Tuvalu ( CNN ) -- `` Keep calm and carry on '' is a catchphrase that Britain first adopted during World War II -- and while the country may not be at war anymore , it 's become a motto as we continue to fight our own personal battles . The Duchess of Cambridge redefined the spirit of the phrase in the past week -- her new motto could easily be : `` Keep calm and carry on with a smile . '' You can only imagine what was going through her mind when she stepped out in front of a vast media presence in Kuala Lumpur last Friday , knowing everyone there had seen pictures of her topless , after photos of her on holiday were published overnight in a French magazine . A palace source said she was upset . The irony , of course , was that that day she was dressed as conservatively as she could be , because she was visiting a mosque . I 've watched Kate up close for the past year and a half and seen how she conducts herself in public in the context of the frenzy around her ; in fact , I am part of it . There is no way I could look that calm and collected knowing that everything I was doing was being scrutinized in such detail . She performs impeccably every time . She never stumbles and always makes it look easy . She copes by being in control . She prepares assiduously for everything she does in public and knows exactly what 's expected of her and where her limits are . William and Kate greeted by topless dancers . Make no mistake , the Duchess of Cambridge is smart as a button and a natural public figure . But what I did n't realize was just how steely her character was . She has not just become a member of the royal family -- she 's becoming its anchor . William was less able to hide his emotions . At the airport as he left Kuala Lumpur , he had a face like thunder . He was furious with Closer magazine for violating the couple 's privacy and humiliating his wife . He had spent the day locked in discussions behind the scenes with a view to suing the magazine , commandeering the original photos and prosecuting the editor and photographer . This was something neither of them was going to take lying down . A red line had been crossed , the palace told me . By the time the couple reached Borneo they had relaxed a bit . Perhaps it was the isolation of the jungle , but William even had time to joke with an approved photographer who was dangling from a tree . William may work with the media , but he hates the paparazzi . This goes back to his childhood , where even at primary school he was overheard moaning about `` 'tographers . '' It was also the French paparazzi who pursued his mother and surrounded her car as she lay dying following a crash in Paris . Kate 's strength is that she does n't have William 's background . She was brought up out of the public eye in the idyllic Berkshire countryside with a stable , happy family . She was only exposed to media intrusion as a grown up , when she was better armed to handle it . British privacy should start with British press . That does n't mean it 's been easy for her . Before she was married , she fled London because she was being pursued so aggressively by paps , with all the vile expletives they use grab attention . But she does have a strength of character that allows her to cope , and that 's a virtue that was on full display here in the Solomon Islands . She is bolstering her understandably more fragile husband . When they arrived here the Duke and Duchess received a rapturous welcome . I met them and they were clearly heartened by their reception and managing to put the legal battle at the back of their minds , at least in public . By the time they reached the final stop on their Asian tour , and news came in that they had won their civil case against Closer , they completely let go , dancing and giggling away . When the phrase `` Keep calm and carry on '' was first adopted it was all about hiding your emotions with a straight face . Kate and William are doing that with a smile . In Tuvalu , they were n't just coping -- they were separating their public and their private lives , and that 's what they want the media to do . William will one day be king and is taking on more and more responsibilities from his grandmother . In Kate , he has found his `` strength and stay '' -- a phrase the Queen used to describe her own husband and rock Prince Philip . This tour has shown William could n't have found anyone stronger in his future queen . Wolf : The backward view of women 's bodies .
Topless photo scandal threatened to cast a pall over royals ' Southeast Asia tour . Duchess of Cambridge appears determined to keep calm and carry on -- with a smile . Foster : Kate is fast becoming 'anchor ' for royal family , offering strength and stability .