Kate apologises for Photoshop error before surprise outing
THE Princess of Wales issued a personal apology yesterday for editing a photograph of herself with her three children, before making an unexpected public appearance in the face of speculation about the Royal family.
The Princess, who is not due to attend public engagements for weeks, was photographed with her husband in the back of a car leaving their Windsor home.
She had earlier offered an apology for a Mother’s Day photograph that was accused of being digitally “manipulated”, admitting: “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.” She is understood to have wanted to take immediate responsibility for the mistake. The Princess has faced significant public pressure in recent weeks, and would have been keenly aware of how closely her appearance would have been scrutinised.
Last night, Kensington Palace was facing pressure to disclose what precisely had been edited, as the public questioned why it was deemed necessary to alter a family photograph featuring Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis that had been taken by their father. The original unedited picture is not expected to be released and the Palace has not confirmed that any particular steps will be taken to prevent similar errors.
The statement has also called into question previous photographs taken of and by the Wales family.
Hours after releasing the apology, the Princess was unexpectedly photographed in a car on a public road en route to London for what was described as a private appointment.
Joined by the Prince, who was on his way to the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, the Princess was seen looking out of the window in Datchet, near Windsor. The Princess has so far taken great care not to be seen
in public since an operation in January, and has been caught on camera only once – by a paparazzo, with the images only published overseas.
She had been keeping a low profile at home in Adelaide Cottage while she recovers from abdominal surgery.
However, the picture taken yesterday was on a public road, as the Prince was on his way to a public engagement, and palace sources confirmed it was her sitting in the back of the car.
The Mother’s Day photograph, published on social media by Buckingham Palace, was thought to have been intended to quell speculation about the Princess’s health. But social media users quickly pointed out apparent errors.
By Sunday evening, five major global photography agencies – Getty, Associated Press, Agence France-presse, Shutterstock and Reuters – had issued a “kill notice” for the picture, suggesting it did not reach their editorial standards.
“At closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image,” the AP notice said. A spokesman told The Telegraph: “The photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s left hand.”
Yesterday morning, the Press Association said it too would be withdrawing the photograph from distribution, saying it had been issued in “good faith” but that Kensington Palace had failed to respond to requests for “urgent clarification” about its concerns.
At 10.30am, the palace issued an apology statement directly from the Princess on Twitter, which was signed “C” for Catherine. It is extremely rare for members of the Royal family to offer on-the-record written apologies.
Later in the day, the Prince of Wales was seen smiling at the Commonwealth Day service, walking through Westminster Abbey in procession with the Queen followed by the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Princess Royal.
He later delivered a speech at an event for his Earthshot Prize, in which he warned humanity was in a “critical decade” to save the planet.