The photos that herald a relatable new era of royal elegance

Queen Mary of Denmark is widely regarded as one of royalty’s most stylish and well-groomed figures, consistently topping so-called “best dressed” lists and dominating royal fashion fan pages.

So a recent photograph of the Australian-born royal with a number of her natural greys showing alongside her brunette hair might have come as a surprise to fans.

While still exuding the polish and poise she has become known for, the 54-year-old chose not to cover up her re-growth, instead allowing a few grey hairs to be seen at her temple and ears – and she’s not the only royal style icon to do so.

Mary was in Copenhagen for an event on the city’s harbour to mark the end of the royal sailing season, which saw the queen and King Frederik visit a number of Danish towns as part of their summer tour on board the yacht Dannebrog.

Wearing a dress by Australian label Camilla + Marc, a blazer by Harris Wharf London and a floral silk headband, she briefly stopped to speak to a group of Australian tourists lucky to coincide their visit with the event on September 14.

Earlier this month, Queen Mary and King Frederik travelled to Oslo for the funeral of King Harald V. The sombre event on September 9 brought together royalty and heads of state from around the world – including another very stylish queen who has embraced her own grey hair in recent years.

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Decoding every look from Queen Mary's Australia tour

Much like Queen Mary, Spain’s Queen Letizia, also 54, is a favourite among royal fashion watchers.

Both women left their “commoner” lives to marry into their respective royal families − in 2004 − and ever since, they have been praised for their approach to fashion, applauded for consistently choosing outfits appropriate to the occasion.

It was 2020 when Queen Letizia, a former television journalist, was first seen with her grey hair showing. Letizia had joined her husband King Felipe VI on a tour of Spanish towns and cities severely impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns.

Photos from her visit to the wine-making region of Haro, in northern Spain, made headlines at the time as the queen’s appearance was a break from the royal norm.

She was quickly praised for appearing normal, particularly during a time when the coronavirus shutdowns meant most people were unable to keep up their own regular salon appointments.

Six years after the pandemic, Queen Letizia continues to be seen with strands of her natural grey hair when on-duty, including at the most formal palace galas to everyday engagements.

Britain’s Princess of Wales, too, was recently spotted with what many observers online were calling strands of grey hair, though they were less obvious among her lighter tones.

Catherine was embracing what is being called “grey blending” by hair experts.

Creative ambassador for John Frieda UK, Andreas Wild, said more clients were asking for the method to reduce the number of times they need to visit a salon.

“The desire for harsh, high-maintenance roots is fading, and people want a softer, more seamless result that doesn’t demand a salon visit every two to three weeks,” Wild told Hello! magazine.

Rather than being seen as “letting themselves go”, Queen Mary and Queen Letizia are clearly making a conscious decision to not dye their roots as regularly as one might expect them.

Despite having hairdressers at their fingertips, perhaps this relaxed approach to regrowth is part of a high-profile push towards age positivity.

In Monaco, Princess Caroline of Hanover has been fully grey for several years now.

The royal, 69, who is the older sister of Prince Albert II, started letting her natural greys show in mid-2020 and a year later, she had fully embraced the salt and pepper look instead of her usual brown hair.

While so many regular women feel pressure to look young and find solutions to the beauty side effects that come with ageing, it is refreshing to see Letizia, Mary and Caroline − stylish women in their own regard − embracing their grey hair, and perhaps bucking the trend of having to look perfect at all times.