Reverend Richard Coles admitted he used to see the Royal Family as something which “enshrined inequality”. But when he met Princess Anne at a fundraising event, he soon changed his mind.
The broadcaster revealed people might be surprised to learn how few clergymen of the Church of England actually support the monarchy.
He explained that many argue monarchies are “human institutions” which “deny the equal dignity of all people made in the image of God”.
When Reverend Richard was first ordained, that was also his belief.
But he was “converted” one day, not by a “blinding epiphany” or a “compelling argument” but a simple gesture from Princess Anne.
“The first is that it is, to use a word in vogue, relatable,” he wrote in The Guardian.
“The historic identities of our countries, their politics and cultures, are encoded in the lives of these people, and in their stories we locate our own.”
He continued: “The second is the advantage of having a head of state who is not a party political creature.”
Reverend Richard called it “immensely reassuring” that the Queen is politically neutral.
He added that the Royal Family could also be “our best defence against the rise of tyrants”.
Earlier this year, Richard announced he was retiring from the Church of England.
He explained his reasoning was that churches were becoming more conservative and fundamentalist, meaning gay people like him were made to feel “unwelcome”.
Richard went on to compare the support received by Jake Daniels, the Blackpool FC footballer who recently publicly came out as gay, with the reception inside Anglicanism.