Love, CAMILLA

Two royal fans share the joy of corresponding with the monarchy

Lucy Kehoe, 27, lives in London I was just 11 when the then Prince Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles. The mood of the nation towards the celebrations was rather negative. There was a lot of talk about the wedding in the papers and on the television and radio, and there were even reports of the couple receiving hate messages.

But I’d always had a bit of a soft spot for the Royal Family, and despite my young age I felt really sorry for the couple. In my mind, they were just two people marrying the person they loved. Clearly, I wouldn’t stop talking about how unfair it was as two years later my mum suggested I write to Camilla, sending her my best wishes.

It wasn’t the first time I’d written to a royal. When I was very little, I sent a drawing of a castle to the Queen at Buckingham Palace and received a polite reply from a lady-inwaiting, thanking me for the picture. I assumed I would receive a similar response to this letter.

I don’t remember exactly what my letter said, but I know I hand wrote it, offered my congratulations on their nuptials, and added that I thought Camilla looked elegant in her pale blue and gold wedding gown. Hedging my bets on the address, I put ‘Camilla, Clarence House, Buckingham Palace or Kensington Palace, London, United Kingdom’ on the envelope. My mum popped it in the postbox at the end of our road, and I forgot all about it.