**VERDICT: FALSE**
VERDICT: FALSE
The Viral Snippet:
“Princess Diana’s brother, Earl Charles Spencer, shocks royal circles by marrying his longtime pet cat, a Maine Coon named ‘Jarman,’ in a private ceremony at Althorp — with catnip rings and a live-streamed ‘meow-riage’ viewed 2 million times.”
Why it’s fake:
- No credible sources — No major news outlets, royal correspondents, or official Spencer family accounts have reported this.
- Hoax pattern — This follows a familiar internet meme format pairing “aristocrat + absurd pet wedding” (previously done with Prince William and a corgi, or Elon Musk and a flamingo).
- Charles Spencer’s actual status — The Earl is in a public relationship with Cat Jarman (archaeologist and author), fueling the confusion: an AI or troll likely conflated “Cat Jarman” (person) with “cat Jarman” (pet) in a bad pun.
- No wedding announcement — The Spencer family has issued no statement; Althorp Estate calendar shows no such event.
Reality check: Charles Spencer is dating Cat Jarman, a human archaeologist. There is no cat wedding.