Ruthie Henshall to publish memoir drawing on Prince Edward love letters
ruthie henshall has signed a memoir with Pan Macmillan that draws on recently discovered love letters from Prince Edward; the book, The Showgirl and the Prince, is due to be published in July and is already tipped to stir anxiety within Palace circles.
Publisher frames memoir as 'funny, touching'
Pan Macmillan has signed the West End star's memoir, which the publisher described as "funny, touching. " The book takes its title, The Showgirl and the Prince, from Henshall's account of a relationship with the late Queen's youngest son that she says inspired the project after she found boxes of memorabilia while clearing out her garage five years ago.
Ruthie Henshall recounts diaries, letters and royal visits
The five-time Olivier Award nominee says she discovered old diaries she began in the 1980s and letters from Prince Edward among those boxes. She has described the material as the prompt for the memoir and says the book will document their romance from secretive beginnings to visits to Buckingham Palace and to Windsor for tea with Queen Elizabeth II.
Relationship years and the book’s themes
The memoir covers a five-year, on-and-off relationship that ran between 1988 and 1993, ending just before Prince Edward met then-Sophie Rhys-Jones, now the Duchess of Edinburgh. Henshall has framed the story as "the bittersweet joy of first love" and writes about being "on the West End stage – my dream since I was a girl" while sharing a private romance with a man few people knew.
Palace reaction and the wider context
The Telegraph has warned the release is likely to create angst amid courtiers and the wider Royal Family as it reels from the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. It is unclear in the provided context whether the royals were given a preview of the book. Buckingham Palace has been contacted for comment.
Personal recollections and relationships since
Henshall says the prince's recently discovered love letters were what inspired her to write the memoir. She has said she "genuinely fell in love with him" and called Edward "kind and thoughtful, " adding that she was "not like anyone he’s dated before. " The actress is thought to have remained on "good terms" with Prince Edward and his wife.
Reflecting on royal encounters, Henshall has written that she has "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!" She also wrote: "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. "
The Express carried much of the memoir preview material on Friday, 27th February 2026, noting the publication is expected in July. The paper said the book is tipped to bring more angst among Palace staff and the wider Royal Family.
The Showgirl and the Prince will be published in July by Pan Macmillan; publication is the next confirmed milestone for the memoir, and Buckingham Palace has been contacted for comment.
