"Just leave it alone": Gary Goldsmith reacts to Kate Middleton's Mother's Day photo controversy, brushing off 'sleeve gate'

Gary Goldsmith, uncle to the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, has spoken out in response to the recent controversy surrounding a Mother's Day photo shared by the royal family. On Sunday, March 10, 2024, Kensington Palace shared a picture of Catherine along with her three children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, which is allegedly rumored to be digitally edited, as seen in The Sun.

The debate sparked on X, whether or not Kate's children had been photoshopped into the picture, to what some referred to as "sleeve gate." However, in a recent appearance on Good Morning Britain, Gary Goldsmith said he thinks the picture was beautiful, mentioning an ongoing alleged controversy,

"This whole sleeve-gate thing, just leave it alone."

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Gary Goldsmith speaks out on Kate Middleton's Mother's Day photo controversy

Gary Goldsmith, Kate Middleton's maternal uncle, and Carole Middleton's brother, was booted out of Big Brother on Friday, March 8, 2024. He appeared on Good Morning Britain on Monday, March 11, 2024.

GMB host Susanna Reid asked Gary about an ongoing alleged controversy over a Mother's Day photo posted by Kensington Palace on Sunday, March 10, 2024. As seen in The Sun, Reid asked,

"Does anything about it strike you as odd?"

However, in his reply, Goldsmith expressed frustration with the ongoing scrutiny surrounding his niece's family. As seen in the publication, he urged netizens and critics to move on. Gary Goldsmith said,

"The smiles on faces said it all for me, I thought it was beautiful. The family wouldn't be the ones to do any touch ups, so that's gone through some filter before it's gone out to the world. But they probably took it themselves. All I was looking at was the faces and smiles, and they just looked like a beautiful family, and it looked genuine, just a smiling family. This whole sleeve-gate thing, just leave it alone."

The Mother's Day photo was Kate Middleton's first public appearance after her abdominal surgery, which she underwent on January 16, 2024. As reported, the Princess of Wales spent two weeks in the London clinic.

However, the post sparked humor among netizens, with some suggesting that Kate's hand looked blurry. Also, many questioned why Kate Middleton was not wearing her wedding ring, as per The Sun.

As seen in the publication, many quickly noticed the alleged disappearance of Charlotte's cardigan sleeve. Also, her skirt seemed fuzzy to many. The alleged photo controversy also suggested that Kate's jacket zip does not align with the color-corrected and lighter version of the photo.

Amid the suspected controversy, BBC reports that the four international photo agencies, including AP, Getty Images, Reuters, and AFP, have removed the picture from their portal concerning manipulation. The spokesperson from the AP news agency added a statement as per BBC,

"We became aware of concerns about the image, and we carried a report about it last night and made clear that we were seeking urgent clarification about the image from Kensington Palace. In the absence of that clarification, we are killing the image from our picture service."

Gary Goldsmith is the first to speak on Kate Middleton's Mother's Day photo controversy. In contrast, Kensington Palace issued a public apology for confusion on March 11, 2024, at 10.28 am local time on X.