Spain’s disgraced former King Juan Carlos, 85, leaves exclusive private member’s club Oswald’s ahead of his ‘private lunch with King Charles’
- The former monarch was escorted out of the club by two of his bodyguards
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Spain’s disgraced former King Juan Carlos was pictured leaving an exclusive private member’s club in London last night ahead of his reported ‘private lunch with King Charles’.
The controversial royal, 85, who has been at the centre of corruption investigations in his homeland and a long-running and ongoing legal battle with his former lover, had dinner with a group of friends at Oswald’s in central London last night.
Oswald’s is the most exclusive of London’s private members’ clubs, with Prince William, Queen Camilla and Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie among those who frequent the venue.
At 11pm, the father-of-three – who abdicated the throne in 2014 – was seen being escorted out of the private club by two bodyguards.
After climbing into a black 4×4, the former monarch, dressed in a navy suit and pink tie, happily waved for the cameras from the tan leather passenger seat.
The former monarch, 85, was pictured waving to the cameras from his 4×4 as he left the club last night
Earlier this month, leading Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported that Juan Carlos has flown to London from his home in Dubai.
During his stopover in the capital, the disgraced royal will allegedly have a ‘private’ lunch with King Charles.
MailOnline has contacted Buckingham Palace for comment.
Juan Carlos joined his son, Spain’s current King Felipe VI, and other members of its royal family, including Felipe’s former TV news journalist’s wife Letizia Ortiz, at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral last September.
The royal was reportedly asked not to attend the state funeral by Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchéz as they wanted his son King Felipe to ‘represent the nation’.
The Spanish government described his trip at the time as ‘private’, insisting Juan Carlos’ son and daughter-in-law were the only royal representatives there in an official capacity.
After leaving London, Juan Carlos is also expected to make only his second visit to Spain since his shock departure in August 2020.
The ex-King is reported to be flying into the Galician resort of Sanxenxo, one of the places he visited in his first return to his homeland in May last year following his move to Abu Dhabi nearly three years ago, to take part in a regatta.
Juan Carlos, 85, will reportedly meet King Charles for a ‘private’ lunch during his visit to London, according to Spain’s national media
King Charles pictured with Juan Carlos and his wife Sofia at the funeral for the late Romanian King Michael in Bucharest in 2017
El Mundo says Juan Carlos was initially planning to make a new trip to Spain in mid-May but decided to bring his plans forward to next week because it was an ‘inadequate date’ so close to local and regional elections on May 28.
The former king, who is still married to his wife Sofia despite his numerous extra-marital affairs, has been accused of making a pass at Princess Diana when she was just 25 during a holiday she and the then-Prince Charles spent in Majorca in 1986.
Spanish royal expert Pilar Eyre made the claim in a 2012 book.
Diana herself denied anything untoward had happened but admitted that while the libidinous former king was ‘charming’ he could be a ‘little too attentive.’
A 2017 book by Spanish society writer Amadeo Martinez Ingles dubbed Juan Carlos a sex addict and claimed he bedded almost 5,000 women.
Apart from his extramarital dalliances, said to have resulted in secret love children, the former Spanish king has found himself at the centre of corruption investigations and been accused of harassment by former lover Corinna zu Wittgenstein-Sayn in a case heard by London’s Court of Appeal last year.
Juan Carlos was dressed in a navy suit and pink tie for his evening out at the private member’s club
Prince William, Queen Camilla and Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie are also members of Oswald’s in central London
Pictured: Juan Carlos’ guests followed him out of the private member’s cub in central London last night
King Juan Carlos I, a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, was invited to the late monarch’s funeral by Buckingham Palace. He is now set to meet King Charles III ahead of May’s coronation
The disgraced former King Juan Carlos of Spain arrived at Westminster Abbey for the Queen’s funeral last year (pictured) despite a row over his attendance with the Spanish government
Apart from his extramarital dalliances, said to have resulted in secret love children, the former Spanish king has found himself at the centre of corruption investigations and been accused of harassment by former lover Corinna zu Wittgenstein-Sayn (pictured in London in 2014) in a case heard by London’s Court of Appeal last year
UK Court of Appeal judges ruled in December Juan Carlos, who reigned as King of Spain from 1975 to 2014 when he abdicated in favour of his son, had immunity for the period before he abdicated.
Her claim, launched in London’s High Court, will be heard at a trial expected to be later this year.
Their relationship remained a secret until 2012 when it emerged they had been on safari together to Botswana at the height of Spain’s economic crisis.
The trip came to light after the former monarch broke his hip in a fall and he had to be flown back to Madrid for surgery.
Juan Carlos left Spain for a luxury hotel in Abu Dhabi after Swiss prosecutors opened an investigation into bank accounts he was accused of having in tax havens.
Spain launched its own investigations based in part on information shared by Switzerland including one about cash the former king allegedly received as part of his involvement in a high-speed Saudi Arabia rail contract.
The scandals he was caught up in left his reputation in tatters, although the investigations into him for alleged corruption and tax fraud were archived after he deactivated the possibility of legal action by paying off his tax debts.
Earlier this year it was reported businesswoman Corinna zu Wittgenstein-Sayn, 57, was selling her stately home in Shropshire after telling friends she fears for her safety.
Juan Carlos – who is a great-great-grandchild of Britain’s Queen Victoria – is now a tax resident in the United Arab Emirates.
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