Behind Palace Doors

The life of the Queen Mother was intensely secret. The most senior and best respected member of any royal family in history, she did not give one media interview in her 101 years. This affectionate and often hilarious glimpse into her world by her former Equerry reveals what life was really like living with the most private of all the Royals. In this sharp, funny and evocative memoir, Major Colin Burgess draws on his years as the Queen Mother's right-hand man to recount numerous previosuly untold stories of an extraordinarily long and eventful life. From dancing with Fred Astaire to living through the Blitz; from the time Princess Margaret caught fire at a dinner party to when Prince Charles sought solace in his grandmother as his marriage collapsed, each anecdote and observation provides an historic insight into one of our longest-surviving institutions. Constantly fascinating and packed from start to finish with previously untold stories, this is a celebration of a life gone - and a way of life fast disappearing.

Major Colin Burgess was commissioned into the Irish Guards in 1987. Between 1994 and 1996 he worked as equerry to the Queen Mother and was made a Member of the Victorian Order by the Queen at an investiture at Buckingham Palace. Paul Carter has worked as a sports reporter for the Sunday Times, feature writer for the Sun and also at Sky News. In 1996 Paul joined Sport Newspapers and was made editor of the Sunday Sport in June 2001.