The palace always refuses to comment publicly on anything concerning Pippa Middleton, insisting she is not a royal, yet they also seem to have the ability to put pressure on her when they choose.

The latest example of this double standard is that Pippa was reportedly asked not to play in a charity tennis match by Buckingham Palace over the weekend, as courtiers were apparently concerned that the prospect of Pippa in her tennis whites might beat out the Queen's attendance of the Cartier Queen’s Cup on the same day for the attention of the nation's picture editors.

“Pippa was informed that it would not be prudent for her to participate,” a source tells the Telegraph. “It was unfortunate we hadn’t addressed the issue earlier, but Miss Middleton took on board what we had to say.”

It is not the first time that the Palace has banned Pippa from publicising herself. When her party-planning book Celebrate was published she was prevented from participating in any US TV interviews, despite being able to pick and choose from the highest rated shows in the country.

Yet they have finally OK'd some limited writing asignments for Pippa, who has a new gig as a food columnist for a British supermarket magazine and is also a contributing editor for Vanity Fair.