Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway

Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway (born Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby 19 August 1973), is a member of the Norwegian royal family. She is married to Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway, the heir apparent to the Norwegian throne. The couple have two children, Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus. Mette‑Marit also has an older son, Marius Borg Høiby. Mette-Marit's tenure as crown princess has been marked by controversy due to her early life, her friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and her son's 2026 criminal trial.

Early life, education, and early adulthood

Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby was born a commoner on 19 August 1973 in Kristiansand, Norway. She is the daughter of Sven O. Høiby, who had previously worked as a small‑scale advertiser and as a journalist for a local newspaper, and Marit Tjessem, a former bank clerk. Her parents later divorced, and both subsequently remarried. She has two older brothers and one sister; her half‑brother, Trond Berntsen, from her mother's 1994 marriage to Rolf Berntsen, was killed in the 2011 Norway attacks.

Høiby began her upper secondary education at Oddernes Upper Secondary School in Kristiansand. She spent six months as an exchange student at Wangaratta High School in Victoria, Australia, through the organisation Youth For Understanding. She then completed her studies at Kristiansand Cathedral School in 1994.

As a part‑time student, Høiby took six years to complete her secondary education. She subsequently undertook preparatory courses at Agder College and worked as a waitress at Café Engebret in Oslo.

Mette-Marit has taken a number of university‑level courses. In 2012, she completed a master's degree in executive management at BI Norwegian Business School.

In her younger years, Mette-Marit was known by the nickname "Sørlandsporten" (English: "The Gateway to the South") because she was from Sørlandet and was considered a "party girl" who had been involved with men in Oslo's drug scene.

Early relationships and motherhood

During the 1990s, Mette‑Marit was in a relationship with John Ognby, who had been convicted of drug‑related offences. Their relationship progressed to the point of purchasing a wedding dress.

Mette‑Marit gave birth to a son, Marius Borg Høiby, on 13 January 1997. His father is Morten Borg. Mette-Marit and Borg were not in a relationship, and he was serving a prison sentence for drug‑related violent offences at the time of Marius's birth.

In the 1990s, she attended the Quart Festival in Kristiansand, where she first met Crown Prince Haakon at a garden party during the festival season. They met again several years later after she had become a mother.

Mette-Marit and Haakon announced their engagement in December 2000. Public and media reaction was mixed. Mette-Marit's lack of education, previous relationships with convicts and socialization in a milieu "where drugs were readily available" were often cited by critics. Princess Ragnhild, Mrs. Lorentzen publicly expressed concern about the match; she added that she felt sorry for Mette-Marit's son, Marius Høiby, who would not have a royal title. The couple's eight-month engagement included a period of cohabitation in an Oslo apartment, which drew criticism from some within the Church of Norway.

Crown Princess of Norway

Mette-Marit married Haakon on 25 August 2001 at Oslo Cathedral. Haakon is the heir apparent to the Norwegian throne. Upon their marriage in 2001, Mette‑Marit became Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess of Norway.

Haakon and Mette-Marit have two children: Princess Ingrid Alexandra (born 21 January 2004), and Prince Sverre Magnus (born 3 December 2005).

In 2007, TV2 broadcast the documentary Mette-Marit – vår tids Askepott.

In 2015, Mette‑Marit and Kate Roberts, a senior vice‑president at Population Services International, established the Maverick Collective. On 26 April 2017, she was appointed ambassador for Norwegian literature in the international arena.

Public opinion

Public opinion regarding Mette‑Marit has varied over time. A poll conducted by VG in February 2026 reported that 44% of respondents did not wish to see Mette‑Marit become queen, while 32.5% supported the prospect. Earlier media reports in 2025 described her as relatively unpopular.

UNAIDS

Mette-Marit became a UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador in 2006, focusing on youth engagement in the global response to HIV and AIDS. She has participated in international conferences and visited several countries to highlight UNAIDS' work. At the 2014 United Nations General Assembly, she spoke about the impact of stigma and discrimination on efforts to combat HIV and AIDS. During a visit to Mali, she highlighted the opportunities social media provides to empower young people in new areas of advocacy. She also opened the Youth Pavilion at the XVIII International AIDS Conference.

Health

Mette-Marit has experienced a series of health difficulties, including pneumonia, several instances of norovirus, low blood pressure, falls, concussions, a neck injury, and a herniated disc.

In October 2018, Mette-Marit was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis and said she would receive treatment at Oslo University Hospital.

In December 2025, the palace stated that Mette-Marit's pulmonary fibrosis had progressed to a stage at which a lung transplant was likely to be required.

On 9 March 2026, it was reported that Mette‑Marit's health had worsened following her most recent public engagement on 28 January, with her condition described as "delicate". Her communications manager stated that an assessment was underway to determine whether she could receive a lung transplant.

On 17 March, the palace stated that Mette-Marit's health had "deteriorated" and that she would not take part in the state visit of the King and Queen of Belgium. She later appeared with them at the Royal Palace on 24 March.

On 10 April, at a reception for Norwegian athletes who competed at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, Mette-Marit used a nasal cannula connected to an oxygen device.

Friendship with Jeffrey Epstein

thumb|[[Jeffrey Epstein's Palm Beach mansion|Epstein's mansion in Palm Beach, where Mette-Marit stayed for several days in 2013. The picture was taken during the police raid on the property in 2005 in connection with the investigation of Epstein for child sexual abuse. The mansion has since been demolished due to its association with child sexual abuse.]]

Mette-Marit maintained contact with the American convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein between 2011 and 2014. At the time she entered into a friendship with Epstein, Norwegian media had identified him as a "convicted pedophile". She also helped Epstein connect with young women. In 2019, Norwegian and international media reported that she met him several times between 2011 and 2013; at that time, he had been released from prison after his 2008 conviction for sex offences involving minors.

The Royal Palace's communications manager said in late 2025 that Mette‑Marit had ceased contact with Epstein in 2013, a claim contradicted by the 2026 release of the Epstein files.

Documents regarding Epstein released by the U.S. Department of Justice in February 2026 mentioned Mette-Marit nearly 1,000 times. Mette-Marit and Epstein reportedly traded dozens of e-mails long after he had pleaded guilty to sexual misconduct involving minors. Mette-Marit reportedly called Epstein "'soft hearted'", "'such a sweetheart'", and "'very charming'". She also reportedly asked Epstein if it was "'inappropriate'" for her to "'suggest two naked women carrying a surfboard'" for her 15-year-old son's wallpaper. In correspondence about Epstein’s "'wife hunt'", she reportedly replied that Paris was "'good for adultery'", but that "'Scandis (are) better wife material'".

As a result of the Epstein scandal, Mette-Marit was stripped of her patronage of Sex og Samfunn, a major NGO. Other organisations discussed removing her as patron. In February 2026, a poll showed that 45% of Norwegians believed Mette-Marit should not become queen, while 29% supported her becoming queen. In response to ongoing debate over whether she could serve as queen, legal scholar Eivind Smith said it was possible for Haakon to become king without Mette‑Marit becoming queen or holding any public title, even if they remained married, as titles are decided by the monarch. International media have extensively covered scandals involving the Norwegian royal family, linking them to Epstein, rape allegations, and controversy. Experts have said this has damaged Norway's international standing, as the royal family's conduct increasingly undermines its role as a representative of the Norwegian state abroad.

In March 2026, the board of the Norwegian Girls' Choir stated that Mette-Marit's connections to Epstein had caused unrest within the organisation and moved to remove her as patron. The decision is pending a vote by the members.

In a tearful March 2026 interview, Mette-Marit expressed regret for her friendship with Epstein. She stated that she had been manipulated and deceived by Epstein, that she had not been aware that he was a sexual predator, and that she wished she had never met him.

On 28 April 2026, The Amandus Festival became another foundation to sever collaboration ties with Mette-Marit in response to revelations about her ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Other foundations to sever collaboration with her include Sex and Society, Fokus, the Norwegian Library Association, and the Mental Health Council.

Marius Høiby legal case

On 18 August 2025, Mette-Marit's son, Marius Borg Høiby, was charged with 32 offences. The charges included allegations of rape and acts of violence against two former partners. Some media outlets claimed that he and his family had received preferential treatment from police, though authorities did not confirm this.

Borg Høiby's trial for the August 2025 indictment began on 3 February 2026. Shortly beforehand, he was arrested and remanded in custody on additional charges, followed in March by further charges of reckless behaviour and violating a restraining order. In total, he faced forty charges, some of which he admitted. The most serious charges carry potential sentences of more than ten years' imprisonment.

The Høiby case has been described in Norwegian media as one of the most extensive rape investigations in recent years. It has also been cited as contributing to a decline in the Norwegian royal family's reputation and increased debate about the future of the monarchy in Norway.

Titles, styles and honours

Titles

Since her marriage, Mette-Marit has been styled Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Norway.

Arms

File:Coat of Arms of Princes and of Princesses of Norway.svg|Coat of arms

File:Royal Monogram of Princess Metta-Merit of Norway.svg|Monogram

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: Dame of the Royal Family Decoration of King Harald V

Foreign honours

: Grand Cross, 1st Class of the Order of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria
: Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (24 March 2026)
: Grand Cross of the Order of the Balkan Mountains
: Knight of the Order of the Elephant
: Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana
: Grand Cross of the Order of the White Star
: Paulownia Dame Grand Cordon of the Order of the Precious Crown
: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Adolphe of Nassau
: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
: Member Grand Cross of the Royal Order of the Polar Star