Mum who made thousands from picture of Royals at Sandringham sponsored to try her luck again

Rachel Murdoch and her mother Karen Anvil, whose Royal picture made the news worldwide Picture: Chris Bishop (Image: Archant)

Karen Anvil, 40, from Watlington, near King's Lynn, snapped the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry and his then fiancee Meghan Markle on her mobile phone, as they walked to church at Sandringham on December 25.

She captured both couples smiling happily, looking straight at the camera.

Just yards away, the country's top Royal photographers could not get the shot because of crowds obscuring their view.

The image was picked up by a press agency, which syndicated it to news outlets around the world. The following day, the picture made all the front pages.

Karen Murdoch's photo of the Royals at Sandringham made the front pages Picture: Archant (Image: Archant)

Miss Anvil has declined to reveal how much she earned from the sale of the photo, although industry insiders predict it would have made her thousands.

Now she has revealed she will be trying again on Christmas Day.

'Apple gave me a call to ask if I could try my luck,' she said. 'They've given me an iPhone XR, so I've been out in the woods this morning taking pictures with it.'

Miss Anvil said even if she succeeded in capturing another Royal exclusive, this Christmas would be her last at Sandringham after a number of trips to see the Royals.

'I don't want to be seen as someone who just takes pictures,' she said.

NHS worker Miss Anvil originally hoped proceeds from the picture would help pay for her 18-year-old daughter Rachel to go to university. But since then, she has decided on a career change.

'She's been working at the MacMillan Unit at the hospital and she wants to be a nurse,' she said.

She added Rachel had joined the Queen Elizabeth Hospital as a nursing auxilliary, to gain enough experience to go on a nursing course at Addenbrooke's Hospital.

'She's the real story here, she's done amazingly well,' she said.