Last week, Kensington Palace confirmed that Prince William and Kate would skip the BAFTAs, which are happening later today. William is the (honorary) president of BAFTA, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and by my running count, this will be the eighth time William has skipped the BAFTAs since becoming president in 2010. What makes their absence even more notable is that there was a real effort to hype their appearance in advance, almost like they were originally planned to attend this year. But they’re skipping and no reason was given by their office. Enter the Daily Mail – the Mail ran one smaller piece about how the BBC will be very disappointed not to see them, and now this. The Mail confirming that William and Kate jetted off to Mustique.

As President of Bafta, Prince William might have been expected to join the cream of the showbiz world for the academy’s annual film awards in London. However, the Prince of Wales will be 4,000 miles away, holidaying with his family in the exclusive Caribbean paradise of Mustique, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Prince William, Kate and their children flew to the privately owned island on Thursday, days after Kensington Palace announced that the couple would not be at the star-studded ceremony at the Royal Festival Hall. Instead, the family will be on their second holiday in as many months following a New Year ski break.

They are all believed to have flown business class on the same British Airways flight – the protocol that heirs to the throne fly separately having been relaxed in recent years.

A source says they flew to Saint Lucia before taking a private flight to Mustique, which was famously the favourite hideaway of the late Princess Margaret as well as a beloved escape for A-list celebrities. The late Queen and Prince Philip also visited in 1966, 1977, and 1985.

It is thought that Kate’s mother Carole Middleton, who also enjoys the privacy the island affords, is there too. She recently celebrated her 70th birthday and it’s thought she had been there for several days before her daughter arrived.

Mustique is owned by a private company and does not allow journalists or photographers to stay.
The island has no hotels and visitors must own a villa there – or have an invitation to stay in one. It has only one bar, Basil’s, where the clientele has included Mick Jagger, Daniel Craig, Noel Gallagher and Kate Moss.

Bafta insiders had originally hoped William and Kate would make a show-stopping joint appearance, marking a glorious return to the red carpet for Kate, 43.

[From The Daily Mail]

You don’t understand – this is the Mail choosing violence, choosing to call out William and Kate in a big way. “Instead, the family will be on their second holiday in as many months following a New Year ski break.” Woof. This is what the Mail and other outlets should have been doing for years though – William and Kate’s weeks-long absences and months-long absences have gone largely unexplained for years, with few reporters feeling the need to talk about why two forty-somethings refuse to do any work during their kids’ school breaks… and often refuse to do work while the kids are in school, because of the fakakta school run. Anyway, they really need to take the BAFTA presidency away from Work-shy Willy.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.