Prince William has sparked controversy with a seemingly innocent picture he chose to post on Instagram to mark Father’s Day in the UK.

The first of two pictures, taken by Catherine, the Princess of Wales, was relatively innocuous.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Prince William speaks about his wife Catherine, Princess of Wales.

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The photo, taken on a beach in Norfolk, shows William from behind, looking out to sea in a moment of togetherness with his children Charlotte, George and Louis.

They could be any regular family on a day out at the beach, dressed in everyday clothing (albeit in carefully co-ordinated matching shades of blue).

William, wearing a hoodie, khaki shorts and a baseball cap, towers over his children, arms around them in an enfolding embrace.

“We love you, Papa. Happy Father’s Day 💕 G, C & L,” the picture was captioned.

“📸 The Princess of Wales, 2024.”

Fans loved the picture, rushing to congratulate Catherine on her photography skills (her previous Photoshop errors seemingly forgiven and forgotten).

“Princess Catherine, what a well lovely composed, photo with magic hour light,” one follower wrote.

“You have a real talent in photography. Thank you for sharing it.”

“This is a lovely photo of a lovely family,” wrote a second.

“Happy Father’s Day, Prince William.”

“Somehow this photo is very poignant,” added a third.

“A father like any father with his children ❤ united and supporting one another.”

It was Prince William’s second choice of photo that upset some followers.

The throwback photo shows William as a young boy, smiling as his father, now King Charles III, kicks a small ball.

Charles, then the Prince of Wales, stands in a garden wearing a suit and tie, while William looks adorable in blue overalls and a matching striped T-shirt.

“Happy Father’s Day, Pa. W,” the picture was captioned.

But some followers couldn’t understand why William hadn’t shared a picture of Charles with both of his sons, William and Harry.

“He has two sons,” one person wrote.

“This is disrespectful AF.”

“He has two children ... cruel to leave one out.,” another said.

“I see why Harry left,” wrote a third.

“Poor Diana turning over in her grave watching how he is treating his brother like he doesn’t exist.

“Harry will ALWAYS be my FAVOURITE!!”

“Just wrote off his second son,” one follower commented.

“Proving his point that he was nothing but the spare.

“Sad.”

However, many followers thought the furore over Prince Harry not being in the picture was ridiculous.

“For those saying ‘he has two sons,’ are y’all OK?” one person wrote.

“This is WILLIAM’s page.

“If Harry wanted to, he could post his own.

“I don’t expect my siblings to post pictures of me to celebrate our parents!”

“The comments on this post are ridiculous,” another agreed.

“I’ve just shared a photo of my Dad on Father’s Day, didn’t include my siblings, they can post their own if they wish to, just like Harry can if he so wishes!”

“Why are so many people asking about Harry?” wondered a third.

“It’s Father’s Day, not Brother’s Day!

“William doesn’t have to celebrate for both of them.

Prince Harry did not publicly acknowledge Charles on Father’s Day — a fact several people commented on under Prince William’s post.

Father’s Day in the US, where Harry and wife Meghan now live, is celebrated on the same day as in the UK — on June 16.

“For those commenting about Harry, if he and Markle can make a webpage capitalising off of their royal titles and an IG account to sell some jams, then they can certainly make the effort to post a Father’s Day wish to their own fathers if they chose to,” one follower griped.

“It’s not the responsibility of anyone else to do it for them.”

“Harry chose to throw his father under the bus so he made it really clear he does not care (a) long time ago about his father,” said another.

Others took the neutral ground and suggested.

“If the pic or statement does not agree with you, just move on,” one follower suggested.

“Is it really necessary to write hateful comments?

“Go and find something to cheer yourself if you dislike it — hating and resenting will only make an individual a bitter misery guts and is not good for anyone!

“Why do people hide behind a screen to be nasty?

“Get a hobby!”