Duchess of Cambridge - another brick from the wall?

The airwaves were buzzing with comments and discussions over the latest press intrusion into the lives of a royal personage and as ever balance, bias and hypocrisy were all on show. What's more, the furore over Harry still fresh in our minds, the press (at least this time it was a French publication) and the right to print what it considers 'news' has become even more of a burning issue.

We all know Leveson is going to act against the British press and I fear for the continuing existence of a free press in this land but when it comes to ethics, practice and the overall culture of the press - it seems that they might well get what they deserve at the expense of what the public needs. What does need to be applauded is the distancing of the British version of the magazine 'Closer' from their naughty French counterpart. The Italian press aren't that choosy over what they publish either for the editor of an Italian magazine which has published topless pictures of Kate Middleton has said in his defence...

"This is a deserving topic because it shows in a completely natural way the daily life of a very famous, young and modern couple in love."

Well, I think someone in Italy needs to grab a long lens, take a few snaps and publish them, then say...

"This is a deserving topic because it shows in a completely natural way an Italian magazine editor taking a dump."

What we do in private, so long as it is legal and harming no one, should remain private. No matter who we are. To those publishing the images, would you be quite so cool about it if they were pics of your daughter, wife or sister topless?

The French editor, Laurence Pieau, explains it all away by saying:

"There's been an over-reaction to these photos. What we see is a young couple, who just got married, who are very much in love, who are splendid, she's a real 21st century princess. It's a young woman who is topless, the same as you can see on any beach in France or around the world. These photos are not in the least shocking. They show a young woman sunbathing topless, like the millions of women you see on beaches. It's still on the Internet. That shocked no-one."

Well I think it has shocked a great many people and it seems sad that a couple can't enjoy married life without being the target of such intrusion The comments from the respective editors who are effectively saying the couple were 'fair game' because it was 'of interest' to the readership of their magazines need to be dealt with through the courts (not that that will do much at the end of the day).

Fair game? Just like a certain young soldier who was behaving as young soldiers do (and I don't say what he did was right but it was his right to do them and to publish them is to infringe his rights) and like his images I wonder which of the British press will publish the new images from the beach?

How low can the press go I wonder - thought we'd reached rock bottom!