sun that “as a result of his own experiences, he (William) realizes absolutely anyone can catch this awful disease—and knows how imperative it is that we all take this second lockdown seriously.”

In March, during the time when Prince Charles tested positive for Covid-19, Prince William joked that he and Kate Middleton were "spreading" it, according to Insider. While talking with emergency workers at a reception hosted by Britain's Ambassador to Ireland, William said, "I bet everyone's like 'I've got coronavirus, I'm dying,' and you're like 'no, you've just got a cough.' Does it seem quite dramatic about coronavirus at the moment? Is it being a little bit hyped up do you think in the media?" Later, he joked: "By the way, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are spreading coronavirus, sorry ... We're keeping an eye on that, so do tell us if we need to stop."

As soon as the news came in light, people started reacting to it, as one Internet user said, "Remember when Prince William joked about Covid being hyped up? And then he got it but didn't tell people how serious it actually was? Rich people will get the best treatment and have a greater chance at survival. Poor people won't get the same. He should apologize." While another one wrote, "Let’s say this is true. The royal family is capable of hiding anything from the Brits and the Tory government will help them in hiding it. The palace machinery and the tabloid media will go along to churn out positive PR. What an amazing system imagine being ok with this " Another one claimed that the news is not true, and wrote, "Some may say it's karma for joking about the virus, it's real interesting that it came out now almost like it's a distraction from something . If he truly had the virus and struggled to breathe why didn't he wear a mask everytime he went out after having it?! #PR #notbuyingit"

Another user had a series of questions, as he wrote, "It's astonishing. Did he bother to tell the staff that he was putting at risk? How many public engagements did he have in the days before he was eventually diagnosed (e.g. rugby matches)? Did he, like his father, jump the queue for a test? Was any contact tracing carried out?" Another one demanded a timeline, saying, "We need a timeline from William because according to this post in early April he was walking around Norfolk with his children dropping stuff off for pensioners."

MEAWW cannot independently verify and does not support any claims being made on the Internet.