The royal family has had their fair share of scandalous romances, and a 2025 book detailing Prince Andrew's fall from grace inadvertently also placed the spotlight on the story of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip's relationship. In "Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York," Andrew Lownie claims Philip had an affair with Andrew's ex-wife's mother. He didn't allege it to be so, he stated it as a fact. He casually dropped the bomb at the start of the book while detailing Andrew's wedding
to Sarah Ferguson, penning, "The father of the groom and mother of the bride -- lovers 20 years earlier -- sat in the third carriage waving to the crowds ... " Er, what?!
Said mother of the bride was Susan Barrantes, and she and Philip were known to be good friends. In fact, while Windsor Castle was burning down in 1992, Philip was notably absent from Queen Elizabeth II's side. He was in Argentina with Barrantes, attending a party. When Lownie was questioned about the bombshell claim by GB News, he insisted this information was as trustworthy as it comes, asserting that his source was his mother-in-law, who was friends with Barrantes.
This isn't the first time the late Prince Philip has been accused of infidelity. Royal author Ingrid Seward told Fox News that, in all the years she's been conducting research on the royal family, the prince's alleged trysts kept popping up. "I never got a conclusive answer," Seward admitted.
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Prince Philip Was The Subject Of Affair Rumors For Most Of His Life
Before Prince Philip's heartbreaking death, his life in the royal spotlight often included rumors about affairs. Most notably, the prince was said to have had a clandestine relationship with stage actress Pat Kirkwood. He paid her a visit backstage in 1948 while Queen Elizabeth II was pregnant with King Charles III. The two hit it off and had a fun-filled night, but Kirkwood always insisted there was nothing romantic between them. The two did, however, stay in touch, writing each other letters. Author Michael Thornton eventually gained possession of these letters, which he said Kirkwood's will stated had to be given to Philip's official biographer after his death.
Kirkwood denied having an affair with the prince until the bitter end. She claimed the rumors had a negative impact on her reputation and was none too pleased with Philip simply ignoring the gossip instead of addressing it. She made this known in one of her letters to the royal, writing, "If there had been some support from your direction, the matter could have been squashed years ago, instead of (my) having to battle a sea of sharks single-handed" (via The Telegraph). Philip responded, "Short of starting libel proceedings, there is absolutely nothing to be done. Invasion of privacy, invention and false quotations are the bane of our existence."
While there's no record of Queen Elizabeth ever commenting on the affair rumors, Philip did once clap back at the salacious gossip, according to royal author Gyles Brandreth's book, "Philip & Elizabeth: Portrait of a Marriage." Brandreth quoted Philip saying, "How could I? I've had a detective in my company, night and day, since 1947."
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