Today will mark two full weeks since we’ve seen the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge publicly. They are in the wind, partially because their kids are off from school (I guess), although I’m sure we’ll probably hear about a vacation at some point. William and Kate’s absence has another function – they are trying not to make news during Princess Anne’s South Pacific tour. Anne was sent to Australia and other South Pacific Commonwealth realms for the Jubbly year. These are photos of Anne in Australia and Papua New Guinea in recent days.
You might have seen some royal reporters whine about how no one is criticizing Anne for “colonialism” like William and Kate were criticized. It’s true – Anne isn’t being criticized, even though she’s technically doing some of the same kinds of events, like troop inspections and watching people dance and interacting with people of color. There are several reasons why Anne hasn’t been criticized though. One, her tour is barely getting any attention, good or bad. She’s barely even making headlines locally, much less back in the UK. Two, she’s not dressed up as a colonialist viceroy surveying her empire. She packed sensible pantsuits and a few hats, all of which have likely been in her closet for decades. That alone has changed the imagery – she looks like a dowdy, sensible senior woman doing a sensible job. Three, she’s not recoiling from people of color or greeting people behind a chainlink fence.
Anne’s husband Sir Timothy Laurence is with her on the tour too. He has not made any news whatsoever. He never makes any news. He is a fedora-wearing icon of minding his business and keeping his mouth shut.
Photos courtesy of Instar.
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- North America Rights Only – Sydney, Australia -20220409-Princess Anne, The Princess Royal during day one of the royal trip to Australia on behalf of the Queen -PICTURED: Princess Anne -PHOTO by: Kirsty O`Connor/PA IMAGES/INSTARimages.com Disclaimer: This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact INSTAR Images for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207. This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. INSTAR Images reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded For images containing underage children: Be advised that some Countries may have restricted privacy laws against publishing images of underage children. Inform yourself! Underage children may need to be removed or have their face pixelated before publishing
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- North America Rights Only – Sydney, Australia -20220409-Princess Anne, The Princess Royal during day one of the royal trip to Australia on behalf of the Queen -PICTURED: Princess Anne -PHOTO by: Kirsty O`Connor/PA IMAGES/INSTARimages.com Disclaimer: This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact INSTAR Images for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207. This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. INSTAR Images reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded For images containing underage children: Be advised that some Countries may have restricted privacy laws against publishing images of underage children. Inform yourself! Underage children may need to be removed or have their face pixelated before publishing
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- North America Rights Only – Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea -20220411- Princess Anne and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence are greeted by dignitaries on arrival at Jackson International Airport in Port Moresby, on day one of the royal trip to Papua New Guinea on behalf of the Queen, in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee. -PICTURED: Princess Anne -PHOTO by: PA Images/INSTARimages.com Disclaimer: This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact INSTAR Images for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207. This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. INSTAR Images reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded For images containing underage children: Be advised that some Countries may have restricted privacy laws against publishing images of underage children. Inform yourself! Underage children may need to be removed or have their face pixelated before publishing
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- North America Rights Only – Sydney, Australia -20220409-Princess Anne, The Princess Royal during day one of the royal trip to Australia on behalf of the Queen -PICTURED: Princess Anne -PHOTO by: Kirsty O`Connor/PA IMAGES/INSTARimages.com Disclaimer: This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact INSTAR Images for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207. This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. INSTAR Images reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded For images containing underage children: Be advised that some Countries may have restricted privacy laws against publishing images of underage children. Inform yourself! Underage children may need to be removed or have their face pixelated before publishing
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- North America Rights Only – Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea -20220412- Princess Anne during a visit to Caritas Technical Secondary School, an all-girl boarding school for 700 students run by the Catholic Church in Port Moresby, on day two of the royal trip to Papua New Guinea on behalf of the Queen, in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee. -PICTURED: Princess Anne -PHOTO by: Kirsty O`Connor/PA Images/INSTARimages.com Disclaimer: This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact INSTAR Images for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207. This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. INSTAR Images reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded For images containing underage children: Be advised that some Countries may have restricted privacy laws against publishing images of underage children. Inform yourself! Underage children may need to be removed or have their face pixelated before publishing
“She packed sensible pantsuits and a few hats, all of which have likely been in her closet for decades. That alone has changed the imagery – she looks like a dowdy, sensible senior woman doing a sensible job.”
Like her or hate her, this is the explanation why Anne has, and always will have, the grudging respect of the general public.
100%
Anne does her job, irrespective of questions on whether that job is required, and she brings a lot of respect to the role and the people/charities she is meeting/greeting. She’ll always do hundreds of things a year and I hope she shows up the Cambridges so hard by just existing that his little fists ball with rage
She isn’t very dramatic, or exciting to watch… but the royals are not celebrities and the ones who expect to be treated that same are the ones who refuse to understand that this is a job and work – not a lifetime holibobs
Exactly. Wearing OTT designer clothing with extremely ostentatious styling isn’t going to win you any favors. And the irony is it’s an easy win when done right. I think Kate thought she would “blow them out of the water” with her peacock ways, but it fell on crickets.
Nah, the imagery coming out from Anne’s tour is still a colonial mess people are just not paying attention to her and there’s only one press person with her. Royals think because they are in a tropical climate they have to wear khaki or cream. I can assure Anne and her family they really don’t need to be dressing like this.
I feel like outside of riding wear though, she IS beige in both personality and style. Rather than it being a conscious colonial ensemble. Have we ever seen her in a bright pattern? (That said it will always be colonial to be visiting the commonwealth because it’s outdated to keep these parental relationships to countries that can govern themselves)
Exactly, Amy Bee, still colonial, still someone from the white Royal family ‘inspecting’ the subjects who are POC. Yay for no recoiling, I guess.
Exactly, @Amy Bee. Nothing to praise, respect, or admire about this or anything these people do. They chased out the only two people who actually seem to care about things.
Why are tours even still a thing?! JFC, these people.
Whole deal’s inherently colonialist, whatever they wear.
No idea if NZ is included in this tour, it hasn’t been in the news. Would seem strange to travel all the way to Aus and not include NZ, but who knows. When Charles and Camilla were last here it was a total non-event, no crowds, zero public interest, and the people who were present at their appearance looked to have just accidentally been in the same location when they turned up.
Exactly
I’ve worked in both equatorial & tropical zones, and I can attest that lighter colored fabrics as well as lighter weight fabrics are really best. I don’t think you knock Anne or anyone else for wearing white or cream. Aside from that, of course! The whole darned concept of a royal tour is colonialist!
+1 THIS ^
light colors in the tropics, even though bright colors are everywhere, work best.
the RF really needs to read the room. noone cares in the commonwealth and quite frankly we have better things to be spending our resources on, aside from their antique roadshow tours waving to the crowds.
we. just. dont. care.
they are not important.
they are not relevant
they should be dismantled and quietly put in the attic with the christmas presents.
in fact, TBH President Zelenskyy would be better received and more relevant and woke then they are.
Yeah, Anne is boring to the press at this point, but she understands the assignment. She’s figured out that if she does her 500 engagements a year, she pretty much gets left alone, for better or worse.
And I do think some of these images that the problem wasn’t just the events in the Caribbean, it was how the Cambridges dealt with those events. Meeting children at a soccer event? Good. Shaking their hands through a fence? Problematic. And you could say that for so many of their events. Exploring conservation efforts? good. Private scuba diving trip you try to pass off as work? Problematic.
Anne will avoid some of those problems because she doesn’t shake hands or let peasants touch her. She practiced social distancing before it was the going thing.
True, but at least she’s consistent.
Although, I will say that, at Philip’s memorial service, when all the Royal family arrived she was the only one who went directly to the people standing to attention on the route in and started talking to them asking them what they did and who they were. Everybody else just marched past ignoring them.
At events she attends she also goes out of her way to speak to everybody, no matter what rank. I met with friends from one of her charities yesterday and they were talking about how she was very friendly and approachable at the last event they did with her .
Anne is excellent at her job. Flying under the radar and keeping her numbers up. That doesn’t mean she isn’t 100% supportive of the nastiness within the BRF. As long as they leave her alone she’s fine with it. The pedo, the cash for honors, the racist attacks etc… she is fine and supportive of all of it. She even seems to be a part of it here and there.
Kate showing up with multiple new outfits is also an issue. In a time of austerity in the UK where people are going to struggle to pay their energy bills, watching kate wear new dresses during her holiday tour is really tone deaf. And it has been for every tour but this is the first time they are getting called on it. She has a decades worth of clothes she could re-wear and seeing as she didn’t bother to wear any local designers, did anyone need to see more boring designs from British designers like Catherine Walker or jenny packham?
IMO she dresses to try to regain W’s interest. If she were confident in her own right, she would easily rewear outfits and focus on her substance, but she’s stuck trying to at least regain his physical attraction.
Anne has a reputation for being the biggest ‘miser by any standards. Lol
Anne is the type of miser who will ride her horse to the grocery store to save on the price of gas (petrol) and then buys steak & lobster once she gets there. It is to some degree charming.
Anne buys very-very expensive clothes but she wears them for the rest of her life (40+ years????) unlike some people who have the same couture-designer coat in every color it comes in plus just many duplicates. Again, Anne’s behavior is to some degree charming.
Doesn’t PC do the same with clothes? And PH and PW seem to do that to some degree.
Correct! Prince Charles does the exact same thing with his clothes as The Princess Royal does.
Not to not pick, but Anne does not buy her clothes. None of them spend their own money.
I’m sure she has no hesitation when she’s buying horses.
Which is kinda how I think they should play it when they’re essentially living off the public’s dime.
(And to be superficial about it, I’m a little envious that she can still wear clothes she bought in the 80s. I wouldn’t be able to fit into mine.)
Anne has constantly re-worn the dress & coat ensemble she purchased and first wore to Charles’ first wedding.
Well given what the post about Andrew said regarding royal finances I guess Anne has no choice but to be frugal unless she wants to get involved with criminals. Although didn’t someone on here say she has some type of horse breeding business? So I guess a royal can make income, just not with Netflix or Spotify. But shady business people and horses? Have at it. Smh.
The Queen gifted her a farm and she has rented it out for horse events.
Anne does her homework. She’s knowledgeable about the places she visits and people she meets. She’s an active member in many worldwide charities and has been associated with Save the Children for over fifty years for which she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990. She eschews lavish wardrobes and doesn’t travel with a troop of hair and make-up flunkies. Compare that to the Cambridges’ white supremacy Tour de Farce…
Exactly. And there will be no Evita moments, no cosplaying of flags, of current and deceased icons. No airbrushed Chris Jackson “star moments.” And if her brothers are going to walk behind their father’s casket, she will not ride in a carriage, she will walk behind the casket with the men.
I know someone who was involved with one of her overseas charities back in the 80s and they said if she’d been a regular aid worker Anne would have been one of the logistics people who dug the latrines and fixed the water supply. She was very much not touchy-feely, but very practically minded, incredibly well informed about the project and very quick on the uptake. She wasn’t terribly patient with waffle, she was all about the nitty-gritty details, and had a very dry sense of humour. She was very aware that she was not the fairytale princess type!
This is exactly why i read this site daily. Yes, i love the celebrity news and gossip, but also, the writing is spectacular.
“He is a fedora-wearing icon of minding his business and keeping his mouth shut.”
WK’s current absence is because they want to do something they consider big during Invictus. So they need all the rest they can take 😆
Should the press compliment Anne on finally coming into her own, or on being keen to start really working? Or announce she finally has enough confidence to do solo engagements? (Oh no wait, the RRs save the ridiculous compliments for the Cambridges only)
Princess Anne has visited my city a number of times in my memory. My mother used to work catering at the Expo Centre here, and she told me that Princess Anne attended an agricultural event here and seemed very down to earth. She went and got her own coffee, wasn’t surrounded by a bunch of staff or body guards. I respect Princess Anne’s work ethic. She does countless events each year and does so without complaint (it seems).
Anne has always complained within proper channels. Never openly to the press.
Like when she didn’t want to curtesy to Kate. She made sure a rule would be clarified in its wording and we only found out later in a slow news day article the rule was changed after some time.
These royal tours are a ridiculous hangover from a hundred years ago. The BRF needs to drop all this traditional patroney style . I don’t need to go into a solution here but this approach is very dated and out of touch.
PA is one month older than I am, so I’ve always had my eye on her. I really loved her “naff off” and “not bloody likely” period. I thought that she possibly become like her aunt, Princess Margaret, and become a party girl, but then I realized that PA is annoyed by things like clothing, make-up, hair-style.
She’s quite a bit like Prince Philip. She cares little for displays of pomp or news articles. She did not want to give her children royal names or titles. She works very hard and, at the end of the day, relaxes with some television with her iconically press-avoidant husband.
She is not a narcissist—a big character flaw in many Windsors. I think she thinks of her dogs and horses as her “earnings” for her work.
Heh. When the RF posted an Instagram pix of Anne watching TV at home with her hubby, I was surprised how much the room looked like any standard, comfy, cluttered suburban family room. Shoot, their credenza is a dead ringer for my grandmother’s—including the innumerable books and knick-knacks. 🙃🙃
This has got zero coverage in the UK – nothing I’ve seen anyway. I know Anne has a good work ethic (for a Royal, that is – let’s not get carried away), but she’s something like 17th in line to the throne. Most of these people won’t really know who she is. And if this isn’t getting any coverage, then what is the point, really?
It didn’t get much coverage in Australia, either. I didn’t even know she was in the country!
I have nothing against Ann and applaud her work ethic, such as it is. Ann and her lifestyle and lack of pomp is actually a good model for the Windsor’s going forward. Having said that, every time I show my mother a photo of Ann, she says “Oh yeah, that’s the Queen’s sister?”
There are definitely still colonial overtones here, but the big difference is Anne has not spent the last decade pushing herself as the face of “modern” royalty and she’s not grasping for images to post on social media. She’s not treating every airplane tarmac as a fashion show, and she’s actually meeting people, not freeze-posing in a guffaw as the cameras flash.
The analogy that comes to mind is simple – it’s the difference between attending a concert or a festival and meeting people, enjoying the music, and having a really good experience vs spending all of your time posing in front of one thing or another and posting about what an amazing festival it is, but never actually experiencing anything.
The thing about the Will and Kate cosplay plantation extravaganza was that they were very deliberate in the imagery, however misguided and racist, and it was a performance crafted largely for the folks back home. That’s why it felt so awkward and disconnected. I doubt that the visual “throwbacks” like the vintage jeep were intended for or much noticed in Belize, Jamaica, or Barbados – the audience for Will and Kate was never the people they were actually visiting, but those who couldn’t wait to vicariously relive the glory days of the empire in this, the all important jubilee year that is just top of mind for everybody. Right?
Anne may be miserly but surely she could spring for a bottle of retinol and an occasional afternoon at the hairdresser, that hair is a mess!
Princess Anne does the work. She is essentially non-fussy and she doesn’t court press or scandal. She may not be exciting but in the era of big egos and complaining, I find it refreshing that she gets on with her role. There is much about the royal family that is antiquated and problematic but I honestly do not see Princess Anne as the issue. If anything she is a stand out for them. Not discounting the colonialism aspects that are all around not good.
Her affair where a man lost his job for discreetly mentioning it in context of valid concerns was pretty scandalous and she didn’t seem to be bothered.
It was lightly covered in the 👑.