When Sophie, Countess of Wessex addressed media in the days after Prince Philip’s death in April, she was visibly devastated – by his side until the very end, she proved a loyal companion to the royal patriarch.
Now, a palace source tells Woman’s Day, Prince Edward’s wife of almost 23 years has adopted the same role for the Queen, frequently rushing to the monarch’s side at a moment’s notice when she is needed.
“Sophie’s become the first person Ma’am calls if she’s feeling unwell or in need of company.”
(Image: Getty Images)“Sophie’s become the first person Ma’am calls if she’s feeling unwell or in need of company. Sophie has a wonderful, sunny, no-nonsense disposition that the Queen finds jollies her out of feeling down,” the source tells Woman’s Day.
Due to her Majesty’s recent illness and the ongoing pandemic, the 95-year-old Queen’s commitments have been slashed and her inner circle has reduced in a bid to keep her safe.
“These days she has a very tight inner circle around her, including her private secretary [Ed Young], her senior dresser [Angela Kelly], her daughter [Princess Anne] and, recently, her daughter-in-law Sophie,” says the insider.
“Sophie feels it’s a privilege to spend some of Her Majesty’s last years with her as such a close confidante.”
“Sophie feels it’s a privilege to spend some of Her Majesty’s last years with her as such a close confidante.”
(Image: Getty Images)The Countess of Wessex has previously spoken warmly of her mother-in-law the Queen and late father-in-law Prince Philip.
“He’s constantly reading, keeps bang up to date with current affairs and everything else going on. His knowledge base is amazing. His physical capability is extraordinary. He keeps himself pretty fit and he is active. Everybody in the family really looks up to him and respects him,” Sophie explained in a documentary in 2016.
On the Queen, Sophie remarked: “I think it must be a fairly lonely place being the Queen. As a female in the top job it’s important I think to have somebody that you can lean on, that you can discuss things with, that she can be open and honest with behind closed doors. For her to have found somebody like him, I don’t think she could have chosen better. And they make each other laugh which I think is a half of a battle, isn’t it.”
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