Princess Mary is spotted looking emotional in wake of ‘affair’ rumors
Parting from loved ones when you live on the other side of the world is always difficult, but as Princess Mary of Denmark wrapped up her pre-Christmas break Down Under earlier this week, her emotional goodbye took on a deeper significance. Departing from Queenstown Airport in New Zealand after a four-day trip amid a visit to her native Australia, the future Queen appeared to wipe away a tear as she said goodbye to friends and prepared to make the journey back to Denmark – and reality.
The Danish Royal Family have been rocked by rumors in recent weeks – after photographs emerged of Prince Frederik enjoying a night out with a Mexican socialite in Madrid in October. So when Tasmanian-born Mary started her Christmas break in Australia on December 6 alongside her two youngest children, twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, both 12, it no doubt provided a welcome escape. The 51-year-old has kept a low profile on this trip, but what is next for Mary and Frederik as they face into the New Year after weathering intense scrutiny of their marriage?
Prince Frederik, 55, was reunited with his wife some days later after the couple were spotted touching down in separate planes in Queenstown on Monday. The heir to the Danish throne arrived alongside his 16-year-old daughter Isabella. But despite the ‘affair’ rumors after Frederik’s outing with 47-year-old socialite Genoveva Casanova, he remains just as popular with Denmark’s population, according to a new poll. Danish royal reporter Kenth G. Madsen told FEMAIL: ‘ Crown Prince Frederik’s Spanish adventure has basically caused a great stir among the population. Several media, including especially Ekstra Bladet, which has a critical approach to the monarchy, have not missed any opportunities to obtain comments from the royal members on official occasions, especially the Queen and Mary. But each time they have been met by a wall of silence.’
‘As a starting point, the Royal House has long since announced that they do not comment on the members’ private affairs. But the royal support is great in Denmark. Sources in Danish royal media state that they refrain from writing about the case at all because it offends their readers. According to an opinion poll, Crown Prince Frederik has maintained his popularity, and the case with the Spanish woman has apparently not influenced his popularity. A new opinion poll shows that Queen Margrethe is the most popular member of the royal house. 38 per cent believe that the Queen is the best representative of the Danish royal house. That’s what TV2 writes on December 18, for which Megafon has done the investigation. Crown Prince Frederik is second with 29 per cent of the vote. ’77 per cent respond that they believe that the Crown Prince would be “very well” or “well” suited as regent if he were to take over the throne today.’
The royal reported continued: ‘In addition, TV2 has asked whether the Queen should be regent for life. Here, 44 per cent respond that they think so, while 32 per cent believe that the queen should leave the throne to Crown Prince Frederik before his 60th birthday in 2028. 15 per cent respond that the Queen should already step down now.’ Mary and Frederik’s 23-year romance has often been dubbed a ‘real-life fairytale’ – yet the couple’s relationship has made headlines over recent weeks for less glowing reasons. Lecturas reported that, during their night out, Frederik – who is a fourth cousin of King Charles – and Genoveva visited a Pablo Picasso exhibition, walked through El Retiro Park and later went out for dinner.
At around 7pm, Lecturas claimed both Frederik and Genoveva (pictured together) went to her apartment building separately, and both re-emerged at around 9pm, two hours later, both having changed their clothes into evening wear. In the photos, Genoveva had ditched her chic camel coat with a tie belt in favor of a white shirt, black wide-leg trousers and a black jacket worn on her shoulders. Meanwhile Frederik appeared to have changed from a navy jacket and brown trousers into a white shirt and dark trousers with a smart dark jacket. Again, they were reported to have emerged from the building separately, but got into the same white car. The magazine claimed the pair watched a flamenco performance at a Spanish restaurant, El Corral de la Moreria, which finished at midnight. It also claimed they remained at their table, which had been flanked by two of the Danish Prince’s bodyguards, while other customers left, waiters finished up their shifts and the lights were being switched off.
Lecturas claimed the pair did not emerge from the restaurant until 1am, when they walked out onto the street and got in a car. In a ‘gesture of courtesy’, Lecturas reports Prince Frederik opened the car door for his dinner companion. The next day, the magazine claims the heir to the Danish throne was taken to the airport via car where he flew home to Denmark. Publication of the pictures in Spanish magazine Lecturas led the divorcee Mexican socialite to issue a statement ‘categorically’ denying any suggestion the pair are romantically involved, branding it ‘malicious’ and untrue, according to Hola!. The news broke amid a packed schedule of events for the royal couple during the state visit King Felipe of Spain and his wife Queen Letizia, and will no doubt have been viewed as an unwelcome distraction by Mary, who has scarcely put a foot wrong in her almost two decades as a working royal.
Since the photos emerged Mary has remained tight-lipped about her husband’s dinner with the socialite, and the pair have put on a united display in public appearances. However, during one instance after the publication of the photos, body language expert Judi James told FEMAIL that Mary looked ‘disengaged’ when joining the Spanish King and Queen in Copenhagen in November. Her husband, meanwhile, appeared ‘hesitant’ towards his wife while on the outing with King Felipe and Queen Letizia during their visit to Denmark. Mary and her family are currently enjoying their Christmas break – but before their flight from New Zealand to Australia this week, the princess shared a post about loneliness and the need for positive human connection during the festive period. In the letter posted on the Mary Foundation website, the future queen reflected on the past year – and said she felt it was shorter than previous years.
‘And at the same time, so much has happened that it is impossible to put it all into words,’ she continued. An excerpt shared on the official Instagram account for the Danish Royal House had some speculating the princess was using her foundation to hint at the affair rumors. ‘We need each other if we are to succeed. And that’s not only true in the working world and for those of us who are working to combat social isolation,’ it read. ‘This is true for all of us. Humans need humans.’ The touching words were shared alongside a stunning picture of the royal in the snow. She wore a purple jacket beneath a warm wool wrap and gave a soft smile towards the camera. ‘The Danish royal family are lucky to have you. I hope your husband realises he has embarrassed you and his children immeasurably. You will make a fine queen,’ one fan commented. Another wrote: ‘I think this is a sad year for Mary, her husband’s (alleged) betrayal and it’s public. What a brave woman, she can handle anything. I just adore her.’
Princess Mary touched down in New Zealand on December 18 – where she was met by Prince Frederik and their eldest daughter Isabella. The Crown Princess had arrived in Australia 12 days earlier alongside her twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine. Meanwhile, it has since emerged that father-of-four Frederik and glamorous Genoveva – the former daughter-in-law of the billionaire Duchess of Alba – met on a hunting trip and see each other several times a year.
‘They have a friendship. They know each other and have friends in common. They usually meet several times a year,’ Susanna Griso, who presents Spanish TV show Espejo Público claimed. Griso alleged that Genoveva had become close to the heir to the Danish throne after they met on a high end mountain hunting trip. The presenter explained: ‘These are exclusive meetings, where you have to pay a lot of money to attend. All of the royals and children of the major families are there. The trips are organised mostly in Germany and Austria.’ On trips of this kind, usually in mountainous regions, guests pay thousands of Euros to be able to hunt European big game animals like red deer, Alpine Ibex, wild boar and mouflon wild sheep.
But despite first getting to know Genoveva ‘at an exclusive hunting trip’, Frederik has been pictured on the Danish Royal Family’s Instagram account hosting several hunts amid the scandal. Griso added: ‘Her friends have told me that she is having a very bad time of it. She is in hiding right now and has turned off her mobile phone because she doesn’t want anyone to call her.’ Despite Genoveva’s denial, the allegations have captured attention in many Spanish-speaking countries as people say they were ‘completely unaware’ of the relationship between the reality TV star and royal. A statement from the socialite said: ‘I categorically deny the statements that suggest a romantic relationship between Prince Frederick and me.’ She added: ‘Any statement of this type not only completely lacks the truth but also misrepresents the facts in a malicious manner. This is already in the hands of my lawyers, who will take care of the pertinent steps to protect my right to honor, truth and privacy.’
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