The Queen’s eldest grandson Peter Phillips and his wife Autumn are to divorce after over eleven years of marriage. The couple are parents to daughters Savannah, nine, and Isla, seven. They say they will both remain in Gloucester to co-parent their daughters where they have settled.
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The statement issued by the Palace read: ‘After informing HM The Queen and members of both families last year, Peter and Autumn have jointly agreed to separate. They had reached the conclusion that this was the best course of action for their two children and ongoing friendship.’
The statement also called for ‘privacy and compassion’ for the couple’s young daughters and continued:
‘Both families were naturally sad at the announcement, but fully supportive of Peter and Autumn in the joint decision to co-parent their children.’
Born in 1977, Peter Phillips is the son of Princess Anne and the Queen’s eldest grandchild. He is the elder brother of Zara Tindall. Although he was born fifth in line to the throne, Peter has never held a royal title and is currently 15th in the line of succession - which leaves him free to earn his own money, a right he exercised by appearing in a Chinese milk advert this January.
Autumn is Canadian and worked as a management consultant and personal assistant prior to marrying into the Royal Family as well as a brief stint as an actress. Peter and Autumn reportedly earnt £500,000 for giving a pre-wedding interview and photographs to Hello magazine back in 2008.
