The Waleses look Andrew-proof – this week proved it
Emily Nash on the lessons from a busy week on the royal beat
What a difference a week makes.
The monarchy may have been rocked to its foundations by the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and the ongoing police investigations, but the rest of the royal family was out in force, keeping calm and carrying on as they are famous for doing.
While both the Queen and Duchess of Edinburgh signalled their support for survivors of sexual violence, the King awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Awards to higher education institutions, including London Metropolitan University, which was recognised for its world-leading research unit dedicated to ending violence against women and girls. It’s important to point out that these were all long-planned engagements, rather than photo opportunities hastily planned in response to the Epstein scandal
The Queen hosted Gisèle Pelicot at Clarence House, having first written to the courageous abuse survivor last year. Sophie, meanwhile, was in Somalia and Kenya at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in her role with its Preventing Sexual Violence in Conlict Intiative. But the royal outings that garnered the most coverage were those made by the Prince and Princess of Wales. And I think the public’s reaction to them spoke volumes about how they will emerge from this huge crisis for the monarchy intact.
