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From The Times
February 24, 2003

Margaret told to pull her weight

By Robin Young
THE late Princess Margaret was told by the Conservative Prime Minister Harold Macmillan to pull her weight on public duties or pay her way.

His warning to the Queen’s younger sister, kept secret for 40 years, has come to light in files released by the Public Record Office. The admonition was delivered as his Government prepared to spend today’s equivalent of £1 million to provide the Princess with a comfortably appointed home at 1A Kensington Palace.

Nearly a third of the bill for alterations to the apartment resulted from the special requirements of the Princess and her then husband, the Earl of Snowdon. The couple’s specifications included marble floors.

The file records that, at a meeting with courtiers, “the Prime Minister referred to the possible choice that lay before Princess Margaret of either tending to lead a royal existence or becoming more of a private citizen. If it was the latter, then she and Lord Snowdon might consider buying a private house for themselves”.

Mr Macmillan said that if the Princess wanted to move into 1A, she should undertake major duties such as an Australian tour or a Commonwealth event. In practice, in the year it took to complete the work, she attended some events in Britain and visited Jamaica for its independence.

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