Meet Princess Kate's 'black sheep' uncle Gary Goldsmith
The royal's relative is taking part in this year's Celebrity Big Brother
As Princess Kate quietly continues with her post-surgery recovery at home in Windsor, I wonder if she'll be tuning in to Celebrity Big Brother tonight. Admittedly, the reality TV show isn't something I'd expect the future Queen to be a fan of. But her slightly wayward and controversial uncle, Gary Goldsmith, is rumoured to be a contestant on it this year.
That's right. Uncle Gary, the younger brother of Carole Middleton, appears to be making a comeback. And for those who don't know much about him, I've gone into the HELLO! archives and dug out an interview we did with the recruitment advisor and self-made millionaire back in 2013, from his former holiday home in Ibiza.
Gary told us all about meeting Prince William for the first time – "He does try very hard to be a real gentleman" – what "tomboy" Kate was like as a child, and how he became the target of a tabloid newspaper drug sting that was the start of his unsavoury reputation in the press. "Carole just apologised and said this wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for the fact of who Kate was dating."
Before I delve into the interview, here's a little bit of background about the colourful and outspoken Gary, who on his own LinkedIn page states: "Rich and bored, I put up with inaccurate headlines. I've now sharpened up as a strategic, straight-shooting NED. I give clarity, confidence and courage so my friends succeed. The No. 1 rated recruitment advisor? Probably. In my head, obviously." At one point, he was reported to be worth £30 million after working his way up IT recruitment business, Computer Futures, in which he had shares.
Carole and her family have clearly distanced themselves from Gary in the past decade. Yes, he attended William and Kate's royal wedding in 2011, as well as Pippa Middleton and James Matthews' church ceremony in 2017 (to which he was accompanied by his only child and daughter Tallulah from his second marriage), but Gary was more importantly not invited to Pippa's private reception at the Middleton family home afterwards – which I think speaks volumes about the real state of their relationship.
