Prince William seemingly dispels buzz around relationship with Kate Middleton

Prince William branded meeting Kate Middleton at their university in Scotland a ‘great joy.’

In a resurfaced clip of the Prince of Wales’ speech from 2021 in the country, he reflected on his long-standing connection to it, noting it brought him both misery and joy.

During the oration as the Lord High Commissioner of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, he shared, "Scotland is the source of some of my happiest memoires. "But also my saddest. I was in Balmoral when I was told that my mother [Princess Diana] had died."

In the TikTok clip making rounds on the internet, the future King noted he also found ‘comfort’ and ‘solace’ in the Scottish outdoors which helped strengthen his connection to the Commeonwealth country.

"And yet alongside this painful memory, is one of great joy. Because it was here in Scotland—20 years ago this year—that I first met Catherine,” William gushed.

“Needless to say, the town where you meet your future wife holds a very special place in your heart,” he added.

It comes as royal watchers expressed skepticism over the fateful meeting of William and Kate in St. Andrews University in 2001, after watching second part of the sixth and final season of The Crown earlier this month.

On the show, it was revealed that Kate’s, played by Meg Bellamy, mother, played by Eve Best, played cupid in the royal romance, who pushed the then 19-year-old to take a gap year and enroll in the Scotland institute in the same year William, played by Ed McVey, did.

The duo eventually struck a friendship in the institute, which shortly blossomed into a long-lasting romance.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, fans and critics offered their two cents about the twist in the story, as one suggested: “so will got with kate middleton cuz everyone at his college said she was hot and he was like “eh, ok” and she got with him cuz her mom plotted on it, like the crown really ruined any idea of a love story between them.”

The extent of truth in the depiction of the historical fiction drama is unclear; rest assured, the royal couple continue to quash rumors with their frequent tributes to each other on several occasions, proving that their union was always meant to be, regardless of external influences.