Prince Andrew has been spotted in public for the first time since attending the funeral of the Duchess of Kent on Tuesday.
The 65-year-old was observed leaving his Royal Lodge residence in a Range Rover on Friday morning, presumably heading to Windsor Great Park for a session of horse riding.
This sighting follows reports of the Duke of York being openly avoided by other Royal family members after the funeral earlier in the week. A body language analyst described an interaction between Andrew and his nephew, Prince William, as notably tense.
The King, William’s wife Kate, and Princess Anne were also among those paying tribute at the Catholic service at Westminster Cathedral.
They were joined by Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson .
Buckingham Palace revealed just two hours prior to the private family service that Queen Camilla would not attend, as she is recuperating from acute sinusitis.
Other royals present included Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, and Prince Andrew accompanied by his former wife, Sarah Ferguson.
The Duke of York, facing disgrace, endeavored to strike up a conversation with his nephew after they paid their respects to Katharine Kent during a ceremony at Westminster Cathedral.
Prince Andrew (pictured) has been spotted in public for the first time since attending the funeral of the Duchess of Kent on Tuesday
Andrew could be seen muttering a few words to William, who appeared to decline to engage in the conversation and only gave a brief nod in response.
Body language expert Judi Jame told the Daily Mail that Prince William’s ‘non-verbal responses’ suggest a degree of ‘awkwardness’ between the pair.
She also described the expression on Prince Andrew’s face as he tried to chat to his nephew as a ‘smug-looking smile’.
Ms. James observed, ‘The Duke of York attempts to engage his nephew in a light-hearted dialogue, but all of William’s non-verbal cues indicate discomfort and an underlying wish to decline the interaction, resulting in an exceedingly chilly exchange.’
‘Andrew turns his head fully towards William to not only get his attention but seeming to want to coax a mirrored response that shows he has his attention, too.
‘When he turns his face to the front he is wearing a smug-looking smile and he even turns back as though trying to gain a mirrored response from William.’
Ms James explained that the Prince of Wales uses a series of body language signals to suggest a lack of desire to communicate with his uncle.
‘Firstly, he barely inclines his head in Andrew’s direction and then he seems to avoid eye contact, looking down or away,’ she said.
Prince Andrew and Prince William reportedly had a ‘very frosty’ exchange after the Duchess of Kent’s funeral on Tuesday
‘There is the very exaggerated and prolonged rubbing of his nose with his fist to form a barrier to his mouth with this ‘act of distraction’.
‘Lastly, there is a rising up then banging down onto his heels, which will often signal ‘subject closed’.
‘William is at some pains to appear polite despite potentially feeling compromised here, but he is clearly made uncomfortable and is perhaps relieved when he can return to the more solemn facial expression of mourning.’
Meanwhile, separate footage shows Prince Andrew sharing a joke with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson at the funeral.
He also broke into laughter while standing next to Prince William, who looked visibly uncomfortable and embarrassed.
Speaking to the Daily Mail about the conversations that Andrew engaged in after the service on Tuesday, lip reader Jacqui Press claimed they included pleasantries, such as ‘It was a beautiful service’ and ‘Aren’t we lucky with the weather today’.
The Waleses made a notably quick exit after the King had got into the State Bentley, but not before His Majesty appeared to offer a few warm words to his daughter-in-law, who smiled and walked over, before kissing him on each cheek and curtsying.
As the King drove off, the Duchess of York was seen waving somewhat over-enthusiastically at his car, before also dropping a neat bob.
Andrew, Charles and William at the funeral for the Duchess of Kent at Westminster Cathedral
Prince Andrew, meanwhile, exchanged some words with his sister, Princess Anne, thanked staff and headed off towards his car.
According to the lip reader, the Princess Royal told her brother, ‘Let’s walk this way’. Andrew later turned to Anne and said, ‘Shall [we] go that way and we can leave there?’ He later questioned, ‘Where is she? Oh, over there, is she coming?’
Elsewhere, he thanked the priests and later turned to a different attendee before questioning whether they had been introduced before, Press said.
He was forced to wait at the side of the building, fiddling with the tails of his morning coat, as his ex-wife continued to chat merrily on the steps.
It comes amid ongoing revelations linked to Andrew’s relationship with the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, six years after the scandal saw the Duke forced to stand down from public duties.
Andrew stepped down as a working royal over the scandal involving his friendship with Epstein, but he still attends private family events.
Historian Andrew Lownie’s forensic biography of Andrew, called Entitled, also caused shockwaves within the Royal Family – with some passages having to be removed for legal reasons, which the author said were enough to bring down the monarchy.
