Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

World

British press maintains Kate photo blackout

-

The British media maintained a blackout Wednesday on a photograph showing the bare bottom of Prince William's wife Kate, despite the picture being used in other countries.

One of Rupert Murdoch's Australian newspapers published the photograph on Wednesday, saying it was refusing to follow the "ridiculous" ban imposed by the British press.

The Sydney Daily Telegraph published the photograph the day after Germany's biggest-selling newspaper, Bild, became the first publication to use the image.

In Bild the photograph was accompanied by a caption declaring that the future queen had a "beautiful bum".

It shows the Duchess of Cambridge's blue and white summer dress lifted by a gust of wind when the royal couple got out of a helicopter in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney.

The British press initially reacted with outrage to Bild, with the Daily Mail calling it "a breach of privacy" while blasting the "crude" caption that appeared alongside.

Prince William  his wife Kate and their son Prince George leve Australia from Defence Establishment ...
Prince William, his wife Kate and their son Prince George leve Australia from Defence Establishment Fairbairn in Canberra on April 25, 2014
Saeed Khan, AFP/File

On Wednesday, the Daily Mail took a different approach, publishing the picture with the offending area pixellated alongside a piece by Australian-born columnist Amanda Platell urging Kate to dress differently to avoid "another embarrassing wardrobe malfunction".

The Times' columnist Carol Midgley meanwhile described the decision by foreign newspapers to use the picture as "sleazy and creepy" and described the fascination as perplexing "as if people somehow expected to find something else under (her skirt)".

The image was widely available on the Internet and Twitter.

The official line from the royal family was a resounding no comment.

The publication of the photograph raises fresh questions about the royal family's privacy.

In 2012, French magazine Closer provoked outrage among the royals and sections of the British press when it published paparazzi photos of a topless Kate on holiday at a French villa.

Kate  the Duchess of Cambridge  meets with residents in Winmalee in the Blue Mountains  Australia on...
Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, meets with residents in Winmalee in the Blue Mountains, Australia on April 17, 2014
Dean Lewins, Pool/AFP/File

The royals took legal action and French authorities promptly banned Closer from any use or resale of the offending pictures, the most intimate of which showed the duchess topless and having suncream applied to her by William.

However, British tabloid The Sun did publish photographs of a naked Prince Harry cavorting in a Las Vegas hotel room in August 2012.

The British media maintained a blackout Wednesday on a photograph showing the bare bottom of Prince William’s wife Kate, despite the picture being used in other countries.

One of Rupert Murdoch’s Australian newspapers published the photograph on Wednesday, saying it was refusing to follow the “ridiculous” ban imposed by the British press.

The Sydney Daily Telegraph published the photograph the day after Germany’s biggest-selling newspaper, Bild, became the first publication to use the image.

In Bild the photograph was accompanied by a caption declaring that the future queen had a “beautiful bum”.

It shows the Duchess of Cambridge’s blue and white summer dress lifted by a gust of wind when the royal couple got out of a helicopter in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney.

The British press initially reacted with outrage to Bild, with the Daily Mail calling it “a breach of privacy” while blasting the “crude” caption that appeared alongside.

Prince William  his wife Kate and their son Prince George leve Australia from Defence Establishment ...

Prince William, his wife Kate and their son Prince George leve Australia from Defence Establishment Fairbairn in Canberra on April 25, 2014
Saeed Khan, AFP/File

On Wednesday, the Daily Mail took a different approach, publishing the picture with the offending area pixellated alongside a piece by Australian-born columnist Amanda Platell urging Kate to dress differently to avoid “another embarrassing wardrobe malfunction”.

The Times’ columnist Carol Midgley meanwhile described the decision by foreign newspapers to use the picture as “sleazy and creepy” and described the fascination as perplexing “as if people somehow expected to find something else under (her skirt)”.

The image was widely available on the Internet and Twitter.

The official line from the royal family was a resounding no comment.

The publication of the photograph raises fresh questions about the royal family’s privacy.

In 2012, French magazine Closer provoked outrage among the royals and sections of the British press when it published paparazzi photos of a topless Kate on holiday at a French villa.

Kate  the Duchess of Cambridge  meets with residents in Winmalee in the Blue Mountains  Australia on...

Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, meets with residents in Winmalee in the Blue Mountains, Australia on April 17, 2014
Dean Lewins, Pool/AFP/File

The royals took legal action and French authorities promptly banned Closer from any use or resale of the offending pictures, the most intimate of which showed the duchess topless and having suncream applied to her by William.

However, British tabloid The Sun did publish photographs of a naked Prince Harry cavorting in a Las Vegas hotel room in August 2012.

AFP
Written By

With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

You may also like:

Social Media

Meta says that most of the cover influence operations it has disrupted in recent years were carried out by actors from Russia, Iran and...

Business

The US government said Tuesday it was "disappointed" after nations negotiating a global treaty to curb plastic waste failed to reach a deal.

Business

Wall Street: — © Digital JournalAsian traders shifted tentatively Tuesday as they battled to track another record on Wall Street owing to fresh China-US...