Today, former heavyweight boxer Ronnie Russell, who once saved Anne from kidnapping, is selling his George Medal. In 1974, Mr Russell punched gunman Ian Ball in the head as he tried to abduct the Princess Royal on The Mall. He was awarded the George Medal for his bravery, but is now selling it to pay for his own funeral, which he fears is imminent.

Anne was incredibly grateful to the former bodyguard, but had a much worse relationship with certain members of her own family.

In the Eighties, the new Princess of Wales took the world by storm and suddenly the Princess Royal was “old news”.

She is said to have resented Diana – and her other sister in-law Sarah Ferguson, affectionately nicknamed Fergie – and saw them as “lessening the stature” of the Royal Family.

Speaking to 2002 Channel 4 documentary ‘The Real Princess Anne’, Daily Express royal photographer Steve Wood, who worked with the royals for years, reflected on this.

He said: “She was extremely annoyed when Diana became centre of stage and then Fergie became centre stage for a while.

“She said about them behind their backs several times – ‘those girls’,” the last phrase said sneeringly.”

Mr Wood added: “She viewed them both as lessening the stature of the Royal Family. 

“Too much tabloid for her.”

Princess Diana started doing charity work with the Red Cross and inevitably comparisons were made between her style and Anne’s when she worked with Save the Children.

While Diana was very hands on with people, touching them and holding them, Anne rarely touched anyone and was quite “business-like”.

The media, of course, loved how Diana played up to the cameras and even suggested that Anne should take a leaf out of her book. 

This reportedly made Anne angry, as she was clocking up around twice as many engagements a year as Diana.

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Royal biographer Penny Junor said: “There was Diana on the one hand, who was incredibly touchy-feely, who hugged children, who put children on her lap, who even kissed people – grown up people in public.

“And there was Anne, not touching anyone, not playing up to the cameras at all.

“She does seem to be very business-like. But she gets the work done.”

Royal reporter for The Sun, Harry Arnold added claimed that Anne complained about all this to a colleague.

She reportedly said: “I work hard every day. I’m never in the paper, no one ever thanks me.

“All she has to do is show up.”

Mr Arnold said: “I think that sums up their relationship. Diana stole everyone’s limelight and Anne resented it.”

When asked if he took his eyes off Anne when Diana came onto the scene, Mr Wood said: “Oh, totally.

“Diana swept the world. Diana became the highest publishing picture anywhere.”

In this way, the press dropped Anne “like a hot potato” and she was not happy about it.

It has previously been reported that even Diana’s husband Charles felt overshadowed by his wife.

He was used to being the golden boy, but as soon as he married Diana everyone was far more interested in her.

According to 2017 Channel 4 documentary ‘The Royal House of Windsor’, part of what he liked about Camilla Parker Bowles is that she was quite happy to remain in the shadows.

Indeed, royal biographer Christopher Wilson suggested on the TV programme that Camilla never intended to marry Charles, that she just “wanted a bit of fun” and never expected their relationship to be made public.

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