Ephraim Hardcastle
IS DUBAI’S Sheikh Mohammed the only royal chum the Queen might distance herself from? King hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa of Bahrain, not a country noted for its human rights record, continues to be one of the sponsors of hM’s beloved Royal
Windsor horse Show. Controversially, he sat next to her at the show for her 90th birthday pageant. Keeping him away next year, when the show will host a Platinum Jubilee pageant, will tax the diplomatic skills of courtiers. Unfortunately, a king can’t be shunted into the back row or seated behind a pillar to keep him out of sight, a fate that may yet befall Prince Andrew.
COULD the late Tramp founder Johnny Gold have been an unlikely character witness should Andrew ever end up in court? When questioned by Emily Maitlis, the duke insisted he could never have bought Virginia Roberts a drink at the celebrity nightclub, claiming: ‘I don’t think I’ve ever bought a drink in Tramp whenever I was there.’ Asked about his denial, Gold backed him up, saying: ‘Andrew is as tight as a duck’s a***. He never bought a drink in his life.’
KNIGhTeD by the Queen in 2015, Sir Lenny henry claims on Radio 4 that he
had met hM several times but she’d never remembered him. ‘I guess because she’s met so many black people, she never remembered who I was!’ he explained. ‘So I did this thing once at the Royal Academy of Arts where I was second in the queue. I said, “Ma’am, how nice to meet you.” Then I went five people down the line and stood next to David Beckham and met her again, just to see.’ he then concedes: ‘She of course said, “I’ve just met you.”’
ONLY Connect presenter Victoria Coren Mitchell, pictured, admits to a curious sexual favour granted to her local postman. ‘He was a foot fetishist,’ she reveals. ‘And he asked if I would mind answering the door barefoot when there were parcel deliveries. I said fine. It seemed harmless enough.’ Might Alan Bennett pop round and take dictation for his next batch of Talking Heads, Victoria?
AS a schoolmaster, Sir eric Anderson had a hand in educating three prime ministers – Tony Blair at Fettes, David Cameron and Boris Johnson at eton – as well as Prince Charles at Gordonstoun. he was the reason Charles entrusted his sons William and harry to eton where he had been head Master and later Provost. At his memorial service, held at eton on Friday, 18 months after his death aged 83, all were absent. At least Jacob ReesMogg paid his respects.
LABOUR’S Diane Abbott will never forget the grilling by LBC’s Nick Ferrari that converted her apparent inability to count – she wasn’t sure if additional police would cost £300,000 or £80million – into every stand-up comic’s dream routine. So has she dispatched congratulations to proud Nick on his scooping the London Press Club’s prestigious Laureate award for outstanding journalism? ‘Not yet,’ says Nick, who was described by the judges as ‘at the top of his game’.