Lady in Waiting

My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown

By: Anne Glenconner

Narrated by: Anne Glenconner

Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's Summary

Discover untold secrets with this extraordinary memoir of drama and tragedy by Anne Glenconner - a close member of the royal circle and lady-in-waiting to Princess Margaret. 

Anne Glenconner has been at the center of the royal circle from childhood, when she met and befriended the future Queen Elizabeth II and her sister, the Princess Margaret. Though the firstborn child of the fifth Earl of Leicester, who controlled one of the largest estates in England, as a daughter she was deemed "the greatest disappointment" and unable to inherit. Since then she has needed all her resilience to survive court life with her sense of humor intact. 

A unique witness to landmark moments in royal history, Maid of Honor at Queen Elizabeth's coronation, and a lady in waiting to Princess Margaret until her death in 2002, Anne's life has encompassed extraordinary drama and tragedy. In Lady in Waiting, she will share many intimate royal stories from her time as Princess Margaret's closest confidante as well as her own battle for survival: her broken-off first engagement on the basis of her "mad blood"; her 54-year marriage to the volatile, unfaithful Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who left his fortune to a former servant; the death in adulthood of two of her sons; a third son she nursed back from a six-month coma following a horrific motorcycle accident. Through it all, Anne has carried on, traveling the world with the royal family, including visiting the White House, and developing the Caribbean island of Mustique as a safe harbor for the rich and famous-hosting Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Raquel Welch, and many other politicians, aristocrats, and celebrities.

With unprecedented insight into the royal family, Lady in Waiting is a witty, candid, dramatic, at times heart-breaking personal story capturing life in a golden cage for a woman with no inheritance.

New York Times best seller

USA Today best seller

The Sunday Times best seller

The Globe and Mail best seller

ABA Indie best seller

The Times (UK) Memoir of the Year 

One of Newsweek's Most Anticipated Books of 2020

©2020 Anne Glenconner (P)2020 Hachette Books

Critic Reviews

"It's a total hoot - I can't put it down." (Janet Street-Porter, Daily Mail)

"Royal obsessives and casual observers alike will devour this memoir by the confidante-a noble herself-of Princess Margaret. Glenconner candidly writes about the unimaginable tragedies she endured in her personal life, and of the gilded affairs she witnessed on the periphery of royal life." (Newsweek)

"Meticulously detailed....[W]hat makes this account fresh and poignant is Glenconner's use of affluent characters to demonstrate the extent to which class trumps power....By unflinchingly examining everything from her troubled marriage and her fraught relationship with her children to the solace she found in service, the author emerges as a flawed yet steely woman worthy of respect. In laying her life bare, she demonstrates the limitations of being a woman in the British class system, showing that privilege is no insulation from suffering or pain. A must-have for loyal royal fans." (Kirkus Reviews)

Horrible Reading

Prime example of why an author should not read their own material. I don’t know whats worse, the gross sounds of her licking her lips every 10 seconds or her mumbling. I’m extremely disappointed, I have been waiting for this book since 10/2019 and I even preordered it. Save your audible credit and borrow the book from a library!

Might have been a good story....

But I could not get past the first half. The author reads much to fast resulting in non-stop gulping, hard swallowing and lip smacking as she races along. Disappointing as I had looked forward to this book. Not sure the first half left me interested enough to buy the kindle edition and read the rest for myself.

I should not have pre-ordered this book

I am one of those people who cannot stand to hear people chew and swallow their food loudly . The reader aka author swallows and gulps her way thru this novel so much that I had to stop listening before the end of the first chapter. Never again will I order an audiobook read by the author.

What a great story!

I absolutely loved this book. Lady Glenconner has lived a fabulous life and met some very famous people along the way. I especially loved hearing the behind scenes stories about the Coronation and her wedding night made me laugh out loud. Unfortunately, I thought the performance could have been better. Lady Glenconner's hard swallow at the end of a sentence was quite annoying but by the end of the book, I felt as though I was having a personal conversation her and she was telling me her life story.

This book is a peak into the Royal Family but don't expect gossip and dirt. This is a story of an extraordinary woman who just happen to know a few famous people.

Most Fascinating and Well Read and Written Memior!

I think I have more than 500 memoirs in my library. I do not rate them all or write reviews for all. This memoir, read by the author, has been a most fabulous read! Fascinating stories! Not sure why there were some negative reviews on the narration, I can guess some readers were raised on Disney's voice-over actors in animation flicks? Maybe they have never traveled over the town line? The book is read in the most perfect English dialect. Readers should not be dumbed down listening to books or intimidated by proper English. I loved this book and I loved listening to the author share her own very unique and fascinating stories with such honesty and humility. Listening to this book I felt like I was on a long ocean voyage in a new exotic place! Meeting with the most interesting people! She is such a master storyteller! A consummate muse! It is easy to understand why the princess of England demanded her company and companionship for so many decades. I will read this book more than once. Do not deny yourself this pleasure! Truly fabulous company! I only wish this were volume one and I had several more volumes to look forward to! But somewhat confused at the very end of the listen, to hear that the book is purely a work of fiction. And none of the characters actually exist. Production error? Not a small one!

Prime example of why authors should not read...

...their own books. I am hate to return this one because I had pre-ordered it and was so excited but it might be best to get the actual book or the kindle version.

Very interesting

I enjoyed this book very much, especially because the author read it. One thing that puzzled me is that the disclaimer at the end said it was a work of fiction and I was under the impression that it was her biography.

Truly Extraordinary Life

I found the seeming honesty and behind the closed door account of life as a Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret as well as a wife and mother touching and fascinating. I admire Anne Glenconner's grit, tenacity, forgiving nature, and self-analysis. She is a very good writer and a terrific reader. She endured so many challenges and tragedies in her life and finally has the opportunity for reflection. I am grateful to her for sharing her history with the world.

Life holds struggles for every class.

I chose this book as the royals are always interesting. Ann Glenconner had a very interesting and event filled life. My heart ached for her as she told her stories of the struggles she faced, but through it all she believed there was a light at the end of the tunnel.

What a life!

I really appreciated listening to her story. The optimism and tenacity throughout her life was inspiring. I thoroughly enjoyed all of it!