Camilla Parker Bowles Has a Favorite Hobby — and It’s ‘Relaxing’ and Ordinary

These days, Camilla Parker Bowles is best known as the queen of the United Kingdom. She was officially crowned the queen alongside her husband, King Charles, back in May 2023 — a role the two accepted after Queen Elizabeth II’s death in 2022.

Although Camilla is mostly spotted out on royal engagements where she’s dressed up and on her best behavior, when she’s home doing the things she loves, one specific hobby comes to mind — and she reportedly finds it “incredibly relaxing.”

Camilla Parker Bowles loves gardening

It looks like Charles and Camilla have at least one thing in common — they both love the outdoors. At this time, a number of royal family members are taking personal leave due to medical concerns; Charles recently had prostate surgery while Kate Middleton is at home recovering from abdominal surgery. Prince William has not taken a full leave of absence but has stepped back from royal duties in order to help Kate recover. But Camilla is still taking on royal engagements, and while recently speaking at one, she revealed that she likes to garden.

At a recent event for England-based St. John’s Foundation, Camilla was speaking about the one hobby she’s had for years — gardening. “It gets everybody outside,” she said, according to Express. “I find it the most relaxing thing in the world; you come in and everything starts stiffening up. It’s worth it.” She even talked about specific places she likes to garden. “There’s something very satisfactory about Highgrove’s 18-year-old vegetable patch. It’s a wonderful way to pass the time.” Camilla added that she also eats the vegetables she grows.

Camilla Parker Bowles has built up her reputation through the years

When Camilla first became a household name, it was not for a good reason. She was the other woman in Charles’ marriage to Princess Diana, but after the couple’s divorce was finalized, Charles and Camilla took their relationship public. The two wed in 2005, and Camilla spent nearly two decades after that working hard to become a well-liked royal — with the hope that the late queen would give her blessing to someday allow Camilla to take the queen title.

These days, she has kept an extremely low profile — and it’s worked in her favor. She has never been anything other than a support system for Charles, and it seems to have been the only reason her popularity has improved at all through the years. These days, she’s taking on royal duties and stepping in for Charles while he recovers from surgery. But Camilla will almost never willingly put herself in the spotlight — and many royal fans are alright with that. Charles and Camilla’s relationship dates all the way back to the 1970s, but it’s still taken a long time for the public to come around to her presence.