Yahoo Lifestyle 
Is this why Prince William's COVID-19 diagnosis was kept secret?
Earlier this week, it was revealed that Prince William secretly battled with the coronavirus back in April.
And now, royal experts believe there could be an interesting reason why the nation was kept in the dark over the future king’s health battle.
The Sun reported the 38-year-old was left ‘struggling to breathe’ just days after his father, Prince Charles, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed they had contracted COVID-19.
"William was hit pretty hard by the virus - it really knocked him for six,” a source said.
“There were important things going on and he didn’t want to worry anyone.”
Royal commentator Robert Jobson took to Twitter to slam the decision as “poor judgement”, saying it had now created “a problem of trust going forward”.
“The fact is the palace lied about it. KP were are asked several times by several media outlets whether Prince William had contracted the virus and were told categorically ‘no’,” he wrote.
“If the palace is prepared to LIE about an issue as serious as Prince William, second in line to the throne, contracting COVID-19 what else have they LIED about when questioned by the press and why should the media believe any denials going forward? This raises serious issues.”
Richard Palmer, royal reporter for the Daily Express, also took to social media to say the UK expected “honesty from public figures”.
“If the future King contracts a potentially fatal virus that the entire world is worried about during a lockdown and he and those around him cover it up, that raises serious questions about whether we can trust anything he or his advisers say,” Richard said on Twitter.
“The UK expects honesty from public figures, particularly during a pandemic. This may be a cover-up that will haunt William and those advising him.”
Now, Roberta Fiorito and Rachel Bowie, from the Royally Obsessed podcast, believe there could be another theory about why Prince William’s diagnosis was kept underground.
"Say the worst happened - the Queen at 94 passed away, then Prince Charles passed away then Prince William passed away, all because they were hit by the virus,” Roberta said.
"The next in line to the throne is George, and then Charlotte and Louis, and none of them are over the age of 18, which is where the Regency Act comes into play.
"That means a regent would rule in his place, and that person has to be over 21.
"The next in line of succession is Prince Harry, who had just left as of March 31, and moved to California and quit.
"Then after Prince Harry, the next available regent is Prince Andrew."
RELATED:
Rachel added: "Think of what the headlines would have been - panic is an understatement.
"People would obviously be spinning and hypothesising and speculating on what would happen, playing out all these scenarios. So I doubt it was William's choice to keep it a secret.
"The monarchy was already kind of struggling. The news of Harry and Meghan leaving was a real ding to their reputation, and still is."
The Duke of Cambridge is said to have been treated by doctors at his Anmer Hall home in Norfolk and isolated from his family.
Prince William was reportedly determined to carry out the official royal duties he had committed to and carried out 13 Zoom engagements.
The future king reportedly didn’t want to alarm the nation by revealing he had contracted the virus.
“As a result of his own experiences, he realises absolutely anyone can catch this awful disease - and knows how imperative it is that we all take this second lockdown seriously,” the source said.
Never miss a thing. Sign up to Yahoo Lifestyle’s daily newsletter.
Or if you have a story idea, email us at lifestyle.tips@verizonmedia.com.
