How Queen Elizabeth's Trusted Friend Embarrassed Royal Family After More Than 60 Years of Service
Lady Susan Hussey was forced to resign from her honorary postion.
For over 60 years, Lady Susan Hussey has been a close friend of the Royal Family. So close in fact, that when Prince Philip died in 2021, she accompanied the late Queen Elizabeth to his funeral. She even met Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's daughter, Lilibet, during one of the couple's surprise visits to the UK, and happens to be Prince William's godmother.
However, the 83-year-old was forced to resign from her duties at Kensington Palace this week after majorly embarrassing the Royal Family at an official event. Read on to find out what happened.
After the death of Queen Elizabeth, King Charles created a new role for his mother's friend, Lady of the Household. He invited her to the Queen Consort's first Buckingham Palace reception, where the unthinkable happened.
After meeting British-born campaigner Ngozi Fulani, Hussey asked her a question. "Where are you from?" After she responded, she continued. "Where are you really from? What part of Africa?"
Fulani revealed the conversation on Twitter, writing: "Mixed feelings about yesterday's visit to Buckingham Palace. 10 mins after arriving, a member of staff approached me, moved my hair to see my name badge. The conversation below took place. The rest of the event is a blur. Thanks @ManduReid & @SuzanneEJacob for support." She later described the conversation as a "form of abuse."
"We take this incident extremely seriously and have investigated immediately to establish the full details. In this instance, unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made. We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes," Buckingham Palace said in a statement.
"In the meantime, the individual concerned would like to express her profound apologies for the hurt caused and has stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect. All members of the Household are being reminded of the diversity and inclusivity policies which they are required to uphold at all times."
"It's a very regrettable situation," a Palace source told The Telegraph. "There's no doubt that unfortunate comments were made though absolutely no malice was intended."
