In the satirical Netflix show The Windsors, there is a scene where Prince William, played by Hugh Skinner, tries to overthrow the monarchy to avoid his destiny of one day becoming King. With an impassioned speech, Harry (Richard Goulding) tries to talk him out of it.
‘Britain needs Kings and Queens. What would happen to the tourism industry? Who would want to come to Britain if we weren’t here? No one,’ his little brother implores. ‘And what about the people who collect plates with our faces on them? What happens to them? What happens to them?’
I’m one of those people. I am the person who collects plates, mugs, and teapots with royal faces or monograms on them. And I’m obviously not alone, because these days it’s a multi-million-dollar industry made from royal memorabilia collections.
In the lead-up to King Charles‘ coronation in 2023, Prince William Pottery in Liverpool was churning out 700 commemorative mugs an hour – and they certainly weren’t the only ones. Companies such as Fortnum & Mason, Emma Bridgewater, Wedgwood, Milly Green, and Royal Collection Trust shops also getting in on the act.
Where it started
The tradition of royal commemorative ceramics dates back to 1660. Historians believe Charles II was the first British monarch to be memorialised on a piece of China. Since then, something has been mass-produced to mark just about every coronation, royal wedding, or baby birth.
A chipped 1660 delftware blue-dash charger, celebrating the restoration of the monarchy when Charles II was proclaimed King, sold for £12,000 in 2023. So, it seems royal memorabilia can be a good investment. But that may not be the prime motivation driving avid collectors such as Jan Hugo.
Biggest collection
Over a four-decade period, the woman who claims to have Australia’s biggest royal collection has amassed over 10,000 pieces of memorabilia, which all started with a coin for Diana and Charles’ engagement. In fact, Jan had so much that before the pandemic, she opened her Hunter Valley home for tours.
‘My oldest piece is a George III English penny from 1806,’ she told the BBC. ‘As long as there’s a royal family, I’ll never stop collecting.’
Royals themselves have also been known to partake in the hobby. While attending a pre-Jubilee Big Lunch at the Emmaus Mossley Homelessness Charity in Manchester in May 2022, Queen Camilla, then the Duchess of Cornwall, poked around their charity shop and bought a 1977 mug commemorating her mother-in-law Queen Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee for £1.50.
‘I see you’ve got a nice jubilee mug. I am going to buy that!’ Camilla told the cashier. ‘There’s a really nice teapot here for anyone who collects them. I wish I had a bit more time here. It’s a great place to get presents if you have the time,’ she added before leaving.
Banned royals
However, if you’re a proud Australian royal memorabilia collector hoping to add a trinket to your cabinet commemorating our local girl who did good – Mary Donaldson, becoming the Queen of Denmark – you’re fresh out of luck.
Despite Mary’s obvious marketability, the Danish monarchy has resisted placing her image on mugs to sell to the masses. In fact, they find the whole practice to be a bit, well, tawdry.
‘It looks crude and it’s vulgar, and we would like to maintain a certain dignity,’ Per Thornit, Denmark’s Lord Chamberlain at the time, told the authors of the 2005 authorised biography, Mary.
“We do not want to participate in an enormous commercial show, where pictures of the royal couple are affixed to all and sundry. There is hardly a product on the market that hasn’t put in a request.”
The senior official, who passed away in August this year, went on to list that everyone from the makers of ‘porcelain to lollipops, from coffee pots to wine labels’ had approached the palace for approval to make something in the lead-up to Mary’s wedding to Frederik 20 years ago.
“No one gets permission,” he said.
“We will not take part in a commercial race.”
While I see the Danish royal family’s point, would one teeny-tiny piece of memorabilia for everyone who wanted a little bit of that Mary magic in their home hurt that much? To the Danish royals, I have just one plea: let the people eat cake. And let them do it with a side of tea in a cup that has Mary’s mug on it.
To read more stories like this purchase a copy of ROYALS monthly, on sale now!
Can’t get enough of the royals?
