Princess Anne's very rare PDA as a child before developing 'no fuss' persona

Princess Anne may be the "hardest-working royal", but she is not one for public displays of affection.

King Charles's younger sister is well regarded for her commitment to The Firm, performing an estimated 400 engagements a year.

But unlike many other working royals, one thing that Anne will never do is shake the hands of well-wishers. The Princess is notoriously formal and rarely affectionate, even to those close to her, when in public.

She wasn't always so aloof, though. A resurfaced photograph of Anne as a child showed the Princess embracing her grandmother, the Queen Mother.

© Getty Images

Taken in 1954, the young royal is seen enthusiastically greeting her grandmother upon her return from a tour of Canada. Also in the photograph are the late Queen, Prince Philip and Charles, who would have been around five years old.It marked a rare affectionate moment for the Princess, who has spoken openly about her aversion to public displays of affection.

Princess Anne's aversion to PDA

In an ITV documentary that aired in 2018, Anne explained how the rules have changed over the years. "I mean we never shook hands," she said. "The theory was that you couldn't shake hands with everybody, so don't start. So I kind of stick with that, but I notice others don't."

Referring to younger members of the royal family, Anne laughed: "It's not for me to say that it's wrong, but I think that the initial concept was that it was patently absurd to start shaking hands. 

© Getty Images

And it seems to me that it's become a shaking hands exercise, rather than a walkabout, if you see what I mean. So that has changed."

Her justification for not wanting to shake hands comes from her dislike of modern technology. "Phones are bad enough, but the iPads, you can't even see their heads," she said, adding that she found it "weird" that so many people want to take pictures.

"People don't believe that they've experienced the event unless they've taken photographs. And usually you're standing immediately in front of them," she said.

Royal expert Judi James previously described the royal as "near allergic" to public displays of affection, which, she said, is likely a hangover from the "hands-off" approach employed by royals in previous generations.

© Getty Images

She referred to the Princess as "stoic" and "restrained", even drawing on her wedding day to Sir Timothy Laurence in 1992 following her divorce from Captain Mark Phillips. She noted it as a key difference between Anne and her daughter Zara, who is often seen embracing her relatives and is no stranger to a public kiss with her husband, Mike Tindall.

Judi described Zara as one of the most "tactile" members of the family, which is in stark contrast to her mother.

Princess Anne is currently enjoying a well-earned break with her family at Balmoral and was seen earlier today attending Sunday service with her relatives.