Lady in Waiting

My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown

Anne Glenconner, Anne Glenconner

$49.99

CD-Audio

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English

Hachette
30 June 2020

Autobiography: general; Autobiography: royalty; Memoirs; Humanities; Social & cultural history

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*OVER HALF A MILLION COPIES SOLD
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*THE TIMES MEMOIR OF THE YEAR 2019
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'The best royal book by miles . . . funny, gossipy and riveting'

JANE RIDLEY, SPECTATOR

'If your jaw doesn't drop at least three times every chapter, you've not been paying proper attention'

SUNDAY TIMES

'A captivating account of a life lived with resilience and grace'

DAILY MAIL

'The stoical Lady G writes with infectious joy and optimism'

DAILY EXPRESS

'The gossip is stupendous but it's also tremendously touching. It's one of those books that makes you long for bed so you can read more!'

JILLY COOPER

'I can't recommend it highly enough'

LORRAINE KELLY

'Gentle, wise, unpretentious, but above all inspiring'

THE TIMES

'A candid, witty and stylish memoir'

MIRANDA SEYMOUR, FINANCIAL TIMES

'Stalwart and disarmingly honest . . . emotion resonates through this delightful memoir'

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

'Discretion and honour emerge as the hallmarks of Glenconner's career as a royal servant, culminating in this book which manages to be both candid and kind'

GUARDIAN

'I couldn't put it down. Funny and touching - like looking through a keyhole at a lost world.'

RUPERT EVERETT

The remarkable life of Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret who was also a Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation. Anne Glenconner reveals the real events behind The Crown as well as her own life of drama, tragedy and courage, with the wonderful wit and extraordinary resilience which define her.

Anne Glenconner has been close to the Royal Family since childhood. Eldest child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, she was, as a daughter, described as 'the greatest disappointment' by her family as she was unable to inherit. Her childhood home Holkham Hall is one of the grandest estates in England. Bordering Sandringham the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret were frequent playmates.

From Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation to Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret, Lady Glenconner is a unique witness to royal history, as well as an extraordinary survivor of a generation of aristocratic women trapped without inheritance and burdened with social expectations.

She married the charismatic but highly volatile Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who became the owner of Mustique. Together they turned the island into a paradise for the rich and famous, including Mick Jagger and David Bowie, and it became a favourite retreat for Princess Margaret.

But beneath the glitz and glamour there has also lurked tragedy.

By: Anne Glenconner
Read by: Anne Glenconner
Imprint: Hachette
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: Unabridged edition
Dimensions: Height: 134mm, Width: 132mm, Spine: 28mm
Weight: 220g
ISBN: 9781529344172
ISBN 10: 1529344174
Publication Date: 30 June 2020
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: CD-Audio
Publisher's Status: Active

Lady Glenconner is now 87. She was born Lady Anne Coke in 1932, the eldest daughter of the 5th Earl of Leicester, and growing up in their ancestral estate at Holkham Hall in Norfolk. A Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation, she married Lord Glenconner in 1956. They had 5 children together of whom 3 survive. In 1958 she and her husband began to transform the island of Mustique into a paradise for the rich and famous. They granted a plot of land to Princess Margaret who built her favourite home there. She was appointed Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret in 1971 and kept this role - accompanying her on many state occasions and foreign tours - until her death in 2002. Lord Glenconner died in 2010, leaving everything in his will to his former employee. She now lives in a farmhouse near Kings Lynn in Norfolk.