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New Book Reports Queen Camilla Fended Off Teen Train Attacker With Her Heel

The palace has not verified the account released in Valentine Low’s book.

Overview

  • Valentine Low’s Power and the Palace reports that, as a teenager in the 1960s, Camilla struck a man with her shoe heel to escape a sexual assault on a train to Paddington.
  • According to the account, she alerted police at the station and the man was arrested.
  • The episode was said to have been disclosed privately in 2008 during discussions tied to plans for rape-support centres involving then–London mayor Boris Johnson.
  • Coverage differs on sourcing, with some reports attributing the story’s relay to Johnson and others to his former communications chief, Guto Harri.
  • Reporting links the anecdote to Camilla’s long-standing work with survivors, including hosting a 2012 Clarence House event and visiting support centres and victims during later tours.