I am not surprised that Clément is Laurent's son, I *was* surprised at the acknowledgement. But good for Laurent for being so forward with the airing of the documentary in sight. He was asked to participate, but declined to and said he wanted to make it public in his own way. It seems like he is not ashamed of Clément.
The rumors about Laurent and Iris/Wendy's relationship were abundant in the print media in the late 1990s/early 2000s, that photo of them was reused multiple times. Also the rumors about Clément's paternity were swirling and now they are true.
I've read that two royal watchers, Joelle Vanden Houden and Brigitte Balfoort, have difficulty believing that Laurent is the father because of the information that they have always been given by their sources, who are apparently reputable. They have always been told that Danny De Waele, Iris/Wendy's late manager and friend, was the father. Admitted, there is some similarity between him and Clément, but I see much more of Laurent in him. His posture and head shape are the same. However, I also see Iris/ Wendy's face in Clément's.
My take is that both Ms. Vandenhouden and Ms. Balfoort feel sort of betrayed now that their inside information is proven to have been incorrect. ("Our conviction was: if prince *Laurent* is the father, then we would have known that much earlier. [Balfoort]" "I keep having difficulty to believe this story,“ so the royalty expert who is being called
the memory of the monarchy [Vanden Houden], says. "Unless they come up now with a DNA test." And such a test is supposedly there.) They mention that in this account-walled article
https://www.nieuwsblad.be/media-en-...-is-iets-dat-wij-nog-niet-weten/89218723.html
The Danny De Waele paternity story was apparently so credible that some reporters even accused him and Wendy of using Prince Laurent as being the possible father to boost her career. Danny De Waele was Clément's first father figure.
Other royalty wathers are not surprised at all that Laurent is Clément's father.
In the second part of the documentary, to be aired this Thursday evening - and this is a spoiler alert, although pieces of it are already online - among the two photographs of Laurent and Clément:
They *have* taken a DNA test, and it gave 99,5% security. I'm no expert on DNA, but I'd say that that is enough proof. Laurent proposed it and went in first to make Clément at ease.
This walled article (
Onze royalty-expert ziet koning Filip ongewild een risico nemen: “Hij heeft geen grip op Laurent, en al helemaal niet op Clément”) mentions that "“The father of Clément is aware of this documentary. They see each other regularly and are taking concrete steps to an official recognition." The text supposedly shows at the end of the documentary.
So my take is that in the not too distant future Belgium will have a HRH Prince Clément de Saxe-Cobourg, Prince of Belgium. I would like it for him, he seems a kind and sympathetic guy.
I don't think any court case will be necessary and King Philippe has apparently already made it clear that he will sign.
He apparently also states he would like to meet Princess Delphine, "because I think that she is one of the few persons who knows 100 percent how I feel." His mother has already met her, around the time of her official recognition (Facebook photo:
https://www.facebook.com/wendyvanwanten/posts/proficiat-delphine-/3472713446083943/).
Iris/Wendy has followed the then-Delphine Boël case with immense interest, and Clément now understands why. She says that she has mentioned change in her son, he is more mature and a burden has fallen off him. It's in this subscription-only article
“Ik heb geen zwijggeld gekregen”: veel vragen worden beantwoord in deel twee van de Clément-documentaire, maar één niet.
