Before Friday, we hadn’t seen Carole and Michael Middleton since Wimbledon back in July. They really can disappear for months at a time and the whole thing has gotten so mysterious. More than anything, the messy situation with the Middletons has convinced me that some serious sh-t has gone down in the past year and a half. The Middletons’ business collapsed last year, they practically went into hiding, the royalist press published many highly critical articles about their grift, and then magically, it was all forgotten in May/June of this year. Carole got sh-thoused at Royal Ascot AND got photo-ops with Prince William and various royals. Then she was seated in the Royal Box at Wimbledon. A deal was struck and the biggest “tell” is that no one in the British media is talking about the Party Pieces lies and catastrophes.

So Carole and Michael Middleton came out on Friday for the Princess of Wales’s Together at Christmas event. The whole Middleton clan was there – Pippa, James Middleton and James’s wife Alizee. The only one missing was Pippa’s terribly moderately wealthy husband. TMW James Matthews went to last year’s event. I wonder why he skipped this year. A professional separation, perchance??

I actually like what Pippa wore – a bouclé coat-dress from Karen Millen, paired with red pumps and a red clutch. The dress is very “ladies who lunch,” but Pippa really is a lady who lunches. Alizee wore a midnight-blue velvet pantsuit with a white pussybow blouse. It’s sort of offbeat but fine. Carole wore a clean white coat and her hair seems to be a few shades darker these days. I would love to know how she fills her days.

Meanwhile, something really bizarre happened. At one point, Carole walked side-by-side with Lady Gabriella Windsor. Now, Gabriella is reportedly close to Prince William, and you could make the argument that maybe Gabriella gets along with the Middletons. But what was bizarre about it is… Gabriella’s parents were at the event too. Why was she hanging with Carole and not Princess Michael of Kent? Why did Gabriella and Carole make a point of walking out together??

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Photos courtesy of Getty, Avalon Red, Cover Images.