As they grew up they remained close, with Margaret acting as a bridesmaid at the royal wedding of Queen Elizabeth II to the Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip in 1947.
Princess Margaret had three strokes between 1998 and 2001 and her later years of life were stricken by illness and disability.
She started smoking cigarettes in her late teens and continued to smoke heavily for a long time after.
In the 1970s, the princess had a nervous breakdown and was treated for depression. She also suffered from migraines, laryngitis and bronchitis.
On January 5, 1985, she had part of her left lung removed, a similar procedure her father endured over 30 years prior.
In 1991 she quit smoking, however, continued to be a heavy drinker.
In January 1993, Margaret spent some time in hospital being treated for pneumonia. She then suffered a mild stroke in February 1998 while away at her holiday home.
The stroke affected her mobility and her ability to swallow, as a result, she needed mobility aids to support her while moving.
The princess was hospitalised once more on January 10, 2001, after a further stroke.
By March 2001, the strokes had left her with loss of vision and paralysis on her left side.
In February 2002, it was announced that Margaret had suffered a stroke which was then followed by cardiac problems and she passed away soon after.
She died on February 9, 2002, after suffering her fourth stroke.
How did the late Queen react to Princess Margret’s death?
The late Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret shared a close bond throughout their lives until Margaret passed away in 2002.
At the time, Buckingham Palace said: “The Queen, with great sadness, has asked for the following announcement to be made immediately.
“Her beloved sister, Princess Margaret, died peacefully in her sleep this morning at 6.30 am, in The King Edward VII hospital.
“Her children, Lord Linley and Lady Sarah Chatto were at her side.”
During Margaret’s funeral, Queen Elizabeth openly cried, one of the rare occasions the monarch showed emotion in a public setting.
SHE was the Queen’s party-loving younger sister, known for smoking 60 cigarettes a day, high-profile romances and iconic style.
But in later life, Princess Margaret was plagued by health issues which saw her glamorous lifestyle replaced by hospital stays and agonising pain.
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Princess Margaret, pictured in 1965, was the Queen’s party-loving little sisterCredit: Rex Features
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The princess, seen in 2000, was plagued by agonising health issues in later lifeCredit: PA:Press Association
Margaret’s declining health is seen the new series of The Crown, which shows her clutching an oxygen mask to her face after undergoing lung surgery.
Yet the scenes, starring actress Helena Bonham Carter as Margaret, are only a glimpse into the chain-smoking princess’ lengthy battle with ill health – from strokes and a nervous breakdown to a horrific bath accident.
From ‘party princess’ to health woes
In her heyday, Margaret was a vivacious ‘party princess’ – dancing until dawn and finding any excuse to hang out with actors and rock stars.
A blue-eyed beauty with a tiny waist, she had a string of celebrity lovers, reportedly including actors Peter Sellers, David Niven and Peter O’Toole.
But she wasn’t lucky in love.
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Margaret, portrayed by actress Helena Bonham Carter, clutches an oxygen mask in The Crown’s fourth seasonCredit: Netflix
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Bonham Carter plays Margaret in seasons three and four of the Netflix hitCredit: Netflix 2020, Inc
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Margaret, pictured dancing with her husband Lord Antony Snowdon at a ball at the Tower of London, was a vivacious ‘party princess’Credit: Corbis – Getty
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She is pictured leaving London’s King Edward VII Hospital on November 1, 2001, three months before her death aged 71Credit: PA:Press Association
Ill-fated romances
During her early twenties, Margaret – known for her love of vodka, Scotch whisky and cigarettes – had a doomed fling with RAF pilot Peter Townsend.
She later married motorbike-riding philanderer Lord Antony Snowdon, – with their union coming as a bombshell to the Royal Family.
Despite having two children together, the pair’s marriage was marred by affairs and “gunfire”-style rows, and they eventually divorced in 1978.
But while Margaret seemed prone to ill-fated romances, she also suffered misfortune when it came to her health – starting from her mid-teens.
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Margaret, pictured in 1970, had a penchant for alcohol and cigarettesCredit: Rex Features
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She smiles beside Lord Snowdon during an official royal engagementCredit: Popperfoto – Getty
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The couple wave from the deck of the Royal Yacht Britannia during their Caribbean honeymoon cruise in the West Indies in 1960Credit: Getty – Contributor
Operations from aged 15
Aged 15, she underwent surgery for appendicitis at Buckingham Palace. A news bulletin in November 1945 declared the operation a “success”.
Then, in May 1948, the young princess contracted measles – though palace officials were quick to stress that she hadn’t infected sister Elizabeth.
Over the next couple of decades, while her big sister got to grips with being Queen, Margaret battled through migraines, laryngitis and the flu.
In 1964, four years into her marriage with Lord Snowdon, she was left bedbound with catarrhal infection (inflammation of mucous membranes).
Then in 1968, she had to have her tonsils removed.
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Margaret, pictured with big sister Elizabeth in a 1940 portrait, was just 15 when she underwent surgery for appendicitis at Buckingham PalaceCredit: Bettmann
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The princess, seen waving to crowds in Jamaica in 1962, suffered from migraines, laryngitis, bronchitis and gastric flu during her lifeCredit: Getty Images – Getty
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Margaret dances with ballet star Rudolf Nureyev at a party in June 1977Credit: Hulton Archive – Getty
Despite her pain, the princess, who had suffered from acute tonsillitis, was later pictured smiling as she left London’s King Edward VII Hospital.
She was accompanied by then-husband Antony, in a show of support.
A nervous breakdown
Yet in the 1970s, Margaret’s marriage to Lord Snowdon collapsed – and she suffered a nervous breakdown as her mental health deteriorated.
Despite the pair’s then-scandalous divorce, they remained friends.
But in October 1978, Margaret’s health took a pounding again as she was diagnosed with pneumonia in Tuvalu, in the South Pacific.
Fortunately, she pulled through after being flown to an Australian hospital.
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Margaret is seen at the Badminton Horse Trials in the 1970s – the decade her marriage collapsed and she suffered a nervous breakdownCredit: Rex Features
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She chats with Rolling Stones star Mick Jagger in a restaurant in 1976Credit: AFP – Getty
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The Queen and Margaret are seen attending the Epsom Derby in Surrey in 1979, a year after Margaret was diagnosed with pneumonia overseasCredit: Getty Images – Getty
However, in the ’80s, the princess’s health issues escalated – with Margaret suffering from a seemingly endless string of illnesses over two decades.
In 1980 – the year she turned 50 – she was admitted to a London hospital for surgery to remove a benign skin lesion, according to the BBC.
Cancer scare
Then in January 1985, the ’60 cigarettes a day’ princess had part of her lung cut out in a cancer scare (though, luckily, the tissue was non-malignant).
At the time, Margaret’s office said doctors had removed a small area of her left lung, after she was admitted to a private suite at Brompton Hospital.
The princess’s children Viscount Linley and Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones, then aged 23 and 20, were on holiday in Venice when the scare occurred.
And Margaret’s ex Lord Snowdon told reporters: ″I am very relieved that everything went all right and that it was not something serious.″
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Margaret is pictured with Princess Diana and the Queen Mother in 1981. A year earlier, she had undergone surgery to remove a benign skin lesionCredit: Getty – Contributor
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Prince Edward, the Queen, Princess Diana, the Queen Mother, Prince Charles and Princess Margaret are pictured outside Clarence House in 1990Credit: Getty – Contributor
60 cigarettes a day to 30
After the op, Margaret continued smoking – despite four monarchs having died from smoking-related illnesses, including her own dad, King George VI.
Never afraid of speaking her mind, she refused to bow down to pressure from both doctors and members of her family to ditch the cigarettes.
However, it is reported she cut down to 30 a day, rather than 60.
Determined Margaret also continued with royal engagements – but in 1992, she was forced to cancel some after developing a “feverish cold”.
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Glamorous Margaret, pictured in 1991, reportedly cut down from 60 cigarettes a day to 30 after having surgery to remove part of her lungCredit: Rex Features
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The princess, pictured in 1956 during her 26th birthday, had started smoking at a young ageCredit: EPA
And months later, still only in her early 60s, the princess was hospitalised with another bout of pneumonia after complaining of “feeling unwell”.
Again, she fought through.
Holiday horror
But in 1998, Margaret suffered her first mild stroke on the exclusive Caribbean island of Mustique, where she had her own holiday hideaway.
The princess – who had been gifted a plot of land on the island as a wedding present, and loved partying there – fell ill while dining with friends.
She was flown by air ambulance to Barbados, though witnesses said she was able to walk across the Tarmac to the plane and didn’t need a stretcher.
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Margaret was spotted holidaying in Mustique with gangster John Bindon, pictured wearing a T-shirt with the slogan ‘Enjoy Cocaine’Credit: Alamy
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The princess, pictured centre, and her friends Lord Colin Tennant and Lady Anne Tennant are seen waiting on the jetty at Mustique to greet the Queen during her Silver Jubilee tour of the West IndiesCredit: PA:Press Association
Despite her love for Mustique, Margaret’s health would take another blow on the island: a year later, she badly scalded her feet in a boiling hot bath.
She sustained horrendous burns in the accident, which left her reliant on support to walk (and on some occasions, she required a wheelchair).
Following her return to England, Margaret continued to support the work of the dozens of charities and organisations she was involved with.
But over Christmas 2000, the hard-working royal found herself bedbound at Sandringham following what was suspected to be a second stroke.
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Margaret is pictured on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during celebrations for the Queen Mother’s 100th birthday in August 2000Credit: EPA
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The Sun’s Gardening Editor Peter Seabrook greets Margaret at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2000Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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The princess walks with a stick amid her health strugglesCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
Then, in January 2001, she was hospitalised with a “severe loss” of appetite – leaving loved ones, including the Queen, concerned about her “frail” state.
Margaret’s cousin, the now-late Hon Margaret Rhodes, told the BBC: “All her life she has been the sparkling one, the centre of attention, but since her stroke three years ago, she has lost that particular facility to sparkle.”
At that point, Margaret hadn’t been seen in public since October 2000. Once the life and soul of every party, she was said to be depressed by her illness.
All her life she has been the sparkling one, the centre of attention, but since her stroke three years ago, she has lost that particular facility to sparkle
Margaret’s cousin in 2001
And the “stoic” princess’s condition only worsened that March when she had another stroke, which impaired her vision, according to the Guardian.
In her younger years, Margaret had loathed the idea of living a quiet life. Now, confused and withdrawn, it was reported she had lost the will to live.
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Margaret is helped down a flight of steps by a nurse as she leaves King Edward VII Hospital in London in January 2001Credit: PA:Press Association
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Margaret’s daughter Lady Sarah Chatto and son Viscount Linley leave the hospital after visiting their mumCredit: PA:Press Association
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The Queen Mother waves to supporters as Margaret looks on in a wheelchair in August 2001, after suffering a stroke which impaired her visionCredit: Reuters
But once more, she seemed to bounce back, even dining out in Mayfair.
In October 2001, the princess – who also fought off bronchitis, gastric flu and mild hepatitis during her life – was admitted to hospital for tests.
A couple of months later, she managed to attend the 100th birthday celebrations of her aunt, Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester.
But tragically, it would be her last public appearance.
A peaceful death
On February 9, 2002, Margaret died peacefully aged 71 at King Edward VII’s Hospital, having suffered cardiac problems following yet another stroke.
The princess passed away with her children by her side.
In her last years, she had battled through more health problems than most 100-year-olds. But she’d also lived life to the full, when she could.
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Margaret, once the life and soul of every party, was said to be confused and withdrawn after her numerous strokesCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
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She attends the 100th birthday celebrations of her aunt Princess Alice, pictured centre, along with the Queen in December 2001Credit: PA:Press Association
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Her coffin is carried out of hospital following her death in February 2002Credit: AP:Associated Press
Aside from her passion for partying and socialising, Margaret was a talented piano player who could pick up and play by ear almost any tune.
As grieving nephew Prince Charles said after her death: “My darling aunt had such dreadful times in the past few years with her awful illness and it was hard for let alone her to bear it, but for all of us as well – particularly as she had such a wonderfully free spirit.
“She lived life and lived it to the full and from that point of view it was even harder for everybody to witness this.”
The Crown Season 4 – Official trailer for the Netflix drama starring Olivia Colman and Gillian Anderson
BETWEEN 1927 AND 1979, barely a year went by in which a member of the royal family was not the subject of Cecil Beaton’s enchanting lens. More concerned with his idea of the person than the person themself, the photographer transformed his subjects, and his romantic, reverential vision would help shape the image of the British monarchy in the mid-20th century. In the 1960s and ’70s, Beaton’s style evolved to reflect the changing mood of the time, and he adopted a more matter-of-fact and bold aesthetic. His presentation of motherhood, in particular, helped generate an emotional affinity between the royal family and the public. Yet he was still firmly associated with an opulence and artifice that spoke of an earlier era. Employed primarily at moments of celebration and ceremony, Beaton’s photographs were undoubtedly intimate, able to capture a clear sense of the individuals behind the public image, but they were rarely spontaneous. Rather, their affected poses and considered contexts acknowledge the splendor and status of the institution but with a generosity of spirit that invited the viewer to share in the fantasy.
Queen Elizabeth II being photographed by Beaton at Buckingham Palace, November 1955. Photograph by Patrick Matthews.CECIL BEATON/VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON.
The unspoken norm, especially when it involves the martyrdom that comes with being dead, is that no one should speak ill of Princess Diana. Who later became just “plain” Lady Diana in the wake of her very public and very tumultuous divorce with Prince Charles. The Crown’s fifth season explores the final breakdown of the doomed-from-the-start marriage, this time with Elizabeth Debicki in the role. Admittedly, her forebear, Emma Corrin, was slightly more likable—and, to be frank, Debicki looks better suited to play Paris Hilton than Diana Spencer. But that’s nothing compared to the physical upgrade Prince Charles gets in the form of Dominic West (whose real-life son, Senan West, plays Prince William). This being just one of many initial telltale signs that the series’ creator, Peter Morgan (who wrote every episode of this season), is determined to present Charles in a more favorable light than he’s ever been accustomed to.
But before Morgan paints his pretty picture of a rather hideous man, the requisite “metaphor” is established for the season. Specifically, the four-thousand-ton yacht created for Queen Elizabeth (shown as Claire Foy in the flashback scenes). Appearing at the launch of the yacht, dubbed Britannia, in 1953, the queen declared to a public in Scotland that was still under the trance of worshipping her, “I hope that this brand-new vessel, like your brand-new queen, will prove to be dependable and constant.” If by that she meant “stoic and rigid,” she fulfilled her promise.
A pan over from the young queen of yore to the queen of the present-day (set in 1991)—played by Imelda Staunton—as she gets a check-up from her doctor finds her being asked a “personal” question. That being: is Balmoral her favorite home? The queen coyly answers, “There is another that’s even more special to me.” Obviously, it’s the royal yacht, the only “dwelling” ever created expressly for her tastes, whereas everyplace else she inhabits is haunted by the tastes of other rulers. Just another case of the laughable amount of sympathy we’re supposed to feel for her when this is expressed. “Oh you poor thing, the various castles you live in don’t suit your personality? How badly we should feel for you!” But anyway, Morgan does his best to evoke “empathy” not only for the monarchy as an institution, but for Charles in particular. Not just because he’s so “full of potential” and such an educated man (as anyone given his education could be) who can never make his mark in any real way while he waits for the role he was “destined” for. But also because he’s been “saddled with” Diana. She with her “middle-class” interests like shopping and pop culture. This divide is drilled further into the viewer’s mind as the episode, called “Queen Victoria Syndrome,” shows Charles and Diana on their “second honeymoon” in Italy. Namely, off the coast near Naples, where Charles’ own yacht, the Alexandra is enlisted.
As Charles’ sole motive for agreeing to the so-called second honeymoon is to benefit from the goodwill of a new poll that posits most would be in favor of the queen abdicating early to give up her crown to someone younger and more “modern,” Diana is once again led down the primrose path of believing her marriage might have a chance. Moreover, when she expresses an interest in beaches and water sports and shopping as Charles goes over a historical value-oriented itinerary, Morgan makes his message clear: neither he nor Charles saw Diana as an intellectual equal. Coming to her defense on the shopping desire is William (Timothée Sambor) and Harry (Teddy Hawley), the latter barely seen in this season (perhaps some kind of undercutting shade at his current overall absence). And yet, he being the first to raise his hand to defend Diana in her desire to shop feels like a poignant moment for showing their deeper affinity.
The continued displays of their lack of similar interests are further made manifest by Diana riding away on a boat with William and Harry to the mainland as she blasts “Emotions” by Mariah Carey and calls out, “Bye Charles! We’ll miss you while we’re having all the fun!” Unable to handle his “petulant” wife any longer, Charles exits the friend-filled “honeymoon” early under a pretense, then angles for favor with Prime Minister John Major (Johnny Lee Miller) by using the poll as a launching point to poison him against his mother—the first of many instances in this season. Which, no, doesn’t make Charles come across as noble, so much as a backstabbing little twat who can’t handle a woman in power. Even a superfluous one who does repeatedly show herself to be out of touch. And, after telling Major she welcomes any comparison to the long-reigning Queen Victoria intended to be an insult, she then requests the funds necessary to refit her royal yacht—again, the “grand metaphor” of the season meant to hit us over the head with the analogy that she, like it, has become a liability that few people have use for. Least of all “common” people. “We’re in the middle of a global recession,” Major has to remind her before suggesting the royal family bears the cost of repairing the yacht themselves. Needless to say, the queen is scandalized by such a response.
The next episode, “The System,” veers away from the queen and Charles to give us a requisite glimpse into the goings-on of Prince Philip’s (Jonathan Pryce) life at the time. It was comprised mainly of carriage driving and forming a close bond with Penny Knatchbull (Natascha McElhone), the wife of Lord Romsey a.k.a. Philip’s godson, Norton Knatchbull (Elliot Cowan). When Penny is brought closer to Philip in the wake of her daughter Leonora’s death at the age of five, it gives him more clout in terms of suggesting she take up his same invigorating hobby of carriage driving.
But while the senior royals are having their fun and frivolity, Diana’s resentment is gathering—prompting her to take up an offer presented by her close friend, Dr. James Colthurst (Oliver Chris), in being interviewed secretly by journalist Andrew Morton (Andrew Steele). The eventual biography that results, Diana: Her True Story, is released in 1992—the queen’s self-declared “annus horribilis” (also the title of episode four, in which Princess Margaret [Lesley Manville] is given her biggest storyline of the season with the reemergence of her one true love, Peter Townsend [Timothy Dalton]). Notably, the illustriously terrible (mainly for Diana) Christmas of ’91 is only glossed over (even in the finale of season four), with primary emphasis on Penny being seen publicly with the queen (per Philip’s request, lest the media “get the wrong idea” about his increasingly close relationship with her) in episode six, “Ipatiev House.” Perhaps because Kristen Stewart in Spencer already got to cover that ground from Diana’s perspective so thoroughly.
In any case, the Andrew Morton biography of ’92 would be nothing compared to the bomb set off by her infamous Panorama interview for the BBC in 1995, which episodes seven through nine, “No Woman’s Land,” “Gunpowder” and “Couple 31” all address in a three-act format. “Couple 31” serving to show the “fallout” of what Diana “hath wrought,” even though many responded favorably to the interview (regardless of it being obtained via extremely nefarious methods). Especially with regard to her frank discussion of her eating disorder, exhibiting a candor that undoubtedly gave many others the courage to come forward about their own.
Alas, that wouldn’t be in keeping with season five’s overall determination to portray Diana as a very insecure and unstable woman. And Charles as an intelligent man dealt an unfortunate hand for wanting to actually use that intelligence. Enter a flashback to 1989 in the most pandering-to-Charles episode, “The Way Ahead.” Opening on a scene during Christmas as Charles sits at a table of close friends, he complains, “Previous princes of Wales have been happy to spend their life in idle dissipation, but my problem is, I can’t bear idleness… In any other professional sphere, I’d be at the peak of my powers. Instead, what am I? I’m just a useless ornament stuck in a waiting room, gathering dust.” Here, too, the amount of “empathy” we’re supposed to feel for this person is perhaps overshot by Morgan.
Morgan’s subsequent attempt at making Charles seem “with it”—of the people and among the people—isn’t very successful either. This occurring in the final scene of “The Way Ahead” that features him attempting to breakdance with non-white youths to the tune of Eric B. & Rakin’s “Don’t Sweat the Technique.” A moment meant to spotlight his triumph in overcoming the scandal of his Tampongate conversation with Camilla being released to the public (thankfully, for there was a moment there when one was led to believe The Crown might never bring it up).
Almost as though fearing Charles in his new current role as King of England, this midpoint episode is also the only one to offer the kowtowing written-out epilogue, “Prince Charles founded the Prince’s Trust in 1976 to improve the lives of disadvantaged young people. Since then, the Prince’s Trust has assisted one million young people to fulfill their potential.” That last phrase sounding vague enough to make the prince seem very charitable indeed. The last title card concludes, “And returned nearly £1.4 billion in value to society.” If Morgan says so…
With the finale, “Decommissioned,” we’re brought back to the most unique episode of the season, “Mou Mou,” in which it is gradually revealed how Diana came to be in Dodi Fayed’s (Khalid Abdalla) orbit. The answer being, according to Morgan, a result of Dodi’s father, Mohamed “Mou Mou” Al-Fayed (Salim Daw), being some sort of sycophantic Anglophile. This prompting him to do everything in his financial power to get the queen to notice him—even buying Harrods. Unfortunately, the queen’s inherent racism and elitism appears to have made her averse to sitting next to Mou Mou at the Harrods Cup Polo Match. Per The Crown, this led the queen to send Diana in her place while she sat with Margaret.
In “Decommissioned,” it is Mou Mou who suggests that Diana bring William and Harry to St. Tropez for the summer on his new yacht, the Jonikal. This being yet another symbolic moment in which, as the queen’s own Britannia is put into retirement, Diana appears to be getting a shot of life via this new yacht. As we all know, that life would be cut tragically short after her vacation, the one that featured the iconic telephoto lens-procured image of Diana in a blue bathing suit perched at the edge of a diving board—so much about that being a type of foreshadowing and a summation of her entire life. Something Morgan wants to stretch out into a final season that will focus on her death and its aftermath.
Hence, the anticlimactic ending of the season… even if meant to be a cliffhanger, of sorts, as it offers scenes of Diana as she gets ready for her summer in the South of France with the boys and Dodi as he proposes to model Kelly Fisher (Erin Richards). The last scene then shows Diana and the queen looking in a mirror, as the latter says goodbye to her precious royal yacht (invoking nothing except the reaction of “oh boo-hoo, you don’t get a massive boat paid for by the British people anymore”).
Charles, meanwhile, is given another moment of “grace” and “sagacity” when he forewarns his mother, “If we continue to hold on to these Victorian notions of how the monarchy should look, how it should feel, then the world will move on. And those who come after you will be…left with nothing.” A.k.a. he will be left with nothing. And it remains to be seen if Charles truly will practice what he once preached when it comes to “rallying” for a more “progressive” monarchy.
Incidentally, “A house divided” is the tagline for the season. And yet, it applies not only (even now) to the House of Windsor, but to those who can see the monarchy for what it is—parasitic and long outmoded—and those who would cling to it as the crux of British identity.
Princess Margaret’s tragic romance with Peter Townsend may have been one of The Crown’s best early story lines—two young lovers prevented from living happily ever after because Townsend’s status as a divorcé clashed with the queen’s enforcement of the Church of England’s rules. Oh, how times have changed. In season five’s “Annus Horribilis,” which is devoted to that famously bad year of 1992 for British royals, Queen Elizabeth (Imelda Staunton) finds herself white-knuckling through three of her four children’s separations or divorces, each accompanied by its own tabloid scandal. Margaret, meanwhile, now played by the Oscar nominee Lesley Manville, hears from Townsend (Timothy Dalton) for the first time since breaking off their engagement some 40 years before.
The former lovers reunite at a reception at London’s Caledonian Club, where Margaret smokes from her trademark long cigarette, steals looks at her former fiancé, and shares one final dance with him. During the scene, Margaret—who has been hardened by years of heartbreak—suddenly softens, genuine joy and delight filling her face in a way it hasn’t since season one. But the ball must come to a close—and after hours of singing, dancing, and luxuriating in familiar warm feelings—Townsend pierces their dreamy bubble by handing over the love letters she wrote him, a gesture of finality and closure.
The real-life reunion between the princess and Townsend occurred at Kensington Palace over lunch in the summer of 1992. According to Tim Heald’s Princess Margaret: A Life Unraveled, Townsend was joined by two longtime friends—one of whom “recalled that it was a strange and mildly embarrassing meal as the Princess and Townsend talked quietly and intimately together while the other guests conversed among themselves and pretended that the effectively private conversation taking place in their midst was the most natural thing in the world.” Christopher Warwick’s biography Princess Margaret: A Life of Contrasts claims that Townsend and the princess followed lunch with a walk through the gardens. “Afterwards, as Townsend drove away, she waved goodbye with a pocket handkerchief,” wrote Heald. “Then, walking back into the apartment, the Princess turned to her private secretary and said words to the effect that he was just as she remembered him except that his hair had turned grey.”
Peter Townsend and Princess Margaret in 1955.By ullstein bild/Getty Images.
In a conversation with Vanity Fair, Manville spoke about filming creator Peter Morgan’s reimagining of the reunion.
“It’s very tender and very touching. Just seeing them look at each other—that pool of memory and that wealth of love and emotion that they shared together when they were younger is suddenly remembered by both of them,” the actor says over Zoom. “It’s very beautiful. Of course they have this great evening together and she’s very spirited—singing, messing around, and telling jokes—and he’s witnessing that and thinking of all the life that maybe he hasn’t had. It also reminds her about what she was denied and how her life might have taken a different route if she’d have been able to marry him. And how she feels about that, specifically in the light of the queen’s children enjoying a freedom that Margaret did not enjoy—a freedom in terms of who they can be with.”
In the episode, Margaret encourages Princess Anne (Claudia Harrison) to pursue a romance with Timothy Laurence, a former aide to the queen. (Shortly after Anne divorced her first husband, Mark Phillips, in 1992, she married Laurence, making her the first close relative of a British monarch to divorce and remarry.) In another scene, Margaret furiously confronts her sister about refusing her happiness by preventing her marriage to Townsend, speaking to the queen in a way that no other person likely could.
“It kind of hits her that her life has been compromised and she’s not perhaps had the life that she wanted,” says Manville, revealing that it was an actor’s dream of a scene to explore. “It’s all tied up in this time of her life that has to do with a loneliness—understanding that the history of her life has been played out, and this is where she’s left…We can all do that—look back on our lives and think, what if? But she does see it as some sort of injustice that, just because of the time she was born in, and her sister being the queen, she hasn’t been allowed to have, in her opinion, the man she loved and wanted to be with. I find the scene very powerful and shocking and brutal. It makes you feel for Margaret in a way that maybe the audience didn’t quite expect to feel for her.”
To prepare for the role, Manville listened to the few audio tapes available of the princess during the ’90s, including an appearance Margaret made on BBC Radio’s Desert Island Discs, which is recreated in the episode. She also spoke to several mutual friends who happened to know the late royal, given her passion for the arts.
A DNA test taken by Polly in 2004 confirmed the Earl was her father, but he denied taking the test until four years later when he admitted the truth.
His son with Melanie Cable-Alexander, Jasper William Oliver, was born on April 30, 1998.
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Photographer Lord Snowdon was married to Princess Margaret for 18 yearsCredit: Times Newspapers Ltd
What was Lord Snowdon famous for?
Other than being married to the Queen’s only sibling, Lord Snowdon was known for his famous photos and portraits.
Educated at Eton and Cambridge, Armstrong-Jones halted plans to be an architect, choosing to become a photographer instead.
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Lord Snowdon with a copy of his book Snowdon On StageCredit: PA:Press Association
He did that for more than 50 years, with some of his most famous work including photographs of the Royal Family at work and play, iconic images of his ex-wife Princess Margaret and the late Diana, Princess of Wales.
He was one of the first on the scene after the Aberfan disaster in 1966.
The Queen later acknowledged that she “got it wrong” when she sent Lord Snowdon there rather than visiting herself.
Lord Snowdon pictured with Queen Elizabeth IICredit: PA:Press Association
When and how did Princess Margaret die?
Princess Margaret died in 2002, aged 71, at the start of her sister’s Golden Jubilee year.
It has been rumoured she married Lord Snowdon on the “rebound” from her forbidden relationship with married Group Captain Peter Townsend.
Her lengthy romance with Roddy Llewellyn, a landscape gardener 18 years her junior, began after meeting him in Mustique.
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Princess Margaret and Mr Anthony Armstrong-Jones at The Royal Lodge, Windsor, following their engagementCredit: Times Newspapers Ltd
The Caribbean island became the legendary scene of some wild parties hosted by the Princess, something that caused a rift between her and Lord Snowdon.
She died just seven weeks after the Queen Mother following years of illness and disability.
The royal had smoked since she was 15 years old and had to have part of her left lung removed like her father King George VI.
She died in 2002 after suffering a final stroke, with a funeral held on the 50th anniversary of her father’s death.
Lord Snowdon, Princess Margaret’s former husband, has died aged 86
