Princess Margaret in quotes

The life of a princess - by those who loved and those who judged her

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The defiant princess: Margaret, 1930-2002

Wilful, charming, grumpy and regally badly behaved

The final days at the personal court of Britain's alternative Queen

Low-key funeral at Windsor

Charles mourns a 'darling aunt'

Leading article: Margaret, a royal of our age

Anne McElvoy: The good-time princess who could not escape a jewelled cage

"The only constants in the blindingly mediocre life of Princess Margaret would appear to be privilege, illness and lashings of alcohol." Tony Parsons in The Mirror, 2001

"The Princess is vivid proof that we end up with the appearance we deserve. She looks what she is, which is a bitter, unhappy, selfish, old woman." Lynda Lee-Potter, Daily Mail, 2001

"We have a son who is two and a half who rushes in and I think jollies the whole thing on a bit and, again, renews a bit of energy in the house." Lord Linley on Desert Island Discs last week

"[The Queen's] beloved sister, Princess Margaret, died peacefully in her sleep. Her children were at her side'." Statement issued by Buckingham Palace at 8.30am yesterday

"I know the whole country will be deeply saddened. She will be remembered with a lot of affection. Before she was ill she gave a great deal of service to the country." Tony Blair

"I just remember Princess Margaret being tremendously vivacious, and fun, and roaring with laughter. People said her life was a sad one, but I don't think it was." Lady Glenconner

"Both Lord Linley and Lady Sarah are in close touch and informed me about the Princess's death early this morning. We are all extremely saddened." Lord Snowdon

"She was a multi-faceted and brilliant person with an underlying simplicity and strength. She fascinated generation after generation." Lord St John of Fawsley

"As a public figure, she showed her support for a cause which is still unpopular today." David Wakefield of the Terrence Higgins Trust, of which Princess Margaret was patron

"To one of the greatest royals of all, sadly missed." Message written on a card on one of the floral tributes placed outside the gates of Kensington Palace

"What a delightful match. A lovely young Royal lady married to a gallant young airman." Winston Churchill when informed of the affair between Princess Margaret and Peter Townsend

"Mindful of the Church's teaching that Christian marriage is indissoluble, I have resolved to put these considerations before others." Princess Margaret, October 1955

"A girl of unusual, intense beauty ... centred about large eyes, generous lips and a complexion as smooth as a peach." Peter Townsend describing Princess Margaret in his later memoirs

"But what ultimately made Princess Margaret so attractive and lovable was that behind the dazzling façade you could find, if you looked for it, a rare softness and sincerity." Peter Townsend

"I didn't really want to marry at all. Why did I? Because he asked me! Really, though, he was such a nice person in those days." Princess Margaret on why she married Antony Armstrong-Jones

"Would you like a bit of my island or something I can wrap up and send you?" Lord Glenconner giving Princess Margaret a 10-acre plot of land on Mustique as a wedding present

"I had always longed to build a house. I put up a portrait of the Queen for people from abroad to see it's an English house." Princess Margaret on her villa in Mustique

"Tell her that everything I do is to support the Queen and to help her." Princess Margaret explaining why she was rejecting a request for an interview

"She is far too bright for her station in life, which she takes altogether too solemnly." Gore Vidal on Princess Margaret in his autobiography, 'Palimpsest: A Memoir'

"Princess Margaret's 'faults' are the indulgences of many human beings who are not absolute bores. She has a taste for booze and fags – who hasn't?" A N Wilson in 1997