Former royal butler Grant Harrold has broken his silence after sharing a photo that appeared to show Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales, sparking debate online over whether the image had been created using AI.
Grant, who worked closely with the royal family for years, served as King Charles’ butler between 2004 and 2011 before later being made redundant. During his time at Highgrove, he also spent time looking after William and Kate in the early days of their relationship.
Since leaving royal service, Grant has become a familiar face as a broadcaster and royal commentator. He also released his memoir, The Royal Butler: My Remarkable Life in Royal Service, last year.
Known for posting throwback stories and memories from his years in royal circles, Grant recently found himself at the centre of unexpected controversy after sharing an image of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Grant Harrold shares image of Prince William and Kate
Earlier this week, Grant uploaded a picture appearing to show William and Kate sitting together on a sofa. In the snap, Kate wraps her arms around William as the pair smile towards the camera.
Sharing the image with followers, Grant 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.”
But it did not take long for royal fans to question whether the image may have been AI-generated.
One follower commented: “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.”
Grant has now responded directly to the claims and explained why he shared the image in the first place.
Former royal butler issues statement over image
Posting on his Instagram Stories, Grant said: “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 added: “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.
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“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.”
As AI-generated royal images continue to circulate online, Grant’s post has once again highlighted just how difficult it can be to tell what is genuine and what is not.
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