CAMILLA GOT ADDICTED TO LUXURY TOO
Marriage to the Prince of Wales changed Camilla. When she accepted an invitation to a dinner party, her hosts were now sent a list of the foods she liked and disliked.
after all, her husband had done this for years, so why not adopt his habit?
as Duchess of Cornwall, she soon became accustomed to a life of luxury. at her request, Charles’s private secretary provided her with a chauffeur-driven car; and when she flew, it was normally only on private jets.
She could be stubborn about this. When Charles was invited to New York in 2008, to collect a global environmental Citizen award, the Foreign Office insisted the couple fly Ba. Camilla, however, demanded a private plane.
it was pointed out that the sight of Charles arriving on a chartered jet to receive an environmental prize would be unhelpful. So the Prince reluctantly agreed to fly Ba — only for Camilla to dig in her heels.
She had a cut hand, she said, which would prevent her travelling to New York. after a fierce argument, she finally agreed to fly on the Ba plane with Charles and 14 staff, including her hairdresser, butler, dresser, two valets, press officers, a doctor and five police protection officers.
One year, the Prince chartered a private yacht for about £210,000, but Camilla wasn’t impressed. She grumbled that it was smaller than those of greek shipping billionaire Yiannis Latsis or car park tycoon Donald gosling — who’d offered her cruises for free.
More free hand-outs came from the public. in 2008, an official report claimed that Camilla cost taxpayers a mere £2,000 a year. But it failed to mention the taxpayer had also spent £1.8 million on security around ray Mill — the home she’d kept in Wiltshire — and a further £200,000 on her various travels.
Despite her cosseted lifestyle, however, Camilla had a habit of being late for everything. This annoyed Charles, who frequently shouted from the bottom of the stairs at Clarence House: ‘Come on, get a move on!’
‘Where are we going?’ she’d ask, as she rushed down.
‘Haven’t you read the brief?’ Charles would snap, as if he were speaking to a slow learner.
Clarence House staff, however, were ordered to give her special treatment: they had to bow to her, and reply ‘Yes, Ma’am’ to all her demands.
To reinforce his wife’s higher profile, Charles also requested that flags should fly on public buildings on Camilla’s birthday.