When Prince Harry went out clubbing with Lady Melissa ‘Missy’ Percy and was photographed accompanying her out to a dingy stairwell for a smoke and a heart-to-heart the other night, @royalist tweeted that if Harry married Melissa, and Pips married Melissa’s brother George Percy, whom she is dating, then Harry and Pippa would still get to hang out at Christmas every year.
Some took issue with the Royalist’s speculative wedding plans for the young Royals inner circle, claiming that Melissa couldn’t possibly so much as contemplate a relationship with Harry because Melissa’s best friend is Chelsy Davy, Harry’s ex whom he split up with after the royal wedding last year convinced the Zimbabwean blonde that joining ‘The Firm’ was not part of her destiny.
Furthermore, others pointed out, Lady Melissa is supposed to be in a relationship with none other than ‘Van’, aka Tom Van Straubenzee, Harry’s mate who was viciously attacked by a gang of two muggers in south London last year, and on whose behalf Harry may yet have to appear in court after he raced to the scene to rescue his pal.
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But it seems the young Royals don’t see it quite the same way. There’s always been a culture of partner-trading amongst the British aristocracy, as individuals try to work out who from a limited pool will be the best life-partner matches (or make the best mistress), and Harry’s crew are no different than their peers in that respect, it seems.
For on Thursday evening, the very same night that Prince Harry was photographed with a shoeless Melissa while she had a smoke outside the Brompton Club in London, Chelsy, 26, hit the dance floor of another London club, Chinawhite, with young Turk art dealer Blaise Patrick, 27, a pal of Harry’s who has previously been invited to Clarence House for Harry’s legendary private parties.
Katie Nicholl, author of ‘The Making of a Royal Romance’ and columnist for British newspaper the Mail on Sunday, reported that Chelsy was spotted ‘sharing a passionate clinch with Blaise’ and, that the two, ‘were kissing and dancing in an incredibly intimate way,’ at the club.
Interestingly, ‘Van’ was not with the Harry and Melissa crew on Thursday night, which instead comprised two of Harry’s other best friends, Jake Warren and Tom Inskip, who escorted Melissa into a black cab when she left, carrying her boots in her hands, at 1.20am.
‘Skippy’, who is a close friend of both brothers and helped organize William’s stag party, then attended the rugby with Harry at the weekend.
Harry and Chelsy dated on and off for five years before they broke up in 2009, but they did get back together again last year and they attended the Royal wedding together. Ironically, it was the wedding itself which cemented the split; according to friends, Chelsy was ‘completely freaked out’ by the level of attention that Kate was subjected to.
The Prince recently admitted that it’s difficult to find a partner who won’t mind accompanying him as he fulfils his royal responsibilities.
“It’s sort of: “Oh my god, he’s a prince.” But no,” Harry told CBS News.
“The job that it entails—I mean look at me, I’m 27 years old. I’m not so much searching for someone to fulfill the role, but obviously, you know, finding someone that would be willing to take it on.”
Lady Melissa Percy, the gorgeous daughter of an ancient, noble, family who have been trusted confidants and allies of the monarchy for generations could be just the girl for the job. As the daughter of the Duke of Northumberland, she knows Harry’s world and she has both the breeding and the family wealth—Alnwick Castle, the family estate, is conservatively valued at half billion US dollars—to insulate her from suspicion by Harry’s family.
It’s hard to see the ruffled feathers of a few exes being allowed to get in the way. And it could make for interesting Christmas parties at Alnwick Castle in years to come.
