The Mexican socialite who had to deny “malicious” rumors about her friendship with King Frederick of Denmark has signed up for a popular TV game show, according to local media reports.
Genoveva Casanova went into self-imposed exile after photos of her enjoying a night out in Madrid with the married father-of-four rocked the Danish monarchy late last year – before his accession to the throne on January 14.
The 47-year-old appeared to deactivate her Instagram in the wake of the rampage after taking refuge in her ex-husband Cayetano Martinez de Irujo’s palace home before flying to Mexico to spend time with her parents.
Overnight it emerged that her uncharacteristic disappearance from public view is nearing its end following reports that she will star in a Spanish TV show pitting celebrities against each other in extreme physical tests.
Filming for the fifth series of the popular programme, called El Desafio, which translates into English as The Challenge, is expected to begin in the next few days, although the film will not be shown until early next year.
The Mexican socialite who has been forced to deny ‘malicious’ rumors about her friendship with King Frederick of Denmark (pictured on a night out in Madrid) has signed up for a popular TV game show, according to local media reports
According to Spanish media, the key to accepting the offer from the production company Genoveva was the fact that she did not have to discuss issues related to her private life during the show.
Showbiz website Vanitatis claimed the mother of two recently turned down a lucrative opportunity to promote a luxury shoe brand because it would have involved a PR event and photo call.
Victoria Federica de Marichalar y Borbon, the niece of Spanish King Felipe VI, has already been named as one of the eight famous faces who will participate in the fifth edition of El Desafio.
The fourth edition of the primetime show on Friday evening on the Spanish channel Antena 3 was watched by almost two million viewers with 17 percent of the viewership share when it premiered earlier this year.
Genoveva has not yet commented on the latest reports.
She has all but left social media since denying “malicious rumors” about her friendship with then-Crown Prince Frederick after their night out together in Madrid in November.
Genoveva used her Instagram account to threaten legal action against Spanish magazine Lecturas, which published photos of her strolling through Madrid’s El Retiro Park with the royal family before going to her nearby home to change clothes and to eat out again.
She has only published a few other posts on social media since she was photographed with Frederik.
Genoveva Casanova (pictured) went into self-imposed exile after photos of her enjoying a night out in Madrid with the married father-of-four rocked the Danish monarchy late last year – before his accession to the throne on January 14
King Frederick of Denmark
One of these was a video she shared on her Instagram Live on January 16, two days after Frederick ascended the Danish throne, which was posted by Spanish singer Miguel Bose about children working in slavery in Africa.
Bose’s original message read: ‘40,000 slave children in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars’.
Before Genoveva briefly deactivated her Instagram account last month, denying her nearly 80,000 followers a regular glimpse into her private life, she told Spanish journalist Beatriz Cortazar: “I’m trying to disconnect and I’m not talking to absolutely anyone, although some people say otherwise.’
The Mexican socialite appeared on the eighth edition of Spain’s Celebrity Masterchef last year, but became the first hopeful to be booted after putting too many spices in a marinated fish dish she had prepared.
She was married to the son of the Duchess of Alba, Cayetano Martinez de Irujo, in 2005. The couple divorced in 2007 but remain friends.
The recordings for the new series El Desafio start on March 1. A similar show, the Challenge UK, aired on Channel 5 earlier this year and was presented by Mark Wright.
Genoveva faced intense criticism after she was pictured in Madrid late last year with the then-future King of Denmark, 55, without his wife, then Princess, now Queen Mary.
After the photos of the friends surfaced, Spanish magazine Lecturas reported that Casanova and Frederick had dinner together and watched flamenco until 1 a.m.
Queen Mary has remained tight-lipped about her husband’s dinner with the socialite, and the royal couple have made a united appearance since.
After the photos appeared in a Spanish tabloid, the mother-of-two (pictured) denied ‘malicious’ rumors about her friendship with the royal family.
Earlier this year, a royal expert claimed that Queen Margrethe of Denmark abdicated as a form of ‘damage control’ in the wake of the scandal and to prevent ‘Mary from divorcing Frederik’ over the ‘affair’ rumors .
Royal reporter Kenth G. Madsen argued that Margrethe had “no choice” but to resign.
Speaking to FEMAIL, the royal reporter claimed: ‘It can be difficult to forgive perceived infidelity in a relationship unless the price for turning a blind eye is high enough.
‘Against the background of the revelation of Frederick’s visit to Madrid and the documentation of the meeting with Genoveva Casanova, it is reasonable to assume that Queen Margrethe found the time to throw out a lifeline, before the relationship between the crown prince couple was completely devastated by the scandal.
‘The queen actually had no other choice: in a strategic move, the monarch managed to take the focus off the rumors about the affair and at the same time give Mary the hyper-rare status of queen.
‘A royal divorce scandal of that magnitude could destroy the strongest royal family forever.
‘The risk that the popularity and reputation that the Queen has built up in her 52 years as monarch could be forever destroyed if she had not limited the damage.’
Following the publication of the photos, Genoveva angrily denied that there was a romantic relationship between herself and the Danish royal family.
A statement from the socialite said: “I categorically deny the statements that indicate a romantic relationship between Prince Frederik and me.”
She added: “Any statement of this type not only completely lacks the truth, but also maliciously misrepresents the facts.
“This is already in the hands of my lawyers, who will take care of the relevant steps to protect my rights to honor, truth and privacy.”