Royal remorse: ‘What’s this all been for?’

It’s been one of the most difficult times for the royals in years, as last week it emerged that Prince Andrew had reached a £12m settlement with Virginia Giuffre, who had been attempting to sue him for sexual abuse.

Virginia – a victim of convicted paedophile, Jeffrey Epstein – had accused Prince Andrew, 61, of having sex with her three times when she was 17 in the early 2000s, and claims he was aware that she was a victim of Epstein’s girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, who was found guilty of sex trafficking minors in December. However, last week it was revealed the case had been settled, with Prince Andrew agreeing to make a “substantial donation to Ms Giuffre’s charity”.

Prior to the news of the settlement, Prince Andrew’s daughters Beatrice and Eugenie had appeared to be standing by their father, joining him at Balmoral Castle last August and being spotted leaving his Windsor home last month – just four days after it was revealed The Queen had stripped him of his honorary military roles.

And on 13 February, fans were surprised to see estranged royal Prince Harry – who relocated to America with wife Meghan Markle in 2020 – attending the Super Bowl in LA with Eugenie, 31. Harry and Meghan – who have hit out at the royal family on multiple occasions since their departure from the UK – have so far remained silent on the allegations against Andrew.

So fans were intrigued to see that Harry and his cousin Eugenie remained so close and that he had attended the Super Bowl publicly with her, a member of the family Harry had criticised so heavily in the past. What’s more, a legion of Harry and Meghan’s A-list pals were also in attendance, including Ellen Degeneres, Orlando Bloom and Katy Perry – so it came as even more of a surprise that he chose to sit with his cousin.

And royal biographer Duncan Larcombe – who wrote Prince Harry: The Inside Story and has attended multiple royal tours – tells Closer that Harry’s appearance with Eugenie at the Super Bowl spoke volumes.

Duncan says, “It was a real statement about his allegiances. Firstly, he’s attending this huge event with – not any of his new Hollywood friends – but his cousin Eugenie. He and Eugenie have always been extremely close – they’ve always had the same social circles and partied together. The fact that they are still very friendly, even after Harry turned his back on and heavily criticised the royal family, is interesting.

“Despite all his Hollywood friends and new life, he went to the Super Bowl with his cousin so he may be starting to think, ‘What has this all been for?’ It’s showing the royal world is still important to him. Secondly, he’s clearly showing that he’s standing by Eugenie despite everything that’s going on with Prince Andrew. He’s showing his allegiance to the royals in this time of crisis, and I think it’s the start of him wanting to get back into the royal fold. Perhaps he’s finally starting to wake up and feel a hint of remorse.”

Fans were also surprised to see that Meghan, 40, was not in attendance, given she and Harry have rarely been seen without each other in public since they moved to the States. Fans speculated whether Meghan may have stayed at home with the couple’s children, two-year-old Archie and eight-month-old daughter Lilibet, or even whether she may be pregnant – as last year she missed events due to her pregnancy with Lilibet.

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Meghan was previously thought to be close with Eugenie, revealing that she had attended a Halloween party with the princess and Harry in 2016 when the couple started dating. Eugenie also wished Meghan a happy 40th birthday, and signed up to her cousin’s wife’s recent charitable campaign, 40x40. But Duncan says Meghan’s absence – and the fact there was no word on why she had not been in attendance – may be down to her reluctance to be associated with Prince Andrew.

He says, “It’s fascinating Meghan wasn’t there, as I’m sure this is the type of event that the couple would have loved to have shown their faces at, solidifying themselves as A-list royalty. It’s interesting that there was no word as to why, as in the past – either through a statement or from friends – they have given a reason for Meghan’s absence. She may not have wanted to be connected with Prince Andrew via Eugenie.”

Recent reports have suggested that Harry and Meghan may be gearing up for a trip to the UK for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebration in June – fuelled by the fact that Harry has asked the Government to allow him to pay for Met Police security for him and his family, should they return to the UK. Last week, proceedings for this bid began in the High Court. It would be their first trip together back to the UK since their departure in April 2020.

However last week, Meghan’s biographer Tom Bower said he believed Meghan had “no intention of ever stepping foot back in the UK”, adding that her popularity in Britain was “a lost cause”. But whether or not the couple decide to return to the UK over the summer, Duncan says he thinks that – now Prince Andrew’s court case has been settled – Prince Charles’ priority will be to repair relations with Harry and Meghan.

He adds, “We know that Prince Harry is very impulsive so I think that even he and Meghan still don’t know if they’ll return to the UK for the Jubilee. The Queen means an awful lot to Harry, so he’ll want to celebrate her reign in some way, but whether that’s a trip back to the UK is yet to be seen.

“What I do think is that Prince Charles and Camilla will now be thinking that their next priority is making amends with Harry and Meghan. I think the couple’s deafening silence around Camilla being made Queen Consort when Charles becomes King shows that Harry is still not happy with his father.

“But I imagine Charles is thinking that when he becomes King, there can’t be any drama with Harry and Meghan if the world is to respect him as a monarch. Hopefully the fact that Harry is still close with Eugenie – who is a key member of the royal family – is a sign that bridges can be built.”

Read more in the latest issue of Closer magazine - OUT NOW.