Princess’ ‘toilet seat’ hat sells for US$131,000

Princess Beatrice arrives at Westminster Abbey for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in London in this April 29, 2011 file photo. The hat worn by Princess Beatrice – widely described as looking like a ‘toilet seat’ – sold for US$131,000 on eBay

The much-mocked hat worn by Princess Beatrice to Britain’s royal wedding last month – widely described as looking like a toilet seat – sold for US$131,000 (RM400,925) on eBay, charities which will benefit from the sale said.

The money will be equally split between UNICEF and Children in Crisis, which posted the auction results on their websites.


The fuss over the hat worn to the royal wedding of her cousin Prince William to longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton seemed to have taken Beatrice – who is the daughter of William’s uncle Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson – by surprise.

“I’ve been amazed by the amount of attention the hat has attracted,” Beatrice said on the auction site. “I hope whoever wins the auction has as much fun with the hat as I have.”

The hat, by milliner Philip Treacy, was given a starting price of US$8,073 (RM24,704).

Treacy said he was “delighted, flattered and touched by HRH Princess’ Beatrice’s decision to donate the hat to charity.” – Reuters