Beatrice does a Fergie
Like mother, like daughter... she cashes in on after-dinner speaking circuit
PRINCESS Beatrice is apparently cashing in on her role as the Queen’s granddaughter by hawking herself as a hired professional speaker.
The 27-year-old royal is in discussions with several US speaking agencies.
She is following in the footsteps of her mother, the Duchess of York, who charges £50,000 to £100,000 for personal appearances.
One of the firms with which Beatrice is involved bills her as ‘the fifth grandchild of the reigning Queen of England and seventh in line to her succession’.
The APB Speakers International website invites users to check her fees and availability by clicking a link, and lists her as ‘Princess Beatrice of York, Philanthropist/Businesswoman’.
This is a remarkable promotion given that she has had three jobs since leaving university, the longest of which lasted barely a year. She is now working for a private equity firm in New York.
The profile calls her ‘undeniably a figure of great poise and privilege and one who is privy to incredible and rarefied opportunities’.
It adds: ‘Princess Beatrice draws from her rich, rewarding experiences as a member of England’s Royal Family, emphasising ways she has used her platform of privilege to give back to the world.’
Until now Beatrice has been better known for her love of society parties and holidays, racking up 18 in the 12 months last December.
APB, whose clients include Michael Douglas and Sir Richard Branson, failed to respond to requests for information about how much it would charge for her services, but a source close to the princess admitted she was in ‘preliminary discussions with them’.
Asked if she would pocket potential future speaking fees or give them to charity, the source said: ‘She will be paid for them but will consider each one on a case by case basis. If she was talking about a particular charity, for example, then it would be likely the fee would go to that charity.
‘She is not expecting this to be a full-time career. She works in private equity in New York. That is her long-term plan.’
Buckingham Palace failed to respond to requests for a comment. But hours after the Daily Mail made inquiries, Beatrice’s speaker profile was removed from APB’s website.
A source close to the princess said she was mortified about what had been written and claimed that the information had been put up accidentally by a company intern.
They said: ‘This is a complete nightmare, poor girl. She is talking to APB but has not signed up. Beatrice primarily wants to talk about charity issues – dyslexia, education and women’s rights – with the money going to charities she is involved with.
‘She was approached by them, it is preliminary stages and it is very much primarily as to whether she can help her charities. She is approaching this as a professional businesswoman and is adamant that she should not be billed as a member of the Royal Family.
‘She is engaging with a number of public speaking companies.’
The claim that Beatrice has not formally been signed as a speaker was undermined by a tweet on APB’s feed showing her with the company’s agents in New York, with the caption: ‘We had #APBspeaker @yorkiebea [Beatrice’s Twitter profile] in the office!’
The posting included a video in which Beatrice talks about the Queen, calling her ‘the greatest grandmother’. The website says Beatrice will talk about topics including ‘Everyone needs help once in a while’ and ‘Finding purpose in your life’. It also offers ‘An evening with Princess Beatrice’ in which she will reveal stories from ‘all aspects [of her] privileged life ... devoted to serving others and giving back’.
It says she is ‘one of the bright lights of her generation’, battled dyslexia at a young age, and has established her own charity, The Big Change, to help young people.
Both her mother and her father, Prince Andrew, have also been accused of cashing in on their royal connections.
‘Air Miles Andy’ quit his globe-trotting role as a trade ambassador after questions about his friendships with Middle Eastern royals and eastern European dictators. Sarah has made a living by promoting businesses from Weight Watchers to curling tongs.
‘A complete nightmare’