Annabel Elliot, Camila's sister, her accomplice and accomplice

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One day in January 1999, the Prince of Wales and the future Queen of the British left the party at the Ritz organized by

to celebrate her 50th birthday together.

There, the first official photo of

and

It was not the first time that Annabel, the sister of the current queen, had played host to the couple, some of whose furtive meetings she had sponsored as a cover-up or an accomplice.

More than once, the adulterous couple met at

in Dorset, on the English Channel coast.

She even figured in one of the most notorious episodes of the Welsh War, when, at

read Camilla the primer.

The occasion was Annabel's 40th birthday party.

listed interior designer

Sonia Annabel Elliot,

plain Annabel for everyone, is 73 years old, studied art in Florence and embarked on a career as an interior designer.

In 1972, aged 23, she married

a Dorset landowner and son of RAF Chief Marshal

They have three children: Ben (who was co-chair of the Conservative Party, along with

until her resignation last September),

an interior designer like her mother, and

firm

, whose annual parties were a 'who's who' for the English aristocracy, in 2014, the

interior designer in

the UK.

In 2011, she renovated the

in Devon, which entered the Golden List as one of the best hotels in the world.

The same year she decorated the Dumfries Lodge House in Ayrshire, Scotland, The Duchy Nursery sustainable building in Lostwithiel and Highgrove House Shops, which sells home and garden products.

Its style,

a cross between

and

, has made it a reference among hoteliers and the rich.

She looks at each material, touches it, wonders what it could be used for and ends up deciding if it is for a sofa, a chair or a lamp.

Annabel Elliot Interior Design and Antiques,

the store that opened in Dorset more than thirty years ago, had already made her a sought-after interior designer when the Prince of Wales -half because of shared tastes, half out of gratitude for the complicity of who was already his sister-in-law- appointed her, in 2005,

He rehabilitated the

that Charles of Wales operated in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (which left him more than five million euros a year), and later some of his offices in Retormel and a hotel in the center of Poundbury, the

on the outskirts of Dorchester.

The hotel is called The Duchess of Cornwall, after Annabel's older sister, and bears a striking resemblance to the imposing Ritz Hotel in Mayfair, which Carlos is very attached to because there, at a party to celebrate Annabel's 50th birthday Camila emerged from the shadows to be photographed in public with Carlos for the first time.

Charles's gratitude

Carlos has always been grateful for the help and comfort he and Camila received from Annabel and her husband Simon.

Camilla's sister has decorated at least 30 of Charles' hundreds of properties in the Duchy of Cornwall;

the successive

-between 200,000 and 400,000 euros- would total

On the other hand, well earned, because thanks to the imprint of the decorator, Carlos's cabins achieved the category of five stars.

Even as the royal rump sinks pleasurably into the deep padding of a striped sofa at Charles's country home in the Carmarthenshire Welsh village of Myddfai, the king is surrounded by Annabel's welcoming expertise, from the local knits in the walls to medieval-style wrought-iron chandeliers and a stone fireplace displaying its own heraldic insignia: the Prince of Wales's feathers.

Annabel always tries to reflect the taste of her customers, that's why there are duck egg blues in the Welsh hideout: it's one of Camila's favorite colours.

When Annabel was fixing up some of Charles's cottages in Wales, she traveled the country in search of rare items like antique quilts and glazed earthenware.

She also ordered rugs, rugs, and fabrics from local vendors.

notable differences

As Prime Minister

announced the separation of the Prince and Princess of Wales in the House of Commons, Annabel was behind the wheel of the car that took Camila from her home, surrounded by paparazzi and television crews.

The

and are

especially since their

travel writer brother

They talk on the phone every day and Camila often includes Annabel and Simon at royal events.

Both accompanied the couple on their

Annabel was the first to bless her sister's union and in 2015, in a fundraising campaign for the NGO Elephant Family (of which her brother Mark was president until his death in 2014) she said she felt "very proud" of Camila for earning the respect of

and the people after years of going through the bad of the movie.

As a young woman, Annabel was prettier and had a better figure than her sister, who was a bit chubbier.

But Camila was sexier, she loved the round of parties on the debutante circuit.

Annabel was much more serious and preferred a quieter life: "She was not the type of girl who throws her panties on the table", remember her friends of her then.

Recalling those days, Annabel said that Camila, who debuted a year before her, "had a big hit, but I didn't. I probably wasn't as confident as her."

The older sister was also the most sporty, she loved

and

Annabel never shared her sister's enthusiasm for hunting, but she was considered more intelligent, if less worldly, by her.

Annabel married her

and he is still 50 years after her.

She is one of those people who, although they would never want to star in a mess like her sister's, enjoy playing small parts in other people's adventures.

happy to be together

At 73 years old, Annabel does not let up.

She runs her business, Annabel Elliot Ltd, from her

in the Dorset village of Stourpaine, where her son Ben also lives.

The eldest son soon learned from his mother to get a slice of luxury and, in addition to having co-chaired the

he founded the

a company of

for the rich and aristocrats available 24 hours a day anywhere on the planet, with more than 60 branches.

Accompanied by her sister and confidant, on October 17 Queen Camilla attended the Booker Prize for Fiction 2022 ceremony at the Roundhouse in London.

In pictures from the event, the sisters sported their blonde hair in big waves, her matching hairstyles not the only resemblance of hers.

They are only two years apart and their facial expressions, particularly their beaming smiles, showed family traits, genetic similarities.

Elegant and more smiling than ever, the queen and her younger sister seemed delighted to be together.

And so it has always been.

A sister is always a great ally, especially if you live in Buckingham Palace.

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• King Charles III of England