Queen’s former lady in waiting caught up in race row deputises for senior royal

The former royal aide, 83, who is godmother to the Prince of Wales, represented the Princess Royal at a memorial service.

The Queen, left, and her then-lady in waiting Lady Susan Hussey (PA) (PA Wire)

Lady Susan Hussey, who resigned from the royal household following a racism row, has fuelled speculation about her future after deputising for a senior royal.

Lady Susan apologised and resigned after a public outcry when it emerged she had repeatedly questioned Ngozi Fulani, founder of the charity Sistah Space, about her background, asking the black woman where she “really came from”.

The former royal aide, 83, who is godmother to the Prince of Wales, represented the Princess Royal at a memorial service for a former lady in waiting to the Queen Mother on Tuesday.

Lady Susan, who served as the late Queen’s lady in waiting for more than 60 years and had an honorary role as one of three ladies of the household, was photographed walking into Buckingham Palace via the entrance used by staff earlier this week, the Daily Mail said.

She was also pictured walking to a church service at Sandringham, the late Queen’s private estate, attended by the King and Anne in January.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment on Lady Hussey’s appearance at the memorial service and it is not clear in what capacity she attended.

There was no mention of her attendance at the event in the Court Circular.

Ms Fulani said Lady Susan’s comments, made during a Buckingham Palace reception last November, were down to racism, not Lady Susan’s age.

Ms Fulani, who has unfairly received the most appalling torrent of abuse on social media and elsewhere, has accepted this apology and appreciates that no malice was intended

Buckingham Palace

She said suffered “horrific abuse” on social media in the row’s aftermath.

Buckingham Palace issued a statement after the two women met at the royal residence in December, when Lady Susan apologised in person.

“Ms Fulani, who has unfairly received the most appalling torrent of abuse on social media and elsewhere, has accepted this apology and appreciates that no malice was intended,” the statement read.

Buckingham Palace said the royal households, which already had “inclusion and diversity” initiatives, would begin an “enhanced programme of work which will extend knowledge and training programmes, examining what can be learnt from Sistah Space,” an organisation providing support for African and Caribbean heritage women affected by abuse.