Royal | News - Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
Queen Camilla’s son has said Prince William and Prince Harry have been subject to some “appalling” treatment at the hands of the paparazzi and tabloid media over the years.
Food critic and author Tom Parker Bowles, 49, was shoved into the spotlight when his mother Camilla was confirmed as being official with King Charles in the late 1990s.
Tom, who will be spending his first Christmas with the Royal Family this year, told The Telegraph how he experienced some mistreatment from the paparazzi as he revealed that both his stepbrothers Prince William and Prince Harry have faced the wrath of the tabloids more than him.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Tom revealed a moment in 1999 at the age of 24 when the tabloids reportedly had accused him of taking drugs at the Cannes film festival, which led to him being told off by King Charles – his future stepfather – and being hounded by the press.
He said: “It was the very height of the tabloid era. I remember being chased at 100mph by paps trying to get a shot. My mother being screamed at to try to get a reaction.
“Pushing, jostling. It was horrific, and you are protective of your mother. Counting how many paps were at the gates, to see who was watching us and taking photographs: it was all as normal as bacon and eggs in the morning. You didn’t think of it in any other way … [But] it was barbaric.”
While speaking about his own treatment from the press, Tom also said that his royal stepbrothers had it a lot worse than he ever did. Although Camilla’s son is rarely seen with either William or Harry, who themselves are not believed to be on talking terms, he told The Telegraph just how “appalling” the treatment they received from the tabloids were.
Tom said: “I learned a long time ago not to put my fat fingers into the world of William and Harry.
“But it was appalling what they went through. I’ve had a billionth of what they’ve had to go through but hell, I sympathise.”