Princess Anne is quite possibly the coolest royal, and definitely one of the hardest-working,
with a manner that puts even the most nervous at ease. But she's still human,
so there are plenty of people the Princess Royal really can't stand.
Princess Diana may hold a special place in countless hearts as "the people's princess."
But according to those closest to Princess Anne, she thought Diana was in no way,
shape, or form the sort of royal who should be setting an example for anyone.
"There's been tales, for instance,
of you and the Princess of Wales not exactly hitting it off. I mean."
"Yes."
When a fictionalized version of Anne made her appearance in the hit show The Crown,
Vanity Fair investigated to see if there was any truth to the conflict between the two. It
turns out the show actually downplayed the dislike, which royal experts say was rooted
in Diana's outgoing personality, reputation as a fashionista, and love of the spotlight.
Richard Kay, a longtime reporter on the royals, summed up the conflict like this:
"[Anne] did not have time for Diana. [...] She didn't like the way she went
about her duty and the way she used the cameras and the media to promote herself,
in her eyes. [...] Anne had a much more traditional approach to monarchy and royal duty."
Diana's attempts at forming a relationship with Anne were reportedly rebuffed,
and things didn't get better after Diana's marriage to Charles. In 2022, Newsweek
reported that an old clip had resurfaced in which Anne was asked about Diana and gruffly replied,
"What about Diana? I don't know, you tell me."
The reporter clarified they were interested in
knowing more about the son Diana had just given birth to. Anne replied,
"I didn't know she'd had one."
Some people just get off on the wrong foot, and,
according to Cherie Blair's memoir, Speaking for Myself, that's exactly
what happened when she met Princess Anne. Vanity Fair reported on the encounter,
which started off wrong when Anne, upon meeting the wife of then-Prime Minister Tony Blair,
called her "Mrs. Blair." When the first lady asked the princess to call her Cherie, Anne bristled:
"I'd rather not. It's not the way I've been brought up."
Blair's response?
"What a shame."
Ouch. Blair biographer Peter Scott recounted the incident in his book as well,
saying that Anne simply turned around and walked away, and that the encounter set
the tone for the rest of their relationship. Five years later, in 2002, they met again at
Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee. When the queen tried to introduce them, Anne turned her back
and walked away without a word. Matters weren't helped any when Blair made sure to point out,
"That b— completely blanked me."
It's entirely possible that Anne's dislike for Cherie Blair wasn't helped by Blair's vocal
dislike for other royals. From humiliating moments with Princess Margaret to declaring that she hated
the Queen's beloved corgis to claiming she was allergic to the royal residence at Balmoral,
it's safe to say that Blair didn't go out of her way to observe royal niceties,
which would understandably rub the Princess Royal the wrong way.
It's no secret that royal newcomer Meghan Markle is incredibly polarizing. When
body language experts looked at how she related to various members of the family,
they noted that Anne's response to her was distant. That came with a
disclaimer that Anne was often aloof, but other reports of their
interactions leave little doubt about what the Princess Royal really thinks of Markle.
Royal expert Neil Sean says that, when Markle first got serious about wanting to be a royal,
she asked Anne for advice. At the time, Anne did counsel her. She advised that becoming a
member of the royal family was a full-time job, stressed the importance of charity work, and told
Markle that when she lent her name to something, that wasn't enough. She needed to get involved.
"She always has been one of, if not the, most hard-working member of the royal family. I mean,
she will carry out four or five engagements in one day."
Sean went on to say that Markle absolutely didn't follow through,
and it soured Anne on the would-be princess. He explained via Birmingham Daily,
"Meghan left her meeting with Princess Anne dumbfounded. [...] And Princess Anne
always knew that Meghan would have a very short shelf-life in the world of the British monarchy."
He wasn't the only one to speak about Anne's dislike
of Markle. In an interview with The Mirror,
Lady Colin Campbell said that Anne warned Harry not to marry her. She went on to allege that,
"[Princess Anne] couldn't stand Meghan's constant, 'me, me, me, me.'"
According to the Express, Kate Middleton and Princess Anne paid a 2022 visit to the joint
headquarters of two of the organizations they patronize — the Royal College of Obstetricians
and Gynaecologists and the Royal College of Midwives. When reporters compared notes,
they realized they had all the details on what the Duchess was wearing,
but nothing on the Princess's clothing choices. The reason?
"Nobody had the guts to actually ask."
"Does the press really annoy you?"
"It wouldn't really be doing its job if it wasn't."
Jayne Fincher, an award-winning photographer and author of several bestselling books about
the royal family, is among those who have felt Princess Anne's wrath. In fact, the International
Business Times says that an incident with Fincher and other photographers may have fostered Anne's
dislike of the press. It happened at the Burghley Horse Show in 1982. Anne not only fell from her
horse, but she ended up being dumped into an extremely muddy lake. Fincher recalled,
"We were all click click clicking away, giggling our heads off. [...] If looks could have killed,
we would all have been dead instantly."
"The pressure that is applied to the younger members of the
family is hard sometimes to deal with."
Anne reportedly despised her title being more important than her equestrian achievements,
and it was another fall that same year that led to her telling photographers to, quote,
"Naff off."
"Her language can be quite fruity."
The remark was all over headlines when it happened. It wasn't until years later that
photographer Steve Wood revealed to the Express that they'd made up the
"naff off" comment. What Anne actually said was much worse and completely unprintable.
Every so often, the world gets a reminder that, underneath all the glitz and glamor,
royals are real people with real feelings and real failings. Sarah Ferguson has always had
something of an odd relationship with her now ex-husband, the disgraced Prince Andrew. They
continue to live together despite being divorced for more than three decades,
and it seems as though she was never a favorite sister-in-law of Princess Anne.
According to royal photographer Steve Wood, Anne was no more a
fan of Ferguson than she was of Diana, for much the same reason. He told the Express,
"[Anne] was extremely annoyed when Diana became center of stage, and then Fergie became center of
stage for a while. She said about them behind their backs several times — 'those girls.'"
According to royal reporter Harry Arnold, Princess Anne was once overheard to say,
"I work hard every day. I am never in the paper, no one ever thanks me."
Camilla Parker Bowles has always had a complicated
relationship with the royal family, and that extends to Princess Anne.
When Princess Anne divorced in 1992, there were rumors that infidelity was at the root
of the split, and one of the names mentioned alongside Anne's was Camilla's first husband,
Andrew Parker Bowles. What really happened is unclear,
but what is known is that he's the godfather of Anne's daughter, and the Princess Royal
and Parker Bowles are frequently seen attending equestrian events together.
Her affection didn't seem to extend to Camilla — at least, not at first. Camilla was initially
put off by Anne's prickly standoffishness towards her, and the memory of whatever happened between
Anne and Andrew Parker Bowles lingered. But relationships change over time, and in the years
following Camilla's marriage to Anne's brother, Charles, the two women seem to have resolved at
least some of their disagreements and now conduct themselves in a way that suggests friendship.
Princess Anne fills one of the two British seats on the International Olympic Committee or IOC.
She serves alongside a smattering of other royals, representatives from the military,
former Olympians, and a who's-who of sports celebrities. Although there are no specifics
available, there are clearly some people on the committee that Anne just can't stand.
In 1998, The New York Times reported on allegations that some committee members
were more than happy to take bribes when it came time to vote on which cities would be
chosen to host the Olympics. This was very loudly condemned by Anne. She wanted anyone corrupt out
of the IOC. While Craig Reedie, the other British IOC delegate, apparently disagreed, commenting,
"The Princess Royal wants to put its own house in order."
Fast forward to 2021, and it became very clear that Anne still had a major beef with
IOC members who survived the scandal. Anne, a former Olympian herself, was credited with
playing a major role in setting up London's 2012 games. According to an ITV documentary,
it was during the 2012 organizational meetings that Anne made an unfiltered comment over a live
mic. After an unnamed committee member gave something of a speech, she said,
"I think this person is probably the most stupid person in world sport."
No conversation about people whom Princess Anne dislikes would be complete without
touching on the infamous incident between the royal family and Donald Trump. First,
let's go to the videotape, and review what happened afterward. Words like "legend"
were used to describe Princess Anne after a video started circulating that showed her
mother in a reception line to greet several NATO leaders. Among them was Trump. As he stood there,
the Queen looked to Anne, who shrugged. Low-key shade, or something else?
"The Queen's like, 'Come on over," and she's like, "Yeah, no, I'm good.'"
As much as the viral response to the video wanted to either praise or condemn Anne for seeming to
make her dislike of Trump blatantly obvious, it turns out that's not what happened at all.
According to the Press Association's Laura Elston, the queen was looking toward Anne to see who was
coming up to her after Trump. He was last in line, and Anne's shrug was accompanied by her statement,
"It's just me!"
In another incident, Anne is said to have been standing with a group of world leaders
laughing behind Trump's back. Insiders told Vanity Fair that the story had horrified her.
"She has always been careful not to be seen to be
political in any way. She is also incredibly respectful,
so any suggestion that she would laugh at anyone behind their backs was quite upsetting for her."