Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Kate Middleton’s uncle accuses Prince Harry of throwing royal family ‘under the bus’

Gary Goldsmith defended his ‘beautiful’ niece ahead of his appearance on Celebrity Big Brother

Andy Gregory
Wednesday 06 March 2024 06:35 GMT
Comments
Prince William's touching response to Holocaust survivor after she asks about wife Kate

Kate Middleton’s uncle has accused Prince Harry of throwing the royal family “under the bus” and said claims of racism against his niece were “bull****.”

Accusing the Duke and Duchess of Sussex of “reinventing history”, Gary Goldsmith said: “My family is not racist and for Kate to be portrayed as that is just so far removed from the truth, it’s ridiculous.”

The publication of Harry’s memoir Spare caused a wave of damaging global headlines for the royal family last year as the duke revealed intimate details of his relationships with his father King Charles and brother Prince William.

(Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)

But in media interviews at the time of its publication, the duke denied that he and Meghan Markle had accused the royal family of racism when they alleged in their 2021 interview with Oprah that members of the family had expressed “concerns” about their son Archie’s skin colour prior to his birth.

While Meghan and Harry declined to name those family members at the time on the grounds that it would “be very damaging to them”, a Dutch translation of journalist Omid Scobie’s book Endgame last year alleged that it was Charles and Kate who had made the remarks.

Speaking to The Sun as he prepares to appear on Celebrity Big Brother, Kate’s uncle said claims of racism against his niece were “bull****”.

“She’s beautiful on the outside, but more beautiful on the inside and really is a doting mum ... so the way the monarchy is moving, it’s family-centric,” said Mr Goldsmith.

“That’s why I got so upset with Harry and Meghan because you don’t put a stick into that spoke and reinvent history. I’ve got pretty miffed when they had a pop at my beautiful niece who couldn’t say anything for herself.

Kate has not been seen in public since undergoing a planned abdominal surgery in January (AP)

“I think everyone felt the same about how much did we love Harry and then throwing your family under the bus just seemed inappropriate, especially what was happening with the Queen. I just thought it was totally unnecessary.”

Addressing the claims in the Dutch translation of Scobie’s book, which was quickly pulled from shelves and pulped, Mr Goldsmith added: “It’s absolute bull***t and I didn’t hide my feelings very well when I was offered the opportunity to say something, I just thought I’d say it as I saw it. I did think I caught the tone of nation.

“Kate is 100 per cent not racist ... My family is not racist and for Kate to be portrayed as that is just so far removed from the truth, it’s ridiculous.”

The princess has not been seen in public since returning home to Windsor in late January after undergoing a planned abdominal surgery.

Kensington Palace told The Independent last week that the princess was “doing well” as she recovered from the procedure, and said in a further update that she will return to royal engagements after Easter.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in