Robert Lacey
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      Battle of Brothers

      June 24, 2021

      Latest Books

      The Crown Volume 2: The Official Companion

      November 19, 2019

      Latest Books

      The Crown: The Official Companion

      October 1, 2017

      8.3
      Latest Books

      Model Woman

      June 16, 2015

      8.3
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      Grace: Her Lives – Her Loves

      June 11, 2014

      Latest Books

      Gulf Charities and Islamic Philanthropy

      March 18, 2014

      Latest Books

      A Brief Life of the Queen

      January 31, 2012

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      As of 1 January 2023, Robert Lacey is…

      January 4, 2023

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      Harry and Meghan? John and Yoko? Spot the difference! 

      December 4, 2022

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      The Crown does NOT tell lies

      November 9, 2022

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      The Crown: Never a truer word was said…

      November 5, 2022

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      Yet another new Prime Minister? ’Dear! Oh, dear!’

      October 21, 2022

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      Encounters with Elizabeth What was it like to…

      May 31, 2022

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      My kitchen EXPLODED when the Queen came to…

      May 31, 2022

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Robert Lacey

  • Home
  • Biography
  • Books
    • Latest Books

      Battle of Brothers

      June 24, 2021

      Latest Books

      The Crown Volume 2: The Official Companion

      November 19, 2019

      Latest Books

      The Crown: The Official Companion

      October 1, 2017

      8.3
      Latest Books

      Model Woman

      June 16, 2015

      8.3
      Latest Books

      Grace: Her Lives – Her Loves

      June 11, 2014

      Latest Books

      Gulf Charities and Islamic Philanthropy

      March 18, 2014

      Latest Books

      A Brief Life of the Queen

      January 31, 2012

  • News
    • News

      As of 1 January 2023, Robert Lacey is…

      January 4, 2023

      News

      Harry and Meghan? John and Yoko? Spot the difference! 

      December 4, 2022

      News

      The Crown does NOT tell lies

      November 9, 2022

      News

      The Crown: Never a truer word was said…

      November 5, 2022

      News

      Yet another new Prime Minister? ’Dear! Oh, dear!’

      October 21, 2022

      News

      Encounters with Elizabeth What was it like to…

      May 31, 2022

      News

      My kitchen EXPLODED when the Queen came to…

      May 31, 2022

  • Contact
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Robert Lacey

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    My haven

    My haven

    Robert Lacey shares memories and cherished souvenirs in the library in his North London home.

    My mother Vida worked hard and expected the same from me and my younger brother Graham. 

    She met my father Bill when they were both clerks at Lloyds Bank, then she left to become a school dinner lady so she could be with us in the school holidays. 

    I grew up in Bristol and got my 11-plus scholarship to Bristol Grammar School. 

    The football team I supported was Bristol Rovers – their team scarf and hat are on the sofa – and I loved our centre forward, Geoff Bradford. 

    He played just once for England but he did score a goal!

    CROWNING GLORY  

    This photo, signed by the Queen, shows my wife Jane when she was a maid of honour at the Coronation in 1953. 

    She was then Lady Jane Vane-Tempest-Stewart, daughter of the Marquess of Londonderry, and we met through friends in 2002. 

    I was divorced from my first wife Sandi, with whom I had three children, and Jane was a widow with four children. We’ve been very happily married since 2012.

    OUT OF AFRICA  

    Before I went to Cambridge University to read history in the mid-1960s I signed up to do voluntary work abroad. 

    Robert lived in Jeddah with his wife and children for two years in the late 70s. He kept catechism boards (pictured) as a memento of that part of the world

    Because I’d been on a French exchange trip while at school, I was sent to a missionary college in Lomé, the capital of French-speaking Togo in West Africa, where I taught English to every grade in the school for a year. 

    These tribal masks are a reminder of that time.

    WILD LIVES OF THE ROYALS  

    I have a collection of royal souvenirs and especially love my Edward VII and Queen Alexandra coronation mugs and cups from 1902. 

    I felt most of the royal correspondents were rather sycophantic so I thought I’d be less deferential in my breakthrough book, Majesty, in 1977. 

    I was like David Attenborough discovering an exotic species of wildlife. 

    The royals are endlessly fascinating and it’s a pleasure being historical consultant for screenwriter Peter Morgan on The Crown, having already worked on his movie The Queen, starring Helen Mirren.

    DRAMATIC IMPROVEMENT  

    These are programmes for Forty-Five Minutes With Hamlet, the latest show by the charity Kent Opera, of which I’m chairman. 

    We used to bring opera to prisons, but now focus on Shakespeare, getting ex-offenders and those who are about to be released from jail involved with drama. 

    We then work with charities to help place them in jobs – one of our contacts was Jack Merritt, who was killed in the terror attack at London Bridge last November. A tragic loss.

    ARABIAN NIGHTS  

    For my book The Kingdom, about the Saudi royal family, I took my wife and children to live for two and a half years in Jeddah in the late 70s. 

    Friends I made there included journalist Jamal Khashoggi – I co-wrote his last three articles before he was murdered. 

    These catechism boards are a memento of that part of the world – with their naughty rooster and cheeky pelican, they’re Beatrix Potter-like stories with an Islamic twist. 

    Read the full article: Daily Mail

    February 15, 2020 0 comment
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  • How Advisor to The Crown Robert Lacey Gets Closer to the Truth

    January 19, 2019

    Robert Lacey was interviewed by Lily Hansen about his work, his method and how he feels about his work.

    Read more

Robert Lacey

Robert Lacey

British historian and writer

Robert Lacey is a British historian noted for his original research, which gets him close to – and often living alongside – his subjects. He is the author of numerous international bestsellers. lege felicter - may you read happily

Lege feliciter - may you read happily

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As the Platinum Jubilee begins with news of Camill As the Platinum Jubilee begins with news of Camilla’s elevated status, the Queen, Charles and William are making the big decisions as a trio. 

Robert Lacey writes in @thetimes. Article also on Robert’s website: Robertlacey.com

#robertlacey #platinumjubilee #royalfamily #thequeen
Robert lacey writes for the BBC as The Queen celeb Robert lacey writes for the BBC as The Queen celebrates her #platinumjubilee 

Full article on the BBC website: www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60201088
As we approach the 70th anniversary of The Queen’s accession on February 6th, Robert Lacey selects his top pick of books about the Royal Family and The Queen. 

shepherd.com/best-books/about-the-queen

#royalfamily #PlatinumJubilee
Battle of Brothers: William, Harry and the Inside Battle of Brothers: William, Harry and the Inside Story of a Family in Tumult

First published in hardback: 15 October 2020

What drove Prince William and Prince Harry from the closest of brothers into very different, now distanced men? How has the painful, public unravelling of Prince Charles and Diana’s marriage reverberated through generations? What parts have Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle played in helping their husbands to choose divergent paths? And how does the Queen feel, marshalling her feuding heirs and looking ahead to the future of the British monarchy?

Moving and unvarnished, this is the most intimate insight yet of division in the royal family.

#battleofbrothers #royalfamily #harryandmeghan #williamandkate #britishmonarchy #robertlacey #christmasreads
Little Man - Meyer Lansky and the gangster life by Little Man - Meyer Lansky and the gangster life by Robert Lacey in 1991

Little Man is a book about organised crime unlike any other yet written. If, in the mythology of organised crime, Al Capone symbolised the crude menace of the machine gun and the baseball bat, Meyer Lansky stood for the brains, the sophistication, the hot money, the sheer cleverness of it all. This brilliant biography and social history separates the strands of fact and legend in Meyer Lansky’s – the Godfather of Godfathers – career, revealing a truth about the gangster life in America that is far more fascinating and dramatic than fiction.

#biography 
#meyerlansky 
#americanhistory 
#robertlacey
Extracts from Robert Lacey's book "Battle of Broth Extracts from Robert Lacey's book "Battle of Brothers: William, Harry and the Inside Story of a Family in Tumult" are being featured in The Times this week. 

In Today's article Robert Lacey said allegations against the Duchess of Sussex led to a bitter row between brothers who were once inseparable.

You can read the full article from the link in the bio.

#MeghanandHarry
#WilliamandKate
#TheCrown
#BattleofBrothers
#RoyalFamily
Speaking earlier, Robert Lacey said: “Prince Ph Speaking earlier, Robert Lacey said:

“Prince Philip has been such an integral part of our life. Playing such a key role in the life of the nation.

It was no accident that we decided to feature Prince Philip very strongly in the Crown episode about the moon landing – capturing his interests in science and how he came to understand that science can only take you so far. He went on to develop a strong personal religious faith.

He also helped in bringing the monarchy into touch with everyday life in a fresh way. So many of The Queen’s fresh ideas and fresh initiatives came from this remarkable man.

Prince Philip will be remembered for his sardonic smile, hands behind the back, often unfailingly 2 steps behind Her Majesty. Always there in the most supporting sense.”

Photograph from 1972 in Robert Lacey's book Majesty. “Queen Elizabeth was always front, but Prince Philip was always center.”
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