Prince William and Kate Middleton have been two of the most popular British royals since they wed back in 2011. The Prince and Princess of Wales share three children, and people are constantly fascinated by the Wales family. Last year, William and Kate moved one step closer to the throne with the death of the beloved Queen Elizabeth II, who spent 70 years as the British monarch.

This year was not easy for the royal family, but the trials and triumphs resulted in Kate being one of the world’s most-Googled people in 2024.

Kate Middleton | Toby Melville/WPA Pool/Getty Images

Kate Middleton is truly one of the world’s most popular people

Google recently revealed its most popular searches in countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, and Kate cracks the top three — and sometimes takes the no. 1 spot — in every one of them. The Princess of Wales and Donald Trump were, overall, the most-searched public figures in the world in 2024. In Canada, Kate was the most-searched person, according to CBC. In Australia, she was the third-most searched, behind Taylor Swift and Donald Trump, according to Forbes Australia. She was also high up in the UK rankings, which makes sense.

But it all seems to have been for one reason: her previously-mysterious absence from the royal spotlight for several months at the beginning of the year. After Christmas 2023, Kate disappeared from her working royal role, and it was revealed in mid-January 2024 that she had undergone abdominal surgery. However, Kate was out of the spotlight entirely for nearly three months, and it led to wild conspiracy theories and speculations on her life, her marriage, and her royal future.

Ultimately, the princess revealed that she had been diagnosed with cancer. But during her absence, it was likely the tremendous concern over where she was that led to so many Google searches.

Kate Middleton is now cancer free

In late summer, Kate released a video revealing that she was officially cancer free. The princess had undergone chemotherapy throughout the summer, and although she has yet to reveal what type of cancer she had, she is now officially back in the royal spotlight.

Kate took off most of 2024 in order to heal and focus on her family, but Prince William did reveal in a November interview that he believes he and Kate will even have some trips planned for 2025 once she is truly recovered. Kate’s video regarding her cancer-free announcement did seem to make clear that she will continue to put her family first, so it’s possible that she might still take on fewer royal duties in 2025, but that has yet to be known.