How The Royal Family's Health Crises Have Benefitted Prince Andrew

The following article includes mentions of sexual abuse.

The royal family has gone through a number of stressful events in the past few years, with the most recent being the health issues being faced by two of its senior members, King Charles III (who has been diagnosed with cancer) and Catherine, Princess of Wales (who has taken a break from the public eye after abdominal surgery). This news has overshadowed the drama that's long surrounded Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and he seems to be enjoying a return (at least in some respects) to his previous position of respect as a member of the royal family.

Most recently, Prince Andrew was seen smiling on February 27 as he left the memorial service for King Constantine II of Greece, King Charles III's second cousin and godfather to William, Prince of Wales. He was there with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, and others in the royal family, including their daughter Princess Beatrice. King Charles was not in attendance as he has foregone public outings since his cancer diagnosis in early February. Prince William, who had planned to attend, had to cancel at the last minute for what has been reported as a "personal matter," via CNN. We don't have any confirmation that Prince William dropped out of the memorial service because of any issue with Kate's health or his father's, but his absence, which left the focus to shift to Prince Andrew, was noted.

It was Prince Andrew's controversial friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, financier and sex offender, as well as accusations of sexual assault against Prince Andrew himself, that led to him stepping back from royal duties in 2019. He has kept a fairly low public profile since, and his scandals became overshadowed, to an extent, by the drama surrounding Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan Markle Duchess of Sussex, as they also stepped back from being working royals a year later, though for very different reasons. Now, with his brother and niece-in-law's health issues, his scandals aren't as front-of-mind for as many people.

With the king sidelined from public royal duties as he undergoes cancer treatment and Catherine, Princess of Wales not scheduled to return to public duty until June, Queen Camilla and Prince William are undoubtedly supporting their respective spouses behind the scenes. That could, of course, mean that they may have to miss some public events. And while there doesn't seem likely to be much public acceptance of Prince Andrew returning to royal duties, it seems that he was happy enough to be seen leading the family as they walked to the chapel from Windsor Castle for the funeral of King Constantine II. Queen Camilla, who was the most senior member there, took a car instead of walking.