Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, has always been painted as a manipulative, Machiavellian figure. Diana helped build that image of Camilla, and it did stick. To be fair, I do think Camilla is manipulative… about, to and around Charles. It’s very Charles-specific, I believe. She wanted to keep Charles as a lover while he was married, and she got that. She wanted him to financially support her, and she got that. She wanted to marry him and have all of the luxury and privilege that would afford her, and she got that too. Beyond that, does she really care? Like, does she even care enough about William or Kate or anyone else besides Charles? That’s what a new scandalous (!) book says. Christopher Anderson, author of Game of Crowns: Elizabeth, Camilla, Kate, and the Throne, believes that Camilla manipulated Charles into manipulating William into breaking up with Kate back in 2007.
A new book airing the Royal Family’s dirty laundry, penned by bestselling author Christopher Andersen, tells of Camilla Parker-Bowles failed efforts to drive a wedge between Kate Middleton and Prince William. And the Macbeth-esque plot nearly worked. In “Game of Crowns,” Andersen claims that Bowles was “disgusted with William and Kate sucking up all the attention” at a time when she was working hard to woo a British public that blamed her for the beloved Diana’s death.
Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, allegedly urged Prince Charles to convince his son, Prince William, to break it off with Middleton when the Prince started expressing doubts about settling down so young. Charles, over whom Camilla wields enormous influence, did just that and William ended it with Kate in 2007. But the move turned out to be a misstep on Camilla’s part.
The tabloids were soon filled with pictures of Kate dirty dancing in the clubs. She and her sister, Pippa, made the scene in micro skirts and skintight jeans. Six weeks later, Will and Kate were back together, and the British public fell even more love with the pretty commoner.
Meanwhile, Camilla allegedly spent hours strategizing with spin doctors “leaking self-aggrandizing stories to the press and sniping at perceived foes.” But Camilla remained unloved and unwanted by both the commoners and the Queen alike. In fact, it was Camilla’s offspring that wound up being a royal problem, according to Andersen, who has also written tell-alls about Hillary Clinton and Mick Jagger.
The Monarch reportedly implored Charles not to marry Camilla and ordered her hard-partying kids, Laura Lopes and Tom Parker Bowles, not to associate with the young Prince William. In the end, the Queen had to bow to her son’s desire. But the palace promised that Camilla, whose poll ratings never rise above lukewarm, would not be queen. Alas, Charles and Camilla wed in 2005 and only an act of Parliament will stop her from ascending to the throne.
Eh. The story of Will and Kate’s 2007 split has been written and rewritten so many times at this point, and I honestly don’t believe Camilla played a part in it whatsoever. I don’t even believe that William would follow Charles’ advice about anything, and certainly not “love.” I think William broke up with Kate in 2007 because he was feeling pressure from the press and everyone else to propose and he didn’t want anyone dictating to him. I also believe William broke up with her because he had a moment of “maybe the grass IS greener” and after several months, he realized that his options were more limited than he initially thought.
Now, all that being said… I bet Camilla’s relationship with both William and Kate is pretty dysfunctional. But! I think Kate and Camilla are more similar than people want to admit.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Fame/Flynet.
God, this whole institution is so bizarre.
Ever watch a Speech from the Throne? Compare that to a State of the Union address. Tells you everything you need to know about why the US and Britain are each where they are.
This is a story about the British monarchy. The US literally could not have less to do with it. Constantly dragging the US into utterly irrelevant stories comes across as so weird and obsessive.
Please, it’s a perfectly appropriate comparison. After all the coverage the royal family gets on this site, I’m starting to think that the whole institution is a glorious waste of time and–more importantly–tax payer money. The RF adds absolutely no quantifiable benefit to the nation whatsoever, exacerbated by the fact that Will can’t be bothered to get off his arse to work in the first place. In a world where the gap between rich and poor widens every day, why should we continue to revere an institution of elitist nonsense that, really, serves little purpose?
The speech from the throne is prepared by the Prime Minister and the Queen reads it. The members of The House of Commons and the House of Lords who attend are polite and listen to it. The State of the Union is a show where half the crowd claps too much because they are from the same party as the president and the other half refuses to clap because they aren’t. And then some idiots yell out things at Obama because he is black.
So I guess that would be where the countries are at.
No one yells at Obama because he is black. They yell at him because he is a treasonous sack of feces
Apples and oranges. The RF have nothing to do in a practical sense with British politics. A fair comparison would be between the State of the Union address and the Prime Minister’s statement.
Don’t believe it. But Kate can pull off a nice hat. Except that light gray one in the carriage.
Look at Kate’s make up in that picture with the light grey outfit. Amazing , glowing, youthful. So much nicer than the harsh stuff she wears now. Like night and day.
That picture is also from back when the press was still photoshopping her, so there’s no telling if she actually looked that much better.
Ditto what @ClaireB said. Kate has never looked as youthful as she did pre-engagement. Weight loss really gave her face a “harder” or “sharper” look. I think it may be her jawline.
Because duty. William is all about Duty First and obeying his dad.
Pshh, as if William cares about what Charles and Camilla thinks. He barely even sees them, and it’s obvious he dislikes interference from others in his affairs.
Not only that, but despite the Diana and supporters story of how Camilla is so evil, I never bought it. Was she (and Charles equally) guilty of adultery? Absolutely. Was Diana in turn sleeping with whomever she pleased, married or not? Yes. It was all wrong when done to her, but not so much when she did it. The difference between the two was that one was willing to go on with the status quo, and the other wasn’t. And when it comes to marriage, I think it was always Charles want g to marry Camilla. He may have had multiple mistresses but I do believe she is the love of his life. She loves him too, but I don’t think to the same extent.
As far as Camilla engineering a Will and Kate breakup, I call total BS. One, she didn’t care who he dated or married. Two, he doesn’t listen to anyone anyway.
William and Kate threads tend to be really messy. it’s like they’re the new Jennifer Aniston Kristen Stewart Beyoncé to celebitches.
But I gotta say, you’re right about Camilla’s manipulative ways
I agree people are disgusted especially with Will and Kate, squandering their unique opportunities to make a true difference in the world.
But, I disagree about Camilla. I don’t think she cave a crap about who Will was screwing and this book sounds like a creative writing excercise by an author with no real information.
IDK, Camilla might have similarities to Carol, in that she enjoys being the puppet master, but I’d bet she and Kate don’t have much in common. I picture Cami as laughing loudly, talking a blue streak, and dominating whatever room she’s in. And she never waited for any man, did she? She called the shots I thought.
Obviously, her complicit role in Diana’s misery makes her an unpopular character in all this, but what has she ever really done wrong besides have multiple husbands and lovers, like her entire social class?
I think she could have backed off when Diana wished her to. Infidelity might be common her social class, but I would think that there’s a tacit agreement among the parties involved that the infidelity is okay. In this case, however, I don’t think Diana agreed to sharing. I think that refusal on Camilla’s end to understand that Diana didn’t agree to any of that makes her look quite terrible, much more so than the multiple lovers and husbands issue.
That said, I really don’t see her caring about Will’s love life. I don’t even think Harry would have cared much. This story would probably be more interesting if Harry had engineered the break-up. And even then I don’t think any of us would believe it. We all know Wills does what he wants.
I bet the wives of some of Diana’s lovers didn’t agree to it either.
True, I don’t think they agreed either. Diana was in the wrong there, and it’s always been a puzzle to me as to why she would repeat what was done to her. I just think that Camilla’s refusal to give up Charles when Diana made it clear she didn’t want her around is worse than having more than one lover.
Perplexed, ITA, but two things: there’s nothing wrong with having multiple lovers if no one is cheating. And when someone is cheating- aka Charles- the cheater is more to blame.
I think Charles is to blame too, but after watching one of the documentaries on Youtube, mentioned here on Celebitchy about Kanga, I do think Camilla’s level of interest in Charles as a male mistress (what’s the male equivalent to mistress?) was bordering on kind of wacko. Tina Brown’s book on Diana, which seemed fairly balanced, also left me with the impression that Camilla was kind of weird too. Diana is seen as a bit crazy for her vengeance on Charles and Camilla, but Camilla didn’t sound completely sane either if she needed to secure a hold on Charles that was that strong. And Charles’s interest in Camilla was definitely wrong and to blame as well — I just didn’t come away with the impression that he was nuts and kind of cuckoo in the stuff I’ve read about his relationship with Camilla.
Nonetheless, despite Camilla’s level of interest in Charles being that high, I don’t think she tried to break up Will and Kate either.
“there’s nothing wrong with having multiple lovers if no one is cheating.”
Sorry, I didn’t mean to imply that.
Diana focused on Camilla for reasons unknown, yet Kanga was present and in the mix for as long as Camilla.
It’s so bizarre that Diana befriended one mistress whilst hating the other. Went as far as endorsing her fashion designer efforts by wearing her designs to prominent engagements even though both mistresses were carrying on with her husband and not about to let him go.
Camilla and Kanga had equal pull on Charles, both helped select bride(s) for him, and both carried on post everyone’s marriages as if Diana was an unimportant addition to the mix.
The only reason Kanga lost her place is that she became indiscreet, and Charles dropped her.
Diana focusing her ire on Camilla has actually helped the Charles/Camilla PR battle even when she was alive because Charles and Camilla could position themselves as teen sweethearts thwarted by dynastic considerations who nonetheless kept the flame alive. So much bullocks given the fact of Kanga and other women not to mention Andrew Parker Bowles who was always Camilla’s no 1 choice.
It’s just all so bizarre to me! Swingers in the upper set, turning a blind eye, not turning a blind eye. Whew! Sounds exhausting!
I do think Camilla loves Charles and he loves her and they are very good together. I also think she’s a hoot, a LOT more fun than Kate, and I doubt she gives Kate much thought at all. I mean, would you? Kate has her family and wants nothing to do with any of them, is my impression.
Perplexed,
I knew you weren’t criticizing “multiple lovers,” I was just commenting on the wording of “even worse than having multiple lovers.” My only point on this thread really is that Camilla didn’t do anything all that horrible by the standards of their ilk. Had the chain of events not lead to Diana in the backseat of a speeding car with her lover in Paris – if, say, Diana were now living the quiet life of a happily married woman, enjoying time with her grandchildren – Camilla’s manipulations might not seem so sinister.
As if William would do whatever Charles/Camilla tell him. He broke up with Kate to play the field and see if he could get an upgrade.
IKR? Per the other thread, he’s still claiming at 34 to be too young to settle on a life path. And he was what, 26 when the breakup happened? I don’t think anyone had to convince him to run from commitment.
Aren’t we talking about the princely guy that jumped up on a table and yelled out “I’m free!” for all to hear? And who was photographed groping young ladies? That princely guy?
The groping young ladies part isn’t so great, that’s a sign of extreme entitlement, but I think a typical twenty-something might also feel elated at ending a long term relationship one hadn’t necessarily meant to be long term. The problem with Willie’s behavior – IMO – is not that he feels trapped and wants to find himself. It’s that he seems to actually know exactly who he.
I find purported intrigue about Camilla dead in the water. She does her job, she makes Chuck happy, she is passionate about some causes, she has personality galore, I would love to have a drink with her.
Camilla gives William a thought beyond his effect on Charles, and is not stupid enough to intervene in Workshy Willy’s life. Besides she has her own extended family to focus on and delight in.
Camilla is such an easy target for people who don’t wish to see WK’s clayfeet.
I can’t wait for the tell-all in about 5yrs’ time.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say that I like Camilla, cos I don’t like any of them. Or at least, I don’t think their positions should exist.
But I think it’s a nonsense that Camilla is some kind of master manipulator. I think she just did all the swinging that set did and ended up being the one who got saddled with Chuck. I’m sure she’d have been just as happy to never marry him and just do all the huntin’ shootin’ fishin’ baloney, with a bit of Chuck-entertaining on the side. Having ended up shoved into a public role, I think she’s making a reasonable fist of it. The impression I always have of her is an easy going person who just trundles along with whatever the people around her are wanting her to do.
Yep!
Further to your comment, my impressions of that set, and especially Camilla are a Jilly Cooper novel come to life. Complete with a real life Rupert Campbell Black inspiration in Andrew Parker Bowles.
A good friend of mine who lives in England & who knows some friends of Camilla told me that Camilla didn’t really want to marry Charles, that she was happy the way things were, and that she thought marrying him would make her life more complicated. Charles was the one who was keen to marry.
I agree about it being a Jilly Cooper plot! And I’m certain sure poor old Camilla was literally saddled (pun intended) with Chuck. It’s telling that just a single generation later, Normal Bill couldn’t saddle any of his set with himself. Even the posh women are liberated now!
LAK – Victoria Wood died. I might have a little weep.
Noòoooooooooooo
I love Victoria Wood. Never missed her shows.
RIP Thanks for the laughter
She was only 62. RIP and thanks from me too.
Are Jilly Cooper’s something you can pick up as an adult, or did you need to fall for them as a teen?
I agree, Sixer, she wasn’t in the market for Charles as husband. She ended up there, so she’s doing the job that comes with it.
Yes, I was just reading in one of the papers, or maybe here, that on a recent tour, Camilla was walking along with the reporters, talking about her shoes. Can you imagine Kate just talking to the reporters, having a relaxed conversation?? She’s just so frozen and stilted.
The more I think about it, the more normal Camilla seems and the odder Kate seems.
I can’t believe comedy icon Victoria Woods has passed away, and this is the first I am hearing of it. How did I miss that? She was only 62. I loved her in Dinner Ladies, and she and Julie Walters, and Celia Imrie were hilarious together. I think she wrote the original Mrs Overall for Julie, still makes me laugh to think of that character to this day. She will be sadly missed, a really funny lady, gone too soon.
Really? I met her once (briefly) and she seemed quite unpleasant. Charles was far more personable, although I suppose he’s had a lifetime of training to deal with the public.
Give me a break. Camilla is not to blame for everything. Dumbo Willy broke up with The Stalker. And he should have kept it that way.
At this time didn’t William jump onto a table in a nightclub and shout “I’m free at last” after dumping Kate?
Or is my addled brain so bored of these two lackluster overgrown toddlers that it is now inventing more interesting alternative plot lines for them. Or did Camilla shot put him onto the table and throw her voice to sound like him?
Your brain isn’t deceiving you.
That is exactly what William did.
He was also papped chatting up and taking bar randoms back to his Barracks during the 6mths prior, and a strong rumour that he was trying it on with 2 ‘society’ gals, one of whom may have been Isabella manynames and Rosie VC.
…….but let’s blame it all on Camilla.
Camilla’s spent years trying to get William to accept her why would she manipulate and engineer a breakup? This doesn’t make sense.
True. I don’t get the logic either.
I guess every royal biography needs a scandal, but Andreson should have tried harder to come up with something mildly believable.
If it was a plot on Camilla’s part (which I doubt), too bad it didn’t succeed. I wish she had manipulated Normal Bill into dumping Kate forever!
There is one piece of gossip that came out at the time of the ‘break-up’ from someone at Jigsaw, her co-workers were asking why they split and Kate supposedly said it was something about Charles. But in defense of Charles, I am certain he would have warned off either son if they weren’t sure about marriage.
It was pretty widely known that Camilla had weekly phone conversations with the editor of the Sun giving him stories against Diana, this was during the 80s, but could have continued into the 90s. Camilla is definitely a strategist.
I really disagree with the author, Kate didn’t rise in popularity after the break-up, she was given the nickname Waity Katy! It was Chelsey who rose in popularity, breaking up with Harry when he cheated on her.
Have you got any proof of that and do you believe anything you read in the Sun for goodness sake.
The Editor himself. Stuart Hill. Confirmed it in one of those docs about royals and the media that pop up from time to time. Once the editors are retired and have nothing to lose, they become chatty talking heads on those docs. It’s amazing the stuff they confirm that was previously suspected or hinted at.
Back to Camilka and the Sun, Every biographer, reputable and disreputable has also mentioned it.
Camilla was doing Charles’s dirty work in trying to unseat Diana’s media popularity. Camilla’s relationship with Stuart Hill, then editor of the Sun newspaper wasn’t a secret, but it came out later how much information she was feeding him.
Btw: Camilla/Diana/Charles aren’t the only ones who had favoured relationships with news editors. The Middletons’s have cosy relationship with the DM. The editor of the mail on sunday is their PR advisor.
Correction: Stuart Higgins NOT Hill.
From what I’ve seen of Higgins’s (the editor in question) comments in articles and books (by Sally Bedell Smith and Tina Brown) he says he talked to Camilla regularly and she gave him background info. He doesn’t say they were anti-Diana stories. He remarks that Camilla seemed concerned with whether the press was onto her and Charles.
When you tell your father you don’t think you love someone enough to marry them. When you tell him you think you cannot be faithful to one woman, and there is evidence you’ve cheating on her many times. And your father advises you not to stay with that person if you don’t want to be with them? Yes, blame the father’s girlfriend. That makes sense.
Yeah. I mean, that’s what some of us call “good parenting”, if it is how it went down.
As for blaming Chuck – Charles allegedly had a convo with Big Willy about his intentions with Kate. He asked him if he intended to marry her, the reply was no. Charles was then, allegedly, said to have remarked that he should end it instead of stringing the poor girl along.
This speech from A Midsummers Night Dream spells out the Cambridge courtship/relationship quite nicely.
“And even for that do I love you the more.
I am your spaniel. And, Demetrius,
The more you beat me, I will fawn on you.
Use me but as your spaniel—spurn me, strike me,
Neglect me, lose me. Only give me leave,
Unworthy as I am, to follow you.
What worser place can I beg in your love—
And yet a place of high respect with me—
Than to be usèd as you use your dog?”
Is this book shelved under fiction?
This is what I’m confused about. The book is set after the Queen dies. It’s written like bad fanfiction from the excerpt I read on Amazon.
How ridiculous! What does she care what Charles’ stupid children do? She’s got her own grandkids to play with.
She’s way better than Waity in at least two ways:
1. She works, seeming engaged while wearing appropriate clothing.
2. Her pearl choker game is off the charts!
Haha sorry I find your comment regarding her clothing quite funny. She always looks like she’s wearing an old set of drapes. This woman reminds me of an old battle axe.
Appropriate in the sense that she isn’t exposing herself every time there is a breeze.
She is dressed appropriately for her age.
3. She makes Charles feel more secure and confident, which is a good thing in a partner
4. She rocks feather confections and over-the-top hats
5. She wears those massive waste basket tiaras beautifully
6. She works on difficult issues
I like the trouser suits she wears for hotter climates, mostly pastel chiffons. Her evening wear is usually attractive, with the occasional misstep like that black-and-white nightmare for Beatrix’s retirement dinner. She’s gravitating to a daytime working silhouette a lot like HM’s, with slightly fuller skirt and slimmer waist.
You asked about Jilly Cooper above. My British friend from high school used to read them and later turned me onto them for great dishy travel reads. I loved them and read up until her book in 2007. You have take into account when they were written but the characters are well fleshed out. She creates a fictional world and the characters reappear in all of the novels so you know how they ended up through the years. If you like scandalous aristocracy stories then she is a good one.
Then I’ll look them up!
Once far far away land there lived a prince who was handsomest than Adonis called willy wont windsor and a shepeshul shnowlake called waity muggleton. They were sho in love. wilsy had a stepmother a cruel pearl wearing hag who ruined his real mommy and now consumed by jealousy of waity muggleton beauty she wanted to create a drift between them but true luuuvvv won !
cheesy hollywood movie morelike!
William doesn’t listen to anyone but William, so I seriously doubt Camilla could convince him to dump Waity. That was all him because he thought he could convince the ones he wanted to be his bride.
I floved Diana, but the passage of time reveals the truth of their marriage and each other. They were all human and made mistakes.
If Diana hadn’t died, Waity wouldn’t be DoC today anyway.
I’m not sold that she ever wanted to marry Charles. The second time around I think he worked hard to talk her into it.
Like most of the previous commenters, I don’t believe that Camilla had anything to do with Wills and Waity breaking up. William is very like Charles and probably dithered about his relationship like Charles did with Camilla in the 70s. The difference is Waity still hung about like a bad smell instead of marrying someone else. I don’t think William listens to advice even if anyone offered it at the time.
Please. Camilla was probably grateful for the spotlight being off her and Charles. Why would she want the (negative) vibes/focus back on them?
Is this book being published under fiction?
It was probably Charles who tried to steer Wills away and didn’t Wills go to the Queen and when asked about the relationship Wills said he wasn’t sure if he was in love. I thought the royals at the wedding, very telling, Camilla looked uncomfortable standing next to Carole when they were outside the abbey. Camila probably though is a nightmare if your not the right class. As for the break up I thought it was Wills friends who pushed him to dip his toe elsewhere and didn’t Carole invite him to stay on a short break in the UK and a Wills declined. Then there was Isabella thrown into the mix. Wills must have had the jitters to break up and Charles maybe persuaded – it’s all very interesting and no wonder Kate keeps herself away in Amner.
When they got back ‘together’ TQ allegedly remarked it would end in tears – i think they, probably better than most, could see she wasn’t cut out for the Royal life regardless of her (and her mothers) assertions that she was ‘keen to hit the ground running’. Plus the fact that her family are clearly grasping social climbers with criminal connections (Uncle Gary the drug lord and underage pimp).
There aren’t a lot of parents who can persuade their adult children to end relationships they really want to stay in. I suspect the number of relatively new step-parents who can do so approaches zero. The odds that Charles and Camilla, who haven’t seem to have been able to convince William to do anything else, were able to break up him and Kate are laughable.
Unrelated, but I can’t stand that horrid God-awful necklace Camilla is wearing with pearls and emeralds (?). Did Diana wear it too with J. Tra volts? I know it is probably worth more than my entire family and I will see in our lifetime, but it is so gaudy. Sorry for offending those of you who love the royal jewel collection
That one is not to my taste, either. Though I can see it perhaps looking better if worn with a very simple, low cut evening gown. It doesn’t really seem like something that was designed with dress suits and hats in mind.
I predict she will never be Queen. Plus I really, really dislike most of her pictures.
You folks don’t believe she would split a couple up, I mean Chuck and Di, seriously, she is the Queen of manipulation, and she looks older than HM, with skin like leather, I think she is a very serious total planner of destroying relationships!!
Little story about the pair;
in 2008, my daughter traveled with her class to the Galapogos Islands. After a short time, their tour guide was told to herd the students off to the side. They waited, not knowing what was happening. Across the water, they saw a motorcade of small boats approaching; amongst the people onboard, they could make out a woman holding a parasol.
The kids started snapping pictures when they realized it was Charles and Camilla. With all the kids clicking cameras at them, my daughter put down her camera and started waving to Charles. She claimed they made eye contact and he waved back to her, LOL.
She called me from Ecuador to tell me the story on Saturday, and by Monday, I saw a Hello Canada magazine covering the Galapogos trip of Charles and Camilla.
Also, whilst there, Charles and Camilla viewed Lonesome George, probably the most famous tortoise in the world. Later, Charles picked up a small tortoise and joked about naming the tortoise, “William”.
i am so fascinated by this whole saga but no so little about the back story with charles and camilla – is there a book or source you would recommend to inform myself? it just seems like such a delicious (true) soap opera!
The monarch implored Charles not to marry Camilla? Perhaps she did, who knows. I tend to believe the speech HM gave at their wedding reception suggests otherwise.
“They have overcome Becher’s Brook and The Chair and all kinds of other terrible obstacles, They have come through and I’m very proud and wish them well. My son is home and dry with the woman he loves.”
That’s nice ~ I wouldn’t mind someone expressing those sentiments at my wedding.
I am SICK of people still trying to tear at Camilla; she adores Charles, works hard and has a hundred times more character than DoLittle.
Rae, she deliberately destroyed a marriage, I think she is capable of anything, I don’t have any problems ripping her a new one, granted their marriage may have been doomed from the start, that is serious bad karma though!!!!