As pressure mounts on Kensington Palace after the Princess of Wales admitted to editing the Mother’s Day photo she shared, many people have called on the palace to simply release the original photo and put speculation to bed.
Bizarre and unsubstantiated conspiracy theories were fueled by the ‘photoshopped’ image of Kate, 42, and her children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight and Prince Louis, five, after international news agencies issued killing sprees on Snap.
As the theories threaten to spiral out of control, many have suggested that the speculation could be quashed if Kensington Palace released the original photo of Kate and her children before it had been edited.
And seasoned royal fans may recall that this is exactly how the Duke and Duchess of Sussex handled their own “photoshop-gate” when they were accused of altering their 2019 Christmas card featuring Prince Archie.
Fans believed the adorable photo of the couple with their eldest son may have been edited because Meghan’s face was in sharp focus, despite her being in the back of the photo.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle accused of Photoshopping after they released their 2019 Christmas card picture – but refuted the theories
The picture shows Harry and Meghan smiling as they sit on the ground by their Christmas tree, while Archie, then just over six months old, crawled towards the camera with a curious expression.
After people discovered that Meghan’s face was more in focus than Harry’s, despite the couple both being in the background of the snap, social media was ablaze with theories that the snap had been edited to bring the Duchess closer into focus.
“Check out Meghan’s face, it’s photoshopped. Her face is clear and everything else is blurred. Archie’s is also photoshopped,” one person claimed.
Another wrote on X/Twitter: ‘This is possibly the worst photoshopped image I’ve ever seen. And again with the black and white.’
The card was not officially released through any official royal channels and first appeared on an unverified X account called The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust.
Despite mass speculation that the snap may have been altered, Meghan’s friend Janina Gavankar, who claims to have taken the photo, shared the original frame on her Instagram account – which appeared to be the exact same image as the later version, that was shared on the X account.
The Princess of Wales admitted on Monday that she had ‘experimented with editing’ on her Mother’s Day photo
She posted the photo with the caption: ‘So proud to have taken the Christmas photo of one of my best friends and her family’ and clarified that it was the original.
After Kate confirmed on Monday that she had edited the Mother’s Day photo published on the Prince and Princess of Wales’ official channels, many suggested she could easily shut down speculation about what had happened by do the same and share the original, unedited image.
Kate’s statement read: “Like many amateur photographers, I occasionally experiment with editing.
‘I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion caused by the family photo we shared yesterday. I hope everyone who celebrated had a really happy Mother’s Day.’
It has been claimed today that following the gaffe the Princess of Wales ‘feels miserable’ and is likely to be in a ‘fragile mental and physical state’.
Royal commentator Jennie Bond, who has reported on the royal family for decades, told GB News it was time people ‘sacked’ the princess after the scandal.
She said Kate ‘must feel under intense pressure now to be seen in public’ following her major operation in January.
Despite calls for the original image to be published, Kensington Palace insisted it would not re-release the unedited photograph of Kate and her children.
And Mrs Bond warned against ‘bullying her into posting all the pictures’, adding that the 42-year-old mother-of-three would feel ‘absolutely miserable’.
She said Kate’s Mother’s Day was “obviously ruined by this row” and she “didn’t look too happy” when she was photographed yesterday in a car with William.
Mrs Bond told GB News: ‘We are at risk of bullying a lady who is trying to recover from a very serious operation. I’m thinking how she must be feeling this morning. Absolutely miserable, I think.
‘Her mother’s day was obviously ruined by this fuss. She was photographed yesterday in the car with William. From what we can see, she didn’t look too happy, she must feel under intense pressure now every time she has to be seen in public.
‘The pressure is doubled and redoubled. I think she is in a fragile mental and physical state. And we should fire her.’
And royal expert Angela Levin tweeted: ‘People should be proud that Princess Catherine has not blamed any of the staff and realize how honorable she is.
‘Harry and Meghan’s supporters can stop saying they wouldn’t have had a Photoshop error and should take over. Jumping in when someone is feeling down is dishonorable.’