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A former flight attendant, Nicole Coste, claims that Prince Albert of Monaco fathered her son, 21 months.

Ms. Coste said that a DNA test has proved Albert’s paternity. She also states that Albert had given her his Paris apartment in which to live and continues to provide support for the baby. Photos of Albert holding little Alexandre – named for Albert, whose middle name is Alexandre – seem to give credibility to these claims. So what is the new ruler of Monaco to do?

While out-of-wedlock children are nothing new in the Grimaldi family, this particular claim of paternity is very sketchy. There are two things that stand out:

1.) Ms. Coste says she is not out for money, she just asks that Albert “understand that he has a child and a responsibility.” Since the Monegesque prince has given her a place to live and money for her child for the past few years – and Ms. Coste has admitted as much – I’d say that Albert was indeed being responsible. He even continued to visit both mother and child, although he cooled the romance with her in 2003. So her demand that the prince take responsibility is at best redundant. Prince Rainier dies, leaving his son with a hefty fortune and control of a country. Suddenly we see this woman come out in public with a baby. Ironic.

2.) She claims that a DNA test carried out has proven Albert to be the father of her baby, yet she has somehow failed to keep the proof of any such test.

Little Alexandre will never rule the principality, whether the paternity test is proven or unproven. Under Monaco’s constitution, which was revised in 2002, only the “direct and legitimate” descendants of the sovereign can sit on the throne. The next in line would be Caroline or her children Charlotte, Pierre, and Andrea, Charlotte being the most famous sibling of the trio.

I see:

Uma Thurman as Queen Alexandra;

Ewan McGregor as George V;

Hugh Laurie as either George VI or Edward VIII;

Dame Judi Dench as Queen Mary

Who else could we have for a potential movie? Comment by using the link below.

Just two weeks before they celebrate their first wedding anniversary, Spain’s popular Crown Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia have announced they are expecting their first child.

The palace issued a brief statement on Sunday, confirming that the baby is due in November and including a message from King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia expressing their “great happiness” at the prospect of what will be their seventh grandchild.

OTHERS:

Crown Princess Mary of Denmark: expecting in October

Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway:expecting 2nd baby in December
-mother to Ingrid-Alexandra (age 1)

Crown Princess Maxima of the Netherlands: expecting 2nd baby in July
-mother to Catharina-Amalia (age 1 year, 5 mos.)

Crown Princess Mathilde of Belgium: expecting 3rd baby in October
-mother to Elisabeth (age 2) and Gabriel (20 mos.)

H.M. The Queen has appointed The Lady Soames, DBE, to be a Lady Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. Lady Soames is the third non-royal female to be appointed to the Order.

Lady Soames is patron of The Churchill Centre

…of Mandy. Just kidding. Actually, while I was celebrating my 25th birthday over the weekend, the Dutch were celebrating the 25th anniversary of the ascention of Queen Beatrix.

Hundreds of thousands poured onto the streets of the main towns on Saturday, sporting plastic crowns, decking canal boats with orange, and indulging in the tantalising tradition of trying to eat a cake on the end of a string without using hands. Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, accompanied by his wife Maxima, delighted the festive crowds when he donned a blindfold and attempted to get the bite on a dangling sweetmeat.

The 67-year-old queen herself, who recently garnered a 92 per cent approval rating, was out and about at several official and less formal events, including a special session of Parliament at which all the lawmakers were accompanied by a young man or woman born in 1980.

Beatrix was crowned on April 30, 1980 – two days after I was born, when her mother, Queen Juliana, surprised the nation by abdicating after more than 30 years on the throne. The current queen said in a rare interview last week that she is in no hurry to pass on the baton, preferring to give her son time “to build up his family” before he becomes king.

In the same interview, Beatrix, who has lost her mother, father and husband within the last three years, spoke of the loneliness of being a monarch. “You always have to be available – there is nobody who can take over from you once in a while,” she observed.
The queen, whose no-nonsense approach and modern attitudes have won her huge popularity, was clearly in festive mood over the weekend, however, as she and her family hit the streets along with their fellow countrymen to celebrate the landmark date.