Queen Camilla’s special privilege that the Princess of Wales can never have for a heartbreaking reason

Queen Camilla’s special privilege is something that the Princess of Wales can never have for an incredibly heartbreaking reason. 

• Her Majesty and the Princess of Wales both share a passion for a particular competition show that airs every autumn.
• Queen Camilla has had the honour of performing with two of the judges of the popular BBC series though the Princess of Wales sadly never will.
• This royal news comes as we revealed Princess Anne’s blunt response in a pre-wedding interview as she dismissed a line of questioning in the most *her* way. 

As the two most senior women within the immediate and extended Royal Family, it’s perhaps no surprise that Queen Camilla and the Princess of Wales have plenty of shared experiences. Kate was the only other royal woman at a Service of Dedication in Scotland last month and to welcome South African President Cyril Ramaphosa last year. However, there is a special non-royal privilege that Her Majesty has had that Kate never will, even when she becomes Queen Consort, for a devastating reason.  

Queen Camilla’s special privilege is something that was revealed by the Royal Family website ahead of her and King Charles’ coronation in May. They declared that the Queen is a fan of the hit BBC competition show, Strictly Come Dancing and had danced with two iconic judges.

“[O]n two occasions has had the opportunity to dance with judge Craig Revel-Horwood and former judge Len Goodman,” they added.

Strictly Come Dancing keeps dance fans glued to their screens from September-December each year and sees celebrities partnered up with professional dancers competing to get to the grand final. Craig Revel-Horwood is now the only remaining judge from the original line-up from Strictly season 1, which also included Len Goodman, Arlene Phillips and Bruno Tonioli.

Whilst Len Goodman was the head judge until his departure after season 14, when his position was taken up by Shirley Ballas. Len sadly passed away in April this year and so Queen Camilla’s memories of dancing with him are likely all the more special.

At the time, Buckingham Palace confirmed that she was “deeply saddened” by his passing. His loss means Kate will never share Queen Camilla’s amazing experience of dancing with such an iconic Strictly judge and dancing professional, even if one day she gets to dance with Len’s former colleague Craig. 

Queen Camilla’s meeting and dance with Len came in 2019 at a performance arranged by the British Dance Council in association with The Royal Osteoporosis Society.  She’s met Craig on several occasions and was pictured dancing with him during a visit to St Clement Danes School back in 2009. Queen Camilla’s special privilege is something that might well have impressed her stepdaughter-in-law as Kate is known to be a Strictly fan herself - as is her mum Carole Middleton.

Prince William is said to have told Shirley Ballas and Strictly host Claudia Winkleman at an awards gala in 2019, “I have watched the show a couple of times. Catherine is a huge fan and my mother-in-law loves it.”

Queen Camilla, the Princess of Wales and Carole will perhaps already be eagerly anticipating this year's Strictly Come Dancing series. The announcement of the contestants typically comes in August and so there could be just weeks now before they can start getting excited about seeing the 2023 celebrities put their skills to the test.