The artist behind the much-mocked Kate Middleton portrait has revealed that in response to the savage criticism he received for his picture, he has created a new, much more complimentary picture of the Duchess – but he won’t let it be photographed.

Speaking to the Washington Post, Paul Emsley said that, stung by public reaction to the piece which he described as a ‘witch hunt’, he began wondering if he should have done the portrait differently.

“To answer the question, he picked up a piece of black chalk a few days ago and began cathartically sketching another work. This time, it was the way the duchess’s devoted followers so often see her in glossy magazines and airbrushed photos. Flawless. Glamorous. The fairy-tale beauty who bagged a prince," writes the Post. “But a funny thing happened as he did the sketch. The self-doubt of a man who is his own worst critic began to fade, replaced with a growing certainty that the canvas hanging in London’s National Portrait Gallery is not only the better version, but maybe even the masterwork of his career.”

I know. Artists eh?