All appeared to be going to plan. Charlene’s blonde locks, high cheekbones and impressively broad shoulders have graced the covers of magazines and celebrity guests are converging on the Mediterranean enclave. The wedding was never going to compete with Britain’s marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton - now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge - and the Monaco brand was looking due for a rejuvenating shot in the arm.
But the celebrity press gives, and it takes away. On Tuesday, reports surfaced of a royal falling out. Charlene, it was said, had learned a dark secret about her stocky, balding partner and flown the coop. The 33-year-old was reported by L’Express magazine’s website and a slew of blogs and Twitter postings as having sought a one-way ticket home to South Africa, only to be intercepted in Nice and returned to her gilded cage. Prince Albert of Monaco has been forced to issue a public statement after claims that his fiancée tried to leave him days before their wedding after learning of his third illegitimate child.
A lawyer for Prince Albert vigorously denied the claims, described the story as “madness.” The allegations emerged just two days before the three-day celebrations for the wedding are to start. They are expected to cost around £50million.
