The world experienced its first case of Royal baby Braxton Hicks today when Twitter went into overdrive over rumours the Duchess of Cambridge had gone into labour.
It was of course just a drill, but enough to send social media and newsrooms over the world into a panic, and double the already massive media presence outside the Lindo Wing at Paddington’s St Mary’s hospital in London.
But despite the impending arrival of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s first child being unquestionably the most modern royal birth and the first to land in the middle of an up-to-the-minute 24-hour news cycle, royal experts are advising royal baby enthusiasts to ignore social media hype.
Veteran royal biographer and commentator Sarah Bradford told The Weekly that despite the demands of newsbreaking social media, news of the birth will come the old fashioned way.
“We’ll be hearing a lot of rumours but no one will know anything until the announcement is posted at Buckingham Palace,” she said.
“Even if press think they can bribe the people in the hospital, the Palace will hold on to their traditional procedures and announce the arrival the old fashioned way.”
Sky News London’s royal correspondent Paul Harrison is among the ever growing media pack stationed outside site of the royal birth.
As well as waiting day and night to report on the birth, he is tasked with fending off or getting to the bottom of rumours and sounding out any signs of the Prince or Princess of Cambridge’s arrival.
“We’re braced for panic stations. There are numerous entrances into the Lindo Wing so we are keeping our eyes peeled 24/7, and nobody really knows how it’s going to go down,” he tells The Weekly.
“Everyone is trying to get the news first, and trying to get that all-important first picture of Kate going into hospital and then coming out the front door, but the likelihood is that the first we get to hear about it when Kensington Palace send out a an email in what’s expected to be tens of minutes after Kate has arrived at the Lindo Wing.”
“The rumours certainly keep you on your toes though, and it’s a reminder of how much interest there is in this baby. There hasn’t been this much interest in the royals, or at least a royal baby, since the births of William and Harry in 1982 and 1984 so there is an awful lot more importance placed on this baby.”
Following the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011, last year’s Jubilee celebrations and the Queen’s coronation anniversary this year, the public has fallen in love with the royals all over again.
Sarah Bradford says the renewed royal interest is thanks to Kate and William, and the “beautiful love story of a very good-looking couple”.
But the reason their baby’s birth is so important is the change in the succession to the crown act that will mean if their baby is a girl there’ll be no talk of a later male sibling taking precedence over her in taking the throne.
“The main difference with this birth is that the sex doesn’t matter in terms of the baby’s future in the royal family. It can be a boy or girl and be king or queen. It will also be a child the people can relate to coming from a mother from working class stock,” Ms Bradford says.
“It all looks rosy for the future of the royal family, but we’ll have to wait for the news.”
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
