Royal Family members have been globe-trotting in recent months to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, and the Queen’s famously dependable daughter Princess Anne recently completed a jam-packed trip to Australia and Papua New Guinea. Princess Anne’s tour included visits to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, and in Papua New Guinea, Anne met Prime Minister James Marape and visited local schools and hospitals. But Anne’s royal tour was very different to others because she is famed for her “unique” approach to royal duties.
Body language expert Judi James told Express.co.uk: “Anne dropped the ‘Disney Princess’ look many years ago and the result is a set of body language behaviours that are unique in the Royal Family.
“Based almost entirely on practicality, her dress sense, her speed of movement, her direct verbal approach and her overall sense of energy and humour (but with that looks like a potential trait of honest intolerance), all suggest someone who wants to get on with the job rather than posing for PR photos.
“Her charisma is heavy with leadership signals. She is rarely seen standing back and waiting to be ushered or led and is often seen setting the pace or standing in the kind of confident, ‘control’ mode that suggests natural high status and authority.”
Comparisons have long been drawn between stoic Anne and another famous royal figure, her late father Prince Philip, and the similarities were visible on Anne’s recent royal tour.
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Ms James explained: “Despite once being mentored by her super-glamorous aunt Princess Margaret, Anne now appears to use body language that reflects her sporting past as well as her father’s influence.
“The grins around her in Australia look genuinely friendly rather than reflecting any awe based on protocol.
“With her wide splayed stride and her direct eye contact you could put Anne in a matching Stetson like the livestock farmers around her, and she would blend in perfectly.”
Princess Anne was joined on her royal tour by her husband of three decades, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, who lives out of the royal spotlight most of the time.
The body language expert explained: “She is very much a solo performer who seems to be happiest working alone, with only rare sightings of her husband or any ladies-in-waiting.
“She has always set her own fashion agenda but recently she appears to be making her own statements with determination, confidence, and a lack of concern for the more traditional look for royal women, especially of her generation and above.
“Breaking through several unspoken barriers here she wears trousers and a blazer for one visit and a chic cream trouser suit for the other.
“This ‘freedom’ look will probably mark Anne out as much as her manner and her body language, emphasising her status as the royal who gets the job done well, with as little drama as possible.”
