The eldest daughter of disgraced Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, Princess Beatrice, has spoken powerfully about a subject that’s very important to her
Princess Beatrice is putting on a brave face in the midst of the scandal engulfing her parents, by throwing herself into a project that’s very close to her heart.
The 37-year-old stayed largely out of public view in the lead up to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah Ferguson being stripped of their royal titles and home, but now she’s been spotted championing a new campaign. Beatrice’s dad Andrew’s links to Epstein proved to be too much for King Charles and he sensationally sentenced him to the shadows, away from royal life. But Beatrice and her sister Princess Eugenie retain their royal status and have continued their charity work in recent weeks.
And this week, Beatrice revealed that championing awareness for crucial premature birth research has become “incredibly close and personal” following her daughter’s early arrival. The eldest daughter of Andrew is spearheading a campaign for the premature birth research charity, Borne. In the run-up to World Prematurity Day on 17 November, Beatrice said: “The work that Borne is undertaking is something that is incredibly close and personal to me following the birth of my daughter.
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“Every year in the UK, 60,000 babies are delivered too soon, with little information or research as to why this is. That is why I am really looking forward to supporting Borne and its programme of groundbreaking research, which I hope will help thousands of parents and children in the future.”
Her daughter, Athena Elizabeth Rose, arrived several weeks early on January 22. Beatrice had been expected to welcome her baby in early spring, and received medical guidance in December advising against lengthy journeys. She accompanied the Royal Family to church services in Sandringham on Christmas Day after altering her holiday arrangements from celebrating the festive season abroad, with medics reportedly cautioning that an early delivery was possible.
Worldwide, 15 million infants are born prematurely each year, with complications from early birth continuing to be the primary cause of newborn deaths and permanent disabilities. However, a mere 2% of medical research funding is allocated to pregnancy and childbirth, according to Borne.
The charity’s campaign slogan “every week counts”, emphasising the importance of carrying a baby to full term, was showcased at an event attended by supporters, researchers, and families. The event was hosted by Beatrice on Tuesday at London’s iconic Battersea Power Station. Borne is also set to launch a podcast episode featuring Beatrice, weather presenter Laura Tobin, and Borne founder Professor Mark Johnson, discussing the charity’s work, this coming Monday.
Beatrice, who serves as a patron of Borne, and Tobin recently visited the charity’s research labs at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London. David Badcock, Borne’s chief executive, said: “Her support helps raise awareness of the urgent need for more research into prematurity, an area that has for too long been underfunded and underexplored.”
It comes as Beatrice’s dad Andrew has been heaped with fresh humiliation as thousands of Epstein emails have been released by lawmakers in the United States. The 20,000 pages of documents were made public last night after the estate of late paedophile financier turned them over to the House Oversight Committee, a panel made up of Democrat and Republican members of Congress.
It includes one revealing email from Epstein to socialite Ghislaine Maxwell in April 2011 which describes Trump as the “dog that hasn’t barked”, and claims he spent “hours at my house”. The former Prince Andrew also resurfaces in the emails, telling Epstein he had “nothing” to do with sex abuse claims against him and begging him to “say so”. Andrew has always vehemently denied all claims against him.
