Queen Camilla fought off attempted assault as a teenager, new book claims

By Jack Guy, CNN

London (CNN) — Britain’s Queen Camilla once fended off the unwanted advances of a man on a train, according to a new book, which reveals that she told the story of how she took off her shoe “and whacked him in the nuts with the heel.”

The anecdote is part of an excerpt from “Power and the Palace” by Valentine Low, a former royal correspondent for Britain’s The Times newspaper, which was published in the Sunday Times on Sunday.

Low was told the story by Guto Harri, who worked as communications director for Boris Johnson during his time as Mayor of London from 2008 to 2016.

Harri recalled how Johnson and Camilla, who was known as the Duchess of Cornwall at the time, had “got on like a house on fire” during a meeting at Clarence House.

“But the serious conversation they had was about her being the victim of an attempted sexual assault when she was a schoolgirl,” Harri told Low in the book.

“‘She was on a train going to Paddington — she was about 16, 17 — and some guy was moving his hand further and further …”

At that point, Johnson had asked what happened next, Harri told Low. According to Harri, Camilla replied: “I did what my mother taught me to. I took off my shoe and whacked him in the nuts with the heel.”

“She was self-possessed enough when they arrived at Paddington to jump off the train, find a guy in uniform and say, ‘That man just attacked me’, and he was arrested,” Harri continued.

CNN has reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment on the account in the new book, which is due to be published on September 11.

The palace has not released an official statement but does not appear to be disputing the reported details.

Camilla became Queen in 2022 when her husband, King Charles, acceded the throne following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

She has become known for her dedication to ending violence against women, working to raise awareness of the issue for more than 10 years.

Camilla has used her position to highlight organizations that help the victims of both domestic violence and sexual violence, as well as supporting survivors of sexual assault through initiatives such as the Wash Bag Project, which provides toiletries for them to use after undergoing a forensic examination.

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CNN’s Max Foster and Lauren Said-Moorhouse contributed to this report.