Read this: Media Masters - Camilla Tominey

Media Masters with Paul Blanchard

welcome to media Masters a series of one-to-one interviews with people at the top of the media game editor of The Daily Telegraph previously the last 15 years has reported on all of the major storage from the house of Windsor from Prince Charles marriage to the recent engagement of Princess Beatrice and an in-demand commentator worldwide as well as covering the Royal is a prominent political reporting commentator and is known for her pro-brexit views.

Thank you for your email.

Thank you.

So politics is in your blood as well as in taste quite an unusual beat.

It is a bit unusual and Royals sometimes they intermingle GCSE history of a lot more recently with brexit.

Of course.

We seen the Queen dragged into a national crisis Ezra papers, put it so it has been an overlapping beat but I got involved with politics because I covered the 2015 election and then I got involved in the brexit coverage.

When the place in 2016 and then while I was at the Sunday Express I was royal editor and then deputy political editor at the same time and then for a period I was royal editor and political editor and at the same time which was quite challenging.

So did you just have some kind of camper bedding in the office and just never went home went home, but I was working at home most evenings.

It just became too full on and actually when I was approached.

I suppose you could call it by the Telegraph to cover politics and Royals I thought well.

It's still be a huge workload, but it wasn't going to I had editorship of either of those to be so that the Telegraph we have a political editor and we have a royal correspondent and I kind of provides an overview and analysis of events rather than doing the everyday events myself if that makes sense if you had to choose between one beat.

I was it like children where you couldn't choose and you just have to try and work both as well to be fair politics has been irresistible John Lewis

For some time and probably three-and-a-half years to be honest and I love covering major events and equally there have been some good royal stories lately.

Obviously, there's this huge narrative about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and whether there is a rift between Harry and William tellez.

Sorry himself is admitted that they have some tensions between him and William and saying they're both on very different paths.

So that's been quite intriguing and interesting it's been a bit of an antidote to some of the chaos and confusion that had been raised in Parliament it was dissolved for the election.

I really can't separate from the royal family.

Can I mean it's this is the problem when you know there is the Professional and the personal isn't it? He could give up his title and go and live a quiet life in Africa and not take any public funding he could do that is an option royals have XR themselves we saw her name.

More subtle basis with the Duchess of Kent who withdrew from Royal life, you remember she was the lady who was presented the trophy at Wimbledon and she decided she want to do something different if she was involved in teaching children, so she kind of retreated from the limelight it Could Happen it might happen, and is it a bit like Clark Kent in Superman two-way? Displays his powers then realises he wants them back and at the end goes to the Solitude and get them back.

I really hate Superman in that period where the powers for relinquish didn't feel right.

Did it we return to The Diner be the crap that guy bullied in and then also pushed him along the bar and he crashed into a jukebox at the end.

Can you go back to it? Maybe you can at the moment? What's interesting is the next 6-weeks that couple are going to have a break from Public life and spend time with their baby Archie and maybe members of the public can appreciate that if you need a break if you want to say you know stop the Royal train line.

Tough because there is intense Media scrutiny.

Thanks to people like me and my colleagues on the royal beatson perhaps no one begrudges than that you feel a bit sorry for the Queen at the moment.

I mean she had David Cameron need to someone.

I think is Michael Bloomberg she put her down the phone at the referendum results and then you know Boris is taking her to the land back down again on foreign Parliament she must think that these prime minister's the mod patch on the old ones.

I think she may have had some periods of reflection over recent years.

I know for instance that she was equally when I can't attribute we never say that the Queen is because at the end of the day we don't directly but the palace voice their displeasure at the idea that David Cameron has said inappropriate things about the Queen Elizabeth and try to reflect on the referendum with her in that context and it was a little bit awkward.

So I'd say it's not been another annus horribilis, but it's probably come quite close.

I mean, I'm not a particular you know supported on this on a closet Republican ready, but I couldn't help but feel sorry for the guy because her whole raison.

D'etre is to be above the Fray I think she has to be reminded by comparison politicians seem to be I would say not quite a stalwart as we have grown used to her being over the last 6 or more decades and that is her us if you like isn't this ability for her to transcend the nonsense going on in Westminster and try and keep a cool head.

It's interesting when he read the Royal accounts as always this kind of chapter which sums up what the Queen and they describe her as mother of the nation that calming steadying influence where everybody around her appear to be losing their heads and I think we still see that now at 19.

There's less of an inclination for her to get too involved and to start travelling herself with these sorts of affairs of state.

She does rise Above she keep.

She carries on me and she is the epitome of that tea towels slogan, and it's interesting is a republican.

I bet you say your Republican but do you have a bad word to say about the Queen absolutely not a problem because it undermines the argument of course the as a Republican you say when choosing our elected head of state to the genetic lottery of the Windsor family we it's got it right this time a stopped clock is right twice a day Charles adjective that homoeopathy in busybody and talking to plants off with his head.

That's an interesting as the longest-serving heir apparent in history of course.

He's better prepared than most to be king but he does have wisdom and experience on his side.

So why can't people are you? How old are you 44? But I have aged badly.

So if you think I look older than that that will be understandable.

I don't but at the same time.

He will be an old man when he takes the friend whether that's appropriate or not.

Talk about skipping a generation to William and the Duke of Cambridge although we may see you in the next 5-years some sort of informal cut Regency with Prince Charles take responsibility you know there's always that talk about will the Queen abdicate no she won't because abdication is still a dirty word and her vocabulary and has been since Edward VIII effectively landed her father George initially wasn't really capable of public speaking or have the confidence to take the throne of course the second world war and his relationship with Churchill as I took him to a higher plane but I think there's still a sense that the Queen blames her uncle for her father's very rapid Demise premature death because it was too much pressure to put on him because of his relationship with Wallis Simpson causing him to to relinquish the throne fascinated by the Royal Beach what was it a tractor?

Wasn't really attracted to it was quite funny really mmv.

I've been on the Sunday Express for quite a few years probably up 34 years just covering mirrors and as I was on the show biz beat which required me to sort of hang around strange clubs at late at night trying to pick up celebrity gossip which I didn't particularly enjoy.

I've got to say and I think Charles and Camilla's engagement was announced and there is going to be a changeover staff and so my editor at the time Martin Townsend called me into his office and I think he said something along the lines of Camilla now.

You are called Camilla and you dress quite nicely and I think you might be good person to cover the royals for the newspaper and I said well.

I know I don't mean to Sully Martin's reputation in anyway.

Bye bye couching in those terms because as a male editor.

He has historically champion theme.

List and he certainly has been an absolutely install influence in my own career and he was the one if I push me onto ever greater things at the paper.

He was the one who encourage me to take this ridiculous triumvirate of roles in doing the royals politics and a column, so he's ever been very much somebody who I've looked up to in the industry, but the way I counted it and he was quite funny saying it in the sense that he was trying to make out like it wasn't a big deal, but of course covering the walls for a paper like the Express is a big deal and I didn't know just how the Beat would be revitalized back then.

I think was William in university.

It was a bit quiet the Charles and Camilla story as massive as you can imagine that we had a couple of years of the Duchess of Cornwall the meditation in public life.

She had been absolutely vilified.

She was a hate figure particularly among Sunday Express readers.

Don't know why it was a nice lady.

She is a nice lady and I love doing jobs are there in Chiswick

Friendly and her ability and her and strength in Rising above all the criticism has been quite something to observe to be honest.

He loves Charles very much because she did have a choice to marry and she didn't inherit that job but if you remember the time the dialogue.

I think one of the quotes was she was the laziest woman to ever have been born into the 20th century.

She was a 8 figure.

We had a huge appetite for Diana news on the Daily Express covering the inquest ad nauseam and actually we had to transcend the reputation that the papers had at that time for covering many will think far too many Diana stories after her and trying repackage a new royal family and that wasn't just Charles and Camilla course.

It was also as Kate Middleton as she was then known came onto the scene manager coverage of that relationship through to the moment where they got engaged and I think from the moment.

They got engaged in that winter of 2010 the entire royal Beach exploded and it's

Really seen a complete Renaissance and what have been this one of memories in the highlights of your time.

You know as a lovely brother with exclusive newsletter Prince Harry and his relationship with me.

Yes, that's right.

How do you get the time the story about Angela leadsom criticising Theresa May have children but then press Awards generally do look down their noses at Royal scoops and yet.

It was followed up around the world that story and what was interesting about it was just obviously given a name and then you start Googling and ordinarily with royal girlfriend.

They may be somebody you know with a double surname it appeared in the back of Tatler and you're scraping around trying to get an image of this person in order to make the story work and a Corsa Meghan markle's case all of these images came up her own website.

Is it was called she had a Blog she had a Instagram feed the modern woman and I know she just looked amazing and because she was an American that was really exciting so yeah the editor Martin again at the time that this expression if you liked the story you would say something like that.

I just felt a gust of wind going up my trousers in the sense of this is great.

This is going to be really big but one of the funniest experiences.

I had going back to the Cambridge's was there engagement because I was on maternity leave with my second child and sitting in a GP surgery with an ill baby in my arms.

I think Harry my son had a cold wasn't named after Prince Harry can I just have you by the way anyone thinks that I've always liked the name Harry and then probably my phone.

Just obviously when you're in maternity leave keeping an eye on things but you slap someone out of the loop and the engagement announcement came on the phone at 11 a.m.

We would like to announce the engagement of William

And I literally just had to bless his heart to forgive me for this now.

Leave the doctors surgery dump my ill child on a friend in where I was living at the time quicker way home.

Thank my lucky stars now.

I put a face of makeup on in the morning because you have to be you know camera ready in my industry through one address rush to find out there was going to be an engagement interview in the afternoon and that we were going to have a chance to question the couple so I rushed up to st.

James' Palace managed to get accreditation they divided all the questions.

I'm on the dailies in the Sunday so I got to ask the Sunday question and I think the question I asked was clearly you to know what love is which was a reference to Prince charles' famous their own engagement whatever love is, what is it you love about each other.

Never be afraid, it's never be afraid to ask a bloody stupid question and Kate there and who is address and everything goes on and then say right the couple would like to have a cup of tea with you after they've done this press conference so I'm standing there.

I mean bearing and hopefully the GP surgery earlier like Daddy and I turned around and there was Kate can I see your engagement ring and she told her this week and I recognise it, but I didn't want to say because in that scenario.

They haven't even talked about that in the press conference and she just said really cool without emotion, but just very calmly.

Yes, it was Williams mother's so it's very special and I was holding her hand looking at this thing.

I take care we have now and then just out of nerves.

I think I started.

Wedding planning and how she should get an accordion file in a smartphone and take the picture that we weren't really in the era of smart phone, but not putting a line on Twitter just seen catering #hashtag Diana handbag and I just in a panic fashion about how she should do her wedding planning sort of a couple of people to do that for her and it was only later that I got on the train and everyone had a copy of the evening Standard out, which obviously is splashed on the story and so I felt like so much because it was quite exciting it was when I got home.

I realised I actually had my dress on back to front involving there.

We had some of my support underwear from being pregnant showing I mean I basically look like a complete mess, but like who cares.

I mean I had to be at that moment wasn't shops for that point in time gave two hoots what I was wearing but it was an interesting lesson in kind of working motherhood and I vent basically had to cut my maternity leave Shaw and go back to the office.

It was worth covering and people might found out that you know how can a story be more important than he only had a cold thankfully and he was very good hands.

I'm sure I will be ringing ChildLine it just listening to this amendment ChildLine himself retrospectively report you have a father and his father.

We're not too because I've got three children lots of people say like you do this job or if I have to go away on a royal trigger and who's going to look after the children.

Bad dad, but two people just sometimes think women in journalism children like well.

We have a job to do.

It is quite rare to be a mother of three who still doing day-to-day reporting and reacting to live news events often Mum I completely understand this they go and do features are they go and make them more office-based because it's not particularly covering election where anything can happen and suddenly you're phoning logistically trying to organise children because Boris for instance the other day.

I just found a new campaign video and 500 words on it.

That's just the life of a journalist that ridiculous one.

Where was walking through the corridor.

It must have photocopier and things that he said the dog had a poo.

Yes, it was the Vogue 73 73 questions style thing and I had to quickly watch that and then write it up in in quick succession, but that's fine.

That's my life.

It's politicians making a gas writing.

With your support them and not tell me when I was writing.

I thought you were going to put the milk in his tea last people put controversial because he you made this cup of tea and left the tea bag in and then milk and I didn't text you back out afterwards.

I'm a kitty like that and I often say you know people talk about the nations divided over brexit.

It's this is a nightmare with never been more than I use t as an example I say the Nation's always been divided between those on the left and those on the right those who are you those your auntie and those who put the milk in first and most of them ok, but just finish off the rails if we met before we started go into politics.

What's your relationship with them like I mean do they do they can have just tolerate the media they developed a working relationship now is that this is a necessary? I mean like Meghan Markle is in the Duchess of Sussex says she is now a huge.

You know following before she became a role as it's not like she's doing it to call publicity so

Read the media to highlight the weather doing otherwise he will say I'm glad you've said that sometimes you do think that they don't realise this especially when Prince Harry releases statement attacking all of the media when he's got issues with individual stories and you do feel like saying well.

You've done all of this great work on projects like Invictus and the mental health campaign but would it have had the rocket Fuel it hardware and not for people like me and my colleagues on other newspapers fulsomely covering it all in travelling out to different places to watch and events that statement was a mistake.

I think I think it should have perhaps been a bit more qualified than what we knew about the claim against the Sunday and they may well.

Have a good claim because I think if you're publishing personal correspondence.

There's probably a breach of copyright issue there, but I've always said about this issue of privacy.

Royal Correspondents have never respecting your privacy more this isn't the 80s and 90s where we go about chasing royals on their private holidays in photographing Megan or others in that was the treatment of Diana and people can have their own for your that.

I wish I didn't like the way that history is rewritten as if the press had always abilify Princess Diana the press love Princess Diana Princess Diana also love the press and the lack of awareness or perhaps unwilling to accept that both Diana and Charles during the so-called war of the wales' both the press they fuel the stories because they were both individually phone in journalists to put their side of the story forward and I think they made mistakes in that respect when it comes to the person relationship with members of the royal family we have to have a relationship with the press office obviously and then Isabella's to be struck.

I think royal reporting goes wrong when journalists get red carpet.

And think it's important to be liked by the royals you do see this a bit.

You know people caring that the Royals and know their name.

I mean I just I just greatest respect the principles as they're called with and household.

I'm really just couldn't care less whether they know who I am or I'm there to report with their to report with fear or favour in a balanced way, what is going on and what we're told my sources that we can substantiate and that hold up in in a newspaper if we get it or not.

Just subject to a complaint via ipso the Independent press standards organisation but also to legal sanction and therefore we are under an obligation quite rightly to report responsibly there is a difference between a headline that is untrue and a headline that the Royals don't like inherently they would rather there was nothing in the papers that they weren't able to control but

Possible because Rossi wants to speak to people who aren't necessarily under their control or indeed are necessarily attached to the press office so at Gyles Brandreth said about the royals one should never confuse friendliness for friendship and let me not their friends.

They might say hi to you on a job than I suppose that's great, but I've always tried to distance myself from you have to in a way be the same when you covering Politics of course you've got personal relationship with some MPs because you get on with them and you'll see them and they give you stories and all the rest of it once always got to look after contacts, but I think you're being a journalist.

You just got to play with a straight bat really and not be affected by the notion of what will the royals think of this coverage? What might the Queen think I mean the question should be what does the reader think about the Prince Andrew's taking a real hammering at the moment with the Epstein stuff.

I imagine a lot of journalists have been crossed off his Christmas card list of the only form of accountability that the roles can have in.

Is the price because I mean he's not a member of a regulatory body that can send you my doctor or dentist will be or even people when he was censured when he lost his role as a trade envoy and also I suppose you are censored when your Royal by public opinion and of course that means that the relationship between the palace and the press is a delicate one because I'm doesn't want vindictiveness to be unfairly expressed against any member of the royal family because it can substantially affect the public standing and I think that's also harking back to the Harry point about what he perceives to be necessary vilification of Megan weather that has actually been the case or not.

It's difficult to know really and a lot of online coverage has got mixed in with mainstream media coverage, which means that everyone's been tarred with the same brush and my argument from the point of the press pack is well because of the reasons I said earlier about it.

So and the law we have to publish responsibly where is

People publish with impunity and it's not the fair comparison and also we can't take responsibility for trolls and these morons that go online and just say vile things we can try and call them to Pieces calling them out, but enough then got rolled for it.

So but on the duke of york.

Yeah, he's in a difficult place and I don't know what from a reputation point of view he can do about it because this case is still going on and on and more and more paperwork been produced, but yeah, it's difficult reputationally, where was he before all this happened in the great place neither is his ex-wife academic my train your German but I mean if we've got a big piece of paper round roost from Venn diagrams of overlapping circles, then there's the brand of the royal family.

How many grams are there in terms of overlapping cos like all of this negative certainly doesn't affect say Megan and Harry then as obviously Prince Charles and Camilla

Then William and Kate and Lena how many submarines are there one of the main ones which basically sums up the royal family as a plastic institution where historically each household has had to protect itself and that's interesting when you think back to what happened in the 80s when the prince and princess of Wales is was falling to Pieces there is a sense of kind of like the other house of insulating themselves.

We've seen it recently with the sussex's and this sense.

I think Megan said in the ITV documentary to you.

No one asked how I am and sometimes if one part of the royal family is in trouble the rest of double down and create a cocoon around themselves, so somebody to work in the royal Household put it to me recently that it didn't do any harm to the likes of Charles and Camilla at Clarence House to have the spotlight on Harry and Meghan

Have made their life easier for a while and equally if the Cambridge's are seen as you know being hugely supportive of the Queen and doing their duty and that's good for their Optics compared to Harry and Meghan seeming a bit tricky and difficult so yes, it's a family but there are these subsets who are all trying to protect their own slice of the pie and there is an awareness of individual branding somebody close to William said to me once your William is very aware of the Cambridge brand, but he's also respectful of his role in The higher that the Cambridge brand can't overshadow his father's brand too much and of course the boss the queen, what's been interesting lately with all of these different characters on the royal scene is some royal Diaries the Cambridge is going to do something and then suddenly the Sussex is a doing something at the same time and they've released photographs on the same day that images of George on his birthday have been released.

The grid at Downing Street where did make sure DWP didn't have an announcement the same day as the transport department have you got to be careful but unfortunately the war between the two siblings reputation management if your employed by a principal to spin for them you going to spin for them.

You're not spending some principles people get on better with other people principles people than other principles people and these people are human beings so been an interesting time are the royals on overseas tours are they exotic for The Genesis this thing on ITV I've got an amazing job and it's a privilege job effectively to be flown Around the World by a newspaper to cover royal events is not I'm not going to stop complaining about long hours.

I mean for goodness sake people give their ideas to do the same.

Do less fewer tools now because I'm not the actual real crossword another paper and recently went out to Cuba to cover Charles and Camilla Belle which was interesting as I've never been to Cuba before it's not as glamorous as its point of view because I'm with them buses.

Are you on holiday in we have to get on a coach at 3 in the morning to be in position at 7 and then wait behind the Rope for 2-hours for security where they just breeze along in a chauffeur driven car in a motorcade go to the engagement and then leave so of course like we've had some long journeys remembered we journey on the Cambridge's trip to India where we were in this coach going from Delhi to know it must have been Accra somewhere up North on my god.

We are on this hours and like you know the typical scene of cows in the road.

Are we all going to die? I've been on strange small light aircraft flying to go in the middle.

Forest with Prince Harry I've been on other planes going to yellowknife like in Northern Canada where the sun never sets into some bizarre places, but my god I totally delighted and privileged to have been sent and what actual contact you get with the royals when you're over there you get quite a lot so when you're on jobs you get quite up close the way it works.

Is there any job they will have what's called a pool of journalists 01 broadcast one print Media maybe the press association and a stills photographer and those people will follow them around individually and then share their images and their copy with everyone else otherwise you can't have the entire press pack following around especially if they are visiting a hospital or somewhere in confined and then you have a fixed point which is a rope outside so that you can watch them going in and out and so if you're on a pool you get quite up close and personal with them and thinking about that guy on and trip and I was on the pool and Prince Harry

You need to be part of this conversation and I was sitting there with my notebook out and you can have dialogue like that.

I remember being one of the best foreign and because it was amazing to go there was William and Kate went to Borneo to see orangutans in the wild and as a consequence of course if you're following me around you also get to see orangutans in the Wall we got to go up this canape look up into the top of the rainforest.

I'm afraid of heights called me doing it but the couple of done it and for journalistic reason.

I wanted to see what they had seen in order to write it up, but what was also quite astonishing as we were in the middle of nowhere and it was the weekend that the topless photographs story hit the press had photographs taken by a very long lens by a French cuisine while they were staying in the South of France have to be very disgusting invasion of privacy was wrong.

Of course it was and it was there were staying at Lord snowdon's house where they had?

Solutely cast iron expectation of privacy.

They were within the confines of a private property be different if she was on San Tropez beach topless it was interesting because people with flapping the Royal aides were flapping and I just watch k and she was really quite cool about it all and it told me something about her that day.

Cos I got the impression that William has gone absolutely mental and that she had been the one at the men around her everyone just calm down and like the spoke with irate and I almost close to tears us.

I thought in a funny way, of course.

It was a grotesque invasion of privacy, but she's been topless.

I think she's been smoking and I personally thought that some of the best publicity she never had because women were looking at again.

You know where she had been known as a very safe woman that had been wrongly by the way to pick.

The doormat and somebody just told the line actually in real life.

She's got a lot more characters much more mysterious than she she seems perhaps in a public persona and sunbathe topless in have the mobile I think it was so in the end.

I mean there was a massive storm in a teacup Jonas went mad because we were in there was no reception in the middle of trying to find a story I've never seen a bit a pack of jellies lose their minds to the extent that they did when we finally got to the hotel to file because the newsdesk all trying to get in contact with her for hours and I couldn't reach our mobile phones and with filing.

Copy last minute and all the rest of it, so it was quite an exciting story to be on a royal expert to us viewers on NBC and in Australia as well.

I think it was the perception that the Americans love the royals of love anything to do with them endlessly fascinated by how they live on a day-to-day basis, so I've covered to royal wedding.

BC Cambridge's and Sussex and my goodness they play so much resource into these events I mean for the Cambridge's wedding we were in Buckingham outside Buckingham Palace MoKo hosting it with the historian Andrew Roberts and Martin Bashir was one of the punters because of course he had done the Panorama interview and it was interesting because you didn't really know what they were getting into and kind of like what's all this about like in Dudley people started filling the mall and it was they couldn't quite believe by the end of it that is on the balcony could like create this massive groundswell of interesting physically people on the streets.

I think they I suppose it would only be comparable to an inauguration all state of the Union moment so that was interesting and then the sussex's in Windsor again, NBC rented the rooftop of this hotel.

That was had a bird's-eye view of the chapel and

Megan of course because she's one of them one of their own and American princess marrying into the British royal family I mean they absolutely loved it from start to finish and it was a great colour for Bishop curry and all the celebrities that were there.

It was absolutely for the American audience that mean they looked it up on the side.

Do you get threatening calls from spin Doctors or angry politicians that works behind the scenes when you write something that's less than favourable not really threatening calls.

Obviously people express their displeasure if they don't like what you've written but invariably that's confirmation that what you've written is absolutely spot-on and again.

It's a bit like treating the royals Without Fear or favour.

You've got to keep your head and not be too influenced by got a question what you're being told because in politics.

This is the interesting differential actually when you covering the royals.

They don't have anything to promote really they're just there to make sure that they seem relevant to the public still and as the Queen says will be around for as long as anyone wants us to be around with politicians always got something to come out.

I've got a policy to promote themselves to promote or an ideology to push forward or an attack line and therefore you have got to you and some scrutiny in a pinch to that when you're covering politics.

There's been a lot of it running this particular election hasn't made like the way that the company has been looked on both sizes and particularly.

You know a gentlemanly election campaigns and never gentlemanly your cordial.

Let's remember times when eggs have been thrown and for all Gillian Duffy was branded a bigger by Gordon Brown or where politicians have come unstuck on the airwaves on TV it's quite brutal Gordon went to her house like five times.

With him with his head in his hands as he was replayed I think by Jeremy Vine that he had been caught saying do you know what the brutality of politics never cease to amaze me the sense that one minute you will covering somebody at the top of their game and the next they're confined to give an example when I came back from the Tory Party Conference I think two years ago.

I was on a standard carriage of a train just coming back into London and Tony Abbott the former Australian Prime Minister was sitting opposite me and the last time.

I've seen Tony Abbott was when I cover the Cambridge's in Australia when they took Prince George and he was the prime minister and he was absolutely at the forefront of the trip surrounded by security detail in a massive motorcade.

He was the man.

Do you mind if I ask you a few questions as we got an hour or so together? We put the milk in after the TV next to him and we talked about that trip because I was on it and how he found the Royals and Harry subsequently found Prince Harry when he visited a couple of years later and Prince Harry easier by the way, it's quite interesting insight and political careers never end.

Well.

I think it's somebody else.

He said that and controversy came out with that phrase initially but of course they don't and one minute.

You are the boss and the next year and the relevance isn't it is terrible and I'm a fellow member.

How are you and William Hague they seem to be regulars that can you catch the bit of a snippet of the conversation? It's an incredibly mundane and normally think everything talked about matters of great importance of normal human beings would talk about how many pints William Hague biography that was my first baby automatically that are right when you lost any weight goes to see the queen to relinquish whatever is at the office and did the footman chosen to make the Queen's this way prime minister and then they have a little chat and then you get the same phone comes up to me and says this way Mr major and it really struggling at the moment, but he wasn't the prime minister.

Have you got out of an armour plated Jaguar got into some sort of like a Vauxhall Vectra

Remove the whip and therefore they lost their cars literally within half an hour arrived in their State car and they left on Thursday to it.

Yeah, it's interesting that major thing in the census actually and this is true of all journalism really what we're interested in when it comes to these high-profile figures is the human story at the heart of all of these experiences Charles Moore biography of Margaret Thatcher which is now it's the volume on a child's because he's a Titan of the Telegraph group aspects of that hatches early conversations with her sister and Charles found this Cache of letters in the sisters loft.

I believe at the very last minute and introduce them to the first because they paint the picture of her as a person as a woman she's obsessing about what clothes she wears two different Conservatives events and she discusses her early corset with Dennis and

Some other guy.

I think he was involved in the golf club that she is trying to date her and its astonishing you need to put the human being at the heart of every story regardless of whether there a prince or a pauper a lesson to be carried forward when you're covering anything really because that's the nitty gritty that people really want to know what I find is that even when Prime Minister Sheikh Usman Dennis a full cooked breakfast every single morning because she saw that is her wifely Duty analysis about her relationship with Philip may husband and somebody told me the anecdote that they were during the election and I think she had to do a regional press cool.

So basically you're sitting at your kitchen table and it's all been set up and got to speak to play BBC Radio Lincolnshire and then you've got to speak to Manchester and you've got to do this whole thing and this was alty.

And she was very agitated and they said Prime Minister sorry, you seemed a bit distracted and she's like I haven't made for any lunch.

He's not going to how long is this going to go on that because he would expect his lunch at 12 and be able to make a sandwich now and then we'll move on and it was like to be fair this was sent and I don't think this is a girl jobs indeed jobs, when she made that remark about taking the bins out.

It wasn't this isn't to talk about her and kind of like gender stereotyping, but I think there's a sense of I need my own life here and politicians like royals shock horror are human beings at the end of the day and they have these experiences at the moment we're in this debate about its right Harry and Meghan aren't going to Sandringham for Christmas but this is the time of the Christmas conversation who can fell but don't interfere with this awkward conversation that all couples have with.

Are we going to go to your parents or mine this Christmas I like the maze marriage is there seems to be a lot of warmth and affection there in love, where is he now with Tony and stationery was obviously incredibly Media manage that didn't seem to be there might have been an authentic match behind closed doors, but it wasn't there was a performance at all.

Which wasn't there with Theresa and Philip eating real the Optics around politician to appear to love their wives or their partners David Cameron perhaps not popular with huge swathes of the population, but still a man who I think we cannot conclude love life and was trying to be a family orientated as possible in a difficult situation equally.

Yes, I think that strength of relationship with Theresa and Philip may there was a time when I think it was when the first meaningful vote was defeated by that historic 230 votes.

We looked up to the gallery.

She looked up to the gallery who's looking at it was a husband because I I

The dispatch box your they're facing brick backed.

It was a political humiliation the press gallery is full of people with their notebooks armed and ready to absolutely town on this dismal failure and of course who can provide comfort in a moment like that only someone near and dear to abuse and threats is it switching off female voters as well.

I feel sad about it and funny enough.

I've been asked to write a piece about that and about women in politics with a view to the women get the vote should think it's at the end of this month and remember I do feel sad about it, but I also think that MP need to take a long hard look at themselves, how much they earn and what a privileged position.

They are being they are in to represent the public on the political stage.

Perhaps toughen up a bit is that on fair.

I mean I get relentlessly troll I get told by the left because I work for right-wing publication get trolled by remainers lever get trolled by Megan fans because just because anyone who covers the Royal gets trolled by these so-called make you laters all the sussexsquad, but who cares who cares you block the music to ignore sometimes.

I just for a laugh I mean if a constructive conversation with me and put forward ideas.

I might not agree with and you might not agree with me that you're willing to disagree agreeable then bring it on I like nothing better than having great conversations.

There's nothing and you know newsflash.

I have a great many friends on the left of great many friends are remainers and we've managed to maintain our friendship's because we're actually grown-ups who can respect other people's opinions.

And I don't like actually this idea that people giving into these morons who seem to have the theory that if you don't agree with me then you're not only wrong.

You're actually wicked for God's sake of sophistication and Intelligence to you.

If you if you're reduced her personal insults then as that you said you've lost the argument now don't get me wrong.

I'm not trying to belittle female MPs who have death threats rate threat dog poo sent through the door.

You know all of this and refix stuff, but they're not going down.

They are paid a lot.

They have a very very privileged job and it's a difficult job and I appreciate that and we need to be doing more to encourage people into politics quality people but let's get some perspective if you don't want to get a member of staff to deal with your Twitter account.

Just don't be on it.

I mean if you care what Westminster think so what other German

What are the politicians think you don't Twitter UK what the public think go on Facebook yes should the social media companies do more to regulate against relentless trolling and if we see the really see this wedge.

It's you know some a childlike Molly Russell killing themselves because of cyberbullying right that is a hugely important story that merits coverage and we must hold the internet Giants to account politician needs to take the rough with the smooth sometimes.

I think they feel it with seen performance politics lately with this narcissistic.

I'm going to say something in Parliament that need to go viral later.

You know politicians flipping videos of themselves throffing at the mouth.

You know shouting across to the opposition benches and because they want it to play online dole it out.

You're not willing to receive it act.

Responsibly and don't take the criticism too seriously politicians fail to realise that they don't need everyone to agree with them.

They just need for tea on.

Right, there are loads of people who are never going to agree with me on a number of things and loads of people never going to agree with you the number of things.

I newspaper still influential a vote in elections given the speed story spread on social media.

I think so because sometimes people seem to forget that people say, oh well, it's Facebook now.

It's face on Snapchat there influential and actually Facebook Snapchat and these other platforms are just the newsagents shelf the contents coming from us.

We are providing the content and the fake news has done mainstream Media huge, favour because people can actually separate the wheat from the chaff and make a decision as to whether they want content has been created by real journeys to out with the access speaking to the people that matter and reporting back on what's been said vs.

Kind of nonsense.

That's been dreaming up online with a view to kind of getting clicks and like.

Pics and likes I suppose are quite important when it comes to disseminating a story but first be the best then be the first there has been a complete possession of online particularly with Janice understanding and treating on world events the plane has landed.

You know who cares who's in the plane or you know is there a story to be said about what went on in the cockpit not the event itself.

You got a video just need to get back to the basics of the story rather than this kind of a name coverage of moving breaking events coming in politics people are understand my sources tell me the exit happened.

Oh, no.

You've just received the same email we all have there is a bit.

There's a bit of showboating that goes on the journalist as well.

You know if you join this broadcast lately.

I think I've been becoming the story don't become the story just here to report on it.

I mean yes, of course there are people in broadcast that have a profile but never forget your the messenger here.

And I think sometimes people he goes to get the better of them take the work seriously don't take yourself too seriously cos actually no one really cares the telegraph have a line on Boris Johnson what's it like to have a former columnist Prime Minister how are you doing that unique situation a great admittedly do we have a line go easy on old Forest sketch writers to take these people down a peg or two and tell the truth of what really is going on and at the end of the day.

I think people misunderstand journalists if they think that we will sit on stuff people say this for the royals.

Are you loads of stuff? You've never put in print but obviously I'm down by legal restrictions as to what I can write, but the idea that a generous worth.

Sit on some explosive story to Curry favour with the establishment who cares I'm getting a story out if I stumbled on some horrendous story involving Boris Johnson doing some the appalling.

I mean it to the news desk before you can say where's my notebook and I would apply that to anybody in public Life if there's a legitimate story to be said there and it's negative bad not women to be a critical friend to people who put themselves forward for public office or perhaps are people who were born into royalty if you do great things that that's amazing you've changed the dialogue around disability because of this initiative we're going to champion it but oh, I'm sorry you decided to go to a fancy dress party dressed as a Nazi not sure the public would agree with that decision making we know you were young but could we just address this all look here's the photograph should we publish it? Yeah? I think we should because it's in the public interest to know that.

Find me was third in line to the throne had decided made that decision then have a right of reply.

That's how it works.

So yeah, you've got to take the rough with the smooth.

How many general elections did he will have next year as well? I mean that very much depends on the majority or not that any party is able to summon.

We didn't polling which suggest that at the moment the centres are on course for 100 + majority.

I think that's ambitious Boris Johnson's message of this campaign has been slightly hidden is that they're only trying to win 9 seats? I just want a majority to be something so the polling is Leaning towards a conservative majority but of course they're still the Spectre of a hung Parliament brexit change the narrative around where people like literally.

It's muddy the waters.

You do have labour leavers who finds corbyn's prevarication over a second referendum and they don't want to bring them.

This is the big question I'm actually labour but I couldn't bring myself to vote for Jeremy Corbyn exactly and are people who are Labour going to be able to square voting for Boris Johnson by well.

I'm not going to the tourism voting for Boris cos he's a brexiteer.

That's a big question mark over this election.

What about liberal Democrat in the southwest For Whom the yellow because there's a sense of fairness about the Liberal Democrats arguably and also the type of people who can get the bins out.

They are good on a local government level and yet.

There are people in the south west to aunt like mad London remainiacs who want a revocation they actually think that that's an aberration and it's not liberal or democratic votes with Corbyn a man, who is seen by many as a extreme leftist so is everything to play for will there be more elections next.

I think maybe not the what need to be to get a Tubthumping 60 seat majority with the public.

I mean Bristol would no doubt voice an opinion not another one so after Christmas then after the election for the weekend.

Have a long rest of the next after Christmas will be back into a new government with whoever it is.

I think we can probably safely agree that it might be more predictable if it is the government under Boris Johnson continuing with his brexit deal moving into future trade talks with the EU which is going to be spicy again from March can it be done in time? Is there going to be another conversation about deal or no deal in December 2020 will be a situation where labour's got a minority and forms a government with the SNP potentially Jo Swinson herself out although will she change her mind.

She does get a lot more seats and on December 13th and decide that she can be a powerbroker put it this way regardless of what happens on December 12th.

I can't imagine it's going to be quiet for the next 12-months equally on the royal front who knows what might happen.

Could there be the pitter patter of tiny Royale Feet Again with another Sussex baby? Could there be another Cambridge babe? Could there be a season 2 of Netflix keeps signing out these kids very much as we know so and also of course.

There's one doesn't like to talk about it, but there's also the spectra of the event of a different kind unless celebratory kind.

That is not just if you want it on the horizon, but it's in the back of every royal correspondent to get arrested indeed.

That's it you got it.

I said it not you.

Not you.

What's the best bit of your job having an individual stories on and what is the thing that gives you the most joy.

I just love meeting people and I love speaking to people I love campaigns like this and I can eating to get out.

I'm not reported that likes being in the office in fat and carry my office on my back and when I moved the Telegraph they said do you want a desk in the lobby? I said no not really no thanks.

I don't want to be in an office.

I am at the moment because we were involved in a great amount of coverage and it all needs to go online and it's a constant can a minute by minute kind of production line of stories because of the situation we're in but I like nothing better than dispatched up north to cover a rally somewhere where I can just speak to people and find out.

What do they actually think because the public generally are legends and come up with the most preferred.

And are often about two steps ahead of the politicians anyway.

It's been a huge convenient and usually arrogant dialogue around brexit and remain so people don't know what the voting for the General Public are idiots the general public are generally extremely well-informed.

They're really engaging and they want to have the arguments and you know it's great to be out and I have a job where I'm able to do something different everyday and I just like I find it quite exciting in a go out with an empty notebook come back with it failed.

I still get a ridiculous getting stories to be a journalist for 20 years as I do like you know you get a scoop.

We all want scoops.

That's what it's all about and like getting stories.

I like getting stuff that people haven't got a like to see my name on the front of the paper still get a thrill if I get a splash you know it's going to be the flash which probably sounds a little bit infantile, but that's what motivates me.

Developing a hugely interesting conversation.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you very much with big things Media