Prince William says the 2012 publication of topless photos of his wife Kate Middleton are “shocking” and “all the more painful” because of his mother’s death in a car crash in 1997.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were holidaying in the South of France in September 2012 when a photographer took a series of photographs, including one that shows the Duchess topless and having suncream applied to her bottom by William, according to The Telegraph.
The couple were staying at a chateau owned by the son of the Princess Margaret at the time.
They took legal action suing for $2.5m in damages and claiming the photographs, which were published by Closer magazine, were particularly distressing “as it brought back painful memories” of William’s late mother Princess Dian’s death in a car crash in Paris in 1997 while being pursued by paparazzi, according to The Guardian.
The photographs caused a media frenzy in the UK, where they were roundly condemned.
Closer magazine has never revealed the identity of the photographer who took the images.
Six people will appear in court today. The royal couple are not expected to attend the trial, according to British media.