P-2

King George's vivacious younger daughter has been a favorite of the British public ever since she first made the papers at the age of one day. In honor of Princess Margaret's forthcoming 21st birthday this month, London's Daily Express borrowed a first-reader technique to explain her life in ABCs. Sample rubrics:

A for Accomplishments: "Pretty with a promise of fun . . . composed, and never, never looks bored even when she must be."

B for Buckingham Palace and Margaret's room there: "There's nothing remotely royal about it," said a friend. "It is the kind of room you might expect to belong to the younger daughter of a rather old-fashioned country house." P:for the Cancan Margaret danced two years ago (TIME, July 25, 1949).

E for her Escorts: "Just now, No. 1 escort is Mr. Billy Wallace, the young and conspicuously eligible son of Mrs. Herbert Agar. The Princess, who sees a lot of him in town, will be staying at his country home for the Goodwood races."

G for the Guards, "where so many of her friends belong."

H for Holidays: not much fun with secret service men, chaperones and official escorts always near by.

N for Nicknames: "The Princess is always 'Ma'am' to you. But very privately to themselves, her friends refer to her as P-2 " (i.e., Princess No. 2).

Q for Queenmanship: "the art of always remembering who she is."

X for "the mark every one of us can make when voting--a privilege denied Princess Margaret."*

Z for Zodiac: "Margaret, whose birthday falls on the 21st of August, is on the bridge between Leo and Virgo--a borderline case between the strong and the demure."

* The King and his family may not express a political opinion, even by ballot.

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