WHERE’S DAD?
BEATRICE WEDDING SHOCK Prince Andrew fails to appear in official photographs
RADIANT bride Princess Beatrice beams in an official wedding snap... but her dad Prince Andrew is nowhere to be seen.
Andrew, caught up in the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal, was a glaring omission from family snaps. The Queen and Prince Philip are seen with Bea and groom Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
BUCKINGHAM Palace last night released official pictures of Princess Beatrice’s wedding – but they didn’t show her dad Prince Andrew.
Amid his links to the Jeffrey Epstein sex abuse scandal, Andrew was notably missing from the historic pictures.
The Queen and Prince Philip were the only royals shown with beaming bride Beatrice, 31, and her husband, property developer Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi. Andrew did walk Bea down the aisle and hosted a reception at his home The Royal Lodge, Windsor.
But a decision to release snaps without him was thought to have been taken by the family alongside advice from courtiers.
It meant the Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, 60, and the groom’s parents did not feature either. Neither did Eduardo’s threeyear-old son Christopher – known as Wolfie – who was best man and pageboy.
Bea and Edoardo, 37, wed on Friday after Covid-19 put paid to their planned nuptials in May.
Fewer than 20 guests attended – a far cry from the 2018 wedding of Bea’s sister Eugenie, 30, and Jack Brooksbank, 30, at St George’s Chapel Windsor.
A friend revealed Beatrice – “determined to make her family smile again” – and her mum planned the private wedding in two weeks. The pal said: “Bea’s had an awful lot to deal with.
“The whole business with her father and then her wedding
My sweet pal Beatrice had a lot to deal with. This was opportunity to lift dark cloud ROYAL FRIEND TALKING ABOUT PRINCESS’S SECRET WEDDING
cancelled. But she is so sweet and handled it all with remarkable good grace.
“She had an opportunity to lift the dark cloud over the family and give them something to smile about. She’s quite different to her sister in that she didn’t want the big showy wedding in the first place.
“Bea and Edo are also keen to start their own family, so in the end it all worked out perfectly.”
Beatrice wore a Norman Hartnell gown borrowed from the Queen – and the Queen Mary diamond fringe tiara, which Her Majesty wore as a bride.
Andrew, 60, stood down from royal duties after a TV interview about his friendship with US banker Epstein, 66. The pair were pictured in New York’s Central Park in
2010, two years after the tycoon was convicted for procuring a girl for prostitution. Epstein killed himself in a cell last year while awaiting further child sex charges. Virginia Giuffre claims Epstein arranged for her to sleep with Andrew when she was 17 – which he denies vehemently.
A well-placed Palace insider said: “The Duke is determined to clear his name through the correct channels. His family is behind him and he hopes the joy felt by everyone at his daughter’s wedding will be a sign of happier times to come.”
Buckingham Palace said last night: “The couple decided to hold a small private ceremony with their parents and siblings following the postponement of their wedding in May. The service was in keeping with the unique circumstances while enabling them to celebrate with their closest family.”
Family visiting the Queen and Philip after they move to Balmoral next month will stay in separate properties and there will be no group meals inside.