Princess Anne is well known as the nation's most hardworking member of the Royal family. The Princess Royal began her work with Save the Children in 1970, when she was 20 years old. However, Anne's famously dedicated yet stern demeanor shocked a royal correspondent when she saw the Princess working in the field. Annie Junker, in her 2005 book The Firm, describes how she was reporting from a children's hospital in Uzbekistan in July 1993, which was the Princess' first royal tour abroad since her marriage to second husband Timothy Lawrence.Misjunker writes, �If the Princess' expression changed for any of these sites, I didn't notice it.� She seemed quite unmoved by the sight of the children's twisted limbs, bright, brave little faces and liquid brown eyes. She didn't reach out to one of them, she didn't smile, she didn't even make eye contact. The visit was an academic exercise for her, the children were incidental. What mattered was the question of how you diagnose and treat cerebral palsy and fund research in a country which has so many internet problems. Msjunker continues, her attitude in that hospital in Uzbekistan shocked me at the time. I longed for her to reach out to one of those children, as a mother, as anyone with an ounce of humanity, would. But she is very clear about her role in life and doesn't believe being touchy-feely forms a part of it. There are other people who can do the hands-on stuff. Her value, she knows, is to get things done, to persuade governments to give money to hospitals such as the one in Tashkant, to bring in funds to run them or to buy beds and equipment. And she is not going to end and pose with a sickly child in order to do it. At the time, Princess Anne's attitude to her work drew unfavorable comparisons with Princess Diana, whom Msjunker describes as glamorous and photogenic. The author continues, save the children wouldn't have swapped her for two Diana's, nor, I suspect, for anyone else. Because, although she has never cut all the strangers child in he life, and has never nowingly smiled for a press camera, the Princess Royal is the most effective president they could hope to have. She is professional to her fingertips, she chairs meetings with utter precision, has a memory like an elephants, speaks superbly and usually without notes and is always completely on top of her brief. She is also a brilliant fundraiser. The Princess Royal was at World Horse Wellfair's penny farm on Preston New Road, just outside Blackpool, to officially open its new visitor center. Before the unveiling she was given a tour of the yard and watched as rescue horses Frodo, Lucy, and Graham were put through their paces. Frodo, who had been left as a foal in a freezing field to die, and Lucy, who was abandoned at the side of a road, did not put a foot, or whove, wrong as they performed a part comedy dressage routine to music. Graham, found starving in a garden shed, was part of a driving display by his new owners after being re-homed following rehabilitation. It was the third visit to Penny Farm by Princess Anne, who is patron of World Horse Wellfair and who praised the work of staff and volunteers at the center. She told Gather Guests the event gives us the opportunity to celebrate what has been achieved here and which make Penny Farm such an important part of our World Horse Wellfair family. The Princess said Penny Farm has been at the forefront of reminding people how horses were still working animals in many parts of the world. Facilities such as the new visitor center were important in raising the profile of the charity's Wellfair work in the UK and around the world. HRH Princess Anne said, Penny Farm has been very much at the forefront of that over the years, and is particularly good at attracting people who otherwise might not probably hear about the amount of commitment there is to the horse and its issues. The open days are important but this visitor center is also important. It allows both individuals who come on a regular basis to enjoy it more, and to have more space to help with fundraisers, education, and seminars, which is all part of extending the knowledge gained from the staff here. They start as really hard stories, she told guests, but they have the potential to have really good endings. One of those happy endings belongs to Frodo who was not expected to survive his ordeal. But after battling back against the odds, he was named Rescue Pony of the Year in 2018 at National Horse Show Equifest. Grume Nicole Wamsley has trained him to be able to be written, while fellow Grume Kirstie Irwin, 27, from Staining, had the honor of riding him during the demonstration for Princess Anne. Kirstie said, it was a lot of pressure and I think it was the most nervous I have ever been. But we had performed the demonstration at the country file live show recently and Frodo had coped really well. Today he was a superstar and he is a delight to ride. For a cop he is really light on his feet. I was honored to ride him in front of Princess Anne. It was an amazing opportunity and I think she enjoyed it. Also taking part in the demonstration were Haley Penn Rice leading Lucy, and young British carriage driving national champion Amelia Waddai Kour, who drove Palomino Gram alongside another of her ponies Cosmo. The new visitor center will cater for in excess of 15,000 people who visit Pony Farm each year. Zoe Clifford, visitor officer at Pony Farm, said, over the past few years the original center has struggled to meet the needs of our visitors as we have continued to grow. So over the winter of 2018 slash 19 we underwent development to increase the size of our center and coffee shop. It will allow us to offer a better service and give us opportunity to increase awareness and raise funds. Count Cheryl Little, chairman of Filde Council's Tourism and Leisure Committee, said, Pony Farm is not only a very good cause but it is an important part of the tourism economy of the local area.