King Charles and Queen Camilla on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after their coronation, in London, Saturday, May 6, 2023. Photo / AP
King Charles and Queen Camilla on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after their coronation, in London, Saturday, May 6, 2023. Photo / AP
The former daughter-in-law of Queen Camilla has spilled the beans about the royal’s nerves during her husband King Charles’ coronation two months ago.
Sara Parker Bowles – who was married to Camilla’s son Tom for 12 years prior to their divorce in 2018 – told The Times UKthat the new monarch was very stressed in the lead up to the crowning ceremony.
“Camilla was really, really nervous. She wanted the people that she loved around her. [The King] wasn’t nervous at all. But Camilla didn’t ask for any of this,” she revealed to the publication.
“She’s the human face of the royal family because she’s not part of it. You need those outsiders, really.”
Sara was present at the ceremony along with her two children Lola and Freddy. Freddy, 13, served as one of his grandmother’s Pages of Honour and even waved on the Buckingham Palace balcony after the service.
“I was quite obsessively watching him. But I knew by then he was going to be okay, that I could sort of let go,” Sara confessed.
“He wanted to go in the gold carriage, but he didn’t get to. Then his face on the balcony — I could see he was just like, whoa! My favourite part of the whole day was that he did a little wave that he wasn’t supposed to.”
King Charles III and Queen Camilla pose for a photo with their Pages of Honour and Ladies in Attendance on the day of the coronation in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace, London. Photo / AP
Sara, who is still on good terms with her ex-husband and his mum despite their separation, shed light on the challenges Camilla faced in the years following Princess Diana’s tragic death.
“It was still the hate years. [Camilla] wasn’t accepted at all,” she told The Times.
“She didn’t talk about it. She was just very brave and uncomplaining. Tom was worried it would happen all over again when the Queen died, but it has been the opposite.”
However, Sara feels the rocky patch was worth it in the end.
“Camilla was always in it for the right reasons. It’s not right for someone to have gone through what she did, but it’s come to fruition — not being Queen, but to be with the person that you love.”
When Diana died after a car accident in 1997, the globe was swept up in emotion and grief. The public was united in its mourning - as well as its anger towards Charles and Camilla. However, like most things, time certainly helped mend their image.
Camilla has since been known as the King’s “strength and stay” - and she was given the title of Queen Consort and crowned alongside him in May, with the blessing of the late Queen Elizabeth.
