Introduce!
Yesterday, at the service in honor of Commonwealth Day, the royals were of course also present en masse. But where they largely made an appearance with their husbands at their side, Anne, Princess Royal, appeared with an unknown lady at her side. Who is that mysterious companion?
Commonwealth Day service
With King Charles and Princess Kate still out of the running, a slightly depleted Windsor family led by Queen Camilla turned up at the traditional service at Westminster Abbey yesterday to celebrate Commonwealth Day.
In addition to the Queen, attendees included Prince William, Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, Edward and Sophie, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Richard and Brigitte.
Mystery guest
Of course, Princess Anne also showed up – not a royal engagement she would miss! Next to Anne we also saw an elegantly dressed lady in a beige coat with whom she shared a pleasant chat, but who is this mystery guest actually?
Image: NL Image
We introduce you to Dolly Maude: one of the princess’s three new Ladies in Waiting.
At the beginning of last month, Buckingham Palace announced that the Princess Royal had officially hired three new ladies-in-waiting. Two of these had previously served the late Queen Elizabeth, Lady Elizabeth Leeming and Susan Rhodes. However, Dolly Maude was a new face at court.
Family friend
Or well… Dolly was not really unknown. She has been good friends with the Tindalls and the Phillips for years, and has repeatedly proven herself to be a rock for Anne’s daughter, Zara Tindall.
The two were spotted at the Cheltenham races in early 2011 – right on trend with those gigantic diva glasses!
In addition, a few months later, Dolly was Zara’s maid of honor at her wedding to her love Mike Tindall.
Confidant
Moreover, Mike already revealed that Dolly even had a key role in the birth of son Lucas. Dolly, who has a background as a midwife in the British National Health Service, realized that the little one had accelerated his birth so quickly that a trip to the hospital would take too long.
“So it was a matter of running to our gym, grabbing a mat, going into the bathroom, putting down towels, and brace brace brace,” Mike said in his podcast The Good, The Bad & The Rugby.
Besties
And now Princess Anne has hired her daughter’s best friend as Lady in Waiting. Not a bad choice, if you ask us! Over the years we have seen several times that mother and daughter get along great with Dolly.
Image: NL Image
In addition to all the shared experiences, the three ladies also share a love for equestrian sports. From Cheltenham to the Royal Ascot, Dolly has regularly turned up at both Zara and Anne’s side.
With her appearance on Commonwealth Day, Dolly has now also made her first ‘official’ appearance as a lady-in-waiting. May many more follow!
Source: Hello! Magazine, The Daily Mail, Tatler | Image: NL Image
