'Anne's sham marriage isn't fooling any of us'

Today Princess Anne is in Edinburgh where the Queen will appoint her Lady of the Most Noble Order of the Thistle. This is in recognition of her charity work and her husband will be by her side.

However, the couple are said to be living totally separate lives.

The marriage has been described as virtually over and there have been no denials.

Commander Tim Laurence has been ordered to fly to Edinburgh, and he's a former royal equerry who does what he's told.

Insisting on his presence at this time is an absurd pretence, because it fools nobody and all eyes will be fixed on the pair of them.

Since Princess Anne is incapable of dissembling or putting on an act, my advice would be to ensure that her husband gets none too close.

She has a filthy temper, a sharp tongue and a low boiling point. The mere sight of him these days is said to irritate her.

Presumably, the end of her marriage came last Christmas when she was forced to stay with her passive husband at Sandringham.

This was when she was in such a nasty mood she snatched a basket of flowers from an old age pensioner saying: 'What a ridiculous thing to do.'

She left the old woman close to tears and then told Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie to get a move on and not to take flowers from the crowd. She was rude, petulant and extremely offensive.

Tim Laurence must have had the Christmas from hell, with an irritable wife and two tricky stepchildren who merely tolerate his presence and hero-worship their father, Mark Phillips.

It's long been perfectly obvious that Tim Laurence is the wrong man for Princess Anne. He's too weak, too plain and too compliant. She's always been attracted to handsome, daring sportsmen with a domineering streak.

Unfortunately, the end of her marriage came after Mark Phillips made it clear that he no longer fancied her. She was left feeling vulnerable and lacking in confidence. This is a time when a woman is likely to fall briefly for almost any man who finds her attractive.

Ten years ago, Commander Laurence happened to be around and the highlysexed Princess was ripe for an affair. She was 41, newly divorced and he was flattered and dazzled by her status.

Unfortunately, passive men are drawn to forceful women who in the end bully and despise them. When love letters from the couple fell into the public domain it was felt that marriage was essential.

One thing the Windsors never do is learn from their mistakes. They have never accepted that honesty is the best policy.

Princess Anne and her husband are now said to be remaining officially together because they don't want to damage the Royal Family.

Divorce would surely be a more dignified, honourable decision than a phoney marriage built on increasing dislike and contempt. Wheeling the commander out on official occasions is an unpleasant way to carry on.

Tim Laurence is only 48. He still has a chance to make an independent life, to remarry and to have children. If he acquiesces to every humiliation heaped on him, the Royal Family will only despise him.

They already find him boring and no doubt mock him behind his back. They are ruthless and will treat him increasingly as a lackey.

He has a far more successful naval career than Prince Andrew ever achieved. I'd say it was time to begin again.

Most watched News videos

Comments 0

Share what you think

No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.