Princess Eugenie was seen celebrating with A-list stars at this year’s final Formula One race.
The mother of two, 33, and her husband Jack Brooksbank attended the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday 26 November. During the race, the royal couple posed for a photo with fellow star-studded attendees, including former Spice Girls member Geri Halliwell-Horner.
Ginger Spice - whose husband Christian Horner is team principal and CEO of Red Bull’s F1 team, which came in first place with racecar driver Max Verstappen - took to Instagram on Sunday to share the star-studded photo. Sitting next to Brooksbank was legendary actor Orlando Bloom, while supermodel Naomi Campbell flashed a smile above Princess Eugenie. “Final @f1 race of the year,” Halliwell-Horner captioned the post.
Many Instagram followers were surprised by the celebrity link-up, and shared their thoughts on Eugenie’s group outing in the comments.
“That is a crazy combination of people!” one user wrote, while another fan said: “What brilliant company.”
However, Eugenie’s celebrity rendezvous may not come as a surprise to some. In fact, Bloom, Campbell, and the Spice Girls singer all have ties to the royal family. Halliwell-Horner first met the late Queen Elizabeth II in 1998, and shook hands with the Queen as she was introduced to the Spice Girls.
She showcased her close relationship with King Charles III at a Prince’s Trust event in May, when she gave him a kiss on the cheek, hugged him, and told the newly crowned monarch: “I’m so proud of you. You’re a very modern king.” After she whispered something into his ear, Charles explained to those watching: “I’ve known her for a very long time.”
Most recently, Halliwell-Horner accompanied the Prince of Wales during a visit to South Wales for his Homewards initiative, which seeks to combat homelessness in the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, Bloom is engaged to singer Katy Perry, who is an ambassador for the British Asian Trust - a charity founded by the King when he was Prince of Wales. She attended Charles’ coronation in May at Westminster Abbey and later performed during his coronation concert at Windsor Castle.
As for Campbell, the 53-year-old model was named global ambassador for the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust in 2021. To mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the organisation - which supports young leaders across the globe - gave Campbell the role of Platinum Jubilee Global Ambassador to help promote the work of young leaders who are benefitting their communities.
The model also shared words of encouragement for Charles ahead of his coronation in May. Speaking to British Vogue at the time, she described the royal as “approachable” and “at his most charming” during an interaction in 2018. “I have respect that he cares to visit Africa and is passionate about what is happening on the continent,” she said. “I give people credit when they get up and take action - go to see places and see with their own eyes.”
Campbell, who is of Afro-Jamaican and Chinese-Jamaican descent, continued: “I think [Charles] understands the importance of what the African continent is, and will be, in the future, and how important it is to include the continent on the global stage.”
She then wished the King “a great reign and all the success”.
Despite her support for the royal family, Campbell has previously defended Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s decision to step down as senior working royals. What’s more, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex - who relocated their family to Montecito, California - are reportedly neighbours with Bloom and Perry. Harry has even opened up about his relationship with the Lord of the Rings actor, speaking on the Armchair Expert podcast in May 2021: “Just two days ago, Orlando Bloom sent me a message - because he’s just down the road and we sort of keep in contact because of the paparazzi.”
Earlier this month, the Sussexes were spotted at Perry’s final performance for her Las Vegas residency, which Bloom also attended.
Princess Eugenie has also maintained a close relationship with Prince Harry since he stepped away from the royal family in 2020. She was the first member of the royal family to visit the duke and duchess at their home in California in 2022. In February last year, the cousins attended the Super Bowl LVI together at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles and were spotted out to dinner with their spouses in Santa Barbara that same month.
