Prince William, Kate Middleton, and their two older kids, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, were recently seen watching and cheering on a soccer game at the bleachers like any spectator. A fan snapped a selfie with the Cambridge royal family in the background, which instantly went viral. Now, that photo has been compared to Meghan Markle's fan selfie incident at Wimbledon last July.
Kevin James was watching the soccer game at Norfolk when he saw that Duchess Kate, Prince William, and their kids were at the seats. He took a selfie to show the Cambridge family behind him and posted the image on his Twitter.
James said that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were so low-key that it wasn't easy to tell who were the rest of their entourage and security staff. It seemed no protection officer came up to James to tell him that he wasn't allowed to take photos of the royal family and that Duchess Kate and Prince William didn't seem to mind that strangers were taking their photos during their private family time.
This was the complete opposite of the incident with Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, last July. Duchess Meghan was also in the bleachers to watch a tennis match when another spectator got up and took a photo with her in the background.
As soon as that happened, Duchess Meghan's bodyguard approached the man to tell him off. According to Daily Mail, he was told to put down his camera phone and stop taking photos of Duchess Meghan because she was there in a "private capacity" and not on official royal business.
Only, the man taking the selfie had no idea Duchess Meghan was in the bleachers. He only took a photo because he wanted to show to his wife that he made it to Wimbledon.
Daniela Elser of News Corp Australia noted the glaring differences between the Cambridge pair and the Sussex couple's approach to their public image. While Duchess Kate and Prince William have managed to keep their PR approach "easygoing," Duchess Meghan and her husband Prince Harry have been antagonistic towards the press.
Elser also highlighted how directly contrasting the Cambridges are to the Sussexes, especially in the recent weeks when Prince Harry published an emotional statement announcing their legal action against some news outlets. He emphasized in his letter that the press has been bullying his family.
The writer noted that Duchess Kate and Prince William have "astutely demonstrated" there is a middle ground to all of this. The Cambridges acknowledge that the public is interested in their family and trust the people to do the right thing. In turn, the public has been "largely respectful" of their privacy.
Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry, on the other hand, have been mistrustful of the public, Elser said. Thus, they cannot seem to enjoy the same normalcy as the Cambridges.
