Man behind viral ‘gold-white’ dress debate of 2015 admits to strangling wife; here’s all you need to know

The marriage went down after Keir Johnston stopped his wife Grace from giving a job interview.

The 'Gold-white' dress controversy

Keir Johnston, 38, sparked a debate on social media over the colour of a dress in 2015. The man has now confessed to assaulting his wife Grace during an altercation, and trying to strangle her.

According to The Guardian, Johnston, who hails from the Isle of Colonsay in Scotland, pleaded guilty at the high court in Glasgow, and was remanded in custody on Thursday. Reports stated Grace faced multiple instances of domestic violence.

On March 6, 2022, Johnston turned on his wife at their house on the remote Scottish island and threatened her saying, “Someone is going to die.” The marriage went down after Johnston stopped Grace from giving a job interview. He was drinking at a pub on the day of the incident and texted her saying, “You should support me, but you do not.”

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After Grace was back from the interview, Johnston pushed her to the ground. At one point, a witness tried to save Grace, but he reportedly threatened to “finish” his wife off before choking her. The incident severely bruised Grace.

Marco Guarino, the defending lawyer, said Johnston had accepted responsibility for the assault.

The ‘gold-white’ dress debate

The viral ‘gold-white’ dress shared by Johnston broke the Internet in 2015. The dress, shared on Tumblr by a guest at Johnston and Grace’s wedding, caught worldwide attention as a section of social media users thought it looked blue and black and not gold and white.

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Celebrities including Ellen DeGeneres and Kim Kardashian joined the debate back then. DeGeneres also invited the couple to her talk show, where they were given $10,000, and a trip to Grenada.