The Princess Royal's style is a perfect blend between modernity and heritage: she wears classic silhouettes in bold colours, often pays tribute to her beloved Scotland with a tartan print, and she's always spotted in one of her many magnificent tailored coat dresses, as well as her signature gloves. As one of the most prolific outfit recyclers in the British royal family, however, Princess Anne doesn't often bring out a big surprise, so when she manages to blow the minds of even the most avid royal style watchers, it's a big deal.
Earlier this week, the 75-year-old paid a visit to Northern Ireland, where she joined a garden party taking place at Hillsborough Castle and met up with people who had been invited in recognition of their public service, including 106-year-old veteran Norman Irwin, who was honoured for his voluntary work in his hometown of Coleraine. When the royal family shared a series of images from the event on their Instagram page, many fans praised Princess Anne's dedication to her royal duties, but even more pointed out the magnificent feathered headpiece she donned for the occasion.
One fan commented: "That hat!!!! So chic. And God Bless that gentleman who has lived such a full life," referring to Norman. Another added: "The Princess Royal looks much younger than three-quarters of a century! Very dashing hat." A third especially praised the hat, writing: "Princess Anne's hat really is over the top. It's one of the best hats in royal history [heart eyes emoji] [heart emoji]."
Princess Anne's engagements in Northern Ireland
Unfortunately, the Princess Royal was unable to proceed with her other engagements in Northern Ireland this week. On Wednesday, she had been due to travel to Holywood and south Belfast to attend some events, but had to cancel her appearances due to technical problems with the aircraft she had been intending to travel in. The BBC reported that a spokesperson said the Princess "apologised to any who were disappointed or inconvenienced as a result of the technical issues". They added that she hoped to "make arrangements to visit on another occasion".
Fortunately, the broadcaster reported, some of the guests that the daughter of Queen Elizabeth II had been due to meet were invited to the garden party on Wednesday, including Norman, who she told: "Thank you for telling your story and thank you for helping other people and being the founding member of REME (the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers)."
