Pregnant Kate bikini photos upset royal family

by Lauren O'Neil Posted: February 13, 2013 8:38 PM Last Updated: February 13, 2013 8:52 PM

View the story "Pregnant Kate bikini pics upset royal family" on StorifyPregnant Kate bikini pics upset royal familyStorified by CBC News Community· Wed, Feb 13 2013 17:37:36Bbcimg

Photos of a pregnant, bikini-clad Kate Middleton werepublished this morning by an Italian gossip magazine and are now appearing on blogs around the world -- much to the ire of St. James Palace.

Taken without her permission while on vacation in Mustique, one photo shows the Duchess of Cambridge and her husband walking along the beach in matching blue swimsuits. Another shows Kate, who is due to to give birth in July, knee-deep in the Caribbean Sea, pulling back her hair.

"The Belly Grows" reads the cover of Chi, a gossip magazine owned by former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's Mondadori media group. Another headline inside the magazine reads "Kate and William -- honeymoon for three."
DailymailIt should be noted that Mondadori media also owns Closer Magazine, which made international headlines last year for publishing topless pictures of the Duchess on a private holiday in France.
Royal Family to sue over topless Kate photos - World - CBC NewsThe Royal Family says it is suing the French magazine that has published topless photos of Prince William's wife Kate. St James's Palace ...As long-time royal watchers are pointing out, this isn't the first time an expectant member of the family has been hounded by photographers on vacation.

In February of 1982, Princess Diana was also snapped in a two-piece swimsuit while on holiday in the Bahamas with Prince Charles. Pregnant with Prince William at the time, tabloids referred to her in their coverage as "Bahamas Mama."Kate Middleton's Pregnant Bikini Pics Not First Royal Leak: Sneak Attack on Princess Diana Called "Blackest Day" by... http://owl.li/2uRma8Dominic Greene

When Queen Elizabeth II learned of what reporters had done to Diana and Charles in 1982, she called it "the blackest day" in the history of British journalism according to PBS.

The royal family is none the more pleased by how William and Kate are being treated by Chi today.

"We are disappointed that photographs of the Duke and Duchess on a private holiday look likely to be published overseas," said a royal spokesperson in a statement Tuesday evening. "This is a clear breach of the couple's right to privacy."

Many online appear to agree.
I wish people would leave Kate Middleton alone. Just because she's part of the Royal Family does not mean you can wreck her private life?Kieran WatkinsI wish everyone would leave Kate Middleton alone. Can't she go on vacation without being photographed?RachelFeel sorry for Kate Middleton, paps should leave her alone and let her get on with her pregnancy in peace! #rantChelsie Beardhow can a picture of kate middleton in her bikini be deemed as a 'breach of privacy', but when it's celebrities it's not ? S-C-U-M Others, however see nothing wrong with the photos being taken or published.

Defending his decision to publish the images, Chi's editor Alfonso Signorini told the BBC that the photographs "can hardly be considered an invasion of privacy when the subjects are public figures in a public place, in the open air; specifically on a beach surrounded by other bathers."

"What our readers will see is simply a moment of joyful relaxation being enjoyed by a smiling, happy couple. Where's the scandal in that?" he said, stating that the images were bought from an international photo agency.

Some tweeters put the onus on Kate herself to stay out of the public eye to avoid having photos like these ones taken.
kate needs to stop complaining, if she was so bothered about pictures of her baby bump, she shouldnt have walked around in her bikini!Krissy GillWhy is everyone so bothered by these Kate Middleton photos? If she's so bothered, she shouldn't go out in public in a bikini.chloelouiserobinson.Dear Kate Middleton. If you do not want you bikini pics published dont wear one Outside.Anita HeasletOthers are simply annoyed by the amount of news coverage these photos have received, and the British media's reluctancy to go against the wishes of Buckingham palace.
Any word from the British press as to why Kate Middleton deserves the privacy they don't afford anyone else?Sam MacGregorKate Middleton in a bikini. So I'm guessing that's more newsworthy than most of the major supermarkets feeding us horse meat?Zaki GrantForelock-tugging British media once again indulges the whims and whinges of the ridiculous Windsors http://bit.ly/12xStqKTony McDonoughSo, are newspapers going to stop publishing photos of all bikini-clad women on on beaches or is it just Kate Middleton?Colette Browne

The editor of Woman's Day magazine in Australia Fiona Connolly spoke to Australia's Channel Nine network about the controversy. Her publication is set to print the photos next Monday.

"This is not a hard decision about these photos. Kate's on a public beach, there are other holidaymakers there and she looks fabulous," she said. "I think the British are very sensitive about this."

What's your opinion? Let us know in the comment section below.

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