Royal relatives' surprising side hustles - including Sarah Ferguson's '£1m Weight Watchers deal'

After stepping down as senior royals in 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex dipped their toes into a plethora of new ventures. Chief among their projects was Meghan's Archetypes podcast deal with Spotify which saw the former Suits actress sit down with an array of famous faces to help "elevate underrepresented voices".

During the COVID-19 pandemic, meanwhile, the mother-of-two put pen to paper and wrote a children's book called The Bench.

And in March, Meghan launched her new lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard. While the Duchess faced a setback after her company's trademark application was refused, her brand promises to be ultra-luxurious with plans to sell jams, yoga equipment and kitchenware.

Before being ousted from the inner royal circle amid concern over her and her ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's ties with Jeffrey Epstein, Sarah Ferguson had established herself as an author.

Princess Beatrice and Eugenie's mother has penned several children's books and historical romance novels.

Prior to becoming an author, she was a spokesperson for Weight Watchers – a gig which, according to The Guardian, netted her a whopping £1 million each year. 

Beyond this, she also reportedly took home £519,000 after teaming up with china manufacturer Wedgwood.

After quitting the royal family, the Duke of Sussex joined his wife in launching their production company and podcast platform under the Archewell Foundation banner.

Together they struck lucrative deals with the likes of Spotify and Netflix, with the latter reportedly bringing in over $100 million via a five-year contract.

While Princess Anne's daughter, Zara, boasts an impressive equestrian career, she's also carved out commercial deals with lifestyle and fashion brands such as Musto, Land Rover and Rolex. 

In 2015, she unveiled her stunning jewellery collaboration with Cajella, creating "an elegant and refined collection that perfectly defines the modern woman".

To top it all off, she's also joined forces with pram company iCandy – a British company producing high-quality pushchairs and baby products.

Princess Anne's son Peter Phillips has dabbled in myriad ventures including a milk business! In 2019, he appeared in a Chinese TV advert promoting the brand Jersey Fresh Milk. 

Musing on his own childhood, he said in the ad: "As children, we used to spend a lot of time down at the dairy. There was a herd of Jersey cattle at Windsor, and we were brought up on it. And it was always much fuller of flavour, much creamier, than other milks that we had growing up. That has something to do with the way the cows are bred."

The Princess of Wales' sister Pippa is the unofficial queen of the side hustle. From writing her own food column in Waitrose Magazine to working as a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, Kate's younger sister has pursued numerous creative endeavours.

Most notably, she wrote a book on entertaining titled Celebrate which includes a wholesome mix of recipes, party tips and party games.

Beyond this, Pippa and her husband James Matthew have transformed their 150-acre estate in Berkshire by adding an eco-lodge which is open for summer stays, parties, yoga classes, Pilates sessions and more. The duo also have five glamping tents located in the woods looking onto their deer park.