Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen has delivered a withering verdict on Buckingham Palace, comparing it to Fawlty Towers, and also shared his thoughts on Meghan Markle's experience of royal life. The former Changing Rooms star, 61, said during a visit to the iconic royal residence that it could do with a makeover.
Buckingham Palace Compared to Fawlty Towers
“I was at Buckingham Palace recently and it looks like Fawlty Towers. Once a grand, lovely space, it now has a feeling of a shuffy old golf hotel, which smells of cabbage and sticky carpets,” he told Heat magazine.
Meghan Markle and Royal Life
The interior designer, who hosts the True Royalty podcast, also reflected on the Duchess of Sussex's time within the Royal Family. He claimed: “I think she felt that she was in The Princess Diaries and mistook joining the British royal family for Genovia.”
Prince Harry and Family Rift
Discussing the ongoing rift between Prince Harry and the Royal Family, Llewelyn-Bowen said: “I might live quite close to the King, but he keeps very close counsel on that. I'm sure it's a source of great sadness that he doesn't have easy access to Harry and his grandchildren. As a grandfather myself, it would break my heart not to see my silly, foolish, flighty grandchildren every day.”
Family Life and Reality TV Ban
Away from the royals, Laurence spoke about his 37-year marriage to wife Jackie. “We've done everything together. Me being on telly and everything I've achieved has been with her motivating it and calling the shots. We are such incredible friends and have this great life with more than enough gin, because that is the secret to a happy life,” he said.
He joked that Jackie has now banned him from taking part in any more reality TV after his frightening experience on Celebrity Bear Hunt, where he had to be rescued after passing out beneath an overturned raft during a challenge with Bear Grylls in Costa Rica. “I loved it! Despite the whole dying thing,” he said, before adding: “It was an extraordinary experience. In my head, I was James Bond, but in reality, I was Grandpa Pig.”
He also quipped: “Mrs Llewelyn-Bowen has forbidden me from doing anything. I can't even do Bake Off because the cherry falls off the top of the cake and hits me in the eye.”
Life in the Cotswolds
The TV favourite is now enjoying what he calls a “reinvention” as an artist. Laurence and his family moved to a 17th-century Grade II-listed manor house in Siddington, a village just outside Cirencester, in 2007. He has previously described nearby Cirencester as “a wonderful place” thanks to its thriving independent businesses, while saying he and his family are in the “slumming end” of the region alongside the King, Princess Anne and the late Jilly Cooper rather than the celebrity enclave associated with David Beckham, Jeremy Clarkson and David Cameron.
“It's all about start-ups,” he said. “It's all about people who've got a real passion for what they do, be that furnishing accessories, be that fashion, be that coffee, be that restaurants. We've got some incredible restaurants in Cirencester now as well.”
