Princess Anne Declared The Hardest-Working Royal Of 2018

Let’s rewind the clock to 39 years ago, when Tim O’Donovan started tracking every single royal appearance for the UK newspaper The Times. His mission? To determine who truly earns the title of the busiest royal each year. You might think it would be Meghan Markle or Kate Middleton, but guess what? In 2018, the title went to someone else entirely—Princess Anne. Yep, Queen Elizabeth’s daughter stole the spotlight with her incredible dedication to royal duties.

Now, here’s the kicker: Tim O’Donovan tallied up Princess Anne’s appearances and found she racked up an astonishing 447 events in the UK alone, plus another 71 overseas. That’s right—she managed to outshine even Prince William, Kate, and Prince Harry combined. If those numbers don’t blow your mind, I don’t know what will. Let’s dive deeper into how Anne pulled off this incredible feat and what it means for the royal family.

Princess Anne vs. the Competition

O’Donovan didn’t stop at counting Anne’s appearances; he also kept tabs on the other royals. For instance, Prince William, who's 36 years old, attended 150 events in the UK and 70 abroad. His younger brother, Harry, 34 at the time, managed 108 appearances in the UK and 85 internationally. Despite their impressive numbers, they couldn’t catch up to Anne. In fact, she wasn’t just competing against her nephews—she was also going head-to-head with her older brother, Prince Charles.

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Prince Charles Comes Close But Falls Short

Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, did his best to keep up with Anne. He totaled 507 events both domestically and internationally. However, Anne wasn’t about to let him take the crown. She clocked in at an impressive 518 events, making her the clear winner for 2018. But let’s not forget, Charles wasn’t exactly slacking. In fact, he held the title for the most public duties in 2017, so he’s definitely earned some respect for his hard work.

What about the rest of the royal family? Well, Prince Andrew managed to attend 394 events, while Prince Edward came in at 463. And although Queen Elizabeth, now 92, decided to stop traveling overseas, she still managed to attend 283 events in the UK throughout the year. That’s some serious dedication right there.

Kate and Meghan Lag Behind

While most royals dedicate their lives to public appearances, Kate Middleton, who’s 36, has chosen to focus more on motherhood. The Duchess of Cambridge only managed 87 public visits, partly because she was on maternity leave for Prince Louis during part of the year. As for Meghan Markle, in her first year as a royal, she also found herself at the bottom of the list. At 37, she made 45 official engagements in the UK and 51 abroad. Still, it’s her first year, so we’ll give her some credit for trying!

O’Donovan emphasized that these numbers shouldn’t be used to create a ‘league table’ of royal performance. After all, every engagement is different in terms of time and content. He also pointed out that the Queen rarely takes a day off, even on days like Christmas or Easter, because she’s always reading official documents from the red boxes. Now that’s commitment!