I have a new role model in Queen Camilla | UK News

As Charles and Camilla drove down the Mall towards Westminster Abbey, I caught myself cheering a little.

Not for the coronation, which I watched from the feeling, “Well, I might not see that again in my life!”, or the carriage, or even the crowd.

But for the 75-year-old woman sitting next to the king: Often ridiculed, often insulted, Camilla, the woman who, at 75, if you will, is now pivoting into a new role.

As a middle-aged woman – I’m 45 – I look for new role models every day. I’m looking for women who seem to be in their moment of power, in their moment where they have energy. And as I looked at Camilla, I felt like she was one of those women.

My friends and I (also probably not dissimilar to Kate Middleton who is 41 years old) discuss perimenopause and menopause, our changing bodies and emotions. I know the challenges of being a midlife woman.

But while Kate was caught in a shot making sure her kids were well behaved, Camilla sat in her chair knowing her work as a mother was long behind her.

Knowing that her days of being judged or commented on for her height, shape and weight are no longer an issue. What relief and peace that must bring.

You’ve probably judged me as a massive royalist by now. I’m not – in fact I was surprised that I decided to see the whole ceremony.

In contrast, I also watched the coronation special of the TV comedy The Windsors, in which “Camilla”, played by Haydn Gwynne, is one of the prominent roles.

A parody of the royal family, the show is ridiculously fun, with characters “Beatrice” and “Eugenie” stealing most of the laughs and columns.

But the character of “Camilla” wins for me as she has a wild energy that I’d like to think might not be as far from the truth as the comedy would have us believe.

She rules the household, she is the head of the family. She is her own woman, knows her mind and is not afraid to be herself.

As a real-life example, take the moment the crown was placed on her head. In an instant — and you’ll miss it — she wanted to raise her hand, and when she managed to resist adjusting the crown, she brushed her hair away from her face underneath.

Who hasn’t been there yet? Want to play around with our pony when you’re not supposed to? To frolic in our outfit at a formal occasion and wish we were in our athleisure.

OK, we haven’t been there with a Crownbut you get the gist.

In the incoming celebrity crowd, I spotted a Camilla-esque Emma Thompson. Someone who, at 64, is just over 10 years younger than the Queen and can have his say on everything from physical issues to divorce.

Unlike Camilla who has to heed her advice.

I feel like Camilla has a don’t mess with me energy and if she weren’t busy being queen she would be standing next to Dame Helen Mirren in a L’Oréal ad saying, ” We are worth it”.

I sometimes wonder what she would say over a glass of (English) fizz with the ladies Emma and Helen. We’ll never know, but I suspect it could revolve around the underwear needed to last through a very long coronation.

Camilla stays under the radar as a queen in many ways. Aside from today’s ceremony, she’s sat with Paul O’Grady trying to feed a rescue dog his medicine and hung out with Monty Don at Gardener’s World. I loved seeing her as a dog lover on POG Dogs.

We are encouraged to spin to be strong to embrace midlife and beyond. Camilla is a good example of that for me.

At her age, many women are retiring, and while their lives are riddled with obvious privilege, the power of women in midlife and beyond puts them in a public role, and that can’t be a bad thing.

Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact us by email at jess.austin@metro.co.uk.

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