The Worst-Dressed Royals In Trooping The Colour History

In a tradition that dates back a century before the Yanks broke from the crown, the annual Trooping the Colour ceremony is one of the highlights of the British calendar. The tradition celebrates both the service of all U.K. military branches and the monarch's birthday each June(regardless of the king or queen's actual birth date). It features an impressive parade, a coordinated fly-over, and, of course, a turnout by the major players in the royal family. The result: some fabulous fashion moments...and more than a few fails.

Members of The Firm aim to be as put-together as possible; as public figures, they know they have to stand out from the crowd and set the standard for high fashion. But they occasionally display what some might call a lack of judgment when it comes to the outfits they wear: outrageous hats, dated styles, unflattering colors (oops — colours). Since the senior royal men most often wear their military dress uniforms to the event — which are hard to mess up, let's face it — the mishaps tend to occur among the women of the palace. (Life is unfair like that.)

As year after year passes, the list of the worst-dressed royals at Trooping the Colour continues to grow, and we can't let it go unnoticed. These are some of the top examples we've found.

Princess Diana had every reason to smile in 1982 at her first Trooping the Colour appearance as an official royal. She'd been married less than a year and was already expecting the heir to the throne; William, Prince of Wales, would make his debut just nine days later. Alas, maternity wear back then bore no resemblance to the stylish baby bump-flattering outfits of today. Just as Diana's wedding dress swallowed her up under yards of ruffles and silk, her shapeless green frock did the stunning mom-to-be no favors. 

The late Queen Elizabeth II chose to wear bright colors at public events to make sure people could spot her in a crowd. She was partial to blue shades, but she switched it up for purples, greens, pinks, and other hues as well. In 2016, however, Her Majesty made a rare misstep with her neon-green coat dress and hat. The ensemble was so garish that it was hard to look at her for more than a few moments. The magenta flowers on her hat only added to the pain. 

Queen Camilla isn't known for dressing outlandishly. But even she has her off days, and her headgear is usually what does her in. For instance, Camilla's outfit for the 2026 Trooping the Colour parade was criticized for both its déja vù aspect and for the distractingly large white plume on her military cap. But that pales by comparison to other hats she's worn to the ceremony. This bird's-nest explosion from 2008 is one of the most egregious.

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are often dubbed the worst-dressed royals because of their hats, as exemplified by Beatrice's choice at 2016's Trooping the Colour. The older daughter of Sarah Ferguson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor accented her sedate blue dress with an op-art fascinator that resembled a stack of orange peels. She would have been the sore-thumb standout of the royal family, if not for the fact that it was the same year her grandma Queen Elizabeth wore her neon green combo.

Speaking of Sarah Ferguson, she did herself no favors at the 1987 ceremony. Just a few weeks before her wedding, Fergie joined her in-laws on the Buckingham Palace balcony to greet the troops in an outfit that was better suited to a different event. From the aqua shade to the shoulder pads and flower patterning, it gave total '80s bridesmaid vibes. Odder still, the future duchess wore dark leather gloves that clashed with her spring-like dress and hat.

Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester, is a cousin by marriage to the late Queen Elizabeth II. As a working member of the royal family, she's known for her extensive charity work. The duchess' beauty shines through no matter what she wears, but unfortunately, this wasn't one of her better looks. For the 2023 Trooping ceremony — the first under King Charles III — Birgitte wore a brown plaid dress that looked a bit drab amid the bright blues, greens, and reds of her in-laws. 

Since 1999, Anne, the Princess Royal, has been riding in the Trooping the Colour ceremony, utterly smart in her military uniform. It's a welcome change from the attire she wore a few decades ago. The princess favored yellow in the mid-'80s, but she had trouble finding just the right style. At left in 1983, she channeled Jane from the Disney classic "Tarzan"  — more than a decade before the movie even came out. Three years later, Anne struck out again with a dress featuring lethal-looking shoulder pads and what appeared to be a birthday party tablecloth around her waist.

Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, always has a special place in royal ceremonies as the wife of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh. If only she could find her place in the fashion world. For her first-ever appearance at Trooping the Colour in 1999, she looked as though she were on her way to a funeral instead of a royal birthday parade. The duchess' 2005 outfit was much cheerier, but putting a pile of feathers on her head was an odd way to cap it off.

It's hard to find much to criticize about the wardrobe of Catherine, Princess of Wales, particularly when it comes to her choices for Trooping the Colour. If anything, the princess plays it too safe with her long tailored coat dresses. This one from 2024 wasn't one of her standouts, though. The white dress was too stark for her features, and her hat looked ready for takeoff. However, Kate gets extra credit for putting on a cheerful appearance after she'd recently been diagnosed with cancer.