The “Most Popular Royal” May Not Be Who You Think

The royal family on the Buckingham Palace balcony at Trooping the Colour

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 5 September 2023

In a new poll gauging the popularity of members of the royal family, it’s Prince William that took the top spot, narrowly edging out his wife, Catherine, to be No. 1.

In a new survey conducted by British polling company YouGov (and per People), researchers found that William has a favorability ranking of 74 percent, with Catherine not far behind at 72 percent. Princess Anne—the younger sister of King Charles, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, and long dubbed the “hardest working royal”—rounds out the top three with a favorability ranking of 73 percent. The King received a 60 percent favorability ranking as he rounds out his first year on the throne and, for context, the disgraced Prince Andrew comes in at just 6 percent favorability.

The poll was released yesterday to mark the week leading up to the one-year anniversary of Her late Majesty’s passing on September 8. Overall, 61 percent of Britons are in favor of the monarchy, which is down just slightly after the immediate “bounce” of affection that happened immediately following the death of the late Queen.

Of those that favor the monarchy and feel that it is good for the country, only 30 percent of those ages 18 to 24 agree; for comparison’s sake, for those older than 65, that number balloons to 77 percent. Only 37 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds want Britain to remain a monarchy, showing a huge gap that younger royals like William and Catherine desperately need to fill.

The age gap in opinions continues as to whether the royal family represents value for the money—only 34 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds think so, while 75 percent of those older than 65 think the royal family is worth it monetarily.

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Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.

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