Lady Louise No Longer Has to Look to Mom Sophie as a ‘Role Model,’ Body Language Expert Says
In a student-has-become-the-teacher scenario, a body language expert says Lady Louise doesn’t have to emulate her mother, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh’s every move. The reason: Louise has already learned about navigating royal life from her “mentor” mom.
‘Fast learner’ Louise doesn’t need Sophie as a ‘royal mentor’
According to body language expert Judi James, 20-year-old Louise is a “very fast learner” judging by her past public appearances (via Express). And who did she look for guidance but her mom, Sophie.
“Suddenly, she would be mirroring her mother and using her as her role model when it came to protocol and regal style,” James said. While “the closeness between them was obvious,” Sophie and Louise are poised for a shift.
“Now the need for Sophie’s role as protective coach and royal mentor seems to becoming redundant,” the expert said.
Sophie and Louise looked like ‘friends’ at King Charles III’s coronation
James continued, saying the mother and daughter put another facet of their relationship on display at the coronation. “The pair’s body language is suggesting they relate as friends as well as mother and daughter,” the expert said.
Sophie and Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, attended the May 6 crowning alongside their daughter and 15-year-old son, James, Viscount Severn. They also stood on the Buckingham Palace balcony alongside other royals after the official Westminster Abbey ceremony.
“Sophie’s gestures with her daughter at the coronation of King Charles suggest some shared humour [sic] as well as empathy,” James said. “They were chatting together a lot on the way into the abbey at the coronation and later on the balcony, too.”
Furthermore, the expert noted, Sophie’s taken after her mom’s “‘fuss-free’” approach to being a British royal. “Like her mother, Louise seems to be a ‘fuss-free’ royal who is able to live a relatively normal life at university as well as making occasional appearances at royal events.”
Prince Philip’s funeral ‘threw’ Louise ‘into the front line of royal life’
Louise, who is currently a student at Prince William and Kate Middleton’s alma mater, the University of St. Andrew’s, had herself thrust into the spotlight following the 2021 death of her grandfather, Prince Philip.
“It was Prince Philip’s funeral that really threw Lady Louise into the front line of royal life,” James said. “Until that point, she had been glimpsed by the public looking like a rather shy teenager who was happily eclipsed in the press by her very sociable, confident, and popular mother Sophie.”
“Both mother and daughter looked distraught at Philip’s death though,” the expert continued. Sophie and Louise appeared to be “sharing their grief together.” Meanwhile, when Louise joined her mom and dad for interviews, she had a “much more adult presence.”
“Although Philip’s closeness to Sophie had often been referred to, it was Louise who emerged as very much her grandfather’s heir when it came to his love of carriage driving,” James continued.
Later, following Queen Elizabeth II’s death in September 2022, Louise “emerged as a poised and confident teenager to stand vigil around the queen’s coffin, alongside her older cousins and younger brother, showing a calm steeliness under the quieter outer image.”
Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.
