Photo of the British royals last Christmas helped single mum out of financial struggle

A royal fanatic waited in the cold for hours to catch a glimpse of the “fabulous four” last Christmas — and it’s being paying off ever since.

Prince William, Catherine, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry attend church on Christmas Day. Picture: Karen Anvil

The single mum who managed to get an incredible shot of the Royals leaving church last Christmas has made AU$72,000 so far and says the photo has been like a “lottery win”.

Karen Anvil, 40, was in the crowd gathered at Sandringham when she managed to snap Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton all looking at the camera, as they strode past with Prince William, The Sun reports.

Ms Anvil, who was working two jobs at the time, said the sales of the heartwarming image has enabled her to take an entire year off work, clear her debts and revamp her home.

The overjoyed royal fan said she will head back to the Norfolk church again this year.

Her phone picture became hugely in-demand after she posted it to social media and a professional photographer put her in touch with his agent.

By 5pm on the same day, her image had been sold to over 50 countries, appearing on TV and in numerous media outlets worldwide.

Ms Anvil, from Norfolk, revealed she has made a regular monthly income from sales, which has ranged from AU$1077 to AU$10,777.

“The biggest change for me was that it was so nice to go shopping at Tesco and not be worried about whether I’ve got the cash in the bank,” Ms Anvil told the BBC.

The single mum lives in a council house, and has been able to transform the bathroom, kitchen and her bedroom in the home.

One of the first items she bought was a bed, after sleeping on the floor on a mattress for 18 months.

“I couldn’t afford to replace my bed frame which had broke,” she said.

After a year and a half of sleeping on a mattress on my bedroom floor - I have a new bed! Rest of my bedroom will be finished soon. Still counting my blessings for everything good that has come from taking that photo! #SleepingWellTonight #Photo #MeghanMarkle #PrinceHarry pic.twitter.com/oKz6qOBLGZ

— Karen Anvil (@Anvilius) April 30, 2018

She’s also pledged to use some of the money to help her daughter Rachel go to university, and some of the money has gone towards her driving lessons and a car.

The mum and daughter have also had their first trip abroad to Paris, for Rachel’s 18th birthday.

Rachel, who hopes to become a nurse, said: “Mum knew this was a one-off and wanted to use every penny wisely.

“Every penny the photo has made has gone on our family and our home. Even the guinea pigs. I’m so proud of her.”

Not only has sales of the photo vastly helped Karen’s finances, but also opened up the door to new experiences.

These include being chosen as the unofficial Radio 5 Live’s royal photographer at Prince Harry’s wedding to Meghan Markle in May.

She also gave permission for the picture to be used in a book called Crown from the Crowd, which was sold to raise money for the Help for Heroes charity.

After taking some time off, Karen hopes to return to work at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn in February.

“It’s been an all-round amazing experience,” she said.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and has been republished here with permission.