Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester the Royal Alexandra and Albert School; the Children's Society; Parkinson's UK; Hope for Youth Northern Ireland; Scottish Opera; and Lawn Tennis Association. After the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, Birgitte became President of the Royal Academy of Music. She is also the patron of Prostate Cancer UK, and in March 2006, she opened the Prostate Centre. The Duke and Duchess live in London at Kensington Palace, their official royal residence. Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester, (born Birgitte Eva Henriksen, later van Deurs; 20 June 1946), is the wife of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, a first
Princess Alice of the United Kingdom the Duke of Cambridge stood proxy; the Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, for whom the Duchess of Kent stood proxy; the Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, for whom the Hereditary Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz stood proxy; and Princess Sophia Matilda of Gloucester. Alice's birth prompted her parents to find a larger family home. Buckingham Palace was not equipped with the private apartments that Victoria's growing family needed, including suitable nurseries. Therefore, in 1844, Victoria and Albert purchased Osborne House on the Isle of Wight as a family holiday home. Alice's education was devised by her father and his close friend, Baron