Palace Moves to Sideline Beatrice and Eugenie From Royal Ascot as Epstein Scrutiny Grows

The Royal Box at Ascot has always been about optics. Carriages, cameras, and carefully framed images of unity. This year, two familiar faces will reportedly be missing.

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie have been told they cannot attend Royal Ascot, according to reports in the Daily Mail and People. The decision follows renewed scrutiny after the release of the Epstein files and their parents’ long-documented ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

If Royal Ascot reports are true, the move is less about horses and hats and more about royal survival.

A Ban Framed as Distance

Royal Ascot ranks among the monarchy’s most photographed traditions, with a carriage procession that has run since 1825. Those invited to take part usually stay at Windsor Castle the night before, a detail that underlines who is in and who is out. Attendance signals acceptance, and visibility signals favour.

Which is why any royal absence sets off instant speculation. When a senior figure skips Ascot, the questions start before the final carriage rolls in. Last year, “finding balance” did a great deal of heavy lifting to explain Kate Middleton’s absence from the event, despite what many observers noted was already a relatively light public schedule.

According to People, a source claimed, “Beatrice has taken it the hardest. She’s been completely blindsided by all of this.” The sisters and palace offices declined to comment.

The Daily Mail went further, reporting that the exclusion could extend beyond Ascot and apply to public-facing royal events “for the foreseeable future.” It also claimed Prince William advised family members not to be photographed alongside the sisters this year. The Palace has not confirmed any of it, but the direction is clear. The York name has become radioactive to the royal brand.

The Shadow of Andrew

The renewed scrutiny leads back to Prince Andrew’s long association with Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew withdrew from public duties in 2019 after his BBC Newsnight interview drew global backlash. In 2022, Queen Elizabeth removed his military titles and patronages after a judge refused to dismiss Virginia Giuffre’s civil claim. Andrew settled the lawsuit without admitting liability and has continued to deny wrongdoing. He did, however, pay a huge settement repotedly amounting to £12 million.

Giuffre died by suicide in 2025, and her posthumous memoir reopened questions many in the Palace had hoped were fading. Attention has not focused on Andrew alone. Sarah Ferguson has appeared in released Epstein correspondence, including emails in which she sought financial help from him.

Last year, further document releases intensified the fallout. Ferguson was branded a hypocrite after emails showed her privately describing Epstein as a “supreme friend” while publicly vowing to cut ties following his conviction. Several charities reportedly severed relationships with her after the disclosures, and she stepped down as a hospice patron amid the controversy. Other emails suggested that Ferguson and Princess Beatrice discussed softening press language about Epstein, raising uncomfortable questions about what Beatrice understood at the time and complicating later claims of surprise. In another message, Ferguson told Epstein that Princess Eugenie was on a “shagging weekend,” language that critics argue was inappropriate given his conviction.

Against that backdrop, Andrew was reportedly arrested last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office and detained for questioning. Palace sources say senior figures have since held meetings about managing the York fallout. In that climate, even a ceremonial fixture like Royal Ascot starts to look less like a tradition and more like a reputational risk.

Sympathy or Strategy

There is a line in the Daily Mail that reports that matters: the Palace accepts that any suggestion the sisters benefited from the York fortune poses a risk to the wider family. That is the calculation.

This is not about punishing Beatrice and Eugenie. It is about protecting the brand. The monarchy stood by Andrew for years, even as public confidence eroded. Other family members, including Meghan Sussex and Prince Harry, often absorbed hostile headlines while Andrew continued to appear at Christmas walks and private gatherings. William and Kate reportedly chose to remain living near Andrew despite the controversy surrounding him. Only when the Epstein files resurfaced with fresh force did the institution move more decisively to create distance.

A ban from Ascot carries a symbolic message. It shields the Royal Box from damaging headlines and reduces the risk of uncomfortable photographs, but it does little to resolve the deeper concerns that continue to circle the fallen House of York.

The Palace may bar Beatrice and Eugenie from Ascot, but the obvious questions remain. If exclusion from royal events is framed as accountability for associations with Epstein, will the same standard apply to other senior royals whose names have surfaced in related disclosures or whose financial networks have drawn scrutiny, including those closer to the line of succession?

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