A royal expert said Princess Beatrice IS ‘having the last laugh’ as she celebrates ‘romantic’ birthday with husband Edoardo (Image: Getty Images)Sign up to our free email to get all the latest royal news and picturesMore Newsletters SubscribePlease enter a valid emailSomething went wrong, please try again later.More NewslettersWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More infoThank you for subscribing!We have more newslettersShow me See OurPrivacy Notice See OurPrivacy Notice×Group 28 Sign up to our free email to get all the latest royal news and picturesInvalid emailSomething went wrong, please try again later.Sign UpNo thanks, closeWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. More info×Group 28Thank you for subscribing!We have more newslettersShow MeNo thanks, closeSee our
Privacy Notice Princess Beatrice has been through some challenging times over the past few years. From her father Prince Andrew’s dramatic fall from grace to her mum Sarah, the Duchess of York’s devastating cancer diagnosis, there have been troubled waters for both her and younger sister Eugenie, 34, to navigate. However, as Beatrice, who is ninth in line to the throne, prepares to celebrate her 36th birthday on 8 August, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond exclusively reveals to OK! that the princess is in a good place — and has proved once again what an asset she is for our monarchy. “Beatrice seems to have struck a balance between being a modern working woman who is also a mother and stepmother, and yet still a valued member of the Royal Family, using her position to help charities and causes close to her heart,” Jennie says.
Princess Beatrice celebrates her 36th birthday on 8 August
(Image: Getty Images)
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The princess, who works in partnerships and strategy for software company Afiniti, was diagnosed with dyslexia when she was seven, and has used her profile to raise awareness of the learning difficulty. “Beatrice has done some immensely important work on dyslexia, talking about it publicly and helping to normalise it,” says Jennie. “She has inherited some of her mother’s very best qualities — relentless positivity, resilience, and a determination to use her position in life to help people who are less fortunate. Beatrice has shown some real backbone and has learned what it’s like to be scrutinised for everything she says, wears and does, with great dignity.” Indeed, after Beatrice came under fire for her choice of hat at the Prince and Princess of Wales’s 2011 wedding, she cleverly turned it into a fundraising opportunity. “After the ‘pretzel’ hat debacle, she decided to sell the offending item on eBay and give the proceeds to charity,” recalls Jennie. “She commented that when everyone was saying you look ridiculous, the only thing to do was to accept their criticism with a sense of humour. That is the kind of attitude that makes Beatrice immensely likeable.” And, as she topped society magazine Tatler’s Best-Dressed In Britain list last week, Beatrice may be having the last laugh. “She’s received a lot of stick over the years for her fashion sense, and it has taken her quite a long time to find the style she’s happy with,” says Jennie, adding that Beatrice’s commitment to home workouts, thought to include boxing classes and resistance training, have paid off.
A young Princess Beatrice in 1996 with her mum Sarah Duchess of York and her sister Princess Eugenie
(Image: REX/Shutterstock)
Princess Beatrice is a mother and doting stepmum to her husband’s son Christopher Woolf
(Image: Aaron Chown/PA Wire)
Sign up to OK’s royal newsletter to get updates sent to your inbox for free “She’s transformed herself with her fitness regime, her running and her diet, and looks the picture of health. She’s become a fashion icon, which I’m sure she wouldn’t have believed could happen some years ago. As she turns 36, I think she is really happy with who she is and the way she looks.” So how will Beatrice be marking her special day this year? “She’s quite a private person and will probably enjoy a day with her family and friends,” says Jennie. “August is a great time for a summer party, but it’s also a time when a number of the royal family are on holiday. “Beatrice will be happy to celebrate with those around her — her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, her eight-year-old stepson Christopher ‘Wolfie’ and her two-year-old daughter Sienna.” According to Jennie, 40-year-old Edoardo, who Beatrice married in 2020, could pull out all the stops. “He’s quite a romantic, so Beatrice could be expecting a few dozen red roses and a romantic birthday dinner for two, after they’ve got Sienna and Wolfie to bed. But they are a highly sociable young couple with a wide circle of friends outside the royal family, so this could be an occasion for a fabulous party in the manor house they own in the Cotswolds.” Beatrice could also be expecting a video call from her cousin Prince Harry, 39. “This generation of young royals have grown up to be close to one another, and Harry was, of course, always a favourite, with his mischievous sense of humour, his sometimes wild antics and general love of having fun.
Jennie says Beatrice’s husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi is ‘quite the romantic’
(Image: Getty Images)
Prince Harry could video call Beatrice on her special day
(Image: Getty Images)
“Beatrice has been through some difficult times because of her father, Prince Andrew, so they have more in common than simply their royal heritage. I would be surprised if Harry failed to send her birthday greetings. We know Harry wants his children to be aware of and understand their UK roots, so a birthday video call to cousin Beatrice from Harry and his children could definitely be on the cards.” When it comes to her relationship with her older cousin, 42-year-old Prince William, she’s been shown friendship and solidarity, despite the difficult situation involving her father. “It’s obviously quite a tricky situation for William, who is adamantly against allowing Andrew to return to any official royal duties,” says Jennie. “But, somehow, Beatrice and William have managed to negotiate a way through the embarrassment that Andrew has brought on the family and to remain good friends and close cousins.” Similarly, Beatrice also enjoys a good relationship with her uncle, King Charles, 75. As Jennie explains, “The monarch has shown time and time again that his nieces are very dear to him and, no matter what trouble his brother and sister-in-law have landed themselves in, it is no reflection on Beatrice and Eugenie. They, their husbands and children are always welcome at family gatherings, and I think the King recognises they are doing their bit for the monarchy.”
‘As the eldest daughter, Beatrice will have felt a special responsibility towards her mother’, the royal expert shares
The princess has turned 36!
(Image: Getty Images)
Beatrice’s mother, Sarah Ferguson, has even been welcomed back into the family fold by the King, and was said to have been invited to Christmas at Sandringham last year. It has been a tough time for the 64-year-old, who underwent a mastectomy after she was diagnosed with breast cancer last summer. She then revealed in January that she had been diagnosed with malignant melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer. “She’s been through so much, but I think really now she’s sort of coming into her own,” said Beatrice in May. “Both my sister and I are so proud of her for taking those steps to get those checks — [we’ve] really modelled our health considerations on that.” Jennie adds, “As the eldest daughter, Beatrice will have felt a special responsibility towards her mother. They all seem to have dealt with it in an admirably positive way, despite what must have been a great shock to them all. “Beatrice and Eugenie have huge admiration for their mother and remain understandably protective of both her and their father. For all the mistakes Andrew and Sarah have made in life, their daughters are an absolute credit to them and have gradually earned the respect and admiration of many people.”Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnPrince HarryPrincess BeatriceEdoardo Mapelli Mozzi
