Sources close to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have waded into the controversy surrounding Kate Middleton's heavily edited Mother's Day photograph, claiming that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would have been "annihilated" if they had made a similar blunder. The sources, speaking to Page Six, suggested that the incident highlights the disparate treatment of the two royal couples.
The controversy erupted on Sunday when Kensington Palace released the first official photo of the Princess of Wales since her abdominal surgery in January 2024. The picture, featuring a beaming Kate alongside her three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, was taken by Prince William and distributed by international photo agencies around the globe.
However, just over 24 hours after the picture's release, Princess Kate issued an official apology for editing the photograph. Sources close to Meghan and Harry told Page Six, "If Harry and Meghan had ever encountered the same issue they would have been annihilated. The same rules do not apply to both couples. This isn't a mistake that Meghan would ever make ... she has a keen eye and freakish attention to detail."
The world's leading photographic news agencies, including Reuters and the Associated Press, warned against the use of the edited image, advising customers to "kill" the photo due to its manipulation. Metadata revealed that the photo had been edited hastily on Friday and Saturday before its release, with speculation even suggesting that a 2016 Vogue cover had been used to create a Frankenstein image.
In her apology, Princess Kate wrote, "Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother's Day. C." Kensington Palace has confirmed that the original unedited version of the picture will not be published.
The intervention of sources close to Kate's estranged brother-in-law and his wife is unlikely to be well-received at Kensington Palace. One royal source told Page Six that Markle is a "control freak" about imagery, adding, "She always wants the final say, especially when it came to her editing of Vogue." The source also claimed that Markle never wanted to follow the palace procedure of releasing images via photo agencies, preferring to post them on the @sussexroyal Instagram account, which she controlled, retaining the copyright.
The Sussexes themselves have faced photo-related issues in the past, with social media users claiming that their 2019 holiday card featuring baby Prince Archie was photoshopped. The couple also found themselves at odds with William and Kate over their Netflix docuseries "Harry & Meghan," with Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace initially claiming they had not been approached for comment before later changing their story.
The bizarre photo-editing crisis has only intensified speculation about Kate Middleton's prolonged absence from public life following her surgery. Despite initial plans to return to royal duties by Easter, no comeback has been scheduled, and the British defense ministry had to backtrack on an announcement that she would attend a high-profile event in June.
As the controversy surrounding the edited Mother's Day photograph continues to unfold, the intervention of sources close to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry has added a new layer of tension to the already strained relationship between the two royal couples. The incident has also raised questions about the differing standards and scrutiny applied to the Sussexes and the Waleses, with the sources' comments suggesting a belief that Meghan and Harry would face harsher criticism for a similar misstep.
