**DAILY MAIL‘S ‘BEST NON-FICTION BOOKS TO HELP YOU THROUGH LOCKDOWN’**
‘Beautifully written . . . very entertaining, very funny’ RICHARD & JUDY
‘It’s an astonishing story and narrated with a deceptive simplicity. There isn’t a boring sentence in the entire book’
DAILY MAIL
‘Remarkable . . . If your jaw doesn’t drop at least three times every chapter, you’ve not been paying proper attention’
THE SUNDAY TIMES
‘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
‘A startling, rare, beguiling insight into a lost world of royalty and celebrity with as many tears as there are titles’
DAILY EXPRESS
‘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. On Lord Glenconner’s death in 2010 he left his fortune to a former employee. And of their five children, two grown-up sons died, while a third son had to be nursed back from a coma by Anne, after having suffered a near fatal accident.
Anne Glenconner writes with extraordinary wit, generosity and courage and she exposes what life was like in her gilded cage, revealing the role of her great friendship with Princess Margaret, and the freedom she can now finally enjoy in later life.
‘Beautifully written . . . very entertaining, very funny’ RICHARD & JUDY
‘It’s an astonishing story and narrated with a deceptive simplicity. There isn’t a boring sentence in the entire book’
DAILY MAIL
‘Remarkable . . . If your jaw doesn’t drop at least three times every chapter, you’ve not been paying proper attention’
THE SUNDAY TIMES
‘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
‘A startling, rare, beguiling insight into a lost world of royalty and celebrity with as many tears as there are titles’
DAILY EXPRESS
‘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. On Lord Glenconner’s death in 2010 he left his fortune to a former employee. And of their five children, two grown-up sons died, while a third son had to be nursed back from a coma by Anne, after having suffered a near fatal accident.
Anne Glenconner writes with extraordinary wit, generosity and courage and she exposes what life was like in her gilded cage, revealing the role of her great friendship with Princess Margaret, and the freedom she can now finally enjoy in later life.
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Reviews
'Lady Glenconner's life story is a combination of royal magic, personal tragedy and resilient survival. With humour, courage and preternatural poise, she at last tells the story of her uniquely fascinating life'
'I couldn't put it down. Funny and touching - like looking through a keyhole at a lost world'
'Anne Glenconner has written a remarkable memoir - containing, at last, a genuine portrait of Princess Margaret from one who knew her well. But this book is poignant too, and through the pages shine her courage and good-humoured acceptance of her demons and tragedies'
'Remarkable . . . If your jaw doesn't drop at least three times every chapter, you've not been paying proper attention'
'A funny, sometimes tragic and disarmingly frank memoir . . . Lady in Waiting is gentle, wise, unpretentious, but above all inspiring'
'A startling, rare, beguiling insight into a lost world of royalty and celebrity with as many tears as there are titles'
'It's a total hoot - I couldn't put it down'
'Marvellous book . . . one's eyes were on stalks'
'A romp of an autobiography'
'[An] astounding memoir'
'A candid, witty and stylish memoir'
'An absolute hoot'
'This memoir made me laugh, wince, cry and gasp. For anyone who craves a bracing dose of the older generation's stiff upper lip, Anne Glenconner provides it.'
'Wonderful'
'The insider memoir of the year'
'A remarkable life, remarkably told'
'It's impossible not to admire her fortitude . . . funny and sometimes dazzling'
'Rollicking . . . [Lady in Waiting] paints such a rich picture of the aristocracy it's impossible not to marvel at the institution, both in admiration and horror'
'This outlandish memoir drips with royal tidbits . . . but it's also insightful on the more damaging aspects of being a member of the British aristocracy. Sobering - and terrific fun'
'The author reads her own words in indomitable fashion, and anyone who enjoyed Craig Brown's life of Glenconner's former employer, Ma'am Darling, will find this fascinating.'
'This year's Ma'am Darling - the perfect book to curl up on the sofa with.'
'This riveting read will leave you open-mouthed and hungry for more.'
'Fascinating and beautifully written . . . I can't recommend [Glenconner's] book high enough'
'Captivating'
'Beyond admirable'
'Lady in Waiting has made me laugh and cry several times. I raced through it in 4 days. Book heaven'
'Riveting life'
'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.'
'One of the most enjoyable books of 2019 . . . Anne Glenconner, now 87, captures a lost world in which she waited (with remarkable good grace) on Princess Margaret. Sometimes the best view of history is given by the minor characters'
'Such a moving book'
'A riotous social document and a beautifully written account of a vivid life superbly lived'
'Sparkling, endearing and alarming'
'[Lady in Waiting] has two things going for it: the first is that it is not what it seems; it is definitely not "a lavender sort of scented memoir" . . . Its other great strength is Glenconner herself'
'Stalwart and disarmingly honest . . . emotion resonates through this delightful memoir'
'Lady Glenconner displays resilience of a different kind in her memoir about the astonishing ups and downs of her artistocratic life'
'Funny, revelatory, poignant, occasionally jaw-dropping'
'Anne Glenconner writes with wit, generosity and courage about her life in a gilded cage ... Fascinating!'
'Finely drawn . . . Glenconner has an eye for detail'