Jordan's Princess Raiyah secretly divorces, reason raveled

Princess Raiyah bint Al-Hussein of Jordan has been quietly divorced from her British husband, Ned Donovan, after six years of marriage. The private break-up has come to light following reports that journalist Donovan, who is also the grandson of much-loved children’s author Roald Dahl, has recently remarried at an intimate ceremony in the UK.

A Covid-Era Royal Wedding Princess Raiyah, 40, the half-sister of the current King Abdullah II of Jordan, married Donovan in July 2020, in what was also the first official royal wedding to take place in the UK following the easing of the country’s first coronavirus lockdown.

(It was just ten days before the wedding of Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.)

While the couple had originally hoped to tie the knot with a large celebration in Jordan in April 2020, they changed their plans due to travel restrictions caused by the pandemic. They instead opted for a small, socially distanced affair held in London, at the home of Princess Raiyah’s mother, Queen Noor.

At the time, Princess Raiyah said of their change of plans on Twitter (formerly X): ‘While it was originally planned for April in Jordan, the pandemic derailed those plans and it was safer for my husband’s family to hold it in the UK. God willing we look forward to celebrating in Jordan once the situation allows.’

Moving On: Ned Donovan Remarries However, it transpires that the divorce went entirely un noticed until Donovan was pictured walking up the aisle with new wife:

The new bride is believed to be American influencer Megan Tomlin, with high society circles gossiping that the pair have recently married in Somerset, with sources stating: “They tied the knot at the church last week.”

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Guests believed to have been at the low-key service included Donovan’s half-sister, author Sophie Dahl, and his godfather Sir Nicholas Coleridge, the present chairman of the King’s Foundation and provost of Eton College. Princess Raiyah, an academic who researches pre-modern Japanese literature, has not yet commented publicly on the divorce.