She knew it was absolutely nothing., Though Philip and Knatchbull never had a romantic relationship, their friendship was undoubtedly close. Back then, Penny was simply Penelope Eastwood, daughter of Reg Eastwood, a wealthy butcher turned businessman who founded the Angus Steakhouse restaurants. Penelope was invited to take over as High Steward by the town council. According to Seward, Knatchbull was close to both Elizabeth and Philip, and is a friend to their son, now-King Charles III. Elena Nicolaou is a senior entertainment editor at Today.com, where she covers the latest in TV, pop culture, movies and all things streaming. In May last year, tattooed Nicholas, 40, a music producer and gardener, married Ambre Pouzet, a French former fire-eating mermaid performer. Have you ever stopped to think that for years, I have never moved anywhere without a policeman accompanying me? Attn: everyone wondering if she *really* had an affair with Prince Philip. Her husband Norton Knatchbull is Philip's godson and a grandson of Philip's uncle, Louis Mountbatten (per iNews ). The now-Countess Penny is believed to have visited him regularly at his retirement cottage at Sandringham before his death, according to the Daily Beast. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Devastated by this horror, Penny and Norton decided to postpone their wedding for two months. Below are some key moments from their her friendship with the late Duke of Edinburgh through the years. Knatchbull lost her 5-year-old daughter Leonora to kidney cancer in 1991; The New York Post reports that The Crown argues this tragedy brought her closer to Philip. According to royal biographer Ingrid Seward, Penny and Philip's friendship blossomed after the family tragedy. Information about the 4th season of The Crown has leaked out and, according to The Sun, the Netflix series will show Knatchbull and Philip in intimate scenes., This has caused controversy. A mitigating factor in any hard feelings Penelope might have held toward her husband may be the state of his health. And they were often seen chilling at events: These two were so close, in fact, that Penny was one of only 30 mourners at Philips funeral: And she was also one of the mourners at the Queens funeral: According to reports from The Sun, The Crowns fifth season will showcase Prince Philip in intimate scenes with Penny. Carriage driving is a sport where one driver steers a carriage drawn by one, two, or four horses, with three tests of skill and speed. Her marriage troubles came on top of worry about their son, Nicholas, who was a year above Prince William at Eton, and had spent years hooked on crack cocaine and heroin. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. She and Prince Philip reportedly forged a connection over their mutual love for the outdoors and horses. One source said at the time: Not for a moment would Penny allow her husbands departure to interrupt the smooth running of the estate.. Penelope Knatchbull, Countess Mountbatten of Burma and Queen Elizabeth II attend The Royal Windsor Horse Show at Home Park on May 13, 2022. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Penelope has been so much a part of royal life, household staff have nicknamed her And Also, Penelope has been a trusted member of the Royal Familys inner circle for years and bonded with Philip through their love of carriage-driving, Jonathan Pryce as Prince Phillip and Natascha McElhone as Penny Knatchbull in The Crown, Penny was the only non-family at Philips small, Covid-restricted funeral, except for his personal secretary, Penny and Prince Charles pictured in 1983, The pair mount their motorbikes during the Royal Windsor Horse Show at Home Park, Windsor Castle on May 13, 2005, Philip and Penny at Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2009, Inside Prince Philips highly personal relationship with Penny Knatchbull the only non-Royal invited to his funeral. Penny returned to the Royal Windsor Horse Show last month without her decades-long comp-anion for the first time. ", IRA assassinated Philip's grandfather, Lord Mountbatten. She was known as Lady Romsey between 1979 and 2005; The Lady Brabourne between 2005 and 2017; and now Countess Mountbatten of Burma. Asked whether these female friendships ever bothered the queen, Bedell Smith points to a conversation she had with Pamela Hicks, who was a bridesmaid and lady-in-waiting to the late monarch. Queen Elizabeth and Penny chat at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2001. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. Shes lost her best friend., The Crowns Princess Diana Debuts Her Revenge Dress, Everything You Need to Know About The Crowns New Season, Imelda Staunton and Jonathan Pryce on Channeling Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Recreating Princess Dianas Prescient 90s Fashion, The Crown Season 5 Is a Compelling Prelude to Tragedy, What Happened When Fake Charles Met Real Camilla, From the Archive: Dodis Life in the Fast Lane, Discover More Real-Life Royal Scandals With VFs Dynasty Podcast, 2023 Cond Nast. Initially, "home" meant a stable block on the estate, but after a few years, it was said that he was allowed back in Broadlands proper. But it was after Pennys five-year-old daughter Leonora died of kidney cancer in 1991 that Philip really began to take her under his wing. The couple revisited the estate in 2007 and recreated one of the photos from that time for their 60th wedding anniversary. According to the book Prince Philip Revealed by Ingrid Seward, as described in People, the author wrote, When I saw Philip and Penny gilding around the dance floor at the Royal Yacht Squadron Ball during Cowes Week, neither of them gave a damn who saw them or what anyone might say.. Their friendship began after Leonoras death: Philip befriended her when her life began to fall apart and encouraged her to take up carriage driving, Seward wrote. Penny returned to the Royal Windsor Horse Show last month without her decades-long comp-anion for the first time. Where are 'Scream killers' Brian Draper and Torey Adamcik now? Queen Elizabeth II's thoughts and feelings on nearly everything were opaque. The Countess Mountbatten of Burma 32 years younger than the late Duke of Edinburgh, who died in April 2021 aged 99 has been a trusted member of the Royal Familys inner circle for years and bonded with Philip through their love of carriage driving. So why is her appearance in The Crown so controversial? Theyre also distantly related by blood: Norton is the grandson of of Philips uncle, Louis Mountbatten. Their relationship was forged through tragedy: Penny Eastwood was the daughter of a very rich meat trader, the founder of the Angus Steakhouse chain, and married Norton Knatchbull, a cousin of Prince Charles and godson of Prince Philip - in 1979 She and the late Queen's husband became particularly close after her five-year-old daughter . Netflix are not interested in peoples feelings.. Sure enough, the queen reluctantly meets with her husband's companion one-on-one and even invites her to ride with her to church service. The day after Philip was laid to rest at St Georges Chapel, Windsor, Irish republican party Sinn Fein the political wing of the IRA apologised for Mountbattens assassination. She was diagnosed with cancer and died at age 5. She even stayed close through the Duke of Edinburgh's final days. It was the first season of the series to be released following both the death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh on 9 April 2021 and the death of Queen Elizabeth II on 8 September 2022.. Imelda Staunton stars as Elizabeth, along with main cast members Jonathan . To prove that he has nothing to hide, Philip even convinces his wife to befriend Penny (played by Natasha McElhone) herself. There is a 75 percent chance she's listening to Lorde right now. In 2017, Prince Philip retired from public life, joking that he had to stand down as he wouldn't be standing up for much longer (per the Evening Standard). Bei der Nutzung unserer Websites und Apps verwenden wir, unsere Websites und Apps fr Sie bereitzustellen, Nutzer zu authentifizieren, Sicherheitsmanahmen anzuwenden und Spam und Missbrauch zu verhindern, und, Ihre Nutzung unserer Websites und Apps zu messen, personalisierte Werbung und Inhalte auf der Grundlage von Interessenprofilen anzuzeigen, die Effektivitt von personalisierten Anzeigen und Inhalten zu messen, sowie, unsere Produkte und Dienstleistungen zu entwickeln und zu verbessern. The Knatchbulls' five-year-old daughter Leonora dies after a 14-month battle with cancer. They were even spotted dancing together at the Royal Yacht Squadron Ball during one Cowes Week. The Daily Mail quoted an anonymous aide saying that when they drew up a guest list for a family function, private or public, big or small, Prince Philip would review the invitations and inevitably say, "and also Penny." Back then, Penny was simply Penelope Eastwood, daughter of Reg Eastwood, a wealthy butcher turned businessman who founded the Angus Steakhouse restaurants. He was also shown forging a close relationship with Prince Charles, as mentor and father figure. It was even rumoured Prince Charles had cut off his friendship with Penny after someone close to him shared their suspicion that his father was having an affair with her. 690 comment s 1 video It's also implied in the movie, The Queen but that is also written by Peter Morgan. "Philip always was a flirt," his biographer Ingrid Seward told The Sun. And Wales Online noted that she has often been seen at the Royal Windsor Horse Show, as a guest of the family. She was 32 years younger than the Duke of Edinburgh. But Seward writes that the entire royal family was fond of Penny, not just Charles and Philip. The Oscar nominees play the queen and her consort during the mid-'90s, a time period famously rife with scandal for the royal family, in, Prince Harry on Williams Hairline and Their Wicked Stepmother. Charles, Philip's oldest son who is now the British sovereign, was Norton Knatchbull's best man in their wedding. She was 32 years young than he was, but they developed a close friendship over the years, bonding over their love of outdoor activities and all things equestrian.. The Queens former press secretary Dickie Arbiter told the Sun: This is cruel rubbish.. By accepting, she was automatically in the post, but a formal induction ceremony was held in 2011. A TV insider last year said: The highly personal relationship is unlikely to be welcomed as a storyline by the Queen or the rest of the Royal Family.. Theres already major backlash to this alleged narrative decision, and the Queens former press secretary Dickie Arbiter told The Sun that coming just weeks after the nation laid Her Majesty to rest next to Prince Philip, this is very distasteful and, quite frankly, cruel rubbish. Jeannie, as she is known, is the sister of former Bahamas Attorney General Sean McWeeney. He encouraged Penny to take up his sport of carriage driving, to distract her, and got his head groom Micky Flynn to show her the ropes. Powered by. The relationship between Penny Knatchbull and Prince Philip is causing controversy. Penny later became Lady Romsey after she married Prince Philip's . She was a keeper not only of his secrets but those of the family., Meanwhile, back in 2021, The Sun reported that Penny had been so much a part of royal life, household staff nicknamed her And Also, because whenever Philip listed guests who were to be invited to a royal do, he would end with and also Penny.. Philip, having dealt with his own fair share of grief, helps Knatchbull get her mind off the tragic death, encouraging her to take up his beloved sport of carriage driving and engaging her in spirited philosophical conversations.