Princess of Wales Kate Middleton has issued an apology for "experiment[ing] with editing" on a family photograph released by Kensington Palace to mark Mother's Day in the U.K. on Mar. 10.

The image of Middleton and her three children made headlines across the world on Mar. 11 after four major news agencies including Reuters, Getty Images, Associated Press (AP) and Agence France-Presse (AFP) said it did not meet their editorial guidelines, deeming the image to be "manipulated".

The doctored image was the first official photograph of Middleton since she underwent "planned abdominal surgery" in mid-January.

Since then, many conspiracy theories have been swirling on the internet about her whereabouts.

The apology

Around 10:30am on Mar. 11 (U.K. time), Middleton released a statement apologising for the "confusion" caused by the family photograph.

"Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing.

I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.

I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day.

C"

The statement was shared as an Instagram Story and a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) on Kensington Palace's official social media accounts.

However, the apology has failed to appease royal watchers, with many calling for Kensington Palace to release the original photograph.

Saga continues

Ever since the apology was published last night (Singapore time), more conspiracy theories have been shared online.

Some alleged the photo wasn't taken recently, as Kensington Palace had claimed.

Others proposed the photograph wasn't taken at all, suggesting existing photographs were stitched together.

The more level-headed ones simply said the edits were minor and proposed that Middleton just wanted her first official photograph post-surgery to look good.

my analysis of the kate middleton photo saga is that they took her face from the vogue cover she did years ago and edited it in pic.twitter.com/JLXts08zp5

— Ruby Naldrett (@rubynaldrett) March 11, 2024

@allynaston I have a strong suspicion that this “new” photo of Kate Middleton and her children was taken in November 2023 baded on the outfits. There is ample evidence of bad Photoshop throughout this photo and it is my personal opinion that it is because it is old and they try to change the outfits so that it didn’t look like a match. This is pure speculation and opinion based on my own research. #katemiddleton #whereiskate #whereiskatemiddleton #princessofwales #kensingtonpalace #britishroyals #british #popculture #popculturenews ♬ original sound - Allyn Aston

It seems the conspiracy theories won't be laid to rest until Middleton makes a public appearance which, according to Kensington Palace, won't happen until after Easter (Mar. 31).

Top images from Reuters and @princeandprincessofwales/Instagram