Prince William is said to be furious that private photos of his family’s ski trip were published by a French tabloid without consent. The images, taken in France, have raised serious concerns about the family’s safety and privacy.
During the U.K.’s spring break, the Duke and Duchess of Wales took a lavish skiing vacation to Courchevel, France, stopping in Paris to watch an Aston Villa game.
What happened during the ski trip in France?
As per a report by In Touch, Prince William is thinking of taking legal action over the release of extremely intrusive pictures from a recent skiing vacation he took with his wife, Kate Middleton.
Despite booking a secluded chalet, paparazzi captured photos of Kate and her children, Princess Charlotte, 9, Prince George, 11, and Prince Louis, 6.
The images, which were released by Paris Match on April 9, serve as a grave threat to the family’s privacy.
The couple is experiencing a great deal of stress at home as they struggle to enjoy privacy away from the spotlight and worry about the effect it is having on their three young children.
They were under the expectation of having privacy and just trying to take a break; this was totally unacceptable, the report claims.
Why is this photo leak such a big deal for Prince William and Kate?
According to the report, “they’re still pretty traumatised from that time the French magazine published those pictures of Kate on vacation, as that has left deep scars.”
Prince William filed a lawsuit against the French magazine Closer in 2012, claiming that the publication had released inappropriate images of Kate and demanded damages.
The recent incident has triggered painful memories of previous privacy invasions, and legal action may be on the horizon once more.
Could there be another lawsuit over privacy invasion?
An insider claims that the prince’s “temper is really boiling over this one, so no one will be all that surprised if he does take action.”
“They won the last case against them for invasion of privacy,” the insider states, adding that “they may very well pursue that again” in light of the French media’s most recent blunder.
Rebecca English, a royal expert, explained the prince’s response when he learnt about the photos while on tour in Malaysia.
The incident evoked painful memories of how unfairly his mother, Princess Diana, was treated by the media prior to her death in 1996.
The prince’s “jaw clenched, he could barely contain his fury,” she wrote in a Daily Mail opinion piece.
“His anger was completely understandable, the instinctive reaction of a man whose wife was violated by the paparazzi, a hurtful reimagining of the harassment he believes his late mother endlessly endured.”
Like Prince William’s estranged brother Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, they have repeatedly resisted media intrusion, with differing degrees of success.
However, they have undoubtedly been successful in establishing the position that their family’s privacy should not be compromised.
Royal members have been advocating for themselves in this regard for many years, and while Prince William is aware of the interest in him, it does not negate his right to privacy.
Being followed and photographed in such a manner truly frightens them, and naturally, William becomes agitated at this grave invasion of privacy.
FAQs
Why is Prince William so upset with the French media?
They published private photos of his family taken during their ski vacation without permission.
Will Prince William pursue legal action?
Given the serious breach of privacy, sources believe it is highly likely.