King Charles gifts late Queen’s pal a £465k bungalow – but it’s a far cry from the grand Windsor pad she used to live in
WORKING for the royal family can come with some enviable perks, including a free, three-bedroom house in the Peak District – if you are Angela Kelly that is.
Royal dresser Angela, 66, was one of the late Queen’s closest confidantes and was gifted the £465,000 bungalow following Her Majesty’s death in 2022.
While it may sound glamorous, it is said to have a “weathered brick facade and plastic window frames” and to be a far cry from the Grade II-listed cottage on the Windsor estate she lived in while the Queen was alive.
According to the Mail on Sunday, Angela was asked to leave the Windsor dwelling, within months of the Queen’s passing.
However, King Charles honoured his mother’s promise of providing lifelong accommodation for Angela.
Last May, Angela was seen packing up her historic Windsor home for her new life up north.
The Royal Family‘s Coutts bank account paid for the property outright and it is thought that it will revert back to the Crown when Angela passes away.
Angela’s house is reportedly part of a non-disclosure agreement that bans her from sharing royal secrets and using the palace name for commercial gain.
Angela’s official title was Her Majesty’s Personal Advisor, Curator, Wardrobe and In-house Designer – the only person to ever hold the position.
The royal dresser did release two approved books about her time working with the Queen, and it is understood she also had permission to write a third.
While some could consider her Peak District home to be a downgrade and a long way from her old Windsor home – around 160 miles – it has a beautiful location.
Boasting spectacular views over rolling hills, it has a cosy dining room, open-plan kitchen and spacious lounge.
Angela worked for the royal household for more than 25 years, and has established a “uniquely close working relationship with The Queen”.
The former dresser, known as AK-47 for her no- nonsense attitude, previously gave a rare insight into her friendship with the monarch revealing she had a talent for copying accents.
Liverpudlian Angela revealed the great-grandmother could perfectly copy a Scouse accent, as well as a host of others.
In a rare interview in 2007 with the Telegraph, Angela revealed that she is treated with “respect” by the Queen.
She revealed: “We [the royal dressers] are not treated like flunkies.
“It’s not like that. The Queen treats us with real respect.
How did Angela Kelly start working for the Queen?
The pair first met in 1992, when Angela was working as a housekeeper for the British Ambassador to Germany.
The Queen and Prince Phillip visited Sir Christopher Mallaby at his home, while in Germany on an official visit.
As they left, the pair said goodbye to the household staff, and the Duke of Edinburgh asked Angela a question which would change her life forever.
He quizzed Angela over who was Sir Christopher’s next official visitor.
But Angela, revealing all in her tell-all book The Other Side of the Coin, the Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe, said she refused to answer him.
She explained that the information was confidential – even to the Queen.
The Duke pressed her again, saying: “Surely you can tell Her Majesty the Queen?’ he said.”
Angela said that as she had signed the official secrets act, she was forbidden from telling them.
The exchange had taken place in front of the Queen – and it made a lasting impression on her.
As Angela said goodbye to the Queen, she told her she’d remember this moment for the rest of her life, to which the monarch replied: “Angela, so will I.”
It was just two months after that visit that the Queen requested Angela come and work for her at Buckingham Palace, as her assistant dresser.
“I don’t know why the Queen seems fond of me – because I don’t give her an easy time! I do think she values my opinion, but she is the one who is in control.
“I do worry about her and care about her. But we also have a lot of fun together. The Queen has a wicked sense of humour and is a great mimic. She can do all accents – including mine.”
In a chapter of her book, The Other Side of the Coin: The Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe, published in Hello!, Angela shared how she was tasked with washing and styling the Queen’s hair for the first time for Zoom calls during lockdown.
The Queen treats us with real respect.
Angela Kelly
Angela was one of the few core staff part of “HSM Bubble” living at Windsor Castle.
She wrote: “Due to the bubble restrictions, the Queen’s hairdresser was unable to come into the Castle, so I became a temporary hairdresser.
“From March 2020 onwards, I washed the Queen’s hair every week, set and styled it, and even trimmed it when needed.”
Angela shared how her team even nicknamed her services as “Kelly’s salon”.
Originally from Liverpool, divorcee Angela is not a trained hairdresser, and admitted she was left “shaking” from nerves at first.