Lady Louise Windsor and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh embrace at Royal Windsor Horse Show as royals muck in and take electric bike for a spin

The royals were once seen as decidedly distant – but these days they love a good cuddle.

Yesterday a beaming Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, and her daughter Lady Louise Windsor flung their arms round each other on meeting at Royal Windsor Horse Show.

Just a day earlier, the King and another niece Zara Tindall were also snapped hugging at the show. 

Sophie and Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, were delighted to bump into trilby-hatted Louise, 20, as she worked as an official at the show’s carriage driving event. 

She also caught up with her 16-year-old brother James, Earl of Wessex, at the show as he accompanied mother Sophie, 59, just days after her historic visit to war-torn Ukraine.

The 20-year-old royal, who is 16th-in-line to the throne, was pictured in a high-vis jacket, a branded gilet, and a badge marking her as an ‘official’ as she carried a pen and paper and walked around the grounds.

She managed to break away from mum’s embrace to zoom round the show on a fat-tyred e-bike to monitor the carriage driving, an enthusiasm she had been introduced to by the late Prince Philip.

The Royal, who is not often seen in public, donned a trilby hat and glasses, and wore her hair in a low ponytail away from her face so she could concentrate.

On the bottom, she donned comfortable tracksuit bottoms and practical waterproof boots. 

Her appearance comes after she did not attend the Easter Sunday Service with her family last month which was held at St George’s Chapel in Windsor – the second year in a row she missed the event.

The 20-year-old is currently studying English Literature at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, which is where Kate and William’s relationship blossomed.

According to the University’s website, both the week before and the week after Easter still count as term-time.

This period is followed by two weeks of revision, with exams beginning on Saturday 20th April.

It seems the young royal has taken a little time out of revision to fit in some shifts at the Royal Windsor Horse Show, which her family attends every year in Berkshire.

And this year, spirits are especially high as King Charles has attended the event following the news that his doctors are ‘positive’ about how his cancer treatment is progressing.

As Lady Louise Windsor works quietly behind the scenes, it has been claimed that there will be a special place in the royal family for her when the Prince of Wales eventually ascends the throne.

The Daily Mail’s Diary Editor, Richard Eden, has previously said: ‘In my opinion, another great service the couple could do for the country would be to encourage their children, Lady Louise and James, the Earl of Wessex, to become working royals when the time is right.

‘Louise, 20, is in her second year at St Andrews University, while James, 16, will sit his GCSE exams this year.

‘When Prince William becomes King, I hope that he will follow the example of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, and ask his cousins, including Lady Louise and James, to share royal duties with him.’

Lady Louise has largely been shielded from the public gaze by her parents – but the next few years could see her stepping into public stride.

She is dear to the heart of the Royal Family and was particularly close to her late grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Lady Louise was their seventh grandchild. And for Philip, she brought not just joy but a sense of personal pride.

This was because she became the first royal to officially carry the surname Mountbatten-Windsor – so allowing Philip’s surname, Mountbatten, to continue into the future of the Royal family.

A former aide said Philip would be ‘thrilled’ that, 55 years after the birth of his first child, a member of the Royal Family would finally be carrying on the Mountbatten line.

Lady Louise was baptised in the private chapel at Windsor with godparents including Lady Sarah Chatto, Lady Alexandra Etherington, Mrs Francesca Schwarzenbach and Mr Rupert Elliott as well as Lord Ivar Mountbatten.

The young royal shared a love of carriage driving with the late Duke of Edinburgh, who was instrumental in helping to establish the activity as a sport in Britain.

Following his retirement, Philip had more time to enjoy carriage-driving, which was one of his favourite past-times since the 1970s. He raced carriages near Norfolk before going on to represent Britain at several world and European championships.

Sophie previously revealed that Prince Philip was ‘so pleased’ when his granddaughter wanted to take up the sport.