Prince William was seen in a frosty moment with his uncle Prince Andrew at the funeral of the Duchess of Kent – and Jennie Bond says it speaks volumes about their relationship
Royal family leave from the requiem mass of the Duchess of Kent
Prince William “pulled rank” with ‘toxic’ Prince Andrew amid a frosty moment between the men, according to a royal expert.
Nearly all senior members of the Royal Family turned out earlier this week to pay their respects to the late Duchess of Kent, the wife of the Duke of Kent, who died earlier this month at the age of 92.
At the end of the service at Westminster Cathedral, as the Duchess’s coffin was carried to the hearse for a private burial at Windsor, William, his wife Kate, and the other royals stood on the steps of the building to pay their final respects.
As they waited, disgraced Andrew, who is known to have a rocky relationship with his nephew, the Prince of Wales, who is said to be ‘no fan of him’ was seen trying to chat to him.
Andrew could be seen smiling at William, who looked straight ahead as they had an awkward exchange, with William reportedly ‘furious’ at being cornered by his uncle during the poignant ceremony.
And with pictures capturing the awkward exchange, royal expert Jennie Bond says it has reinforced what we believe to be true.
The former BBC royal correspondent told the Mirror : “William finds his uncle an embarrassment to the monarchy. I think it was an illustration of the fact that when William has made up his mind about something, he sticks to it.
“And that is by no means a bad thing. It would be hypocritical of him to pretend all is well when there is clearly tension between himself and Andrew. William looked intensely uncomfortable as Andrew tried to make conversation. It was a supremely awkward moment in what was a very solemn occasion.
“I think the body language proved that William is the top dog in this relationship: a future King who outranks his uncle. Andrew has demonstrated time and again that he is bizarrely oblivious to how toxic he now is.
“It was crass of him to try to get some banter going — especially at such a sad occasion and when the cameras were quite clearly on him and William. Andrew’s big brother and his other siblings tolerate him, but William is a different generation with a different outlook.”
When Andrew arrived at the funeral last week alongside his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, there were audible gasps among spectators outside.
And Jennie added: “I can understand that Andrew wanted to attend the funeral, but once again he demonstrated that he has very little appreciation of how the public – and many of his family – feel about him and the damage he’s done to the monarchy.
“He could have stood quietly at the back of the group, away from the cameras and the senior members of the Royal family, such as William. Instead, he chose to position himself right next to his nephew .
“It was further proof, if proof were needed, that the Duke of York simply doesn’t understand the strength of public opinion against him.”
