Lady Gabriella Windsor tied the knot with Thomas Kingston in their royal wedding last weekend. Royal fans were delighted to see Her Majesty the Queen attend the ceremony, alongside Prince Philip. However, many were surprised to see mother of the bride Princess Michael of Kent seated some way away from her daughter, appearing off to one side in the official wedding portrait. 

Podcast “Pod Save the Queen” is hosted by Ann Gripper and features Daily Mirror Royal Editor Russell Myers.

In this week’s latest episode, the team discussed last Saturday’s royal wedding.

Ms Gripper said: “One disadvantage, possibly, of having the Queen at your wedding, certainly if you’re the mother of the bride, is that the Queen gets to sit next to the bride!

“So, in the grand family portrait that was put out, [Lady Gabriella Windsor] was standing with her father, who’d obviously escorted her to church and walked her down the aisle and everything.

“And then, sitting down in the front row, you had the Queen, then Prince Philip. 

“And then you had Princess Michael.”

The royal protocol surrounding weddings states that the Queen outranks everyone and is therefore given pride of place with the best seat next to the bride.

This can be seen in Princess Eugenie, Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton’s wedding photos, which all stick to the protocol, too. 

In Saturday’s gorgeous wedding photos the Queen is in a bright coral ensemble, seated next to the Duke of Edinburgh.

Kate Middleton had been widely tipped to accompany the Queen to the occasion, as Prince Philip has scaled back his public appearances, however the Duke of Edinburgh looked in fine form. 

Princess Michael of Kent comes after the Duke, in her chic pale lavender mother-of-the-bride outfit. 

The intricacies of royal protocol will be well-known to Princess Michael of Kent, who is descended from Austrian royalty. 

Her father Gunther von Reibnitz was a baron, and her mother, Maria Szapáry von Muraszombath,  was a countess.

Royal expert Katie Nicholl, in Channel 5 documentary “the Royal Family at War”, explained: “She comes from royal blood in her own right. 

“The royals joke that she thinks herself more royal than the House of Windsor.”

Former royal aide Dickie Arbiter also described how Princess Michael’s more well-known nickname was bestowed on her by Princess Anne. 

He said: “She is very assertive, so Princess Anne nicknamed her Princess Pushy.”

Meanwhile, the Queen reportedly nicknamed Princess Michael “Our Val” in reference to the warrior-like Valkyries of Norse mythology.

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