17 October 2023 , 19:00
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She was once seen as the villain of the Royal Family, but now she is respected as the supportive other half of her husband, King Charles. Queen Camilla Parker Bowles was given the seal of approval by her mother-in-law to be known as Queen Consort before she died in 2022, but their relationship has always been widely speculated.
According to the King's biographer, his mother 'always detested' Camilla and only agreed to give her blessing for the title because of an "unspoken deal behind the scenes" over Prince Andrew. Christopher Andersen, author of The King: The Life of Charles III, claims the Queen Mother disliked Camilla for "throwing a wrench in the works".
King Charles III and Queen Camilla at his Coronation in May 2023 (Getty Images)Anderson told Newsweek's Royal Report podcast in 2022: "The Queen always detested Camilla. The Queen Mother particularly detested Camilla because she was throwing a wrench in the works. Because of Camilla, the monarchy was kind of brought to the brink of destruction." He claimed the Queen Mother regarded Camilla with caution during the early days, but warmed up to her towards the later years of her life.
He claimed Buckingham Palace enacted in an operation titled 'Operation PB' (Parker Bowles) to rehabilitate the image of Camilla after Princess Diana died. Anderson said it took "eight years for Charles to finally convince everybody to accept Camilla as his wife", but he had to "jump through all those hoops" to do it.
Charles admitted to committing adultery with Camilla and cheating on Diana when their marriage became "irrevocably broken down". In an interview with BBC's Panorama, Diana said of Camilla: "Well, there was three of us in the marriage. So it was a bit crowded." After Diana tragically died in a 1997 car crash in Paris, Charles and Camilla went public with their relationship and married in 2005.
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In February 2022, the late monarch used her Platinum Jubilee message to tell the world she wanted Camilla to become Queen Consort after her death. She wrote: "When, in the fullness of time, my son Charles becomes King, I know you will give him and his wife Camilla the same support that you have given me. And it is my sincere wish that, when that time comes, Camilla will be known as Queen Consort as she continues her own loyal service."
But Anderson believes the Queen Mother only agreed to Camilla's title because of a "very subtle and unspoken deal behind the scenes - that resulted in the queen suddenly endorsing Camilla". He claimed it "involved a kind of quid pro quo" and was resisted for "many, many years" before she finally fell on her decision, just seven months before her sad death.
- The Real Crown: Inside the House of Windsor airs on ITV at 9pm