Browse links
US residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data.
The British Royal Family has a long history with scandals, some they've addressed head on, and others that have continued to be rumors.
In 1978, Margaret and Antony's divorce was finalized, per the New York Times, with the publication reporting, "The marriage has broken down and the couple have lived apart for two years." Afterwards, Margaret was often branded as "unlucky" by the press, compared to her sister Queen Elizabeth II. In 2022, Queen Elizabeth II granted Roddy permission to visit Princess Margaret's grave on the anniversary of her death.
Ball was eventually arrested by police officers nearby after fleeing the scene. Queen Elizabeth II later awarded Russell with the George Medal, Britain's highest civilian award for gallantry. At the ceremony, the Queen reportedly said, "The medal is from the Queen, but I want to thank you as Anne's mother."
A London paper reported at the time, per the LA Times, that Mark had "never accepted that he is the father." According to Tatler, a DNA test later confirmed that Mark was the father.
According to her memoir, Fergie said she warned Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew about the photos possibly being published in advance. At the time Buckingham Palace issued a short statement in response to the photos, saying, "We strongly disapprove of the publication of photographs taken in such circumstances."
At the same time, taxpayers were questioning the cost of the Royal Family, and a fire broke out at Windsor Castle, which burned for a reported 15 hours, which devastated the Queen. "She regarded it as home because she spent most of the Second World War there," recalled BBC correspondent Michael Cole.
According to BBC, Earl Spencer, Diana's brother, alleged that Bashir showed him "fake financial documents" from Diana's former private secretary in order to gain access to the princess. The BBC accepted the "serious harm" that was caused to Patrick Jephson, Diana's private secretary, and paid his legal costs.
Photographer Mario Brenna reportedly "made about £1.7 million, or $2.1 million, from the photos of the couple." British photographer Jason Fraser, who helped Mario sell the images, said that after they were published, "over 2,000 photographers arrived" hoping to capture photos of Diana and Dodi.
Eventually, the Queen ruled that all flags at royal residences would be lowered to half-mast. The royal standard traditionally is never flown at half-mast because it's the sovereign's flag, and there is never a vacancy in the monarchy. The Union flag was placed at half-mast after the Queen left for Diana's funeral at Westminster Abbey.
Prince Charles reportedly requested that Prince William suggest to Harry that he spend some time at Featherstone clinic to "familiarize himself with the dangers of drugs."
Harry added that they "both howled" when he tried it on, saying that even at the party, which he recalled had a "cringy" theme of natives and colonials, "no one looked twice at [his] costume." He continued, saying, "There were moments over the course of the next several weeks and months when I thought I might die of shame. The typical response to the photos was: What could he have been thinking? The simplest answer was: I wasn't."
The statement continued, saying, "It is true that my financial situation is under stress, however that is no excuse for a serious lapse in judgement and I am very sorry that this has happened. I can confirm that The Duke of York was not aware or involved in any of the discussions that occurred."
In 2021, Harry opened up about the incident on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast, recalling it took place before he shipped out to Afghanistan, and he recalled feeling like he needed to get away and it stemmed from him knowing he needed help. He said, "Any single one of us, whoever we are, wherever we come from, we're always trying to find some way to be able to mask the actual feeling. And be able to try and make us feel different to how we are actually feeling, perhaps from having a feeling, right?"
Author Omid Scobie spoke about including the rumor in his book, saying, "For legal reasons there are so many things that one can't go into but I thought it was really important, even if a rumor is a rumor. And I really don't see proof that there is more to this than just a tittle-tattle, you know."
In 2021, Prince Harry and Meghan sat down with Oprah to discuss their time as working royals and what it was like stepping down. Notably, Meghan discussed how there was "concerns and conversations about how dark" their son Archie's skin would be when he was born, and she talked about "being silenced" by the Royal Family. Harry was also vocal about fearing Meghan would end up like his mother, Princess Diana, if they stayed. The Palace issued a response to the interview on behalf of the Queen as well, saying, "The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan."