An explosive biography has revealed how Camilla, the new Queen Consort, won over senior royals - and that Prince Andrew didn't want Charles to be King.
The new book ‘Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall: From Outcast to Queen Consort’ by biographer Angela Levin details her upbringing and how she became one of the core members of The Firm.
The royal expert first met Camilla in 2015 and compiled the biography after speaking to her friends, staff and ex-colleagues.
In one abridged extract shared by The Telegraph, a senior insider told the author that Andrew tried to persuade the Queen to block Charles marrying Camilla by being "quite poisonous, mean, unhelpful and very nasty about Camilla".
The book also looks back on the former Duchess of Cornwall's rebellious years, detailing how she quit school in 1964 with just one O-level and was later "sacked on the spot" for arriving late to her receptionist job after a party.
It uncovers her unsteady journey to becoming accepted by the royal family, highlighting her contribution to charities and support during the Covid pandemic.
From Camilla being described as a "total slob" by her flatmate to becoming one of the Queen's most trusted advisors, here are 15 of the biggest bombshells released from the book so far.
1. Charles and Camilla were delivered by the same doctor
The new King and Queen Consort were, remarkably, brought into the world by the same obstetrician.
Born on July 17, 1947, Camilla Shand was delivered at King’s College Hospital by Sir William Gilliatt.
More than a year later, Prince Charles was delivered by the same doctor at Buckingham Palace.
2. Camilla quit school in 1964 with just one O-level
Camilla attended Queen's Gate School as a weekly boarder from the age of 10.
According to Ms Levin, she was "admired for being able to talk to boys about things that interested them", and even once climbed onto the school roof to have a cigarette.
After quitting school in 1964 with one O-level, she spent the summer "learning to drive, riding her horses and lazing around the swimming pool", before being sent to Mon Fertile finishing school in Switzerland.
3. Camilla was once described as a 'total slob' by her flatmate
The now Queen Consort returned from finishing school in 1965 and rented out a flat with her friend Virginia Carrington in Belgravia, London.
Virginia, the daughter of Margaret Thatcher's foreign secretary, once called Camilla a "total slob".
Another friend reportedly said: "Camilla’s bedroom always looked like a bomb had hit it… You should have seen the state of the bathroom after she’d been in it."
4. Camilla was 'sacked on the spot' for arriving late after a party
She went on to work as a receptionist for interior designers Colefax and Fowler.
However, Camilla was fired after just one week.
Her boss is said to have "sacked her on the spot" after she turned up late from a party the night before.
5. Charles was 'unsure about marrying so young'
Camilla is said to have met her future husband King Charles in 1971 at the home of their friend Lucía Santa Cruz, who formally introduced them.
While it is widely thought the couple met at a polo match, their biographer Brandreth stated this was not the case.
Their relationship came to an end when King Charles travelled overseas to join the Royal Navy in early 1973.
However, there have been varying accounts as to why their relationship did not stand the test of time and distance, with one being that he asked her not to wait for him.
Ms Levin writes: "Charles felt unsure about marrying so young. He didn’t want to go against the advice of family."
6. Diana allegedly called Camilla saying: 'I'm going to kill you'
King Charles famously married Princess Diana in 1981, with the couple having two children together, Prince William and Prince Harry.
But during their marriage, Diana came to realise Charles had "gone back" to Camilla. They separated in 1992 before their divorce in August 1996.
A transcript of a bedtime conversation between Prince Charles and Camilla was published just a month after the announcement of their official split.
According to Ms Levin, Camilla received "heavy-breathing phone calls day and night".
She writes: "Some of them were from Diana, who didn’t give her name but made comments like, ‘I’ve sent someone to kill you.’"
7. Prince Philip wrote to Diana that 'Charles was silly to risk everything for Camilla'
The Duke previously mentioned his feelings about Camilla in letters written to Princess Diana.
This correspondence was previously read by Diana's close friends, Rosa Monckton and Lucia Flecha de Lima.
In one letter, Prince Philip apparently said that Charles “was silly to risk everything with Camilla".
He also wrote: "We [he and Queen Elizabeth] never dreamed he might feel like leaving you for her. I cannot imagine anyone in their right mind leaving you for Camilla."
8. Princess Anne once claimed Camilla 'will never be a true Queen'
Princess Anne was reportedly opposed to the idea of Camilla becoming Queen Consort for a number of years.
She once apparently claimed: "Camilla will never be a true Queen."
However, Anne has "gradually become more amenable", writes Ms Levin, after seeing Camilla's work for the royal family.
9. Prince Andrew tried to persuade the Queen to block Charles marrying Camilla
Queen Elizabeth reported asked numerous people for advice on Prince Charles marrying Camilla - one of these being Prince Andrew.
A senior insider told the author: “He tried to persuade the Queen to block Charles marrying Camilla by being quite poisonous, mean, unhelpful and very nasty about Camilla.”
Andrew's claims are said to have included that she was "insufficiently aristocratic" and was "not to be trusted".
10. Prince Andrew 'lobbied hard' to prevent Charles becoming King
The same royal source added that when Diana was alive, through her friendship with Andrew’s wife Sarah, she "plotted with Andrew to try to push Prince Charles aside" so that Andrew could become Regent to Prince William, who at the time was a teenager.
It meant Andrew "lobbied hard" with the hope that it would mean Charles would not become king when his mother died, and that William would wear the crown instead.
His behaviour was said to be "very, very negative and extremely unpleasant" to the Queen, who disagreed with him, and it marked a rare occasion where Andrew didn't get what he wanted.
11. Prince Andrew allegedly invited Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell as 'special guests' to Windsor Castle
The Royal Family held a 'Dance of the Decades' at Windsor Castle in June 2000.
A souvenir booklet from the event reportedly shows Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein were among Prince Andrew's list of "special guests".
Prince Andrew has said in the past he had no knowledge of Epstein's crimes and always denied any wrongdoing.
12. Queen 'further recognised Camilla's worth' during the Covid pandemic
Charles and Camilla carried out much work throughout the Covid pandemic, meeting NHS staff who had been working on the frontline and carrying out engagements over video call.
According to Ms Levin, the Queen is said to have "further recognised" the Duchess of Cornwall's work during the pandemic.
She was even apparently shown how to operate Zoom so that she could chat to Camilla.
13. 'Gang of four' helped Queen to feel less alone after Prince Philip's death
Prince Philip died peacefully at Windsor Castle on 9 April 2021, aged 99.
Folllowing his death, a group of four women including Camilla, Princess Anne, Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, and Kate, the Princess of Wales, were chosen to help comfort the Queen.
Ms Levin writes that choosing Camilla was "a sign that the Queen Consort had survived the brickbats, obstacles and insults", and that the Queen had "finally accepted her for who she was".
14. Prince Harry has recently been 'very negative' about Camilla
A source told the author that Prince Harry has "recently been very negative" about Camilla.
They speculated this "could be part of his therapy process to relive certain things and he may want to blame someone else for his own mistakes".
The source added: "As I understand it his father and stepmother have become hateful in his mind. I’ve also been told that Meghan has been horrible about her too.”
15. 'Fallout' between Harry and Charles at his 70th likely never happened
A special Buckingham Palace garden party was previously held to mark Charles' 70th birthday.
It was previously rumoured that there were tensions at the event, with claims that Meghan wanted to leave 15 minutes after arriving, and Charles allegedly asking the Sussexes to leave.
However, these claims have since been rubbished, with a royal aide telling Ms Levin that Harry and Meghan didn't want to stay long because they wished to avoid stealing the limelight from Charles on such a special occasion.
The author wrote: "I have never believed it. I saw for myself how they left full of smiles. They came because they wanted to and left when they said they would."
