With emails being leaked, allegations against the former Prince Andrew continuing, and the King being heckled by strangers in the street, there’s no denying that Britain’s royal family is under scrutiny like never before.
The furore surrounding the relationship between Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, his former wife Sarah Ferguson and paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein shows no sign of abating – despite Andrew’s repeated denials of wrongdoing – and insiders say the strain is now taking its toll on an already fragile Princess of Wales, 44.
UNDER PRESSURE
While Kate and William were spotted enjoying a skiing holiday together in the French Alpine ski resort of Courchevel in January, just days later the Princess was thrust inadvertently into conversation surrounding the large‑scale public release of Jeffrey Epstein’s email cache and related documents. The reason? One email that Andrew, 65, sent to Epstein, 66, in August 2010 with the subject “Troublesome One”.
“Kate has agreed to a deal in London,” the former duke wrote in the email.
“It’s down to you to bring J over the line. God it’s cold and dank here!” Andrew continued. “Wish I was still a pet in your family!”
Without any further context to the email, it’s unclear who Andrew was referring to, but Andrew’s reference to “Kate” immediately led to unfounded speculation about whether it was the then Kate Middleton.
Being mentioned or pictured in the Epstein files does not indicate wrongdoing, but insiders say the princess “can’t deal” with much more of the “conspiracy talk” and wants everyone to know “it’s all lies”.
“She has nothing to hide and has no intention of even addressing such ridiculous claims, but there’s no doubt it’s wearing her down,” an insider tells Woman’s Day, adding that the princess has been “carrying a lot of the load behind the scenes” while William deals with the palace’s “PR nightmare”.
“She is exhausted, it’s a multitude of things, from her health to her kids and – now – to trolls linking her to Andrew’s horror show”, the source adds.
“She wasn’t even married to William when that email was sent so it’s obscene to try and think she’s the ‘Kate’ Andrew’s talking about.”
With the palace PR team in crisis mode as more revelations come to light, statements from both William, 43, and Kate and the King, 77, were issued revealing they’re “deeply concerned” by the revelations and are “focused on the victims.”
“It’s putting a lot of strain on Kate and William’s marriage as they try to navigate this nightmare and already they’re at odds,” the insider continues. “Kate’s still very worried about Beatrice and Eugenie, with Beatrice said to be so stressed she’s stopped eating. But William is looking at the bigger picture and what the scandal could mean for the monarchy. And as much as William sympathises with his cousins, he cannot have them in a public-facing position while the allegations continue to unfold.
“So Kate’s having to calm him down, but who’s calming her down? She’s bottling up a lot of worries and with her health already so fragile there’s only so much she can take.”
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