The Fiery Move Rose Hanbury Made To Squash Those Prince William Affair Rumors

It appears Rose Hanbury did not think Stephen Colbert's joke about her rumored affair with Prince William was funny. As the late-night host quipped on his show, "The kingdom has been all a flutter by the seeming disappearance of Kate Middleton. Well now, internet sleuths are guessing that Kate's absence may be related to her husband and the future King of England, William, having an affair. So, I think we all know who the alleged other woman is. Say it with me — the Marchioness of Cholmondeley — what a beautiful name!" 

Following the dig, Hanbury had her lawyers draft up a warning to Colbert, according to InTouch. "The rumor appears to have entered into the mainstream media recently as a result of another joke made about it on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. We have written on our client's behalf to CBS and various other reputable media organizations to confirm that the allegation is false," her legal team told the outlet.

While talk of the alleged illicit relationship has been around since 2019, it gained momentum again amid Kate's disappearance from public life. After Colbert joked about the rumored affair, Hanbury's reported response wasn't surprising. According to Business Insider, her lawyers stated, "[The] rumors are completely false." Despite Hanbury seeking legal action against the "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" host, it doesn't look like he has anything to worry about, lawsuit-wise.

Stephen Colbert likely won't get sued over his joke

The legal letter Rose Hanbury's team sent Stephen Colbert might just be a slap on the wrist. Attorney Neama Rahmani shared with Us Weekly that the talk show host didn't accuse Hanbury and Prince William of anything damaging, but was merely repeating the rumors that were already out there. "We're not saying that it's absolutely true that Rose had an affair with William or putting out a definitive statement because of the nuanced nature of what Colbert said," Rahmani stated, adding that Hanbury doesn't have a "good defamation case."

Regardless of the letter's outcome, Hanbury, who was given the nickname "Camilla 2.0" by the internet, is reportedly not happy about having her reputation sullied. "I know people who know the Marchioness of Cholmondeley very, very well, and she absolutely was not having an affair with the Prince of Wales," royal expert Nick Bullen also told Us Weekly. He added, "Even when those rumors broke a few years ago, she was very upset by them then. She's still very upset by them now."