Prince William and Prince Harry are easily two of the world's most popular and well-known
royals.
As famous as they are, did you know that they have a stepsister?
Here's the truth about Prince Harry and Prince William's stepsister, Laura Lopes.
Laura Lopes, née Parker Bowles, has never been a prominent figure in the royal family.
Many people have never even heard of her, probably because she and her brother Tom Parker
Bowles have never felt like part of the famous family.
He explained this on Good Morning Britain, saying that since his mother married into
the royals, she was a true member, but didn't think the same could be said for he and Laura.
He went onto joke -
"We're- we're the common children.
You know, We're just the- on-on the side."
Camilla's children were already adults when they joined the family, which may provide
another reason why they've never felt like a central part of the royal unit.
Unlike her stepbrothers, Laura has had to forge her own career separate from the royal
family.
As the Mirror noted, she graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a degree in History
of Art and Marketing.
Then, she went on to intern at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice.
Laura also worked as the motoring correspondent for Tatler magazine at the time her brother
Tom was at the publication as a food columnist.
After her stint in journalism, Laura shifted her work into the art world.
In the mid-2000s, she managed the Space Gallery in London.
Then, in 2005, she went on to co-found the Eleven Gallery in London.
According to Town & Country, Laura no longer works at Eleven, but has moved to Wiltshire
where she hosts exhibitions.
The magazine noted that she also launched a fashion boutique named Mojo & Mccoy with
some of her friends.
Regarding the boutique, she said -
"We all have a unique sense of style, but it works."
According to E!, Camilla Parker Bowles was determined to make sure that her children
had a stable home life, but that's not to say things weren't complicated.
When Laura was young, Prince Charles and her mother were simply friends, exchanging occasional
Christmas cards and phone calls.
Laura and her brother Tom knew Charles as a family friend.
During this period, Camilla was a dedicated mother, attending her children's school events
and driving Laura to all her play dates, parties, and lessons.
Laura's father, Andrew Parker Bowles, reportedly had affairs throughout his marriage with Camilla.
And then, things were really turned upside down when a private phone call between Camilla
and Charles was leaked in 1993.
"But you have my word.
My love for you is real."
Camilla became a constant figure in the tabloids, and even though she tried to shield her children
from the press, Laura and Tom had to deal with the publicity, too.
In 1995, when Laura was 17, her parents divorced.
Even though Laura was not born into the royal family, there's no doubt that the royal stepsister
definitely enjoyed a super privileged upbringing.
She and her brother grew up at Middlewick House, a beautiful 18th century home in Wiltshire.
When she graduated, her parents bought her and her brother an apartment in London's upscale
Kensington area to share.
Despite her privileged upbringing, she has been encouraged to experience a more regular
lifestyle, too.
While at university, she reportedly shared a house with her fellow students.
She also worked as a waitress and dishwasher at a cafe for 3 pounds and 50 pence an hour.
According to Hello!, Prince Charles apparently thought it would be a good experience for
her.
Even though Camilla Parker Bowles and Prince Charles didn't marry until 2005, their romance
began much, much earlier.
As the Evening Standard noted, they dated before Charles married Princess Diana in 1981.
Charles also admitted to having an affair with Camilla towards the end of his troubled
marriage to Diana.
"And I said to Camilla 'I'm sorry I'm in the way.
I obviously am in the way and it must be hell for both of you.
But I do know what's going on, don't treat me like an idiot."
This suggests that it's highly likely that Laura met her stepbrothers-to-be well before
her mother's second wedding.
As it turns out, Laura and her brother did befriend Princes William and Harry as early
as 1998.
Hello! reported that at the time, a royal aide commented,
"The boys rather look up to Tom as a young man about town."
According to the magazine, this was around the time of Camilla's first public appearance
alongside Charles.
Hello! also pointed out that Tom Parker Bowles is actually Charles' godson, so the four step
siblings sure do seem to have a long history.
By the sounds of things, Laura hasn't always gotten along with her royal stepsiblings.
According to Katie Nicholl's 2010 book William and Harry: Behind the Palace Walls, Laura
and William got into frequent arguments around the time of Prince Charles' marriage to Camilla.
As Nicholl wrote -
"William and Laura used to have terrible fights over who was to blame for their broken homes."
By the looks of things the infamous love triangle between Charles, Camilla, and Princess Diana
had soured the step siblings' relationship.
Nicholl went on to add -
"William would blame Camilla for all the hurt she had caused his mother, which would send
Laura into a rage."
Apparently, Laura didn't accept William's version of events.
Instead, she blamed Charles for breaking up her family and causing her parents' marriage
to break down.
As Nicholl put it -
"She would take a hard line and fire back at William, 'Your father has ruined my life.'"
While the early days of Camilla and Prince Charles' marriage were tough for their respective
children, tempers seemed to calm down; eventually, Prince William and Laura put their differences
aside and made amends.
Apparently, the stepsiblings have been closer as the princes have accepted Camilla into
their family.
In Angela Levin's 2018 book Harry: Conversations with the Prince, Prince Charles' second-born
said about his stepmother -
"She's a wonderful woman and she's made our father very, very happy."
In 2006, one year after her mother's marriage to Prince Charles, Laura Parker Bowles became
Laura Lopes when she tied the knot with Harry Lopes.
The wedding took place in a quaint Wiltshire village and while it certainly wasn't quite
a royal wedding, the BBC reported that around 500 people filled the streets to catch a glimpse
of the bride and her famous step brothers.
When speaking about her big day to Town & Country, Laura revealed that personal pictures were
her favorite wedding gift, explaining -
"I love the way they tell a story about that person."
So who is Laura's husband, exactly?
Harry Lopes is an Eton educated accountant who once worked as a Calvin Klein underwear
model.
Of his career transition, Laura said to Hello!,
"It's not as much fun as modelling but it's more reliable."
Not only is Laura Lopes happily settled down with her husband in Wiltshire, she's also
a mother of three.
She had her first child, Eliza, in January 2008, and welcomed fraternal twins, Gus and
Louis in December 2009.
By the looks of things, the Lopes children are a little more involved in royal life than
their mother.
Eliza was even a bridesmaid at Kate Middleton and Prince William's wedding in 2011, and
as Hello! reported, she found herself with the royals on the Buckingham Palace balcony,
waving to the massive crowd.
It's unknown if Laura's children are close with their royal cousins, but since they're
occasionally involved in royal ceremonies, we're sure there are plenty of adorable play
dates.
Plus, as The Sun reported, Laura was apparently in the running to be godmother to Kate and
William's third child, Louis, so it seems safe to assume the families are pretty close.
While Prince William and Kate Middleton are apparently quite close to the Lopes children,
it sounds like they've got nothing on Camilla Parker Bowles, who, according to the Daily
Mail, goes by 'GaGa' when she's with her grandkids.
In the documentary The Real Camilla: HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla seemed to really
enjoy being a grandmother, noting that she especially enjoyed not having to be stuck
with the complete responsibility of caring for the kids as a parent, saying:
"You can give them a wonderful time, spoil them, give them all the things their parents
won't allow them to have and then give them back again."
The 2020 lockdown was especially hard for the duchess who told the BBC -
"I shall look forward to the day when I can give them a huge hug again."
Luckily, she managed to spend some time with her family through Zoom.
The outlet also noted that she even downloaded the Houseparty app so she can play games with
her loved ones.
Camilla divorced her first husband, Andrew Parker Bowles, in 1995.
One year later, he went on to remarry Rosemary Pitman, who was reportedly his long-time mistress.
On this side of the family, Laura actually has a few other stepsiblings: Pitman had three
children from her first marriage, who became another branch of Laura's extended family.
Pitman passed away from cancer in 2020.
According to her obituary, Laura was pretty close with her father's side of the family.
Her son told the Daily Mail -
"She was especially pleased to reach Christmas and to be able to see her new step-grandchildren."
As of 2021, Laura Lopes doesn't hold any titles, even though her mother became Camilla Parker
Bowles, Duchess of Cornwall when she married Prince Charles in 2005.
However, this doesn't mean that Laura will never have a title.
According to the Express, there's a good chance that once Charles ascends to the throne there's
a chance he may bestow royal titles on Laura and Tom.
As the IBT reported, Laura's status would likely change in a few other ways, too.
For instance, as one royal expert noted, the siblings might get some staff members and
might even get protection.
However, they'll never be assigned any royal duties as they aren't directly in line for
the throne themselves.
If Charles doesn't bestow a title on Laura, she might still become a baroness thanks to
her husband.
Harry Lopes is the son of a baron, so she would inherit a title along with her husband
upon her father-in-law's death.
Being the stepdaughter of the heir to the British throne certainly seems to have its
perks.
According to Hello!, Charles has reportedly come to regard his stepkids as royals, but
without the titles.
One royal source told the outlet -
"To all intents and purposes, Prince Charles now has a second family."
For this reason, the prince reportedly set up a 2 million pound trust for Laura and her
brother Tom.
As the source put it -
"He is determined that Laura and Tom should be looked after and supported if the worst
happens to him."
Another source further explained the trust to the Evening Standard -
"The Prince of Wales is in no way trying to replace the role of their father, Andrew,
but he has a good relationship with Laura and Tom."
The source went on to state that Charles was also concerned about the increased press attention
surrounding Laura and her brother, and he was doing everything possible to keep them
protected.
Despite being part of the extended royal family, Laura has managed to keep her life relatively
private.
According to Hello!, she has always been introverted, especially in comparison to her brother.
When it comes to being in the public eye, a friend of Laura's once told the magazine
that she doesn't particularly like the attention.
In 2006, Laura chose a local, quaint village church for her wedding ceremony.
As one local pub landlord told the Daily Mail -
"It's nice that she can still be herself and not be bothered in the village.
Laura's a very down-to-earth girl and often comes in here so it's natural that she would
want to get married locally."
Laura also spoke to W Magazine about the difficulties of being a member of the Parker Bowles family,
saying -
"It's not something you want to ride on for the rest of your life, but by no means am
I ever embarrassed."
Laura seems to have a sophisticated relationship with her family's infamous name.
Plus, we're impressed at how she manages to stay under the radar.
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