Kate and Beatrice’s ‘difficult’ day at Royal Ascot: Princesses’ joint outing was marked with ‘awkwardness and mutual tension’, claims body language expert
Speculation that the Princess of Wales and Princess Beatrice have a strained relationship is rife amidst the scandal surrounding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – and now footage has emerged of the pair’s ‘mutual tension’ during a joint outing.
Kate, 44, and Beatrice, 37, travelled in the same horse and carriage at Royal Ascot in June 2023, accompanied by their respective husbands, Prince William and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
Yet while the pair wore smiles as they waved confidently to crowds of well-wishers, video footage captured of their carriage ride also suggested an inherent ‘tension’ between the two princesses, according to body language expert Judi James.
Ms James told the Daily Mail: ‘Kate and Beatrice are forced into a rather difficult sitting position here. Face-to-face and knee-to-knee sitting creates an uneasy proximity and invasion of social space.
‘This is why you might expect them to produce some slightly overstated friendship rituals to overcome any inherent awkwardness.
‘Instead, they sit locked in poses of mutual tension here, with both pairs of hands clasped tightly in their laps, and their torsos hunched forward in a mirrored self-diminishing ritual that hints at low levels of inner confidence.’
Ms James added that despite Kate now serving as an integral part of the royal fold, there was ‘no exchange of glances and the two women appear to ignore each other in the moment’.
It comes after a royal expert suggested that the latest tranche of Epstein Files could place further strain on the already apparently uneasy relationship shared between the Prince and Princess of Wales and Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.
While Kate and Beatrice beamed as they waved confidently to crowds of well-wishers at Royal Ascot in 2023, video footage captured of their carriage ride also highlighted a ‘tension’ between the two princesses, according to body language expert Judi James
Yet, according to Ms James, feelings of tension and animosity between Kate and Beatrice, now 37, may have been subtly apparent long before the scandal of the Epstein Files unfolded.
She added: ‘William, looking oblivious to any tension inside his carriage, sports a playfully suppressed grin. In contrast to all this relaxed family vibe though, are the signals of undercurrent tension from both Kate and Beatrice.’
While Kate is seen ‘listening’ to William, Beatrice then appeared to ‘look away to the side rather than mirroring or returning William’s grin’, according to Ms James.
‘Edo also looks like an exercise in distancing here, stretching up to throw his level of gaze above the other occupants of the carriage and looking away to the side,’ she added.
As the two royal women exited the carriage, Ms James noted a rather ‘telling’ interaction between the pair that further highlighted an ‘inherent tension’.
After thanking all of the coachmen for transporting her to the racecourse, Kate appeared to ‘suddenly swing back to look at Beatrice in a gesture that suggests an afterthought’.
Yet Beatrice made no attempt to smile or even acknowledge Kate in this moment. Instead, according to Ms James, she ‘looks down and strides out as though keen to walk ahead of Kate’.
At this stage, Kate is then captured making some brief, lighthearted conversation with Beatrice in a desperate bid ‘to suggest some form of friendliness’.
Join the debate
Do YOU think there was tension between Kate & Beatrice?
Ms James told the Daily Mail: ‘They sit locked in poses of mutual tension here, with both pairs of hands clasped tightly in their laps, and their torsos hunched forward in a mirrored self-diminishing ritual that hints at low levels of inner confidence’
It comes as a royal expert has suggested that the latest tranche of Epstein Files could place further strain on the already uneasy relationship shared between the Prince and Princess of Wales and Beatrice (pictured with her husband Edo) and Eugenie
As the two royal women exited the carriage, Ms James noted a rather ‘telling’ interaction between the pair that further highlighted an ‘inherent tension’
However, Beatrice’s seeming disinterest towards the Princess of Wales is described by Ms James as a ‘body language miss-step’.
She explained: ‘This suggests that either Beatrice had the expectation of being left alone or that that would have been what she preferred.
‘She does look up as Kate speaks to her but her stride still appears strong as though her intent is to go on ahead.’
A vision in red, the Princess of Wales stunned in a scarlet Alexander McQueen dress, while Beatrice opted for a floral lace look and white fascinator.
Likely acutely aware of the significance of the Ascot outing and indeed that the eyes of the world would be upon her, Kate would certainly have been keen to get this appearance right.
And so, ever-the-professional, the Princess was seen undertaking a ‘subtle’ yet ‘powerful’ gesture of kindness towards the end of her interaction with Beatrice, showcasing her competence in royal etiquette and protocol.
‘Instead of walking off to keep up with Beatrice, she stops walking but continues to talk to her,’ Ms James explained.
Indeed, Ms James suggested that this may have been a smart and strategic social trick she learnt from her late grandmother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth II, with an emphasis on a traditional ‘stiff upper lip’ and no-nonsense approach.
According to Ms James, feelings of tension and animosity between Kate and Beatrice, now 37, may have been subtly apparent long before the scandal of the Epstein Files unfolded. Pictured: Kate at the Royal Ascot on June 23, 2023
Ever-the-professional, the Princess was seen undertaking a ‘subtle’ yet ‘powerful’ gesture of kindness towards the end of her interaction with Beatrice, showcasing her competence in royal etiquette and protocol
‘Instead of walking off to keep up with Beatrice, she stops walking but continues to talk to her,’ Ms James explained. She suggested that this may have been a smart and strategic social trick she learnt from her late grandmother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth II
‘This technique holds Beatrice back and whatever Kate says to her seems to be designed to prompt a smile, which it does.’
This seemingly tense moment between the two royal women in 2023 comes as recent reports have suggested that the latest tranche of Epstein Files could seal the deal on her already frosty relationship with Beatrice and Eugenie.
The most recent documents have raised serious questions about how much the two Princesses knew about their parents’ dealings with the paedophile financier.
One email sent by Epstein in 2015 – after he was convicted for soliciting sex from girls as young as 14 – boasted to a friend that Beatrice ‘liked’ him.
It also emerged that, according to Epstein, Beatrice helped advise her mother on how to placate Epstein after Fergie called him a paedophile while apologising for accepting a £15,000 bailout from the convicted sex offender in a 2011 interview.
She also played a key role in facilitating her father’s catastrophic 2019 Newsnight interview, and Beatrice and Eugenie must now face the possibility that the drip-feed of Epstein revelations could see them ousted from royal life as well.
A source told the Daily Mail: ‘William and Kate don’t appear to be close to either of the sisters. They haven’t got that much in common.’
Meanwhile, esteemed royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams added: ‘We know that the sisters, especially Eugenie, were friendly with the Sussexes, though reports vary as to whether this remains the case.
‘It is therefore unsurprising that Catherine appears to have been cautious in her relations with them.
‘Whatever the nature of the relationship between them, it is unlikely we will see them together with her very soon.’
