Labels

Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown

 

Summary (from the publisher): An extraordinary memoir of drama, tragedy, and royal secrets by Anne Glenconner--a close member of the royal circle and lady-in-waiting to Princess Margaret. As seen on Netflix's The Crown.

Anne Glenconner has been at the center of the royal circle from childhood, when she met and befriended the future Queen Elizabeth II and her sister, the Princess Margaret. Though the firstborn child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, who controlled one of the largest estates in England, as a daughter she was deemed "the greatest disappointment" and unable to inherit. Since then she has needed all her resilience to survive the vipers of court life with her sense of humor intact.

A unique witness to landmark moments in royal history, Maid of Honor at Queen Elizabeth's coronation, and a lady in waiting to Princess Margaret until her death in 2002, Anne's life has encompassed extraordinary drama and tragedy. In Lady in Waiting, she will share many intimate royal stories from her time as Princess Margaret's closest confidante as well as her own battle for survival: her broken-off first engagement on the basis of her "mad blood"; her 54-year marriage to the volatile, unfaithful Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who left his fortune to a former servant; the death in adulthood of two of her sons; a third son she nursed back from a six-month coma following a horrific motorcycle accident. Through it all, Anne has carried on, traveling the world with the royal family, including visiting the White House, and developing the Caribbean island of Mustique as a safe harbor for the rich and famous-hosting Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Raquel Welch, and many other politicians, aristocrats, and celebrities.

Review: Born the daughter of an Earl, Anne Glenconner grew up as a a playmate with Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret. When Elizabeth was crowned Queen, Anne was asked to be a maid of honour at her coronation and later was asked to serve as a lady in waiting to Princess Margaret, a role she had until the princess's death. Anne married Colin Tennant, son of the Baron Glenconner. Despite her husband's stormy personality, the two were married for over fifty years and had three sons and twin daughters. 

Unlike many memoirs of individuals from her social station, Anne is remarkably candid and forthcoming in this book. She opens her book with a frank but also somewhat comical description of how her birth was a disappointment, as she wasn't a boy and heir. She is also very frank about her husband's difficult personality, one son's addiction to heroin, another's death due to AIDS, and her own perceived shortcomings as a mother. I loved her description of the royal family and her years serving Princess Margaret. They were clearly very close and had a good relationship. 

The privileged and elite lifestyle enjoyed by Anne are not to be understated. In addition to regularly namedropping members of the royal family (for instance, her children's nanny went on to nanny for Prince William and Prince Harry and Princess Margaret's future husband was her wedding photographer) but she also references encounters with Presidents Reagan and Bush made on visits with Princess Margaret to America. She also describes visitors to her home such as Brooke Shields and others. Her husband was extremely wealthy and devoted much of his life to the purchase and development of Mustique Island, which became an exclusive resort destination. Yet despite all this, she comes across as quite down to earth, good natured, and open. I listened to this book on audible and was delighted to find that it was narrated by the author herself, which felt as if she was sitting beside me telling me her life story. I sympathized with her many difficulties and challenges and marveled at her connections and great travels. An excellent, highly entertaining memoir that I was sad to finish. 

Stars: 4

Related Titles: 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts