Inside the colourful life of 'Ashtray Queen' Margrethe: The 6ft chain-smoking, ... trends now

A statuesque, 6ft chain-smoker, with a penchant for brightly coloured raincoats and a remarkable sideline in the arts, she is one of the most admired — and flamboyant — of European monarchs.

But two days ago, during her New Year’s Eve address, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark shocked her nation and royal watchers worldwide by announcing her decision to abdicate. From January 14, her son Crown Prince Frederik will be King — and her 52-year reign will be over.

Yesterday, rumours swirled among her six million subjects over what could have prompted such a move from the 83-year-old who once claimed: ‘I cannot envisage [abdicating]. Unless I fall hopelessly ill.’

After more than half a century on the throne, Margrethe is the longest-sitting ruler in 1,200 years of the Danish monarchy. As the country’s 54th sovereign (but only its second queen), her heritage stretches back more than 1,000 years to King Gorm the Old. With the passing of our late Queen, she also became the world’s longest-serving monarch.

So why would a ruler, sworn like Elizabeth II to duty above all, abdicate now?

Approval ratings for the Danish royal family are close to 80 per cent and Queen Margrethe, once spotted in an unverified picture apparently eating a hotdog while holding a carton of apple juice and enjoying a cigarette, is credited as the much-loved architect of that success.

Dubbed the ‘Ashtray Queen’ for her love of strong, unfiltered, ‘super-slim’ Karelia cigarettes, she temporarily stepped back from royal duties in early 2023 after ‘extensive’ surgery on her back.

It was this procedure (which reportedly brought an end to that 60-a-day habit) that the Queen referenced in her New Year’s speech. ‘The surgery naturally gave rise to thinking about the future — whether the time had come to leave the responsibility to the next generation,’ she told her subjects.

But commentators yesterday were speculating there may be another motivating factor — to strengthen her son’s marriage by granting him the position that is his birthright earlier than expected.

Frederik met Mary Donaldson, the advertising-executive daughter of Scottish academics, in a Sydney pub during the 2000 Olympic Games. It was the beginning of a fairytale romance that culminated in marriage four years later.

Nineteen years on, the couple have four children and Crown Princess Mary is adored in her adopted country — not least because she quickly became fluent in the language as well as boasting an extremely stylish wardrobe.

Recently, however, the couple’s marriage has come under sharp scrutiny after photographs were published in November in Spanish tabloids showing Frederik walking out of the exclusive Corral de la Moreria restaurant in Madrid with Mexican socialite Genoveva Casanova. The 47-year-old reality TV star was previously married to Spanish aristocrat, Cayetano Martinez, whom she divorced in 2007.

Rumours of an alleged ‘affair’ broke into a frenzy in the Danish Press. (For her part, Genoveva promptly dismissed the speculation.) Meanwhile, the royal couple have since presented a united front — ostentatiously holding hands on their way into a Christmas Eve church service and wowing onlookers at a New Year dinner — just a day after the announcement. Mary wore a luxurious maroon velvet gown and glittering tiara.

Rumours, however, can be unsettling, leading some to question the timing of Queen Margrethe’s decision and draw their own conclusions. So will ascending the throne lay to rest fears that something may be rotten in the state of this Danish royal marriage?

There is no doubt Mary, who will become the first Australian-born queen in history, is popular but she follows in redoubtable footsteps. Over the decades, Queen Margrethe has cannily upheld tradition while forging her own path as a modern monarch.