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Kate Middleton’s Beloved Uncle Reveals Near-Death Health Crisis

The royal in-law’s emergency in Ibiza happened shortly after he lost significant weight and stopped drinking.

Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

PublishedJul 30, 2026, 2:45 PM EDT

UpdatedJul 30, 2026, 2:48 PM EDT

Updated Jul 30, 2026, 2:48 PM EDTPublished Jul 30, 2026, 2:45 PM EDT

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Gary Goldsmith, the uncle of Kate Middleton, revealed he had experienced a health crisis shortly after his niece’s battle with cancer.

On Thursday, Gary Goldsmith told the Daily Mail that he underwent emergency surgery in May 2025. The businessman told the outlet that he had entered a healthier period of his life ahead of his 60th birthday.

Goldsmith, now 61, is the younger brother of Carole Middleton, 71, whose daughter is Catherine, Princess of Wales.

Goldsmith had quit alcohol and started a Mounjaro-assisted weight loss journey a year prior, shortly after he appeared on season 23 of Celebrity Big Brother. With the help of the popular GLP-1, he lost 85 pounds.

But for the special birthday party in 2025, Goldsmith took a break from the medication to enjoy treats like cake and seafood during his booze-free celebrations in Ibiza, Spain.

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But just eight days after his birthday on April 29, 2025, Goldsmith woke up on the couch in his Ibiza home feeling “terribly sick” and “projectile vomiting blood.”

“It seemed to go on for hours,” he recalled.

Hesitant to go to a hospital, Goldsmith called his wife Julie-Ann Brown, 56, in London. She, in turn, called the house manager of their Ibiza home, Gino.

Gino took Goldsmith to a private hospital, where he was rushed into surgery. During the life-saving procedure, the doctors tied bands around the enlarged veins in Goldsmith’s esophagus.

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The enlarged veins were caused by liver disease and were at risk of bursting, he told the Daily Mail.

“If they hadn’t banded me, I would have bled to death,” Goldsmith said.

Alcohol abuse can dramatically increase the risk of liver disease. Goldsmith has a history of heavy drinking: In 2017, he was ordered to enter rehab after he was found guilty of assaulting his wife while drunk.

After surgery, Goldsmith spent 48 hours in the hospital’s intensive care unit, but chose to leave before fully recovered.

“There were people dying all around me. I find hospitals horrific, so I checked out and went home,” he told the Daily Mail. “The doctors were pleading with me to stay. Gino was in tears.”

Gino contacted Tallulah, Goldsmith’s daughter and his only child, who was “absolutely furious with me.”

Tallulah, 24, and Julie-Ann traveled to be with Goldsmith, but neither could convince him to remain in the hospital.

His daughter contacted his older sister Carole about the troubling circumstances and to “tell her how ill” he was.

“[Carole] weighed in, wanting me to be more mindful of my age, to make sure I was getting enough sleep, eat more healthily, do more walking, stay active, drink less, and take supplements,” Goldsmith said.

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“When we were kids, it was like growing up with two mothers,” he added, noting that his sister is a decade older than him. “She still has that maternal concern for me.”

The incident happened four months after Princess Kate announced she was in remission from cancer.

“I’m very conscious that your brother being poorly is one thing,” Goldsmith admitted. “Your daughter suffering with cancer is massive.”

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Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

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