In a candid and revealing interview, Queen Camilla has broken her long-held silence about a frightening personal ordeal from her youth. The 78-year-old British royal spoke publicly for the first time about fighting off an attacker on a train when she was a teenager in the 1960s.
A Startling Assault and a Furious Response
The Queen Consort recounted the traumatic incident during a pre-recorded BBC radio discussion that aired on Wednesday. She described how the assault had left her "furious" and had been "lurking in the back of my brain for a very long time." Camilla explained that she was reading a book on the train when she was suddenly attacked by a stranger, a man she did not know.
"I did fight back," Camilla stated emphatically, recalling her immediate reaction to the threat. Her defiance in the moment was so intense that it left visible signs. She remembered her mother's reaction upon her return: "Why is your hair standing on end?" and "Why is the button missing from your coat?"
The Unconventional Weapon: A Mother's Advice
The most striking detail of her self-defence tactic came from a piece of maternal wisdom. According to the Queen, she followed advice her mother had once given her for such a dangerous situation. She took off her shoe and used it to hit her assailant. This vivid detail underscores the sudden, visceral nature of the attack and her quick-thinking response.
This personal story was not widely known until earlier this year. It was first revealed in the book "Power and the Palace" by Valentine Low, a former royal editor for The Times newspaper. The account notes that Camilla had previously shared the story with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2008, when he was Mayor of London.
A Conversation Rooted in Advocacy and Tragedy
Queen Camilla shared this deeply personal memory not as a standalone anecdote, but within a profound context. She participated in the BBC discussion on violence against women and girls alongside sports commentator John Hunt, his daughter Amy, and former Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May.
The conversation was particularly poignant because of the Hunts' family tragedy. In 2024, John Hunt's wife, Carol, and his two younger daughters, Hannah (28) and Louise (25), were murdered in a stabbing and crossbow attack at their home by Louise's ex-boyfriend. The perpetrator was later jailed for life.
Camilla, who is the patron of the domestic abuse charity SafeLives, spoke with great empathy. She praised John and Amy Hunt for their strength, telling them, "Wherever your family is now, they'd be so proud of you both." She added, "They must be from above smiling down on you." The Hunts have since established a memorial fund to raise money for charities that support and inspire young women.
By connecting her own decades-old experience of sudden violence with the contemporary and devastating stories of others, Queen Camilla highlighted the enduring and pervasive issue of attacks against women. Her decision to speak out adds a powerful, personal dimension to her advocacy work, reminding the public that the impact of such trauma can last a lifetime.
