Alexandre Grimaldi has revealed new details about his close bond with his father, Prince Albert of Monaco in a new interview.
Alexandre is the eldest son of Prince Albert and his former girlfriend Nicole Coste, making him the grandson of Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly. The Prince’s son, 20, has spoken in his first solo interview with Tatler about his relationship with his father.
Alexandre exclusively revealed that he is looking to go into business with his father. “[I aspire to] work in a relationship with my dad and become this – let’s say – a global ambassador for Monaco, and to bring business opportunities back to Monaco, which is what I’ve talked about with him,” he told Tatler from a table at the Four Seasons hotel in New York.
In the Tatler interview, Alexandre spoke warmly about summers spent in Monaco with his father. He revealed his love of playing volleyball and padel and watching Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained with his father.
The young royal joked that his father is more competitive when it comes to sports, something you should expect from an Olympic bobsledder. “‘It starts off as a bit of a laugh, but once the score gets close it turns a lot more serious and less comedy is involved,” Alexandre joked.
He concluded the chat about his father on a positive note. The royal admitted, “With my dad it’s good, we’re starting to see each other a lot more. During the holiday season, we are spending a lot of time together. It’s a very good relationship.”
Alexandre has also built connections with some pretty big names in fashion owing to his father’s relationships. Umar Kamani, founder of Pretty Little Thing actually invited Alexandre to Fashion Week.
He has also connected with Tommy Hilfiger as he is “quite friendly” with his father, hence their watching the Grand Prix together in Monaco 20 years ago.
Prince Albert’s son touched on the cruel use of the word “illegitimate” used to regard Alexandre in headlines for the last 20 years. Alexandre pushed back in his interview with Tatler, saying: “Neither of my parents were married and neither committed adultery … My father claimed me voluntarily when I was a baby, not because a judge or the press forced him to.”
There was a media storm about Alexandre’s birth in 2003. Prince Albert had been known as the ‘Playboy Prince’ but had engaged in a secret five-year-long relationship with then flight attendant Nicole Coste from 1997.
Alexandre’s birth wasn’t announced until May 2005 as Prince Albert had become monarch two months prior. Six days before his enthronement, the Prince confirmed publicly that Alexandre was his son.
Alexandre has grown up in a blended family as Prince Albert went on to have more children – Jazmin Grimaldi, 31, with Tamara Rotolo, whom he met on holiday in the Côte d’Azur in 1991, and a set of twins from his current marriage to Princess Charlene – Jacques and Gabriella, nine.
