Princess Anne, Zara and Peter at the races© Getty

Princess Anne's royal first set the standard for kids Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips

The Princess Royal lead the way when it came to education

Wellness Editor
June 7, 2024

Princess Anne instilled a fantastic work ethic into her children, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips, but long before she was named the hardest-working royal several years in a row, she was already setting a high bar for her children.

In fact, the Princess Royal was in the first generation of The Royal Family to take and pass A levels, choosing to study history and geography, while her older brother, King Charles, studied history and French.

Following in their mother's footsteps Zara and Peter both passed their A-Levels too, with Zara studying physical education, geography and biology, and Peter achieving two A-levels, though it was not shared what he studied.

© Getty

Peter took after his mother in his commitment to studying

Though Zara passed her exams, she didn’t get into her university of choice, so took a gap year before going on to study Equine Physiotherapy at Exeter University, while her brother took Sports Science at the same university.

Zara initially studied equestrian massage before transferring courses to equine physiotherapy.

Mike Tindall's wife followed in her mother's footsteps by pursuing an Olympic career too – we bet Princess Anne is extremely proud!

© Getty

Zara, Pete and Anne have a shared loved of horses

Princess Anne's intelligence

Princess Anne attended the Benenden School in Kent as a boarder, and her education served her well, as not only did she attain her A-levels but her general knowledge is good too, as she was the first member of the royal family to appear on a TV quiz show.

DISCOVER: Royal family's A-Level results revealed - see the exam grades they received 

Princess Anne's TV star moment

The royal appeared as a contestant on the BBC panel game A Question of Sport in 1987 when she was 37 years old. Nineteen million viewers tuned in to watch her star turn, and she was praised for being easygoing and good fun – we'd expect nothing less.

© PA Images

Princess Anne appearing on A Question of Sport

Princess Anne is certainly comfortable in front of the camera, agreeing to be filmed when she appeared on Mike Tindall's rugby podcast, The Good, The Bad and The Rugby.

What we'd do to see Princess Anne on another TV show now!

LISTEN to HELLO!'s Right Royal Podcast for the inside scoop on all things royalty

Sign up to HELLO Daily! for the best royal, celebrity and lifestyle coverage

Email Address

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Parenting

See more