The British royal family is reportedly heartbroken over Peter Phillips’ breakup from his girlfriend, Lindsay Wallace. Phillips is the son of Princess Anne, and was described as the “favorite grandson” of Queen Elizabeth II. According to a report by The Sun, he and Wallace have officially ended their three-year relationship.
Phillips is the elder of Princess Anne’s two children from her first marriage to Mark Phillips, a military officer, which is the reason he and his younger sister Zara do not have royal titles. He was the queen’s first grandchild โ and her “favorite,” according to an insider who spoke to The Sun in January of 2022. Phillips was married to Autumn Kelly from 2008 until 2020, and began dating Wallace after his divorce. The two reportedly got fairly serious, and even had a meeting with the queen before her passing.
Videos by PopCulture.com
Now, Phillips and Wallace have reportedly broken up, and it’s not entirely clear why. A source said: “They were friends before their relationship blossomed. But Peter and Lindsay have gone their separate ways as the relationship simply ran its course.” However, another source said that the family is disappointed, as they had believed Phillips and Wallace might get married. They said there was a “clear sign Lindsay had been welcomed into the family,” and that the queen wanted her “favorite” grandson to be happy.
Phillips, 46, was the first legitimate grandchild of a British monarch to be born without a title or a courtesy title in over 500 years. When Princess Anne married Mark Phillips, the queen offered him an earldom that would have granted their children peerage, but they declined. Phillips’ parents separated in 1989 when he and his sister were already adults. Despite having no titles, Phillips is technically 18th in line for the throne in the current line of succession.
Phillips was working in the car industry when he met his first wife, Kelly, in 2003. At the time, he was a sponsorship accounts manager for the Williams racing team while she was a management consultant for the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. They had two daughters โ the queen’s first great-grandchildren โ and they separated in 2020. It was then that Phillips reconnected with Wallace, a childhood friend of his younger sister.
Wallace herself had recently split from her husband when she and Phillips began dating. The two even made headlines when Phillips drove 460 miles to see her at the height of COVID-19 restrictions in the U.K. Phillips brought 42-year-old Wallace to meet the queen at Windsor Castle in January of 2022, and with her blessing, they took their relationship public at Royal Ascot and the Epsom Derby. They’ve attended several prominent events together since then, but insiders say those days are behind them.
So far, spokespeople for Phillips and the royal family have not responded to other outlets’ requests for comment on this reported breakup. The family is focused primarily on King Charles III and Kate MIddleton’s respective cancer treatments.