What's afoot with Kim Jong-un? Raft of rumours as he vanishes from view
Cheese addiction, diabetes, gout, surgery have been put forward to explain his absence from view
When North Korea's leader makes no public appearances for three weeks and an official documentary shows him limping and mentions his "discomfort", what follows is a frenzy of media speculation about Kim Jong-un.
Maybe it's gout, unidentified sources tell South Korean reporters, or diabetes, or high blood pressure. A thinly sourced British report says the Swiss-educated dictator has been laid low by a cheese addiction.
Yesterday a South Korean newspaper said that Kim had been in hospital after surgery on both ankles earlier this month.
Kim apparently cracked bones in his ankles after neglecting an injury sustained during field supervisions in June, the daily Chosun Ilbo said, citing a recent visitor to North Korea. The person said Kim was recovering at Bongwha Clinic, an exclusive hospital for high-ranking party members.
As is always the case, much more than what is seen publicly is happening behind the well-guarded scenes with North Korea's leader.
But just the fact that Pyongyang acknowledges that Kim is ailing suggests that he may not be suffering from anything particularly serious.