Charles takes lead in royal engagements

THE Prince of Wales has eclipsed Princess Anne as the hardest working royal this year after attending 521 functions, it has emerged.

The Princess Royal, historically the most industrious of the family, had 506 engagements in 2019, The Times said.

The siblings have shared the bulk of royal duties since the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh began to scale back their work in the mid-1990s.

In total, the Royal family undertook 3,567 varied engagements in 2019, including the Prince of Wales’s visit to Japan to see Emperor Naruhito ascend the throne.

The Earl of Wessex attended 308 engagements, and the Queen 295. Prince Andrew, who has faced criticism over his relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, attended 274 engagements, his fewest for 20 years.

Unless other members take up the slack next year, the total number of royal engagements could drop below 3,500 for the first time since 1986.