Prince Edward's ex-girlfriend Ruthie Henshall has shared the reason the Duke of Edinburgh knew their relationship would not have panned out.
The English actress and singer, who has authored the new book The Showgirl and the Prince, dated the late Queen Elizabeth II's son when they were both in their twenties from 1988 to 1993. Speaking to HELLO!'s A Right Royal Podcast, Ruthie opened up about her romance with the royal and the major obstacle that was partly behind their breakup.
Ruthie explained that they took their relationship very slowly at first, due to Edward’s insistence. "I think I was so patient because I loved him and I was waiting for him to be able to commit. And I think that comes from my childhood, when if somebody looks like they're going to abandon you or walk away, you hold tighter and tighter. But what actually happened was, the more my career took off, the more confidence I got, and the more I was able to deal with the lack of commitment to him. And as soon as I did, he would want to come back."
The actress added: “I think that maybe he knew all along that we probably couldn't be together, but he couldn't let go, and I couldn't let go because I was waiting for him to change his mind or to say, ‘Sod this, we're doing this'."
© Max Cisotti/Dave Benett/Getty ImWhy it didn't work out
Ruthie shared that part of the reason it wouldn't have worked out was because she would never have given up her career to be with the royal.
"I thought about it in my head," Ruthie said. "But every time I thought about it, I thought, well, maybe. But he had said to me, 'Ruth, can you imagine what would have to happen if you wanted to do eight shows a week? The cost of that alone, of having to have sniffer dogs at the theatre every night and to have protection. That in itself would have been hard and expensive.
“I always thought we'd find a way. And I kept thinking about Edward and Mrs. Simpson. I thought this could be the greatest role of my life. And I could do some good. But the bottom line is - I was born to sing, dance and act. And I still get a kick out of it. If I'd have given it up, I would have been miserable. It's not my kind of life," she said.
As for whether Edward ever gave her hope that they would get married, Ruthie admitted: "He did give me hope many times. But then off the back of that, he’d always say, 'You would have to give up your career and your life will change immeasurably.'”
"I'm going to say something very controversial now. The love of my life is what I do. There's no man who has ever been able to match that. And men come and go in my life. I've been single for a long time," Ruthie said.
Ruthie and Edward's relationship
Ruthie met Prince Edward in 1988 when he worked as a production assistant for Andrew Lloyd-Webber's Really Useful Theatre Company. The pair were seeing each other for five years before calling it quits in 1993.
Ruthie, who has opened up about their romance in her new book, went on to welcome two children with her former husband, Tim Howar. The Duke of Edinburgh has a daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, 22, with his wife Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh.
