Overview
- On March 10, Prince Edward spent his 62nd birthday at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Italy with Duchess Sophie, with official royal accounts sharing their support for ParalympicsGB; he has been patron of the British Paralympic Association since 2003.
- The Royal Collection Trust marked the day with a 1969 throwback featuring King Charles and Princess Anne but not Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, a choice noted after Andrew’s Feb. 19 arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office and his loss of titles in October 2025.
- Royal photographer Chris Jackson posted an unseen black-and-white image from 2024 showing Edward visibly moved during Sophie’s rare birthday tribute speech in Leeds.
- Edward and Sophie did not attend the March 9 Commonwealth Service because they were in Italy on Paralympics duties supporting Team GB athletes.
- Analysts describe Edward as a trusted, low-drama supporter for the King and Prince William, as reports surface of a forthcoming Ruthie Henshall memoir recounting a past relationship with Edward in the late 1980s and early 1990s.