Kate's Uncle Gary Goldsmith Had An Awkward First Meeting With Prince William
Royal or not, meeting your romantic partner's family for the first time can be awkward and nerve-wracking. But in the case of William, Prince of Wales, and Gary Goldsmith, the controversial uncle of Catherine, Princess of Wales, we're not sure who felt more uncomfortable — the young man meeting his future wife's family or the old man who cursed at the future king.
In a March 2024 interview with The Times, Kate's uncle revealed the first words he ever said to Prince William. To say they were a breach of royal protocol is probably an understatement. According to Goldsmith, he first met the future king in 2006 on a trip to Ibiza, Spain, where the wealthy man has a villa nicknamed Maison de Bang Bang.
After William broke one of Goldsmith's ornaments, Goldsmith called out to his future nephew-in-law: "Oi, you f***er!" The self-proclaimed "buncle" (a shortened version of bad uncle) said his outburst made William's security officers bristle, but the Spanish vacation continued without issue.
Gary Goldsmith offers a much tamer recollection of William's first words to him
The "Celebrity Big Brother" personality justified his callout of Prince William to The Times by saying, "It relaxes everybody when you speak normally. I mean, apart from the close protection officers, who looked like they were going to pull out their pistols." Indeed, Gary Goldsmith has never been shy about his connection to the royal family.
In an introductory clip of "Celebrity Big Brother," Goldsmith described himself as "the uncle to the future queen of our country" before sticking his tongue out and offering a wink to the camera. He also described the first time he met William, and this version of events seems much gentler. (We're unsure if this was the same Ibizan trip he mentioned to the Times.)
"First time I met William, Katherine was cooking, and William said, 'Hi, do you want a cup of tea?'" Goldsmith recalled (via DailyMotion). "Very normal." And for the most part, this tracks with how the flamboyant millionaire speaks of his niece and nephew-in-law. Goldsmith has consistently praised Kate and, by proxy, William. He has had far more scathing words for Meghan Markle and his nephew-in-law's brother, Harry, Duke of Sussex.
Kate Middleton's controversial uncle is no stranger to stirring the pot
Lobbing f-bombs at your niece's boyfriend seems shockingly outlandish until one considers Gary Goldsmith's personality. In his intro video on "Celebrity Big Brother," Goldsmith proudly touts that he loves to stir the pot. Given his bombastic attitude, it's equally unsurprising that Kate Middleton's family was furious over the royal rogue's stint on "Big Brother" in the first place.
And while Goldsmith doesn't typically offer much by way of sympathy to his immediate family, including Kate Middleton's mother, Carole, he did show a bit of remorse after his salacious Times interview was published a day after Kate Middleton made her shocking cancer announcement on March 22, 2024. That same day, Kate's "buncle" took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to offer a preemptive apology.
"As many will have seen, I am featured in Saturday's Times Magazine. This interview and shoot was done over a week ago and went to print before I was aware of the sad news regarding my niece Kate. My thoughts and prayers are with Kate and the wider family at this difficult time and deeply upset at the timing of this article. I hope this draws a line over the continued speculation and horrible conspiracies," Goldsmith wrote, proving he does have some boundaries, at least.