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Prince William and Kate Middleton have spent almost two decades by one another’s side and weathered their fair share of controversies, so it’s understandable that the royal couple would be fiercely protective of each other.
New reports from Express.co.uk claim the Duke of Cambridge was particularly outraged when a French magazine published “intimate” long lens photos of Duchess Catherine in swimwear on holiday in Provence, France in 2012.
The outlet initially posted a photo of a heavily-pixellated woman – who they claimed was the Duchess – about to remove her bikini top on their website, followed by print publications of topless shots days later.
According to official sources who were travelling with the Cambridges at the time of the scandal, Prince William was “furious” and “disgusted” at the invasion of royal privacy.
The couple’s royal tour of Malaysia in the immediate aftermath of the photos was affected by the drama, with William struggling to conceal his anger as they attended events in Kuala Lumpur.
St James’ Palace issued a statement on behalf of the Cambridges saying the royal family was “disappointed” by the pictures and declaring them “a clear breach of the couple’s right to privacy.”
A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess told Daily Mail at the time: “Their sadness has turned to anger and disbelief as we have learned more about the photographs – it is unthinkable that anyone should take such photographs, let alone publish them.”
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The Express reports the topless photos were offered to a number of British newspapers who all turned them down.
Those with a sharp memory in media most likely remembered the reaction of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth to the publication of bikini shots of a pregnant Princess Diana on holiday in the Bahamas with Prince Charles in 1982.
The Queen slammed The Star and The Sun newspapers for following the newlyweds, releasing a scathing statement which referred to the incident as “the blackest day in the history of British journalism”.
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