West End performer Ruthie Henshall is set to release a memoir detailing her past relationship with Prince Edward. The book, titled The Showgirl and the Prince, will cover their on-and-off romance from the late 1980s. Henshall discovered old diaries and letters that inspired the project.
Ruthie Henshall, a five-time Olivier Award-winning West End star known for roles in productions such as Cats, Miss Saigon, Crazy For You, and Les Misérables, has announced her upcoming memoir The Showgirl and the Prince, scheduled for release in July.
The book will recount Henshall's years-long relationship with Prince Edward, the youngest child of the late Queen Elizabeth II, which began in 1988. At the time, Henshall was performing as a chorus girl in Cats, while Edward worked as a production assistant for Andrew Lloyd Webber. Their romance included secretive visits to Buckingham Palace and tea at Windsor Castle with the Queen.
Henshall was prompted to write the memoir five years ago when clearing out her garage and finding boxes of memorabilia, including diaries from the 1980s and letters from Edward. "I found old diaries which I began writing in the 1980s and then found all my letters from Prince Edward, and I was struck by how precious this time in my life was," she said. "I was on the West End stage - my dream since I was a girl - and shared a love with a man very few people even know."
She described falling for Edward because he was "kind and thoughtful," noting that she was "not like anyone he’s dated before." Henshall emphasized her genuine love for him and spoke positively of the royal family: "I have nothing but nice things to say about them all. The Queen, in particular, was lovely. Here I was, this chorus girl dating her son – it must have been her worst nightmare!"
The couple remained friends after their breakup, with Henshall attending Edward's 1999 wedding to Sophie, now the Duchess of Edinburgh, at Windsor Castle. It is unclear if Buckingham Palace has received a preview of the book.
"If this was someone else’s story, I would think they had made it up. So here it is - a look behind the curtain of a crazy life in musical theatre and what happens next when a showgirl falls in love with a prince," Henshall added.