What do you think?
Rate this book
Princess Margaret
A compelling biography of Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon. Loyal sister and friend to Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret grew up in the public gaze and was one of the most-discussed women in the world. But what was early life like for the younger sibling of the future monarch? And what role did she carve for herself within the Royal Family? Royal biographer Helen Cathcart offers a fascinating personal study of the first four decades of the Princess's life, from her birth at Glamis Castle and phenomenal childhood popularity in the nostalgic era of "the two little princesses," through watching her parents crowned in Westminster Abbey and dancing among the crowds after her sister's Coronation. The author casts crucial new light on "the Townsend affair," a crisis once compared with that of the Duke of Windsor, and the culminating love story of the Princess and the young photographer, Antony Armstrong-Jones. Against the changing scenes of royal palaces, Thames-side hideaways and Caribbean islands, and with deep family insight, Princess Margaret is the definitive inner story of the Queen's beloved sister, charismatic and unconventional, yet always her steadfast self.
- GenresBiography
259 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 8, 2021
96 people are currently reading
48 people want to read
About the author
Helen Cathcart
53 books7 followersHelen Cathcart was a prolific writer about the Royal Family, who enjoyed enormous success with her books in the 1960s and 1970s. These emerged with regularity, sold well and were largely enjoyed (if not always at Buckingham Palace). One mystery surrounded the author – she was never seen. Occasionally journalists visited her agent, Harold Albert at his cottage near Liphook, and suspected that Helen Cathcart did not exist. Invariably they left less convinced. Only when Harold Albert died was it revealed – in an obituary written by Hugo Vickers – that Harold Albert and Helen Cathcart were one and the same.
Hugo Vickers explains that the story of Harold Albert himself was considerably more interesting than anything that Helen Cathcart herself wrote. He had a grim early life, his father deserting his mother when he was a child, he was entirely self-educated and became in time a prolific and successful journalist, personally interviewing both Hitler and Mussolini before the war. He wrote a successful novel, Café People. In the war he was imprisoned in Wormwood Scrubs as a conscientious objector and then he created Helen Cathcart. In his later life he ghosted the biography of Prince Philip written by Queen Alexandra of Yugoslavia and he wrote the books.
Hugo Vickers explains that the story of Harold Albert himself was considerably more interesting than anything that Helen Cathcart herself wrote. He had a grim early life, his father deserting his mother when he was a child, he was entirely self-educated and became in time a prolific and successful journalist, personally interviewing both Hitler and Mussolini before the war. He wrote a successful novel, Café People. In the war he was imprisoned in Wormwood Scrubs as a conscientious objector and then he created Helen Cathcart. In his later life he ghosted the biography of Prince Philip written by Queen Alexandra of Yugoslavia and he wrote the books.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
August 10, 2021
Princess Margaret has long been an interesting to figure to me. I think she perfectly filled the role of "spare" for so long. I think had mental health awareness been more accepted and talked about, a lot of what she went through wouldn't have been so scandalous. I loved Princess Margaret and I appreciate the authors hard work with this book.
August 20, 2021
This is a really interesting biography if Princess Margaret.
Originally published in 1974, the book is a fascinating portrait of the Princess and her family.
The writer is clearly a royalist and portrays the princess as hardworking, dutiful and devout. The emphasis is on royal tours and how Margaret promoted Britain around the world. There is no salacious gossip and little time is spent on well-known scandals.
The detail of the Royal tours are really interesting. The schedules are demanding and there are lots of gossipy anecdotes and quotes from conversations that bring the tours alive.
The writer presents the marriage between Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong Jones as wholly positive and romantic. Published before they had officially separated, all rumours of unhappiness are dismissed and there is no mention of extramarital affairs.
The Peter Townsend scandal is presented factually and calmly. All of the drama is removed. Princess Margaret is portrayed as happily ending the relationship for the greater good.
This is an interesting contrast to more modern biographies and TV series like The Crown which focus on Princess Margaret’s unhappiness and the turbulent relationships.
The story of writer Helen Cathcart is just as interesting as the book! A prolific and popular royal biography in the 1960s and 70s, she was never seen in public. People dealt with Cathcart through her agent Harold Albert. After Albert’s death, it was reveled that Cathcart was a pseudonym for Albert himself. He believed that he would sell more books about royalty as a woman and picked a name that sounded trustworthy to hide behind.
Thank you to Sapere books and Netgalley for this gifted digital copy. A really interesting perspective and another prompt ticked off.
Originally published in 1974, the book is a fascinating portrait of the Princess and her family.
The writer is clearly a royalist and portrays the princess as hardworking, dutiful and devout. The emphasis is on royal tours and how Margaret promoted Britain around the world. There is no salacious gossip and little time is spent on well-known scandals.
The detail of the Royal tours are really interesting. The schedules are demanding and there are lots of gossipy anecdotes and quotes from conversations that bring the tours alive.
The writer presents the marriage between Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong Jones as wholly positive and romantic. Published before they had officially separated, all rumours of unhappiness are dismissed and there is no mention of extramarital affairs.
The Peter Townsend scandal is presented factually and calmly. All of the drama is removed. Princess Margaret is portrayed as happily ending the relationship for the greater good.
This is an interesting contrast to more modern biographies and TV series like The Crown which focus on Princess Margaret’s unhappiness and the turbulent relationships.
The story of writer Helen Cathcart is just as interesting as the book! A prolific and popular royal biography in the 1960s and 70s, she was never seen in public. People dealt with Cathcart through her agent Harold Albert. After Albert’s death, it was reveled that Cathcart was a pseudonym for Albert himself. He believed that he would sell more books about royalty as a woman and picked a name that sounded trustworthy to hide behind.
Thank you to Sapere books and Netgalley for this gifted digital copy. A really interesting perspective and another prompt ticked off.
January 13, 2025
This book’s cover has a blurb from the Sunday Express describing it as, “objective, uninhibited, and penetrating.” It’s none of those things: it’s a very ordinary royal biography that struggles to be inoffensive.
I had a passing moment of curiosity about the sister of Queen Elizabeth II after I watched a documentary about her on television. She seemed to have a sad life, and not to be well supported by her family, and I wanted to know more.
She was dedicated to her royal duties, and to her sister the queen, although the royal family never gave her anything important to do. She was serially unlucky in love. She was blocked from being able to marry her first love, Peter Townsend, who was divorced – both the royal family and the Anglican church would have nothing to do with the idea of such a marriage. Her eventual marriage to Anthony Armstrong-Jones was perfectly miserable and ended in divorce – starting a trend of sorts among the royals.
I didn’t realize when I began this book that it only describes her life up to her forties. As she grew older her health became worse and worse (she was a lifelong smoker, as was her father, who died of lung cancer among other things), and she came to be known increasingly for abruptness and rudeness. Her sister outlived her by a quarter century; Margaret died in 2002 at age 71.
I had a passing moment of curiosity about the sister of Queen Elizabeth II after I watched a documentary about her on television. She seemed to have a sad life, and not to be well supported by her family, and I wanted to know more.
She was dedicated to her royal duties, and to her sister the queen, although the royal family never gave her anything important to do. She was serially unlucky in love. She was blocked from being able to marry her first love, Peter Townsend, who was divorced – both the royal family and the Anglican church would have nothing to do with the idea of such a marriage. Her eventual marriage to Anthony Armstrong-Jones was perfectly miserable and ended in divorce – starting a trend of sorts among the royals.
I didn’t realize when I began this book that it only describes her life up to her forties. As she grew older her health became worse and worse (she was a lifelong smoker, as was her father, who died of lung cancer among other things), and she came to be known increasingly for abruptness and rudeness. Her sister outlived her by a quarter century; Margaret died in 2002 at age 71.
August 20, 2021
My mother was a huge fan of the royals and I remember seeing this book on our shelves at home when I was a child. I had no interest in the royals then, and to be honest, I'm a card carrying republican (the British kind!) nowadays - but for many years I've been low-key fascinated by Princess Margaret, with her image of the 'rebel royal'. Impossibly glamorous and with a penchant for partying, she seemed to go against the grain - and I do admire people who go against the grain.
This is a bit formal and stilted, as to be expected of a book written in 1974 by an establishment royalist. There's no scurrilous scandal here, and it feels as if much of the colour of Margaret's life has been greyed out. As a respectful biography, it works - but the woman herself does appear a little wraith-like and stifled. It's the literary equivalent of Margaret's official Cecil Beaton portraits; staid, conventional and lacking in personality. The equivalent of her Armstrong-Jones portraits would have been far more interesting.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is a bit formal and stilted, as to be expected of a book written in 1974 by an establishment royalist. There's no scurrilous scandal here, and it feels as if much of the colour of Margaret's life has been greyed out. As a respectful biography, it works - but the woman herself does appear a little wraith-like and stifled. It's the literary equivalent of Margaret's official Cecil Beaton portraits; staid, conventional and lacking in personality. The equivalent of her Armstrong-Jones portraits would have been far more interesting.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 21, 2021
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Helen Cathcart’s books have recently been republished, and I think that it is fantastic. While there always seems to be a rush for the news and latest biographies, reading older biographies can tell us a lot. This Princess Margaret bio was first published in 1974, and is kind of like a book time capsule. Margaret passed away nearly twenty years ago, and I think there is a fairly good idea of who she was and what her life was like.
However, this biography was written at a very different point in time, and offers quite a different view of Margaret. Cathcart’s biographies are of their time, and lack the “tell-all, shocking secret” style bios we are used to seeing now- I think that it is a nice change. If you want a full picture of Margaret’s life, I wouldn’t read this book and no others, but it does provide an interesting counterpoint.
Helen Cathcart’s books have recently been republished, and I think that it is fantastic. While there always seems to be a rush for the news and latest biographies, reading older biographies can tell us a lot. This Princess Margaret bio was first published in 1974, and is kind of like a book time capsule. Margaret passed away nearly twenty years ago, and I think there is a fairly good idea of who she was and what her life was like.
However, this biography was written at a very different point in time, and offers quite a different view of Margaret. Cathcart’s biographies are of their time, and lack the “tell-all, shocking secret” style bios we are used to seeing now- I think that it is a nice change. If you want a full picture of Margaret’s life, I wouldn’t read this book and no others, but it does provide an interesting counterpoint.
August 23, 2021
Princess Margaret was written in 1974 by Helen Cathcart. It was re-released by Sapere Books on July 8, 2021. I enjoy reading about the Royal Family. Each book gives us a small insight into the much public but private lives.
Princess Margaret, known as the spare heir until Charles was born, a dutifull royal but very different from the Queen. Impossibly glamorous and with a penchant for partying, she lived a life on her own terms as much as allowed.
This is not a tell all book but a more respectful version of a Princess trying to honor the Crown and finding true happiness away from the prying eyes of the press. It ends well before her divorce from Antony Armstrong-Jones and her death twenty eight years later. But it does give us hope that she did find happiness even for a little while.
I received an ARC from NetGalley for an unbiased review.
Princess Margaret, known as the spare heir until Charles was born, a dutifull royal but very different from the Queen. Impossibly glamorous and with a penchant for partying, she lived a life on her own terms as much as allowed.
This is not a tell all book but a more respectful version of a Princess trying to honor the Crown and finding true happiness away from the prying eyes of the press. It ends well before her divorce from Antony Armstrong-Jones and her death twenty eight years later. But it does give us hope that she did find happiness even for a little while.
I received an ARC from NetGalley for an unbiased review.
December 26, 2022
3 Stars (I received an e-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)
While I enjoyed reading this book, the cover gives it the impression that the story is more flashy and glamour filled. Purple is also associated with royalty and one of my favourite colours, Margaret is one of the more vivacious royal family members. We do get some of the history of the queen mother prior to the birth of the princesses, which was a little bit boring due to the biographers writing style. At times there are part discussing other parts of the British monarchy I did find myself skim reading through those parts. Another issue I had with this book, is that that it only tells up to the end of the 1970’s in Margaret’s life. I was hoping to get some perspective into the time of Princess Diana since Margaret lived up until 2002.
While I enjoyed reading this book, the cover gives it the impression that the story is more flashy and glamour filled. Purple is also associated with royalty and one of my favourite colours, Margaret is one of the more vivacious royal family members. We do get some of the history of the queen mother prior to the birth of the princesses, which was a little bit boring due to the biographers writing style. At times there are part discussing other parts of the British monarchy I did find myself skim reading through those parts. Another issue I had with this book, is that that it only tells up to the end of the 1970’s in Margaret’s life. I was hoping to get some perspective into the time of Princess Diana since Margaret lived up until 2002.
September 17, 2021
This book was originally published in 1974 and it has been recently re released by sapere publishing.
This is the first book I have read about the Royal Family. I have always been fascinated by Princess Margaret and her image of ‘rebel royal’ and more so recently since watching the crown.
The book is not a tell all so if that is what you are looking for you will not find it here.
I found the book interesting and I will likely read another book in the series about some of the other members of the Royal Family.
Thank you to Netgalley and Sapere Books for an eArC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is the first book I have read about the Royal Family. I have always been fascinated by Princess Margaret and her image of ‘rebel royal’ and more so recently since watching the crown.
The book is not a tell all so if that is what you are looking for you will not find it here.
I found the book interesting and I will likely read another book in the series about some of the other members of the Royal Family.
Thank you to Netgalley and Sapere Books for an eArC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
August 11, 2021
I was a little surprised on receiving this book to find that it was first published in 1974!.
That said this book gives a good insight into the Queens younger sister. I felt I did learn more about Margaret from reading this book.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to see an arc
That said this book gives a good insight into the Queens younger sister. I felt I did learn more about Margaret from reading this book.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to see an arc
December 26, 2021
An intimate portrayal of Princess Margaret
Well balanced and engaging, this biography provides an honest look at the complexity of life in the era particularly for a woman in the British Royal family
Well balanced and engaging, this biography provides an honest look at the complexity of life in the era particularly for a woman in the British Royal family
December 11, 2022
I try to know less about the royal family so I don't know who this is and struggled all throughout. My fault, but my rating stands.
November 6, 2024
This year, I’ve embarked on a journey to explore the lives of various members of the Royal Family, with Prince Philip and Princess Margaret being the next on my list. However, I must admit that my experience with this particular book about Princess Margaret was quite disappointing. While I have read several books that touch on the lives of both princesses, I was eager to find a comprehensive account that focuses exclusively on Margaret’s life. Unfortunately, this novel did not fulfill that expectation.
One of the most notable aspects of this book is its portrayal of Margaret. The author depicts her in a charming, positive, and sensitive manner, which starkly contrasts with the reality of who she was. Margaret was indeed a complex figure—often described as a force of nature, she was known for her rebellious spirit and tumultuous personal life. Instead of acknowledging her more provocative traits, the author chose to present her in an overly romanticized light, glossing over the more contentious aspects of her character.
For example, the book presents her marriage as a blissful partnership, despite the widely recognized struggles and failures it entailed. It seemed as if the author overlooked the genuine hardship Margaret faced in that relationship. Furthermore, her affair with Group Captain Peter Townsend, a crucial and dramatic part of her life, is treated with a lack of depth, reducing a significant chapter of her story to mere footnotes.
I initially hoped this book would serve as an excellent and engaging introduction to the life of the Queen’s sister, but I ended up feeling as though I was reading about a completely different person. The lack of nuance and insight into Margaret’s true character left me frustrated. Ultimately, I found this book to be a missed opportunity and, regrettably, a waste of my time.
One of the most notable aspects of this book is its portrayal of Margaret. The author depicts her in a charming, positive, and sensitive manner, which starkly contrasts with the reality of who she was. Margaret was indeed a complex figure—often described as a force of nature, she was known for her rebellious spirit and tumultuous personal life. Instead of acknowledging her more provocative traits, the author chose to present her in an overly romanticized light, glossing over the more contentious aspects of her character.
For example, the book presents her marriage as a blissful partnership, despite the widely recognized struggles and failures it entailed. It seemed as if the author overlooked the genuine hardship Margaret faced in that relationship. Furthermore, her affair with Group Captain Peter Townsend, a crucial and dramatic part of her life, is treated with a lack of depth, reducing a significant chapter of her story to mere footnotes.
I initially hoped this book would serve as an excellent and engaging introduction to the life of the Queen’s sister, but I ended up feeling as though I was reading about a completely different person. The lack of nuance and insight into Margaret’s true character left me frustrated. Ultimately, I found this book to be a missed opportunity and, regrettably, a waste of my time.
October 5, 2021
Part of the six-book series, "The Royal House of Windsor", Princess Margaret was penned in 1974 by the mysterious and reclusive Helen Cathcart. It's being re-released by Sapere Books on August 8, 2021. Incidentally, Sapere Books shares a short yet very 'revealing' biography of Helen Cathcart that's well worth taking a look at. [ https://saperebooks.com/authors/helen... ]
If you're craving a tell-all, gossip-laden, judgmental and opinionated examination of Princess Margaret's life, you'll need to look elsewhere. But if you're the type to pour a cup of tea and settle into a cozy chair with a heartwarming book, this biography is your perfect read. The writing style is quaintly old-fashioned, which I enjoyed. After all, this is not a modern-day biography, as the story of Margaret's life begins in 1930.
The highly-detailed anecdotes about Margaret's life are told in the intimate, loving manner of one who was right there enjoying her antics. The childhood stories are especially plentiful. I'm particularly fond of an encounter three-year-old Margaret had with Sir James Barrie, which is cute, cozy, clever and heartbreaking enough to top any of young Shirley Temple's movies.
Princess Margaret passed away 28 years after this book was written. Thus, the book occasionally refers to her as still alive and enjoying her life, and doesn't chronicle events of her later years. But, it's a lovely memento of the coming of age of a one-of-a-kind princess that's well worth your cozy chair and a cup of tea.
My thanks to Sapere Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital advance review copy of this book. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion.
If you're craving a tell-all, gossip-laden, judgmental and opinionated examination of Princess Margaret's life, you'll need to look elsewhere. But if you're the type to pour a cup of tea and settle into a cozy chair with a heartwarming book, this biography is your perfect read. The writing style is quaintly old-fashioned, which I enjoyed. After all, this is not a modern-day biography, as the story of Margaret's life begins in 1930.
The highly-detailed anecdotes about Margaret's life are told in the intimate, loving manner of one who was right there enjoying her antics. The childhood stories are especially plentiful. I'm particularly fond of an encounter three-year-old Margaret had with Sir James Barrie, which is cute, cozy, clever and heartbreaking enough to top any of young Shirley Temple's movies.
Princess Margaret passed away 28 years after this book was written. Thus, the book occasionally refers to her as still alive and enjoying her life, and doesn't chronicle events of her later years. But, it's a lovely memento of the coming of age of a one-of-a-kind princess that's well worth your cozy chair and a cup of tea.
My thanks to Sapere Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital advance review copy of this book. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews