Despite their roles as part of The Firm, a number of royals have held down a job in the real world. From Princess Catherine to Princess Beatrice, some members of the Royal Family have worked for a living — and some of their jobs might surprise you.
Not everyone has continued to keep their job. For example, when Princess Catherine's relationship with Prince William began to gain attention, she eventually leaned into life as a working royal. Duchess Sophie held a successful career before stepping up her work as a royal and supporting the family.
Princess Catherine's Retail and Party Planning Roles
Princess Catherine studied at St Andrews University, where she met Prince William. She had begun a normal career working as an accessories buyer at the clothing store Jigsaw.
According to royal expert Rebecca English, Catherine requested that the position at Jigsaw be part-time, as she was in a relationship with a "high-profile man" at the time. After gaining a lot of media attention due to her relationship with the future king, she instead opted to work for her family's party planning business.
Meghan Markle's Acting and TV Appearances
Meghan Markle starred in Suits; her acting career led her to fame. She was part of the show from 2011 until 2018. Before this, Meghan studied with a bachelor's degree in theatre and international studies.
One lesser-known job the Duchess had was appearing on Deal or No Deal as a suitcase model. She also wrote her blog, called The Tig, which she no longer publishes.
Princess Beatrice's Corporate Path
Princess Beatrice is Vice President at a software company. Before this, while she was a student at Goldsmiths, University of London, she got a job as a sales assistant at Selfridges. Beatrice graduated after gaining a 2:1 degree in History and History of Ideas from Goldsmiths.
She later left her job at Selfridges and became a press officer at the Foreign Office. Since then, the Princess has worked at the venture capital firm Sandbridge and later at the software company Afiniti.
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh's PR Career
Sophie stepped up her royal duties to help ease the workload of the ageing Queen, with whom she was extremely close. But before she married Prince Edward and became a working royal, she had a very successful career in PR.
Sophie worked briefly in a bar and as a ski rep at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana, and once she decided a career in press relations was for her, she worked for several firms and even spent four years working in Capital Radio's press and promotions department, which is where she met her future husband. Sophie set up her own PR company, RJH Public Relations, with her business partner, Murray Harkin, and later quit in 2002 to become a full-time working royal.
