Impossibly glamorous, yet supposedly selfish, rude and manipulative – the reputation of Princess Margaret has taken a beating in the past few months.
Television blockbuster The Crown and a waspish bestseller from Mail on Sunday columnist Craig Brown have portrayed the Queen's late sister as an insatiable party-goer and chain-smoking diva.
So it is little wonder, perhaps, that Princess Margaret's son, the 2nd Earl of Snowdon, has decided to write his own biography to rescue his mother's tarnished image.
Party Princess; The Crown's portrayal of Princess Margaret, by actress Vanessa Kirby, is one which her son Lord Snowdon is determined to change
David Armstrong-Jones, 57, has been consulting with historians with a view to producing a more rounded picture of the Princess and his father, the late society photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones.
'My mother is often portrayed, whether it's in 'authoritative' books, or TV dramas, as being a socialite who was only interested in parties,' he has told friends.
'She was so much more than that, and devoted a huge amount of her time to the arts, as well as all her official duties on behalf of the Queen. The series and the book depict fiction as fact,' he said, 'and the worry is that future generations will believe that my mother really behaved this way, word for word, scene by scene. It's time to correct this damaging image.'
Happy families: Princess Margaret, her husband Lord Snowdon and their two children pictured playing happily in Kensington Palace
The party's over: The new Lord Snowdon is looking to give a new insight into Princess Margaret in his own biography away from the popular programme
Margaret in her heyday: The princess, pictured on her 21st birthday, 'devoted a huge amount of her time to the arts, as well as all her official duties on behalf of the Queen,' according to her son
Brought to book: The new Lord Snowdon has revealed to friends his plans to write a biography and he is working with historians on the book
