100 stories: princess margaret
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100 stories: Princess Margaret

As part of our centenary year, we are featuring 100 stories that make up The Royal Ballet School’s past, present and future. Today, we share the story of Princess Margaret, President of The Royal Ballet School from 1956-2002.   

As part of our centenary year, we are featuring 100 stories that make up The Royal Ballet School’s past, present and future. Today, we share the story of Princess Margaret, President of The Royal Ballet School from 1956-2002.   

HRH The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon was born on 21 August 1930, the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, and sister to Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. She was married to Antony Armstrong-Jones, Earl of Snowdon and Viscount Linley, from 1960-1979 and had two children: David Albert Charles (now the 2nd Earl of Snowdon) and Sarah Frances Elizabeth (now Lady Sarah Chatto). 

Left: lord soulbury shakes princess margaret's hand. Right: ninette de valois curtsies in a black dress while shaking princess margaret's hand and smiling up at her. Lord soulbury wears a black suit. Princess margaret wears a light coloured tea-length dress and coat with a pillbox hat.
Left: Herwald Ramsbotham, 1st Viscount Soulbury greets Princess Margaret; Right: Ninette de Valois curtsies and shakes Princess Margaret’s hand (1957)
The guests and faculty sit in the front of the studio in front of the mirror facing a classroom of young girls in white leotards.
The opening of the Anna Pavlova Memorial Hall, the first purpose-built ballet studio installed by The Royal Ballet School at White Lodge. Left to right: Herwald Ramsbotham, 1st Viscount Soulbury, a lady-in-waiting, Arnold Haskell, Princess Margaret, Ninette de Valois, Ursula Moreton and David Webster (1957)
The guests and faculty sit in the front of the studio in front of the mirror facing a classroom of young girls in black leotards. The camera is in the back of the studio, showing the students in a develope front with their left legs. Their right arms are raised in fifth and their left arms are held in second.
Princess Margaret watches students in class in the new Anna Pavlova studio (1957)
The guests and faculty sit in the front of the studio in front of the mirror facing a classroom of young girls in white leotards, who are seen in the mirror reflection.
Left to right: Herwald Ramsbotham, 1st Viscount Soulbury, a lady-in-waiting, Arnold Haskell, Princess Margaret, Ninette de Valois, Ursula Moreton and David Webster (1957)
The guests and faculty sit in the front of the studio in front of the mirror facing a classroom of young girls in black leotards. The students penche forward with their left legs behind in arabesque. The camera angle is from the back of the studio.
Princess Margaret watches students in class in the new Anna Pavlova studio (1957)
The guests and faculty sit in the front of the studio in front of the mirror facing a classroom of young girls in black leotards. The camera is in the back of the studio, capturing a young dancer mid grand jete with her right leg and left arm forward.
Princess Margaret watches students in class in the new Anna Pavlova studio (1957)
The guests and faculty sit in the front of the studio in front of the mirror facing a classroom of young boys in white shirts and black tights with white socks and black shoes. The camera is in the back of the studio, capturing a student mid jump with his left leg in a la second and his arms held to the side.
Princess Margaret watches students in class in the new Anna Pavlova studio (1957)

Princess Margaret and the Royal Family have a long history with the School. In 1956, the School and its affiliated Companies were awarded a Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth II. Princess Margaret was a passionate supporter of the arts; in addition to being President of the School, she was also patron to several other organisations, including The Royal Ballet and Scottish Ballet. Once, after watching a ballet at Covent Garden, Princess Margaret told Dame Ninette de Valois, ‘I had shivers down my back watching. My hands are quite worn out from clapping.’ 

Princess Margaret first visited the School at White Lodge in 1957, observing ballet and painting classes while exploring the grounds. She officially named the Anna Pavlova studio during this visit and later named the Margot Fonteyn Theatre at White Lodge in 1990. Princess Margaret also opened new studios at Barons Court in 1959. Today, The Princess Margaret Studio in Upper School is named in her honour. 

100 stories: princess margaret
Left to right: Headmistress Leila McCutcheon, Princess Margaret, Arnold Haskell, a lady in waiting and Viscount Soulbury explore the grounds at White Lodge (1957)
100 stories: princess margaret
Princess Margaret observes an art class at White Lodge. (1957)
100 stories: princess margaret
Princess Margaret observes an art class at White Lodge. (1957)
100 stories: princess margaret
Princess Margaret observes an art class at White Lodge. (1957)

Sadler’s Wells Ballet School was fully recognised by the Ministry for Education as a Primary and Secondary Grammar School in 1951: in that year, Princess Margaret officially opened the premises, amid much publicity and celebration. The Princess was President of The Sadler’s Wells Foundation from 1951–1956 then became President of The Royal Ballet and School from 1956 until her death in 2002. The Royal Opera House dedicated a plaque to Princess Margaret, which was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth in 2003.  

His Majesty King Charles III, then Prince of Wales, became President of the School in 2003 following Princess Margaret’s death. Lady Sarah Chatto, joined the School as Vice-President in 2004. When King Charles III took over as Patron in 2024, Lady Sarah was named President, following in her mother’s footsteps. 

A wide angle view of the bright, spacious princess margaret studio in upper school. A piano is in the foreground, and a large window is adjacent to the wall of mirrors. Portraits line the walls in wooden frames, matching the warm wood baseboards.
The Princess Margaret studio in Covent Garden
Valeri hristov wears a black polo shirt as he demonstrates a step to the class. The photo is cropped from his waist up. In the background are portraits of princess margaret and sir frederick ashton.
Ballet teacher Valeri Hristov teaches in front of Princess Margaret’s portrait in the studio named for her
Left: a vibrant painting of princess margaret wearing a soft white cap sleeve dress with lots of ruching and a black fabric coat draped heavily over her right shoulder. Her right hand crosses in front of her to hold the other side of the fabric. Pink roses and green leaves emerge from the bottom and sides against a blue sky with light pink clouds. Right: a black-and-white portrait of princess margaret wearing a large tiara with her hair poufed up. She also wears a large jewel necklace and a white high-neck boatneck top.
Left: Pietro Annigoni’s portrait of Princess Margaret from 1957, a print of which hangs outside the studio. Right: a signed photograph of Princess Margaret hanging on a wall inside the studio.
Two black and white images of princess margaret sitting next to sir frederick ashton in the barons court studios that she opened. They smile as they watch the dancers out of frame.
Left: Princess Margaret watching Company rehearsal with Sir Frederick Ashton in 1968. Right: Princess Margaret watches students in class with Sir Frederick Ashton at the official opening of the studios at Baron’s Court in 1959
Three 2nd year girls in dark blue leotards and skirts arabesque at the barre.
2nd Year students at the barre in the Princess Margaret studio
A close up shot of a 2nd year student in a dark blue cap sleeve leotard with her right arm in fifth and her left arm to the side. She smiles to the teacher off camera.
2nd Year students dancing in the Princess Margaret studio
Read more from our 100 stories series here

Catja Christensen is the Marketing and Communications Executive at The Royal Ballet School and joined the School in 2025. She enjoys interviewing students, staff and guest artists for news stories and crafting eye-catching newsletters.  

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