Royal butler Grant Harrold forced to issue statement on Prince William and Princess Kate photo controversy
Grant worked for the royal family for many yearsFormer royal butler Grant Harrold has issued a statement after sharing what appeared to be an AI-generated photo of Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales.
Grant worked for the royal family for many years. He was King Charles’ butler from 2004 to 2011, before being made redundant. During his time working for the monarchy, Grant also looked after William and Kate during his time at Highgrove.
Grant is now a broadcaster and royal commentator. Last year, he released his memoir, The Royal Butler: My Remarkable Life in Royal Service.
On social media, Grant often shares photos and memories from his time with the royals. But one of his recent posts has sparked some controversy.
Royal butler Grant Harrold shares photo of ‘William and Kate’
A few days ago, Grant shared a photo that appeared to show William and Kate sat on a couch. The photo shows Kate with her arms wrapped around William as they both smile for the camera.
Alongside the image, the former butler wrote: “This wonderful photo of the Prince and Princess of Wales was taken when I first met them back in 2004. A true royal love story.”
However, some people suggested the image looked AI-generated. One person said: “I don’t even know what’s real anymore.”
A royal source also told the Mail: “I can see why questions are being asked by others.”
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Now, Grant has issued a statement to clarify the speculation.
Grant issues statement on image
On his Instagram Stories, Grant wrote: “After reading a few comments, I would like to reiterate that I did not take or own this image. It is how I remember them in my early years in the Royal Household.
I genuinely mistook this to be an authentic image of the pair.
“I did not take or own the image of William and Kate that I posted. I always try to do my due diligence before sharing any posts – to me, I only saw in this image a young William and Kate that reminded me so much of how they were when I first had the pleasure of working for them.”
He continued: “I genuinely mistook this to be an authentic image of the pair. On seeing it, it made me smile and I wanted to share this joy with you.
“While I may be adept at telling my dinner knife from my butter knife, AI, as I’m sure you can all agree, can be harder to detect.
“Moving forward, I will be more cautious of the content I choose to share with my followers and will endeavour to ensure my platform remains an authentic and positive space that celebrates the royal family.”
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