Prince William Duke and Kate Middleton and the Duchess of Cambridge, are not the stars of the British throne, no matter how often the tabloids insist on this false story, a story that has been recycled by rumors to the point of absurdity. Gossip Cop corrects false rumors that the couple would become the next king and queen of England.
More recently, Women’s Day had a cover article declaring Queen Elizabeth passed the throne in Middleto No. and to Prince William. The publication takes the opportunity to offset this baseless claim after Prince Charles, the legal heir to the throne, joined the Queen in opening Parliament earlier this month. Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, is the heir of Queen Elizabeth, and she can not change it. The line of succession to the throne is determined by the laws of Parliament, and not by the sovereign herself.
In the narrative, the tabloid quotes a so-called “palace insider,” claiming that the queen had told her son, just before they arrived in Parliament, that she was changing the line of succession. As Gossip Cop pointed out, if the point of sale source was really a royal insider, as she claimed, the source would have known that the queen did not have the power to take this decision. In fact, the queen has no constitutional power, so the story was simply wrong.
In May 2019, the National Enquirer published its own cover article, claiming that Queen Elizabeth wanted Prince William “to seize” the Prince’s throne Charles . This is a very common trope that tabloids often recycle, the idea that the line of succession can just ignore the legitimate heir. Again, legally, this can not happen. Yet the tabloid said William had “saved the monarchy” after “wresting the throne from his father”. It looks more like an episode of Game Of Thrones but that does not apply to the royal family
The story became even more scandalous when the newspaper claimed that the Prince William had banished his father and brother, Prince Harry, from exile. Once again, this type of plot can be played in Game of Thrones but this is not the case with the royals. The tabloid report was as fanciful as the fantastic HBO show. The laws are cut off, as Gossip Cop pointed out at the time.
The Enquirer also published a cover story stating that Queen Elizabeth “suffered from dementia” but named Prince William and Middleton the next King and Queen in a rare moment of clarity. Do not repeat yourself here, but we do not know how to say it otherwise: the queen is not legally allowed to do it! Even though she was suffering from dementia, which she did not, and even though she was in a “rare moment of clarity,” she still can not ignore the laws governing the succession to the British throne . The British press does not seem to care about the British law, so it is unlikely that these stories will stop soon. Gossip Cop will continue to correct the strange claims.
