Royal Family Member ‘Upset’ After Topless Photo Leak: ‘I Feel Deeply Saddened’
The British royal family is always in the news, but it seems like that’s been heightened lately. From concerns about King Charles and Kate Middleton’s health to rumors that the King and Prince Harry are finally putting their feud to rest, without forgetting the new autobiography about Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, it seems like every day there is something new to discuss.
Now, another member of the family is having their time in the sun, for better or worse. A new book, titled Sophie: Saving the Royal Family, by author Sean Smith, details how leaked photos of Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, caused a scandal just before her wedding to Prince Edward. The photos were taken while she was on vacation and sold to the press by a friend.
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According to the Daily Mail, Kara Noble, who worked alongside Sophie at the Capital radio network, was paid £40,000 for photos of a topless Sophie on holiday in Spain with radio host Chris Tarrant. One of the pictures was published by The Sun alongside the headline “Sophie just laughed as Chris pulled up her bikini.”
The book claims the Duchess was mortified by the leak and feared the photos could “torpedo her innocent excitement and the support of the public.” The book also claims Noble promised they would never be made public before selling them.
Murray Harkin, Sophie’s former PR business partner, told the biographer, “She was so upset because she felt that she was ‘letting the side down’ before her wedding.” However, the pictures changed nothing, with the royal family providing “unwavering” support. Queen Elizabeth even called the story “premeditated cruelty.”
At the time, Tarrant denied he ever had an “improper relationship” with the future Duchess and criticized Noble. “To the person who has sold these pictures, you know who you are. Kara, how will you ever be able to look Sophie in the face again? I don’t feel angry. I don’t feel disgust — I feel deeply saddened,” he said.
Noble went on to apologize for selling the pictures, telling the Mail on Sunday that leaking them was “the biggest and most public mistake one could ever make.” She was fired from her job and moved to the United States.
In a very rare move, The Sun also issued a full-page apology at the time, with the headline “Sorry Sophie.”
The wedding of Sophie and Edward went on without a hitch in June 1999. The two are still married and share two children, Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor, and James, Earl of Wessex.
Sophie has long been regarded as one of the hardest-working royals, and she and her husband Edward stepped up in the wake of King Charles’ cancer diagnosis and Kate Middleton’s own cancer treatment. And recent reports indicate she has become what some experts are dubbing the “royal family’s secret weapon.” According to royal commentator Afua Hagan, she has reached this status because of her ability to connect with people during her numerous engagements.
