Princess Anne Jokes She's "Jolly Lucky" to Be "More or Less" Sane After Horse Accident

Princess Anne wearing a blue patterned blouse pointing at three horses as women stand in the background with blue shirts — (Image credit: Getty Images)

In a candid moment that reminds us why she's the most no-nonsense royal, Princess Anne revealed that she has no memory of her 2024 horse accident—and that she's grateful to still have her wits about her after a mysterious incident that left her with a concussion and memory loss.

According to BBC News, the Princess Royal, 74, quipped that she's "jolly lucky" to still be "more or less compos mentis" (Latin for "being in full possession of one's mind") following the accident, adding, "and last summer I was very close to not being." She made the comments to the Press Association while visiting South Africa over the weekend, and her trip included an outing to a riding school for the disabled.

The lifelong equestrian shared that she was walking on her Gloucestershire estate ready to feed the chickens last summer, and doesn't recall what happened next. "I know where I thought I was going and that was to go to the chickens, no, nothing to do with horses," she said.

The Princess Royal—who recently joked she owns more horses than she "should have"—said she didn't "have any idea" how she ended up in a field, adding, "I never normally went that way."

Princess Anne wearing white pants and a blue top standing next to two men watching a child riding a horse in a dirt ring — Princess Anne visited a riding school while she was in South Africa.

Princess Anne was hospitalized for five days after the incident, with the palace announcing at the time she'd suffered from "minor injuries and concussion." Per the BBC, doctors "described her injuries as being consistent with the type of impact from a horse's legs or head."

While she doesn't remember what happened, the Princess Royal joked that she thinks she hasn't suffered any long-term ill effects, unless her family is just leading her on. Per the Daily Beast, the princess said, “I don’t think so, and as far as I know nobody else thinks so—or they haven’t been honest enough to tell me yet. So far so good."

The King's sister, who typically maintains a packed schedule that would exhaust someone half her age, acknowledged the sobering reality of the situation. "It just reminds you, shows you—you never quite know, something [happens] and you might not recover," she said, adding, "You are sharply reminded that every day is a bonus really."

But retirement? Please. When asked if she might consider slowing down, Anne dismissed the notion with her trademark directness. "It really isn't written-in, no. It isn't really an option," she declared. "I don't think there's a retirement program on this particular life."

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Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.