'Queen Dictator' Butler's Memoir Lifts Lid On Wallis Simpson And Duke of Windsor's Relationship
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'Queen Dictator' Butler's Memoir Lifts Lid On Wallis Simpson And Duke of Windsor's Relationship
A sensational memoir by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor’s butler has lifted the lid on the exiled royals’ tempestuous relationship. American socialite Wallis Simpson is dubbed a ‘Queen Dictator’ who never loved Edward in newly-discovered memoirs by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor’s former butler. Such are the royal revelations, one of America’s biggest television producers hoped to turn them into a series decades ago. But the memories of life with King Edward VIII and twice-divorced Wallis, the woman who sparked his abdication, stayed under wraps - until now. The unpublished memoirs of Alan Fisher (1930-2006), who rose from the slums of Manchester to become one of the most sought-after butlers in the world, are going under the hammer. The memoirs lift the lid on high society courtesy of a man who served royalty, the rich and famous. As well the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Alan worked for Bing Crosby for 17 years, Ralph Lauren, and Robert Lehman of Lehman Brothers. Alan’s last formal engagement in the 1980s was butler for Charles and Diana, the Prince and Princess of Wales. In 1978 he put pen to paper to record memories of his six years, from 1954, serving the Duke and Duchess of Windsor at their home in Bois de Boulogne, France. With him was his wife, Norma, maid to the Duchess of Windsor. The servants resided on site in ‘The Cottage’.
British Library/ Cover Images
A sensational memoir by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor's butler has lifted the lid on the exiled royals' tempestuous relationship.