The Queen’s granddaughter, Lady Louise Windsor, worked several days a week for around minimum wage at a garden center over the summer, it has been revealed.
The 18-year-old daughter of Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex has been making £6.63 an hour since leaving school in June – despite living in a £30million mansion in Bagshot Park, Surrey.
She confirmed her place at the University of St Andrews after receiving her A Level results, Buckingham Palace said yesterday. She will read English at the Scottish institution where Prince William and Kate Middleton met.
In the garden center – the location of which has not been disclosed – Lady Louise is said to have helped at the registers, greeted customers, trimmed and potted plants.
While the security procedures for their job have also not been made public, it is believed that their parents, Edward and Sophie, only receive police protection on official duties and engagements.
One buyer told The Sun: “I knew the cost of living crisis was bad, but I never thought I would ever see a grandchild of the Queen working in a garden centre.”
Another customer added: “The staff seemed to love them. It’s not every day that you buy your begonias from a king. And a third, served by the King, said: “I couldn’t believe it was Lady Louise, I had to do a double take.
“She is a really humble and sweet young woman who is polite and attentive to customers. She seemed to love the job. You never thought that the Queen’s granddaughter would end up working behind a cash register.”
Lady Louise Windsor, pictured at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham August 1, has worked in a garden centre
Lady Louise Windsor and her brother James, Viscount Severn at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on August 2nd
Ingrid Seward, editor of Majesty magazine, said: “Isn’t it wonderful that the Queen’s granddaughter rolled up her sleeves and got her hands dirty with a summer job before going to university – just like any other normal teenager.”
Lady Louise studied English, History, Politics and Drama at AS level at her school at Ascot, near the family home of Bagshot Park. It is not known which subjects she took in the Abitur and what grades she achieved.
The student was among thousands of students affected by the cancellation of AS Level exams last year.
Tens of thousands of British students have been struggling to get a place at university through clearing – after the A-levels they received were lower than in the past two years but still higher than before the pandemic.
Some 20,360 pupils across England, Wales and Northern Ireland found out from exam results yesterday that they had not been placed and are therefore eligible for the clearing.
Lady Louise Windsor is pictured at a young age with the Queen at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in May 2011
Lady Louise with her mother Sophie, Countess of Wessex, at the Guildhall in London in June during the Platinum Jubilee
That total was 46 percent higher than the 13,930 tally in 2021 — when students were assessed by teachers — but lower than the last pre-pandemic tally of 24,260 in 2019.
Lady Louise was one of the lucky ones to secure a place and will be joining the freshmen at St Andrews this autumn.
The teenager has a close relationship with her grandmother, the Queen, and is taking on an increasingly public role within the royal family.
She played a leading role in Trooping the Color during the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations before appearing alongside the Queen on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
The 18-year-old recently joined her parents and brother James, Viscount Severn, 14, at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Lady Louise is following in the footsteps of Prince William and Kate as she heads to St Andrews University (file image)
A keen horse rider, Lady Louise inherited her love of carriage driving from her late grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, who personally taught her the sport.
She drives performance-oriented and would like to continue her hobby until her studies.
Many students in St Andrews live in halls of residence. William and Kate both lived at St. Salvator’s, known as Sallies, where they met as friends before romance blossomed.
Both initially enrolled to study art history, but William later switched to geography.
The couple went public with their relationship nearing completion.
The Duchess of Cambridge, 40, hugged Lady Louise Windsor, 18, during the Commonwealth Games earlier this month
Kate spoke to Sophie and the rest of the family as she hugged her upon arrival at the men’s 1500m freestyle heats
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to campus last year to celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary.
Earlier this month, Lady Louise Windsor greeted her cousin-in-law Kate Middleton with a double kiss on the cheek at the Commonwealth Games.
Lady Louise wore a white shirt, floral skirt and tan leather handbag as she welcomed the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William at the Sandwell Aquatics Center in Birmingham, where the Games are being held.
Kate, 40, who wore her brunette tresses down and in curls, greeted James, Viscount Severn, 14, Sophie Wessex, 57, Lady Louise Windsor and Prince Edward, 58, as she shuffled into the stands.
The Countess and Earl of Wessex with their children Lady Louise and James at the Commonwealth Games on August 2nd
James and Lady Louise joined the rest of the family for the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations earlier this year, but have largely grown up away from the limelight.
Attending the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on August 1st, Lady Louise was the epitome of elegance in a £985 dress borrowed from her mother.
The Queen looked lovely at the event in a pink and blue dress, wearing a Peter Pilotto gown from her mum’s wardrobe, while James and Sophie shared emotional reactions as they watched the action.