06 March 2024 , 19:55
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He has a reputation as a trouble maker but Gary Goldsmith was anything but when it came to his niece Kate's painful split from Prince William.
Gary Goldsmith has only spent two nights in the Celebrity Big Brother house but he's already been chatting freely about the Royal family, despite apparently being read the riot act by his sister Carole Middleton beforehand over fears he would spill family secrets.
It’s a sensitive time for the Royals as Kate Middleton recovers from "planned abdominal surgery" and King Charles undergoes treatment for cancer. They have already asked for the public to understand that Kate wishes to keep details of her operation private for the sake of her three children but that hasn’t stopped the rumour mill going into overdrive with conspiracy theories over why it’s taking so long to recuperate. So having the loose lipped Gary on national television at this time is said to have been somewhat of a headache.
However, things haven’t always been so tense between Gary - who has been married four times and has one daughter Tallulah - and his family. Despite claiming that his nieces Kate and Pippa and nephew James Middleton call him ‘buncle’, meaning bad uncle, they have also turned to him in times of need.
Back in the summer of 2007, Kate and William, who met and started dating at university, split up. Kate was said to be devastated but she was seen out on the town in London with sister Pippa, presumably in an attempt to try and heal her broken heart by having some girlie fun.
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Gary with his daughter Tallulah at Pippa Middleton's wedding (AFP/Getty Images)She also fled the country to get away and this was where self-made millionaire, ‘buncle’ Gary helped out. He claimed that Kate’s mum Carole, who is his older sister, asked him if her children could stay at his £6 million villa in Ibiza, which is infamously called La Maison de Bang Bang.
Speaking to Hello! Magazine at the time, Gary, who has since sold the property, revealed: "Carole asked if the children could use the villa to get away from everything. [My wife at the time] Julia's visit overlapped with Kate's and she said Kate was very low, spending a huge amount of time on the phone, walking around the pool. It's a very relaxing place and it has a very nice vibe and you can hear the sea at night. So in some small way, I just hope that being there helped [Kate]."
It wasn’t the first time the future Queen has been at the villa. She and William spent a holiday there in 2006 when he says one of his friends taught Wills "how to mix on the DJ decks" which he did while the rest of the family swam in the pool.
Kate was sat behind WIlliam at the memorial concert shortly after she stayed at the villa (PA)He also said of meeting the Prince over dinner: "He was so relaxed in his own skin, but he does try very hard to be a real gentleman. He leaves a massive impact on you. He was incredibly charming and engaging. It was a very funny supper and everyone was just cracking jokes."
Following Kate’s retreat at the villa, she and William got back together and she was spotted the following month sitting two rows behind her boyfriend at the Concert for Diana at Wembley Stadium. Hello! asked him at the time if he thought the sunny trip had helped with the reconciliation, he said: "Wouldn't that be brilliant?"
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