The reimagining of Eugenie – a new princess power player in the making?

She has launched a high-profile charity podcast and has plans for a big gala next month. After a fraught couple of years for Eugenie, Polly Dunbar takes a closer look at the royal cousin stepping out from the shadows...

Until now, it’s fair to say the youngest daughter of Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew – currently 10th in line to the throne – has managed to avoid the level of scrutiny to which other royals have been subjected (The Anti-Slavery Collective)

Last week, Princess Eugenie kicked off the second series of herFloodlights podcast about modern slavery with an interview with Theresa May. During the podcast, run by Eugenie’s Anti-Slavery Collective, the former prime minister talked about her work to pass the Modern Slavery Act in 2015, with Eugenie making her admiration for the achievement abundantly clear.

Hailing May as “incredible and cool” and a “massive inspiration”, Eugenie said of her prioritisation of the issue: “That is so cool that you were prime minister and that was your biggest thing. I just wanted to say that. That is awesome that you were championing this as prime minister.”

The 33-year-old’s delivery may have been gushing, but those who know her say her dedication to the cause is deadly serious. She and business consultant Julia de Boinville co-founded the Anti-Slavery Collective in 2017 following a 2012 trip to Kolkata, India, in which they were “shocked to discover the extent to which slavery still exists”, with almost 50 million people enslaved worldwide. The charity’s aim? To raise awareness and funds to help eradicate the problem altogether.