The story of a duchess being caught in a topless scandal on the eve of her wedding sounded, for a moment, like a tepid attempt to drum up something racy, a pale imitation of the drama that surrounded Prince Albert of Monaco’s wedding a few months ago.

When we found out the duchess was The Duchess of Alba, 85 years old, and marrying a fellow who’s a mere sprig of a boy at 60, well, that changed everything. That was fun. She was starting to sound like a role model.

Sadly, these topless pics were taken 30 years ago, though running around royally topless at 55 is still pretty nifty (woulda been better at 85). The AFP reports that “A 30-year-old photograph of the duchess as she sunbathed topless in Ibizia was splashed on the cover of the racy Spanish magazine Interviu, reportedly prompting a legal threat.” Her lawyer has said they were considering a right-to-privacy lawsuit.

Still, we’re thrilled to have discovered the Duchess. Seriously. Click the AFP link. Look at the look on her face as she sits next to Camilla. We want that face for one minute, just so we can make that face. We love her (and we’re not the only ones). She’s spectacular. Just our luck she’s getting hitched …