After a marriage proposal comes all the fun stuff, from showers and bachelorettes to dinners and shopping for dresses. For many, one of the first things to check off the to-do list is the engagement party. For Princess Beatrice, however, she's decided to scale back. Big time.Now, it wasn't because she thought having a celebration to officially announce her upcoming union to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi was lame. But an engagement party is typically held for the bride and groom's loved ones to get to know each other, and considering everyone seems to know exactly what Beatrice's dad, Prince Andrew, has been up to, the bride-to-be figured maybe putting him in the public eye — even if it's just those closest to the family — probably wasn't a good idea.The
Mail on Sunday reported that Beatrice cancelled the bash that was originally scheduled for December 18 because she figured the paparazzi would be camped outside the very-public venue Chiltern Firehouse, waiting to pounce on her father. Considering the "sensitive time her family is going through," it's being put on hold — but not called off all together. Instead, they're planning for a smaller gathering at a friend's apartment, reports
Us Weekly, much more low-key so that Andrew can sneak in to "under the radar," added the
Mail.It's been nearly three weeks since the prince stepped down from royal duties, after his — to put it mildly — catastrophic interview with
BBC Newsnight, which resulted in major backlash and several charities severing ties with the Duke of York."It has become clear to me over the last few days that the circumstance relating to my former association with Jeffrey Epstein has became a major disruption to my family's work and the valuable work going on in the many organizations and charities that I am proud to support," he
said in a statement, at the time. "Therefore, I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for the foreseeable future, and she has given her permission."Now, if you thought that after a little time has past, things would go away or at least be forgotten,
out comes a photo from back in the day of Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein attending Beatrice's 18th birthday party. And, well, one teeny tiptoe forward, two giant steps back.But just because Andrew has backed off of royal responsibilities doesn't mean he's not still part of the Royal Family. The
Daily Mail is reporting that Andrew will make his first public appearance on Christmas Day, when he and the rest of the BRF members make the walk to and from the church service in Sandringham.By then, more than a month will have gone by. And with Harry, Meghan and Archie
skipping out on celebrating with the others and opting for their own private holiday, perhaps Andrew's hoping their absence will overshadow the controversy around him.[video_embed id='1845729']Lawyer says witness saw Prince Andrew at nightclub[/video_embed]
