Lady Louise Windsor's Strictly treat from Sophie after 'coping with George and Charlotte'
Lady Louise Windsor, eldest offspring of the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, took charge of a lively group of young pageboys and bridesmaids at just 15-years-old – and earned herself a trip around the Strictly Come Dancing studios for her trouble.
Lady Louise 's cool-headed handling of duties at her cousin Princess Eugenie's wedding to businessman Jack Brooksbank earned her high praise, leading her mother, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, to reward her with a special Strictly themed surprise.
In his book 'Sophie: Saving The Royal Family', author Sean Smith recounts how Louise adeptly managed the boisterous children: "She clung on tightly to the hands of the pageboys, one of whom was Prince George, the eldest son of William and Kate, but another, Louis de Givenchy, fell over as a strong gust of wind blew down the chapel steps.
"Louise had to haul him smartly to his feet," Sean writes, "Then, Princess Charlotte, George's sister, took a tumble as well."
Despite challenging conditions that included sudden wind gusts causing chaos with the royals' attire, Louise executed her role as "special attendant" with great skill.
After fulfilling her role and sitting beside the Tindalls, Zara gave her a comforting pat on the wrist while Mike quietly expressed his approval with a "well done."
But perhaps Lady Louise's most valuable act of assistance came after the ceremony had come to an end. As Kate Middleton joined other royals outside St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, a sudden gust of wind nearly caused the Princess's Alexander McQueen dress to fly up.
"Fortunately for Kate," Sean notes, "she was standing next to Sophie, who placed a hand strategically to keep the dress down and then positioned herself close to her so that it wouldn't happen a second time."
At this point, the younger royals hadn't yet adopted the late Queen's method of sewing small lead weights into the hem of her skirts to avoid any unintended "Marilyn Monroe moments."
Sophie, as a proud mother, rewarded Louise with a special outing – a trip to Elstree Film and Television Studios to see an episode of Strictly Come Dancing being recorded live.
The programme is a Royal household favourite, according to Sean: "Often, [Sophie and Louise] would make the trek over to Windsor Castle and watch it with the Queen, who was also a fan. Camilla and Charles, too, watched it every Saturday."
For Louise, the opportunity to witness the celebrities in person was particularly thrilling. Host Tess Daly provided Sophie and Louise with a backstage tour before escorting them to their seats in the front row.
Louise expressed her delight to Tess, saying: "This is such a treat."
Sophie and Louise merrily participated as the whole crowd applauded, while Graeme Swann and Oti Mabuse executed a 1940s-styled Quickstep to the Andrews Sisters' classic "Sing Sing Sing."
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