Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice Gave Their First-Ever Joint Interview and It's Candid

Sure, being part of royal family would definitely have its perks. Kate and William take paradise vacations, for example. Meghan and Harry had the most incredible wedding, of course. But in a rare personal interview, the Prince’s cousins, princesses Beatrice and Eugenie (opens in new tab), have opened up about the not-so-fairytale side to being princesses living in the public eye. Speaking to Vogue (opens in new tab) magazine in their first ever joint interview, the royal sisters admitted that the constant “mockery” and criticism that they face has often lead to tears, and they’ve struggled with the pressures that their royal roles have presented them with.

Princess Beatrice, 29 (opens in new tab), explained that it can be difficult to be balance being a working woman in the world of Instagram, where everything often looks perfect—especially when it comes to their being royalty. “It’s hard to navigate situations like these because there is no precedent, there is no protocol,” she said. “We are the first: we are young women trying to build careers and have personal lives, and we’re also princesses, and doing all of this in the public eye.”

Princess Eugenie (opens in new tab), 28, agreed with her sister, adding: “We want to show people who we are as working, young, royal women, but also not to be afraid of putting ourselves out there. Nowadays it’s so easy to recoil when you see a perfect image on Instagram—but it’s important that it’s real. We’re real.”

Princess Eugenie, who works at an art gallery as her day job and is set to get married later this year (opens in new tab), recalled the trigger that led her to break down for the first time, while at a garden party at Buckingham Palace. Sharing the story, Eugenie said: “There was a horrible article that had been written about Beatrice and she got really upset. We were just about to step out and she had a bit of a wobble and cried. I was looking after her. And then about an hour later, I had a wobble and started crying and Bea was there for me.”

Still, the sisters told the magazine that there was "no point being angry with anyone for beating us up—we just need to shine light and love in the world."

So it's not all perfect hair, expensive gowns and handsome princes. Disney never pitched being a princess from this angle, did they?