London - All girls want to be the fairest of them all at their own birthday party – and it seems Princess Eugenie is no exception.
On Saturday night she will transform herself into Snow White as she celebrates her 25th with a lavish Disney-themed bash.
But don’t think her fancy dress is limited to a pretty gown and a mock poisoned apple.
In an extravagance that is likely to raise eyebrows – not least for being rather un-PC – Prince Andrew’s younger daughter has hired seven real-life dwarfs to escort her, the Daily Mail can reveal.
According to one supplier of professional dwarfs and midgets, it costs from £100 (about R1 900) to hire a single entertainer for an hour – meaning the bill for the controversial retinue could run into thousands of pounds.
But Eugenie, it seems, is determined to be the centre of attention. A friend said: “She has even written on the invitation that no one else is allowed to come as Snow White, presumably because she doesn’t want any competition.
“But with seven dwarfs running after her, I don’t think there is any chance of that happening.”
And the extravagance doesn’t end there. Seven interlinked circus-style tents have been erected in the gardens of Royal Lodge, Andrew’s Grade II-listed, ten-bedroom mansion near Windsor Castle.
The tents will feature a DJ booth, so revellers can dance into the early hours, cocktail bars and a chill-zone for footsore ravers. Outside a huge fairground has been installed, including a merry-go-round, helter skelter and dodgems.
Among the 250 friends and relatives invited will be Eugenie’s cousin Prince Harry and her best friend, actress and dancer Cressida Bonas, who dated Harry for two years after being introduced to him by the princess. Models Poppy Delevingne and Naomi Campbell and members of Richard Branson’s family are said to be among other society figures attending.
Eugenie, who spent on Friday at Ascot with her father, elder sister, Princess Beatrice, and mother, Sarah, Duchess of York, actually turned 25 on March 23. She was in New York at the time working as a £25,000-a-year assistant at online auction house Paddle8.
The party is also being seen as a welcome back party because the Mail understands the princess has recently landed a new job after being “headhunted” by leading art gallery Hauser and Wirth as an “associate director”. Initially she will be based in London, but there is the possibility she will have to divide her time between the UK and New York.
The gallery boasts works by artists as diverse as Sir Henry Moore and Sir Paul McCartney.
A friend said: “It was a real coup to be headhunted by the firm. It’s a great promotion for Eugenie. She’s back in the UK permanently now and will be starting the new role any day now.”
And a source added: “Everything is coming together for Eug and she is delighted to be back in the UK again. She has been planning the party for months, and as both her father and mother love to entertain, it going to be a lavish, no-holds barred affair – dwarfs and all.”
Daily Mail