EXCLUSIVE: Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank are just weeks away from welcoming their third child, but as Andrew and Fergie remain in exile, it is unclear if they will be present for the birth of their grandchild
Eugenie’s mother Sarah remains in exile, just weeks before she is due to give birth to her third child(Image: Getty Images)
In a matter of weeks, Princess Eugenie is expected to give birth to her third child after announcing the pregnancy in May and revealing the new addition to their family would arrive “this summer”.
The princess and Buckingham Palace shared a sweet snap of her two sons looking down at a print of an ultrasound for the announcement, adding the King is “delighted” at the news.
The statement read: “Her Royal Highness Princess Eugenie and Mr Jack Brooksbank are very pleased to announce that they are expecting their third child together, due this summer. August (aged 5) and Ernest (aged 2) are also very excited to have another sibling join the family. His Majesty The King has been informed and is delighted with the news.”
And while a new baby is a joyous occasion for any family, Eugenie has had a difficult year with her parents, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, finding themselves at the centre of the Epstein scandal and facing questions over their friendship with the convicted sex offender.
Since Andrew and Fergie were stripped of their titles last October and kicked out of the Royal Lodge by King Charles, the divorced couple have remained out of the spotlight and in a self-imposed exile away from the public eye, although they vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
As a result, it has long been rumoured that Eugenie has been keeping her parents at arms length while the scandal – and police investigation into Andrew following his arrest in February – rages on.
But with their new baby on the way, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond believes the grandparents will be extremely excited for the new addition to their family, despite their current circumstances.
Jennie told the Mirror: “Well, who wouldn’t want to be involved in the birth and first few days in the life of a new grandchild? It’s only natural that Fergie, and Andrew too, would want to meet the new arrival and give any support they can to Eugenie.
“Will it happen? Who knows! It’s thought that Eugenie has distanced herself from her disgraced father, and possibly from her mother as well. But the truth is, we don’t know what, if any, conversations or meetings they have had in recent times.”
Jennie said that Fergie has long been a loud and proud grandmother to both Eugenie and Beatrice’s children, and will likely be supporting her youngest daughter from behind closed doors, if she is invited to.
“We do know that Fergie has been a doting grandmother in the past to her four little grandchildren, and I’m sure she would be heartbroken if she were excluded from this wonderful new episode in Eugenie and Jack’s life,” Jennie explained.
“But it’s going to be up to her daughter, who lives much of her life in Portugal these days. I think the couple will issue a photo of the new arrival in the fullness of time, but I certainly don’t expect to see either Andrew or Sarah included in that photo.
“The Epstein scandal has clouded all of their lives in one way or another. I think whatever relationship Eugenie now has with her parents, it will remain private and extremely discreet. And that’s probably for the best all round.”
