Kim Kardashian says Harry and Meghan ‘panicked,’ ‘blamed us’ over Photogate

In a podcast interview with sister Khloe Kardashian, Kim Kardashian suggested that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are not always the most reliable narrators by offering her family’s version of “Photogate,” the photo-consent scandal that erupted after the couple asked the Kardashians to remove social media photos of them partying at Kris Jenner’s 70th birthday bash in November, which took place at Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez’s Beverly Hills mansion.

“It was just made into something that was so crazy and ridiculous that just didn’t have to be,” Kim Kardashian told her sister on Thursday’s episode of Khloe in Wonderland, reported journalist Paula Froelich on her Inside Scoop Substack.

The crisis exploded in the days after the James Bond-themed party, right after Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner shared photos of Harry and Meghan at the Bezos mansion. In one photo that went viral, Meghan could be seen touching Jenner’s shoulder, while Harry, in a tuxedo, looked like he was having a very good time while dancing and  staring in the direction of Kris Jenner’s chest.

Then, a few hours later, the photos mysteriously disappeared, and questions immediately began to percolate, Froelich said.

Soon, anonymous sources close to the California-based Duke and Duchess of Sussex began telling media outlets that they had asked the Kardashians to remove the photos because they had been posted without the couple’s consent. In fact, these sources specifically told outlets like People that Harry and Meghan didn’t want photos of them taken inside the party and checked “no” on a photo consent form.

However, a source close to the event refuted that claim, telling People: “There were no consent forms.”

“It was really innocent, which is so crazy,” Kim Kardashian began, trying to explain how the apparent misunderstanding — or Harry and Meghan “lying,” as Froelich said — ignited into one of the bigger and sillier celebrity scandals of 2025. Kim Kardashian started gently, by saying that their mother and Meghan have been friends for some years now. “They have a really sweet relationship,” she said.

Kardashian said that they got some of the “craziest, funnest photos from that night” but they only posted more “fun” and “dignified” photos. Kardashian said they were “all communicating” with Harry and Meghan “about what we’re going to post.”

In what could be a dig against the couple, Kardashian emphasized: “We’re never ones to post without permission. We are, like — it’s not who we are.”

Kardashian confirmed speculation that the Sussexes had regrets about the timing of the photos, showing them party with Hollywood celebrities and flashy, billionaires figures like Bezos and Sanchez. The photos were released around Nov. 11, which is Remembrance Day in the U.K. That’s a solemn holiday when the royal family and the British public hold events to honor armed forces members who have died in the line of duty. For Harry, an army veteran and the fifth in line to the British throne, his appearance at the party would not be considered to be a good look.

“And so we were totally, you know—we were told that it was totally cool to post,” Kardashian said, again insisting that Harry and Meghan “approved everything.”  “And then after it was posted, I think they realized it was Remembrance Day, and they didn’t want to be seen at a party, even though it’s already up.”

Kardashian said, “We got calls saying they needed the photos down because it was too close to Remembrance Sunday and it didn’t look good for them to be seen partying.”

Khloé Kardashian mentioned that Harry and Meghan also attended the Baby2Baby Gala the same night, before coming to their mother’s party.

“Well, it’s like a charity event,” Kardashian said about the gala. “So, like, that was fine, but maybe not partying and dancing on the dance floor or whatever. So we took them down to respect Remembrance Day.”

At that point, Khloé keyed in on what exactly happened with Photogate: “So they approved it, panicked about optics, and blamed us?”

Kim said, “Exactly.”

With that, Froelich said that Harry and Meghan tried to spin this misunderstanding into another bad thing that someone had done to them — fueling another “victim narrative.” Except, Froelich said, “none of it was true.” There were “no consent violations. No unmarked checkboxes. No privacy breach.”

Shortly after Photogate, the Sussexes 11th head of PR, Stanford-educated Meredith Maines. quietly gave her notice. Her last day with the couple was just before the holidays. There was speculation that Maines left over Photogate.

“She was manipulated,” a source told Froelich. “Once you realize your clients are willing to throw you under the bus with fabricated stories, you can’t keep working for them — it ruins your reputation. Without your reputation in PR, you are nowhere.”