My friend Gary's like a toddler on a sugar rush - and sorry Royals, he'll be in the Big Brother house to the bitter end, writes CLAUDIA JOSEPH

In the opening episode of the all-new Celebrity Big Brother, as he chatted to his new housemates, multi-millionaire businessman Gary Goldsmith described himself as ‘a toddler on sugar’. It’s a phrase that, for me, sums up everything you need to know about the uncle of the future Queen of England.

Indeed, his words took me straight back to a holiday I spent with him in 2014 at his villa in Ibiza, then named Maison de Bang Bang (after his favourite house music rather than anything more suspect) and now re-christened Tesoro de Oro (Golden Treasure).

As I laid by the swimming pool trying to relax with a book, he flicked my hair slide into the water. Then, with a casual wave of his hand, my sunglasses, and finally my flipflops. Just like a toddler.

‘I’m just trying to be a good host and make sure everybody is not as bored as I am,’ he said, grinning at me as I groaned.

I’d already played endless rounds of the card game Nomination Whist with him. For the fact is, as a friend of ten years standing, I know better than most how very, very bored ‘Uncle Gaz’ gets.

Gary Goldsmith enters Celebrity Big Brother, which may not be comfortable viewing for the Royal Family

For the uninitiated, Gary, 58, is the brother of the Princess of Wales’s mother Carole Middleton, and by far the most colourful of the Middleton clan. He is also one of 13 contestants on ITV’s Big Brother, alongside Sharon Osbourne, Louis Walsh and Fern Britton.

‘I often read that people think I’m a bit of a bad boy,’ he said in an interview pre-recorded for the show.

‘It would be lovely to put the record straight, but winding people up is probably my favourite hobby. Every part of me is riddled with mischief and danger. I’m an absolute nightmare to live with. There’s a reason I’ve had four wives.’

From the word go, his appearance on the show — in which he twerked and danced — has provoked a storm on social media, with many questioning his qualification as a ‘celebrity’. He’s had more negative comments on X, formerly Twitter, than any other housemate.

He has also received a backlash from TV commentators, who have described him as ‘shockingly misguided’, ‘cringe-making’ and ‘very embarrassing’ for appearing on the show when his niece is recovering from abdominal surgery.

Reality TV legend Sharon Osbourne even nominated him for potential eviction from the Big Brother House this Friday night by putting him in the so-called danger zone, saying: ‘Gary is very nervous. I don’t think he is comfortable yet.’ You can only imagine the feelings of relief among the royals if Uncle Gaz did indeed get booted out after just one week.

However, I believe predictions of Gary’s downfall may be premature. The man I know could easily turn things around with his irrepressible personality and enormous sense of fun.

Contrary to sniping commentators, I don’t believe he will embarrass the Royal Family. For one thing, he’s a huge monarchist. While he’s already put the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in their place, I’ve never heard him say a bad word about the Prince or Princess of Wales.

Even during his 50th birthday party, at The Union Club in London’s Soho — a bash with the theme Mods vs Rockers — he displayed his patriotic streak, donning a Union Jack blazer as he celebrated his half century.

Gary Goldsmith's wedding to Luan Bettany, which niece Kate Middleton, circled, attended

I first met Gary and his fourth wife Julie-Ann a decade ago after writing my first book Kate: The Making Of A Princess and interviewing him for The Mail on Sunday.

We have since become firm friends and I have stayed at his flat in Marylebone, west London, and had endless lunches and dinners with him at upmarket venues such as his private members’ club Home House. I’ve been for walks around Mayfair with him, with his chihuahuas Cheech and Keela, and even exercised alongside him at Speedflex gym, which provides high intensity interval training billed as ‘HIIT without the hurt’. He is nothing if not energetic!

Even a jaunt to watch comedian Micky Flanagan at the O2 in the Docklands turned into an adventure, as we caught a boat down the river, sipping champagne.

During lockdown, Gary, who runs the networking club for recruitment consultants called RDLC Pirates, organised a series of Zoom cookery lessons and roped in me and his 22-year-old daughter Tallulah to help. With huge gusto, we cooked dishes such as Pirates of the Morocco-Bean Moroccan Chicken and Pirates of the Spanish Chick-ean, with different friends being head chef each week. My dish, Les Pirates en Francaise, was sausages in a red wine sauce, which I learnt on a cookery course in Paris.

Watching at the other end of a Zoom link, we weren’t able to taste Gary’s creations — which possibly wasn’t a bad thing. Certainly, he seemed to have problems multi-tasking as he used every saucepan in the house, and graciously left all the washing up for Julie-Ann.

He has, however, made me a surprisingly tasty chilli — although I blanched at his offer of chilli and cheese sandwiches the following morning. ‘Go on, it’s the breakfast of champions,’ he insisted.

The place I’ve seen him at his most relaxed is on his estate in Ibiza, set in eight acres near Cala Jondal, home to the ­Yemanda beach club and Blue Marlin restaurant, a favourite haunt of celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio. Gary bought the £3.6 million villa, with its infinity swimming pool and tennis court, in July 2006 — without even viewing it.

‘I walked to the end of the pool, looked all around me and stood there thinking: “Where did it all go wrong?”’ he once joked.

He then discovered he owned his own mini road network because this was also part of the Ibizan estate. ‘This is the first time I’ve ever owned a roundabout,’ he laughed, standing by the gyratory at the end of his drive.

Once he had signed the paperwork, Gary spent a small fortune employing an interior designer to decorate the villa, fitting it out with a Bang & Olufsen sound system and art he snaps up at cruise ship auctions.

Claudia and Gary - in the bedroom where the Princess of Wales once stayed - at his home in Ibiza in 2014

There is a Picasso etching in the bathroom (‘I thought I would treat myself!’) and a white piano that plays itself in the living room (‘a birthday present to myself for my 40th’).

But it isn’t only the quirky decoration that impress on my visits — my bedroom (the one the Cambridges slept in) has a walk-in shower the size of a small bedroom and a gold bath (which my host dubbed ‘Gary Goldbath’).

‘It’s black for cars, pink for clothes, blue for football [Gary is a Chelsea fan; he bought Prince George the kit when he was born] and gold for interior design,’ he explained, with a cheeky smile on his face.

‘I just said to the designer: “Here’s 20 things I like, just knock yourself out,”’ he told me. ‘I didn’t expect him to bring cranes to hoist in two massive Buddha.’ But that’s what happened.

The villa has played host to many family parties: the Middletons spent a holiday there with Prince William when he was on a break from his training at Sandhurst.

Kate, mum Carole, dad Michael and siblings Pippa and James spent hours playing backgammon in the villa’s games room, which also has a pool table, table tennis, Wii and Space Invaders, housed outdoors in a Moroccan tent.

‘[That tent] is one of the best things I bought,’ Gary told me. ‘We used to have the biggest telly in the world there so we could play the Wii, but we left it out over the winter and it exploded.’

I’ve stayed there several times and can testify to villa’s flamboyant entertainment facilities, with an outside gym, Jacuzzi, sauna, outside bar and DJ booth.

‘My friends say my mixing is like a piano falling down,’ Gary once admitted.

He is one of 13 contestants on ITV’s Big Brother, alongside Sharon Osbourne, Louis Walsh and Fern Britton.  From the word go, his appearance on the show — in which he twerked and danced — has provoked a storm on social media

Life at the villa revolves around sunbathing, swimming and having BBQs, with the music blaring — Stevie Wonder’s Innovations is a favourite. ‘I stole this album off my sister,’ he said. We watched films, sang karaoke — needless to say after a boozy supper — sailed to the nearby island of Formentera and drove into Ibiza town to go shopping.

Spending time there with Gary is a little like going on holiday with a wealthy child — he needs constant entertainment but pays all the bills. In the driveway was a Lincoln Navigator that has not been driven for five years, a testament to his boredom threshold: he told me he’d driven it all the way to Ibiza and then lost interest.

But it would be a mistake to underestimate Gary. He is a self-made man and built up his first business Computer Futures until it comprised 11 companies, employing 2,000 staff. Seven years ago he sold it — and made £17million.

He is generous to a fault: he lent his godson James, brother to Kate and Pippa, £11,000 to help him set up his firm The Cake Kit Company which sells cake-making kits, although that venture has since closed.

So, how will Gary cope on Celebrity Big Brother?

Certainly, he is the most sociable person I know, so I suspect he will win the other housemates over with his joking and banter.

He also has the ability to mix with people from all walks of life, whether they are members of the Royal Family, or mere commoners like us. I feel certain he will embrace the tasks assigned by the producers of the show, who communicate with the housemates through the omnipresent ‘Big Brother’.

And, having snapped up suits at Soho tailors Kerrs — entering the house with two silver suitcases and a suit carrier — he will be well suited and booted. Gary could give Imelda Marcos a run for her money with his shoe collection.

Having watched him during our Zoom cookery classes, I’m not sure how he will fare in the kitchen or doing housework.

But I think the self-styled ‘King of Fun’ will entertain housemates and viewers alike. And may potentially win over the naysayers too.

The royals should settle in for the long haul — even if it may not always be comfortable viewing.