Man who bought viral dress is charged with wife’s attempted murder

A man who ‘broke the internet’ after buying a dress that sparked a viral debate back in 2015 has been charged with an unthinkable crime.

The man behind this viral dress has been charged with an unthinkable crime.

A man who went viral and “broke the internet” after a dress he bought appeared to change colour has been charged with his wife’s attempted murder.

Keir Johnston, 38, appeared at the High Court in Glasgow, Scotland on Monday, The Sun reports.

He is alleged to have conducted a decade-long campaign of serious domestic violence and coercive control.

He is charged with repeatedly assaulted his wife at their home on the Isle of Colonsay, West Scotland, before allegedly brandishing a knife and attempting to strangle her.

The couple, who are both from the island, gained worldwide fame following their 2015 wedding.

Keir allegedly physically abused Grace and tried to mentally abuse her for 11 years. Picture: Grace MacPhee / Facebook

A dress worn by the mother of the bride sparked a global debate over its true colours – black and blue or white and gold.

Nicknamed “The Dress That Broke the internet”, it started a social media storm when wedding guest Caitlin McNeill first shared it on Tumblr.

The couple went on to appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, where they were handed $10,000 and a trip to Grenada after revealing the dress was indeed black and blue.

Johnston’s charges include, between April 2019 and March 2022, pushing his wife against a wall, shouting at her and throttling her, before threatening to kill her and brandishing a knife towards her.

The dress kicked off a viral debate about whether it was blue and black or white and gold back in 2015. Picture: Tumblr

He is also alleged to have attempted to enter a vehicle that his wife was in, striking her through an open window in the vehicle.

Johnston also allegedly placed his wife in a headlock and dragged her from a pub after she refused to leave with him.

Further charges claim Johnston isolated his wife from her friends and monitored her movements and her finances, controlling the amount of money that she had access to.

Prosecutors allege that the couple’s relationship devolved into a series of violent attacks by Johnston that led to the attempted murder of his wife.

Johnston’s behaviour allegedly culminated in a further accusation that on 6 March 2022 he pinned his wife to the ground and sat astride her.

Keir and Grace Johnston appeared on the “Ellen” show during the height of “the dress” debate in 2015. Picture: The Ellen Show

He then allegedly proceeded to repeatedly place his hands around her neck and compressing, restricting her breathing while making threats of violence.

He is then claimed to have threatened to kill her and brandished a knife at her, all to her injury and to the danger of her life.

The Crown say that the actions carried out by Johnston were with the intent to murder his wife.

However, the 38-year-old denies all charges against him, with the case continued for a further preliminary hearing ahead of a trial in 2024.

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was republished here with permission