Following another fast-moving week of royal news, HELLO!'s Royal Editor Emily Nash sat down on A Right Royal Podcast to unpack Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's latest legal battle, Prince William's viral moment with Ross Kemp, and the Duchess of Sussex's unexpected afternoon tea at Claridge's.
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Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's legal battle & financial restrictions
Q: What actually happened with Andrew's High Court challenge against Thames Valley Police?
Emily Nash: "He's had a minor victory of sorts at the High Court, where we learned on Thursday that search warrants that were issued by a court around the time of his arrest in February have been quashed. And they've come to an agreement, this is Andrew and Thames Valley Police. So just to take you back to February, it was his 66th birthday, no one's ever going to forget that image of him in the back of the car being driven away from a police station and back to Wood Farm where he was staying at Sandringham.
© Getty Images"But you will remember that in the days that followed, police went and searched both Wood Farm at Sandringham, and the property Royal Lodge, Windsor, where he had been living for the past 20 years or so. Now, Andrew has subsequently taken legal action against Thames Valley Police, he said that they picked up personal items of his, things that were unrelated to this investigation. There's obviously been a bit of a dispute going on behind the scenes, and the result is that these search warrants have been overturned, so they've been found to have been unlawful.
"Now I was talking to a crime journalist earlier in the week who's an expert in this, and he was saying that these technicalities can completely scupper cases, and it's the kind of thing that can bring something down; you have to follow incredibly careful procedures to carry out these kind of searches. But what Thames Valley Police said on Thursday is that actually it was the decision made by the court to issue it that was incorrect, and it doesn't affect the investigation. Mr Justice Hilliard said on Thursday at the High Court that agreement was reached between the claimant and Thames Valley Police that the search warrants were unlawful, but he says, 'The fact that the search warrants were quashed does not bring the investigation to an end, or mean that the whole of the investigation was unlawful.' This is going to rumble on."
Q: What happens to the evidence police seized, and how does King Charles feel about this legal fight?
Emily Nash: "This is what everybody wants to know, and whether we'll ever find out. It's not stopping anytime soon. And the big question is what happens to what they did seize, the material that they did collect as part of their evidence gathering. Do they get to hold on to it? Do they get to hold on to everything? Do they have to give some of it back? This is all subject to ongoing legal proceedings at the moment. We know Andrew's opposing them holding on to anything, as you'd imagine. And this is going to go on. There's going to be another hearing into this in 2027. So, buckle up.
"This has been a complication as well for the King. Because Andrew, as we know, doesn't really have any income other than the stipend he receives from the King every year. Now, the King has taken the decision that he will cover his brother's living costs. You know, he's put him up in Sandringham and he's covering his needs, because he has taken away his home at Royal Lodge, etc. And Andrew doesn't have another means of earning a living at the moment.
"He's now in a situation where he's receiving money from the King, and the King has had to make it very clear that this money can't be spent on this judicial review and challenging law enforcement bodies, of which the King is nominally head. It's a bit like Harry, when he was critical of the judge in the case against Associated Newspapers. These are sort of seen as attacks on law and order, and the King has to maintain a distance from these. So, it puts him in a difficult position."
© POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesKing Charles, Elton John & Prince William's viral TV joke
Q: King Charles had a star-studded outing at Apple HQ. What was that visit about?
Emily Nash: "He was there to attend a new King's Trust initiative, and this is supporting young people who are trying to find their way in music. He met a young rapper called Princess. She talked about being a princess in need of her king. And we know this isn't the first thing he's done with Apple. He was there, wasn't he, just a little while ago, launching his playlist. So we know he loves music. He was joined by Sir Elton John, no less, which is a pretty starry lineup. Well, he's been quite closely linked to the Royal Family for so many years, as we know, and famously sang at Diana's funeral."
Q: Prince William knighted Kevin Sinfield, but also had a hilarious moment in Somerset. What happened?
Emily Nash: "I still feel a little bit emotional even talking about Kevin Sinfield, my new hero in life. William was there to knight him, Sir Kevin Sinfield, for his achievements on the pitch, but also for motor neurone disease charities. And it was very sweet, he obviously mentioned Rob Burrow, who was his friend and teammate who he's done all this fundraising in memory of... Beautiful pictures of him, and it's unusual to see him suited and booted and not in running kit and not soaking wet and looking pretty exhausted.
© Andrew Parsons / Kensington Pala"I did want to mention William's engagement in Somerset. This was to unveil a new initiative by the National Emergencies Trust, which he's patron, down in Ilminster. And it's about helping communities prepare... Something obviously William's hugely tuned into because of Earthshot. But it doesn't hurt to have a little celebrity face in the mix."
Emmy Griffiths: "Prince William met with Ross Kemp... I actually did a TikTok video about this because I loved it. It was like my two favourite things colliding. It was the royal family with the celebrity Traitors. Could not have been happier! Prince William recreated a moment in The Traitors where Ross gets touched on the shoulder and he thinks he's been murdered in plain sight. In this, it's a very jokey photo where William's obviously teasing him for it. He's a huge Traitors fan."
Meghan's London outing & Prince Harry's apology rumours
Q: The Duchess of Sussex was spotted at Claridge's in London with Malala Yousafzai. What did you make of that?
Emily Nash: "None of this is low key. And this is why I think this whole move is quite extraordinary. Lest we forget, back in June, when Harry came back to the UK, he said it wasn't safe for him to bring his wife and children to the capital. So they did come to the UK and they stayed outside of London. What has changed to make Meghan come back? She's there in central London and it's one thing to be discreetly spotted at the table. But then she was photographed coming out in some very elegant clothing with Malala. It may not be her responsibility at all that that has happened, but what's changed? They must be confident that they are either having or about to have some better security, perhaps? Intriguingly, it seems to deviate from what we were told just a couple of months back."
© InstagramQ: Reports claimed Prince Harry was preparing to apologise to Prince William. Is there any truth to that?
Emily Nash: "This whole thing has stemmed from a story in a British newspaper that was quite patently untrue, but got a lot of pickup, largely in the United States, because there was quite a strong denial from Harry's camp. The story was saying that they were going to apologise and they were going to do everything they could to reconcile with William and Catherine. Unfortunately, it's not true; it's just not true. There's been a big denial of this story and it was described to me as nonsense.
"And that has now been spun into 'they are refusing to apologise.' It does show just how bad the situation is. Essentially, this is a story about no change. This is a story about no change, but it's made some very dramatic headlines, and obviously, the sensitivities around it are such that people in Harry's camp have wanted to speak out, because aside from anything else, if it looks like you're briefing that that is happening, that's not helping anyone either.
"I don't see a world at the moment in which they're going to sort of meet up with the Waleses. I may be wrong, but it seems incredibly, incredibly unlikely given quite how dire the relationship is. But we know there was an initial call, I believe, with the King when they first arrived, but they've not seen him since."
© POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesHoliday plans
Q: What are Harry and Meghan's plans for the autumn and Christmas?
Emily Nash: "I'd be very surprised if the Sussexes are around at Christmas. I think they'll head to see Doria, I think that was always the plan."
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