Just In: Beatrice and Eugenie will just be heartbroken – this is a brutal slap in their face

Just In: Beatrice and Eugenie will just be heartbroken – this is a brutal slap in their face

If reality had yet to dawn on Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie just how the York family has become a tainted Royal ‘brand’, then it might now. On June 6th the society wedding of the year takes place between Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips and his fiancée Harriet Sperling at All Saints Church, in Cirencester, Gloucestershire.

The sisters – once ‘frozen out’ after having their names mentioned in the January bombshell Epstein Files – were thought to be coming to the nuptials after King Charles invited them to this summer’s Royal Ascot. But now it is claimed Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, 36, will definitely not be going to see their cousin walk down the aisle for the second time, to avoid causing a media frenzy.

Their father Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been back in the headlines in recent days which likely sparked the siblings’ decision.

Thames Valley Police say their investigation into the 66 year-old ex-prince, ongoing since his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office in February, will probe all types of misconduct including any sexual misconduct allegations.

Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing or accusations against him and there is no suggestion in the Files either that the sisters ever acted inappropriately.

But mud sticks – and Andrew and ex-wife Sarah Ferguson’s long-established friendship with US financier Jeffrey Epstein, even after his 2008 conviction for procuring a minor for prostitution, is very muddy indeed.

So Beatrice and Eugenie’s reported U-turn over attending Peter’s wedding came as “no surprise” to one royal expert.

Richard Fitzwilliams told the Express: “Anything involving the Yorks will dominate the headlines. It is therefore no surprise that the sisters reportedly will not be attending Peter Phillip’s wedding to Harriet Sperling.

“It will be an event of significance as Peter Phillips is Princess Anne’s son. Images of them (Beatrice and Eugenie) would overshadow it. This may be unfair, but it represents the reality which simply cannot be ignored.

“This is also more sensible for Beatrice and Eugenie, who have to walk a tightrope when in public which no one would envy!

Beatrice and Eugenie must feel they have been walking a tightrope for the last few years, and by no real fault of their own.

They have been landed in a mire by their parents’ past, but fortunately, they have their own families and careers to distract them.

Now they must accept this is their new Royal reality. They must remain on the periphery – for the Royal Family’s sake but also for their own