Royal Family

Over the past four years, royal fans may have noticed that Sophie has been working her way up the cogs of The Firm. From attending glittering banquets to standing next to Queen Camilla on the Buckingham Palace balcony for Trooping the Colour, her high status is crystal clear to the public.  But she was afforded the opportunity to move to the inner circle when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced that they were leaving the Royal Family in exchange for a more star-studded lifestyle in Montecito, California (Sophie and Meghan pictured in 2018, left and 2019, inset). The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh are the only two working members, apart from the Prince and Princess of Wales , who are under 70, therefore it was only natural for them to step up and take over as senior working royals, earning the trust of both the late Queen and King Charles. And this was seen recently when Sophie was 'promoted' to the top table at the lavish State Banquet for the Japanese royals last week, where she was placed right next to Emperor Naruhito at Buckingham Palace (pictured right).

When the Duke of Sussex gave his first speech (above) after quitting royal duties in 2020 to seek his fortune overseas, he voiced both his sadness and indignation that his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, had not allowed him to keep his ties to the Armed Forces. 'Our hope was to continue serving the Queen, the Commonwealth, and my military associations, but without public funding,' he told guests at a charity event in West London . 'Unfortunately, that wasn't possible.'

The Duchess of Edinburgh (centre) had Prince Edward and Lady Louise in hysterics this weekend when she took part in an unusual challenge while carriage driving. Sophie, 59, was seen participating in the Sandringham Driving Horse Trials on Saturday while her husband and daughter watched on. During the event, the royal was challenged to hold a wine glass full of sparkling water (right) between her teeth as she drove along. The Duchess (left) was then meant to place the glass down at the next stand - but missed the post.