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Princess Margaret's Morning Routine Was As Royal As It Gets

She truly lived a life of leisure.
Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret.
Kevin Coombs / Reuters
Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret.

We have always known that the Royal Family lives a life of privilege. After all, they have access to designer clothes, private chefs, chauffeurs, exquisite jewels, massive properties, and the best education money can buy. But we had no idea how good they really have it until now.

Author Craig Brown recently released his book Ma'am Darling, which focuses on the life of the late Princess Margaret, Queen Elizabeth's sister, including details on her very royal morning routine.

Princess Margaret in 1955.
Getty Images
Princess Margaret in 1955.

According to an excerpt, which is detailed in Indy100, the princess lived in the lap of luxury, waking up at 9 a.m. to breakfast in bed, followed by two hours listening to the radio and reading newspapers.

Before getting on with her day, Margaret then had a bath run for her by a maid, followed by an hour of hair and make-up.

By then it would be around noon, when she would have a vodka and join the Queen Mother for a four-course lunch.

Princess Margaret died in 2002 at the age of 71 and is currently being played on-screen by actress Vanessa Kirby in the hit Netflix series, "The Crown." Naturally, Kirby was thrilled to discover that her alter-ego led such a ~royal~ life.

Scattered all over the floor... good god Princess M I love you

A post shared by Vanessa Kirby (@vanessa__kirby) on

"Scattered all over the floor... good god Princess M I love you," the actress wrote on Instagram.

@thecrownnetflix #thecrown

A post shared by Vanessa Kirby (@vanessa__kirby) on

Of course, it wasn't just Margaret who led such a decadent lifestyle. As detailed by the Queen's former personal chef, the Royal Family generally want for nothing.

"At Buckingham Palace, we'd do a menu book that we'd send up to the Queen and she could choose the dishes she wanted," Darren McGrady told Marie Claire. "The book would come back to the kitchen and we'd prepare them. The Queen's menus are done three or more days ahead and she sticks with them religiously."

The Queen also occasionally eats fruit off a diamond-encrusted plate (valued at £500,000 thirty years ago), and enjoys a breakfast of scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and truffles.

Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret.
PA Archive/PA Images
Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret.

But Elizabeth seems to be a bit more practical than Margaret was.

"People always say, 'Oh, the Queen must eat off gold plates with gold knives and forks.' Yes, sometimes... but at Balmoral she'd eat fruit from a plastic yellow Tupperware container," McGrady said.

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The young royals, such as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, probably do not live the life that Princess Margaret led, and if Harry's girlfriend, Meghan Markle, becomes a part of the family, she most certainly won't be lounging in bed until noon.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry at West Ham United London Stadium, as they attend the graduation ceremony for more than 150 Coach Core apprentices.
PA Wire/PA Images
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry at West Ham United London Stadium, as they attend the graduation ceremony for more than 150 Coach Core apprentices.

Both the duke and duchess and Prince Harry have their event calendars filled with receptions, galas, meet-and-greets and other royal duties they perform on behalf of the Queen. And if Markle does marry Harry, she will be busy learning the ins-and-outs of royal life, including a primer on proper etiquette.

And that hour of hair and makeup that Margaret enjoyed? That's just all in a day's work to an actress like Markle.

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