Anne, Princess Royal

Anne
Princess Royal
Spouse Mark Phillips
(m. 1973, div. 1992)
Timothy Laurence
(m. 1992)
Issue
Peter Phillips
Zara Phillips
Full name
Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise[1]
House House of Windsor
Father Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Mother Elizabeth II
Born 15 August 1950 (1950-08-15) (age 60)
Clarence House, Westminster, London

Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950), is the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. At the time of her birth, she was third, and later for a few years was second in the line of succession to the thrones of seven independent states; however, after additions to the Royal Family, and an evolution of the Commonwealth, Anne is currently tenth in line to the thrones of 16 countries. She is resident in and most directly involved with the United Kingdom, the oldest realm, while also carrying out duties in and on behalf of the other states of which her mother is sovereign. The seventh holder of the title Princess Royal, Anne is known for her charitable work, being the patron of over 200 organisations, and she carries out about 700 royal engagements and public appearances per year.

Princess Anne is also known for equestrian talents; she won two silver and one gold medal at the European Eventing Championships, and is the only member of the British Royal Family to have competed in the Olympic Games. She is married to Vice-Admiral Timothy Laurence, and has two children from her previous marriage to Mark Phillips.

Contents

Early life and education

Anne was born at Clarence House on 15 August 1950, the second child and first daughter of then Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and second grandchild of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Baptised in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace on 21 October 1950, by then Archbishop of York, Cyril Garbett, the Princess's godparents were her great-uncle, Louis Mountbatten, Earl Mountbatten of Burma; Andrew Elphinstone; her maternal grandmother; her paternal grandmother, Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark; and her aunt, The Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. By letters patent of Anne's great-grandfather, King George V, the titles of a British prince or princess, and the style Royal Highness, were only to be conferred on children and male-line grandchildren of the sovereign, as well as the children of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales. However, on 22 October 1948, George VI issued new letters patent granting these honours to any children of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip; otherwise, Anne would merely have been titled by courtesy as Lady Anne Mountbatten. In this way, the children of the heiress presumptive had a Royal and Princely status.

As with royal children before her, a governess, Catherine Peebles, was appointed to look after the Princess and was responsible for her early education at Buckingham Palace;[2] Peebles had also served as governess for Anne's older brother, Charles. When Anne's mother acceded after the death of George VI to the throne as Queen Elizabeth II, Anne was thereafter titled as Her Royal Highness The Princess Anne, but, given her young age at the time, did not attend her mother's coronation.

A Girl Guides company, the 1st Buckingham Palace Company including the Holy Trinity Brompton Brownie pack, was reformed in May 1959, specifically so that, like her mother, Anne could socialise with girls her own age. The Princess Royal was active until 1963, when she went to boarding school.[3] Anne remained under private tutelage until she was enrolled at Benenden School in 1963, leaving five years later with six O-Levels and two A-Levels.[2] Anne's first boyfriend was Andrew Parker Bowles.[4]

First marriage

The Royal Family of the
United Kingdom and the
other Commonwealth realms
Badge of the House of Windsor.svg

HM The Queen
HRH The Duke of Edinburgh

On 14 November 1973, Princess Anne married Mark Phillips, then a Lieutenant in the 1st Queen's Dragoon Guards, at Westminster Abbey, in a ceremony that was televised around the world, with an estimated audience of 100 million.[5] Following the wedding, Anne and her husband lived at Gatcombe Park. By 1989, however, the Princess Royal and Mark Phillips announced their intention to separate, as the marriage had been under strain for a number of years. The couple divorced on 23 April 1992.[6]

It was believed that the Queen had offered Phillips an earldom on his wedding day, as was customary for untitled men marrying into the Royal Family. However, Phillips did not accept the offer. The couple had two children, Peter Phillips and Zara Phillips, and they thus became the first grandchildren of a Sovereign to carry no title, though they are not the first children of a Princess to carry no title: the children of Princess Alexandra, the Queen's cousin, are also untitled.

Kidnapping attempt

As Princess Anne and Mark Phillips were returning to Buckingham Palace on 20 March 1974, from a charity event on Pall Mall, their Princess IV limousine was forced to stop by a Ford Escort.[7] The driver of the Escort, Ian Ball, jumped out and began firing a gun. Inspector James Beaton, the Princess's personal police officer, responded by exiting the limousine in order to shield the Princess and try to disarm Ball. Beaton's firearm, a Walther PPK, jammed, and he was shot by the assailant, as was Anne's chauffeur, Alex Callender, when he tried to disarm Ball.[8] Brian McConnell, a passerby, also intervened, and was shot in the chest. Ball approached the Austin Princess and told Anne of his kidnapping plan, which was to hold the Princess for ransom, the sum given by varying sources as £2 million[9] or £3 million, which he intended to give to the National Health Service.[7] Ball then directed Anne to get out of the car, to which she replied: "Not bloody likely!", and briefly considered hitting Ball.[10] Eventually, she dived out the other side of the limousine and another passing pedestrian, Ron Russell, punched Ball in the back of the head and then led Anne away from the scene. At that point, Police Constable Michael Hills happened upon the situation; he too was shot by Ball, but not before he called for police backup. Detective Constable Peter Edmonds, who had been nearby, answered and gave chase, finally arresting Ball.[8]

All of the victims were hospitalised, and recovered from their wounds. For his defence of Princess Anne, Beaton was awarded the George Cross, Hills and Russell were awarded the George Medal, and Callender, McConnell and Edmonds were awarded the Queen's Gallantry Medal.[7][11] Ball pleaded guilty to attempted murder and kidnapping, and was detained under the Mental Health Act. He later placed strange advertisements in a magazine, directing readers to his Web site, which offers £1 million to anyone who can prove Ball's theory that the whole incident actually took place a year later, and formed a part of a long-standing and elaborate persecution of Ball by a policeman.

The incident was the closest in modern times that any individual has come to kidnapping a member of the Royal Family, and prompted higher security levels for the Royals. It also served as the focus of the 2006 Granada Television produced docu-drama, To Kidnap a Princess, and inspired story lines in the Tom Clancy novel "Patriot Games" and the Antonia Fraser novel "Your Royal Hostage".

Second marriage

Anne married Timothy Laurence, then a commander in the Royal Navy, at Crathie Kirk, near Balmoral Castle, on 12 December 1992. The couple chose to marry in Scotland as the Church of England did not allow divorced persons to remarry in its churches, while the Church of Scotland did. In participating in this ceremony, Anne became the first Royal divorcée to remarry since Victoria, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine, did so in 1905. Like Phillips before him, Laurence received no peerage, and the couple leased a flat in Dolphin Square, London. They later gave up this city home and now reside between an apartment at Buckingham Palace and Gatcombe Park. Anne has no children with Laurence.

The Princess Royal faced civil court charges in March 2001, when she pleaded guilty to driving at 93 mph on a dual carriageway, while on her way to Hartpury College in Gloucestershire. She was fined £400 by Cheltenham Magistrate's Court, and had five points added to her driving licence.[12] The following year, she was convicted of a second offence under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, after she pleaded guilty to the charge that her dog, Dotty, attacked two boys while she and Laurence were taking the dog for a walk in Windsor Great Park. The Princess was fined £500 by Berkshire Magistrates' Court and ordered to give Dotty more training.[13]

Personal interests

Pharology, the study of lighthouses, is a focus of interest for Princess Anne; she made it an ambition to see personally each of Scotland's 215 lighthouses, often touring them with the Northern Lighthouse Board, of which she is patron. It is thought the interest stems from Anne's visit, when she was five years old, to Tiumpan Head with her mother.[14] Princess Anne also has been patron of Sense (The National Deafblind and Rubella Association) since 1989. Sense is the leading national charity in the United Kingdom that supports and campaigns for children and adults who are deafblind. It provides specialist information, advice and services to deafblind people, their families, carers and the professionals who work with them. In addition, it supports people who have sensory impairments with additional disabilities. The Princess Royal takes a great interest in the work of this charity and hosts a number of events to raise money for its continued good work in the community and beyond. HRH The Princess Royal is also Royal Patron of young people's charity Catch22,[15] with particular reference to their social enterprise Auto22 a mechanics garage offering apprenticeships to young people in Gravesend, Kent.

Equestrianism

Medal record
Equestrian
European Championships
Gold 1971 Burghley Individual eventing
Silver 1975 Luhmuhlen Team eventing
Silver 1975 Luhmuhlen Individual eventing

Anne has always shown a keen interest in horses and equine pursuits. At the age of 21, the Princess won the individual title at the European Eventing Championship, and was voted the BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1971. For more than five years she also competed with the British eventing team, winning a silver medal in both individual and team disciplines in the 1975 European Eventing Championship, riding the home-bred Doublet. The following year Anne participated in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal as a member of the British team, riding the Queen's horse, Goodwill. Princess Anne assumed the President of The Fédération Équestre Internationale from 1986 until 1994.[16] On 5 February 1987, she became the first Royal to appear as a contestant on a television quiz-show when she competed on the BBC panel game A Question of Sport. Her daughter, Zara Phillips is also a keen equestrian competitor. Together with her horse, Toytown, she won individual and team gold medals at the 2005 European Eventing Championship as well as individual gold and team silver medals at the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games.

Princess Anne was a pupil of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna.

Official duties

The Princess Royal with Vladimir Putin in 2000
The Princess Royal visits the USNS Comfort on 11 July 2002, while the ship was docked in Southampton, England.

As Princess Royal, Princess Anne undertakes a number of official duties on behalf of her mother, in her role as sovereign of any of the Commonwealth realms. Anne began to undertake official royal duties overseas upon leaving secondary school,[2] and accompanied her parents on a state visit to Austria in the same year.[17] She will sometimes stand in for the Queen at the funerals of foreign dignitaries (which the Queen customarily does not attend), and resides at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh each summer, hosting engagements there. The Princess also travels abroad on behalf of the United Kingdom up to three times a year; she was the first member of the Royal Family to make an official visit to the USSR when she went there as a guest of the government in 1990.[17] The Princess's first tour of Australia was with her parents in 1970, since which she has returned on numerous occasions to undertake official engagements as a colonel-in-chief of an Australian regiment, or to attend memorials and services, such as the National Memorial Service for Bushfire Victims in Melbourne, Australia, on 22 February 2009.[18]

Following the retirement of the Queen Mother in 1981, Anne was elected by graduates of the University of London as that institution's Chancellor. Throughout May 1996, the Princess served as Her Majesty's High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which granted her, for the duration of the appointment, a higher precedence in Scotland, and the alternative style of Her Grace. In 2007, the Princess Royal had the honour of being appointed by the Queen as Grand Master of the Royal Victorian Order, a position her late grandmother had also held.

The Princess Royal carries out the most engagements of any member of the Royal Family, and is involved with over 200 charities and organisations in an official capacity. She works extensively for Save the Children, of which she has been president since 1970, and she initiated The Princess Royal Trust for Carers in 1991; her work for the charity takes her all over the world, including many poverty stricken African nations. She is also the Royal Patron of WISE, an organisation that encourages young women to pursue careers in science, engineering and construction.[19] Her extensive work for St. John Ambulance as Commandant-in-Chief of St. John Ambulance Cadets has helped to develop many young people, as she annually attends the Grand Prior Award Reception. She is also a British representative in the International Olympic Committee as an administrator, and is a member of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games.

The Princess Royal is also the patron of International Students House, London and Acid Survivors Trust International.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles

Royal styles of
HRH The Princess Royal
Arms of Anne, the Princess Royal.svg
Reference style Her Royal Highness
Spoken style Your Royal Highness
Alternative style Ma'am

The Princess's British style and title in full: Her Royal Highness The Princess Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise, The Princess Royal, Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Knight of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, Dame Grand Cross and Grand Master of the Royal Victorian Order, Dame Grand Cross of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem. In 1996, Anne was entitled to be called Her Grace The Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

Anne is the seventh creation of the title Princess Royal, an appellation only given to the eldest daughter of the sovereign, the last holder being George V's daughter, Princess Mary, Countess of Harewood.

Honours

Appointments
Decorations
Foreign honours
Honorary degrees

Honorary military appointments

The Princess Royal on the balcony of Buckingham Palace (in uniform, far right.)
The Princess Royal passes behind the Princess Anne Banner at a parade for the 75th anniversary of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals, 5 July 2000.

As with other senior royals, Princess Anne holds a number of honorary appointments in the armed forces of several Commonwealth realms. In 2002, she became the first non-reigning woman to attend a funeral in uniform when she wore that of the Royal Navy at the funeral of her grandmother, the Queen Mother.

Anne is of the following regiments, corps, and branches:

Australia Australia
Canada Canada
New Zealand New Zealand
United Kingdom United Kingdom

Arms

Arms of Anne, Princess Royal
Notes
The Princess's personalized coat of arms are those of the arms of the sovereign in right of the United Kingdom with a label for difference.
 Coat of Arms of Anne, the Princess Royal.svg
Escutcheon
Quarterly 1st and 4th gules three lions passant guardant or 2nd or a lion rampant gules within a double tressure flory counterflory gules 3rd azure a harp or stringed argent
Other elements
The whole differenced by a label of three points argent, first and third charged with a St George's cross the second with a heart gules
Banner
Royal Standard of Princess Anne.svg The Princess's personal Royal Standard is that of the sovereign in right of the United Kingdom, labelled for difference as in her arms.
Symbolism
As with the Royal Arms of the United Kingdom. The first and fourth quarters are the arms of England, the second of Scotland, the third of Ireland.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Anne, Princess Royal
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 16. Christian IX of Denmark
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 8. George I of Greece
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 17. Princess Louise of Hesse-Kassel
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4. Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 18. Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich of Russia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 9. Grand Duchess Olga Constantinovna of Russia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 19. Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Altenburg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 2. Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 20. Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 10. Prince Louis of Battenberg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 21. Countess Julia Hauke
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 5. Princess Alice of Battenberg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 22. Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 11. Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 23. Princess Alice of the United Kingdom
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1. Anne, Princess Royal
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 24. Edward VII of the United Kingdom
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 12. George V of the United Kingdom
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 25. Princess Alexandra of Denmark
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 6. George VI of the United Kingdom
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 26. Francis, Duke of Teck
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 13. Princess Mary of Teck
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 27. Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 3. Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 28. Claude Bowes-Lyon, 13th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 14. Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 29. Frances Dora Smith
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7. Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 30. Charles Cavendish-Bentinck
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 15. Cecilia Cavendish-Bentinck
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 31. Caroline Louisa Burnaby
 
 
 
 
 
 

Issue

Name Birth Marriage Issue
Peter Phillips 15 November 1977 17 May 2008 Autumn Kelly
Zara Phillips 15 May 1981

References

  1. ↑ As a titled royal, Anne does not hold, nor ever has held, a surname, but, when required, her maiden name is Mountbatten-Windsor
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "The Royal Family > Members of the Royal Family > HRH The Princess Royal > Early Life and Education". Buckingham Palace. http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page5598.asp. Retrieved 2008-10-20. 
  3. ↑ "Royal Support for the Scouting and Guiding Movements". Official Website of the British Monarchy. http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page5951.asp. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 
  4. ↑ "Princess Anne comforts Andrew Parker Bowles at funeral of his wife Rosemary". Hello! Magazine. 19 January 2010. http://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/201001192765/princess-anne/rosemary-parker-bowles/funeral/1/. Retrieved 2010-05-23. "Andrew is also a close friend of the Princess Anne, and dated her in 1970." 
  5. ↑ 1973 Year in Review: Princess Anne's Marriage-http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1973/Princess-Anne%27s-Marriage/12305770297723-9/
  6. ↑ Brozan, Nadine (24 April 1992). "Chronicle". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE4DC133EF937A15757C0A964958260. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Daily Express, 21 August 2006
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "On This Day > 20 March > 1974: Kidnap attempt on Princess Anne". BBC. 20 March 1974. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/20/newsid_2524000/2524489.stm. Retrieved 2008-10-22. 
  9. ↑ "Princess foiled 1974 kidnap plot". BBC. 1 January 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4139187.stm. Retrieved 2008-10-22. 
  10. ↑ [[Agence France-Presse |Agence France-Presse]] (2 January 2005). "Kidnap the Princess? Not bloody likely!". The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/news/People/Kidnap-the-Princess-Not-bloody-likely/2005/01/01/1104345033974.html. 
  11. ↑ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 46354, pp. 8013–8014, 26 September 1974.
  12. ↑ "Princess Anne fined for speeding". BBC. 13 March 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1218009.stm. Retrieved 2006-05-31. "She saw the police car and believed it was waiting to escort her on her journey." 
  13. ↑ "Princess Royal fined over dog attack". BBC. 21 November 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2497531.stm. Retrieved 2006-05-31. 
  14. ↑ McDermott, Nick (14 July 2008). "Princess Anne's secret personal quest to visit every lighthouse in Scotland". Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1034833/Princess-Annes-secret-personal-quest-visit-lighthouse-Scotland.html. 
  15. ↑ http://www.catch-22.org.uk
  16. ↑ FEI official site - About FEI - History, Retrieved 2010-02-21
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "The Royal Family > Members of the Royal Family > HRH The Princess Royal > Public Role". Buckingham Palace. http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page5600.asp. Retrieved 2008-10-22. 
  18. ↑ "Bushfire memorial echoes grief and hope". 9News. 22 February 2009. http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/755462/thousands-to-mourn-vic-bushfire-dead. Retrieved 22 February 2009. 
  19. ↑ WISE Patrons
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "St George's Chapel > History > Orders of Chivalry". St George's Chapel. http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/history/hist_chivalry.asp. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  21. ↑ "The Royal Family > Members of the Royal Family > HRH The Princess Royal". Buckingham Palace. http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page5604.asp. Retrieved 2008-10-20. 
  22. ↑ "Papua New Guinea visit". 2005. http://www.png2005.org.pg/royalvisit.htm. 
  23. ↑ Jackson, Michael (2007). Honours of the Crown. The Monarchist League of Canada. http://www.monarchist.ca/new/docs/honours.html. 
  24. ↑ "Undergraduate Calendar > 21. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT > 21.4 HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENTS". University of Regina. http://www.uregina.ca/gencal/ugcal/historyGovernment/ugcal_383.shtml. Retrieved 7 March 2009. 
  25. ↑ "Princess Anne arrives in St. John's". CBC. 23 April 2010. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2010/04/23/nl-princess-anne-423.html. Retrieved 25 April 2010. 
  26. ↑ Canadian Forces Health Services Group, Bulletin November 2003
  27. ↑ VAC article, 5 June 2004

External links

Anne, Princess Royal
Cadet branch of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg
Born: 15 August 1950
British royalty
Preceded by
Lady Louise Windsor		 Line of succession to the British Throne
10th position		 Succeeded by
Peter Phillips
Vacant
Title last held by
Princess Mary, Countess of Harewood		 Princess Royal
1987 – present		 Incumbent
Academic offices
Preceded by
Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother		 Chancellor of the University of London
1981 – present		 Incumbent
Honorary titles
Preceded by
Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother		 Grand Master of the Royal Victorian Order
2007 – present		 Incumbent
Preceded by
Henry Cooper		 BBC Sports Personality of the Year
1971		 Succeeded by
Mary Peters
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by
The Countess of Wessex		 Ladies
HRH The Princess Royal		 Succeeded by
Autumn Phillips
Order of Precedence in England and Wales (Ladies)*

HM The Queen • HRH The Duchess of Cornwall • HRH The Countess of Wessex • HRH The Princess Royal • HRH Princess Beatrice of York • HRH Princess Eugenie of York • Lady Louise Windsor • HRH The Duchess of Gloucester • HRH The Duchess of Kent • HRH Princess Michael of Kent • HRH Princess Alexandra, The Hon Lady Ogilvy • The Rt Hon The Baroness Royall of Blaisdon PC • The Rt Hon The Baroness Hayman PC
*not including short-term appointments, visiting dignitaries and most peers
Princesses Royal

Current title holder: HRH The Princess Anne, Princess Royal (1987 –)

Titles granted by reigning monarchs: Mary, Princess of Orange (1642-1660) • Anne, Princess of Orange (1727-1759) •·Charlotte, Queen of Württemberg (1766-1828) • Victoria, German Empress (1841-1901) • Princess Louise, Duchess of Fife (1905-1931) • Princess Mary, Countess of Harewood (1932-1965) ·

Title granted by James II in exile: Princess Louisa Maria (1692-1712)
BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners
1954–1959

1954 Christopher Chataway · 1955 Gordon Pirie · 1956 Jim Laker · 1957 Dai Rees · 1958 Ian Black · 1959 John Surtees
1960–1969

1960 David Broome · 1961 Stirling Moss · 1962 Anita Lonsbrough · 1963 Dorothy Hyman · 1964 Mary Rand · 1965 Tom Simpson · 1966 Bobby Moore · 1967 Henry Cooper · 1968 David Hemery · 1969 Ann Jones
1970–1979

1970 Henry Cooper · 1971 HRH The Princess Anne · 1972 Mary Peters · 1973 Jackie Stewart · 1974 Brendan Foster · 1975 David Steele · 1976 John Curry · 1977 Virginia Wade · 1978 Steve Ovett · 1979 Sebastian Coe
1980–1989

1980 Robin Cousins · 1981 Ian Botham · 1982 Daley Thompson · 1983 Steve Cram · 1984 Torvill and Dean (Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean) · 1985 Barry McGuigan · 1986 Nigel Mansell · 1987 Fatima Whitbread · 1988 Steve Davis · 1989 Nick Faldo
1990–1999

1990 Paul Gascoigne · 1991 Liz McColgan · 1992 Nigel Mansell · 1993 Linford Christie · 1994 Damon Hill · 1995 Jonathan Edwards · 1996 Damon Hill · 1997 Greg Rusedski · 1998 Michael Owen · 1999 Lennox Lewis
2000–2009

2000 Steve Redgrave · 2001 David Beckham · 2002 Paula Radcliffe · 2003 Jonny Wilkinson · 2004 Kelly Holmes · 2005 Andrew Flintoff · 2006 Zara Phillips · 2007 Joe Calzaghe · 2008 Chris Hoy · 2009 Ryan Giggs