The Queen has instructed lawyers to issue a strong warning to newspaper and magazine editors, instructing them not to use any paparazzi snaps of the Royal family during their annual stay at Sandringham. This is another bid from the Royal Family to protect their privacy. But of course, tongues are a-wagging…

Pictures of the Queen and other royals out hunting on the estate — killing or beating animals — have regularly appeared in newspapers for decades, but this is the first time the Queen has taken steps to warn off photographers. It has led to controversy and criticism. In 2004 the Queen herself was photographed clubbing a wounded pheasant to death with a walking stick, and in 2000 she was pictured wringing a pheasant’s neck which had been brought to her by a Labrador. Finally, last December, Prince Edward was accused of animal cruelty after he was photographed hitting a gun dog with a stick.

But the gossip-hungry media of course hints that this move has followed reports that the Queen will break with tradition this year by inviting Prince William’s girlfriend, Kate Middleton, to spend Christmas Day at Sandringham.

Article: The Telegraph

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