Princess Anne has received mixed reviews from royal fans after a photo of her living room was shared by the royal family on Twitter this weekend.
To celebrate Scotland’s win against England for the Calcutta Cup on Sunday, the Princess Royal and her husband, Sir Timothy Laurence, were photographed sitting together on the couch in the living room of their private home in Gatcombe Park.
The intimate and cozy image quickly gathered a variety of responses on Twitter, including surprise and delight to see inside the home of a notoriously private member of the royal family.
Princess Anne — Queen Elizabeth II‘s only daughter — is rarely in the spotlight and has earned a reputation over the years for being sulky and bad-tempered.
However, this weekend, the Princess Royal appeared delighted with Scotland’s rugby win as she sat next to her husband, and the couple both smiled while watching the game on TV.
This is the first time Scotland has won the Calcutta Cup during Princess Anne’s 30-year patronage of the Scottish team, having previously won it in 1983.
In response to the rare and private photo, many royal fans were thrilled to have been given an insight into the royal home, commenting to say it was “so sweet” and it was “no surprise” to see the living room full of dogs, military items, books, and paintings.
Others were pleased to see Princess Anne and Sir Tim looking “so at home,” while others noticed the vast array of items in the room — prompting one social media user to comment “thank you but please declutter.”
“Just love this photo of Princess Anne. She’s regal even when watching TV at home. It shows how down to earth this lady is!” said a royal supporter.
“Love this photo! You would feel welcome in a room like this, not all nervous and standing on ceremony. I love that HRH The Princess Royal has lots of ‘stuff’ around her. I call mine ‘my treasures and curiosities.’ They make a house a home ?❤,” claimed another fan of the royal family.
Even Queen Elizabeth II’s former press secretary, Dickie Arbiter, could not resist commenting on the post, praising the couple for their “lived-in” home which does not look like the “show house”‘ of “new rich celebs.”
“I was feeling claustrophobic looking at the mess and clutter! Indeed! It’s a mess,” wrote a naysayer. “Too much clutter in the room,” added this other critic.
It is unlikely that the famous royal will change her ways.
