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She was named the hardest working royal last year and it seems Princess Anne is serious about defending her title this year.
The 71-year-old Princess Royal astonished royal watchers after she completed more than 20 engagements in just four days in a whirlwind trip to mark Queen Elizabeth’s historic Platinum Jubilee.
She was asked to represent her mom in Australia and Papua New Guinea, where Her Majesty is still the head of state.
“It's lovely to see Princess Anne in Australia for the platinum jubilee. Such a huge asset to the royal family,” one fan wrote on social media.
What's even more impressive is that Princess Anne has done it all without any fuss or frills. Sources say the royal staff are “lost in admiration” because she gets on with her schedule with minimum drama.
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It's been reported she's travelled about 40 000km on commercial airlines, hasn't had one evening off since the start of this round of engagements, stayed in £185 (about R 3 485) hotels, and even packed her own suitcase. To top it all, she's even done her own hair and make-up for these engagements and wowed fans with her outfits.
Her engagements kicked off last Thursday following a full day of engagements in Liverpool. The Princess Royal flew back to London by helicopter and boarded a commercial flight to Sydney. And as soon as she landed on Saturday morning, she attended her first engagement with the governor of New South Wales, followed by another with the governor general and the queen’s official representative in Australia.
She spent the rest of the day at the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW’s Bicentennial Sydney Royal Easter Show, where she was seen speaking to local farmers about the challenges of living off the land after years of drought and floods. Later that evening, the princess was the guest of honour at a dinner at Sydney Olympic Park.
Princess Anne, who was accompanied by her husband, Sir Tim Laurence, and her private secretary, Charles Davies, is said to have been on her feet the entire time, engaging and meeting with many guests.
After Sydney, she travelled to Papua New Guinea, where she followed an equally crammed schedule which kicked off on Monday.
Among other engagements, she met with Prime Minister James Marape, before having a dinner with representatives from several charities.
“It’s quite unbelievable. She hasn’t stopped flogging herself from the moment she left the UK. And to think she'll turn 72 this summer. Remarkable,” a source says.
It's no secret that her royal engagements and tours have never really attracted a big crowd, but fans all over the world are amazed by her incredible work ethic. “She's a real work horse. She, more than any other members of the British royal family, has upheld the model of monarchy promoted by her own mother,” royal commentator and historian Dr Ed Owens says.
Last year, Anne undertook 387 official engagements as she stepped up to the plate after the queen’s ailing health reportedly kept her from public appearances.
Despite being five years past retirement age, Princess Anne, like her mom, shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. “I don’t think retirement is quite the same [for me],” she told Vanity Fair in 2020.
SOURCES: DAILYMAIL.CO.UK, EXPRESS.CO.UK, HELLOMAGAZINE.COM, VANITYFAIR.COM
