Queen Elizabeth II was a very good boss, says former press secretary

Charles Anson was the Queen's press secretary for seven years

The late Queen was "a very good boss", according to one of her former press secretaries.

Charles Anson, who lives in Polegate, East Sussex, served Her Majesty from 1990 until 1997.

His time in the role took in the breakdown of three royal marriages and the fire at Windsor castle in 1992, a year the Queen dubbed her "annus horribilis".

"Not only was it an honour to work for her, it was great fun," Mr Anson said.

"The Queen was always a very direct person to deal with," he said, "with a strong, simple character and a brilliant listener."

Charles Anson worked with Queen Elizabeth II during some of the most difficult years for her family

The fire at Windsor Castle happened in November 1992, at the end of a year in which the marriages of the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of York both broke down, and the Princess Royal and Captain Mark Phillips divorced three years after separating.

Mr Anson said of the fire: "It really did feel like the last straw, a moment of symbolic difficulty that could be overwhelming".

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Charles Anson (bottom right) with the Queen on a visit to Cyprus

He described the Queen arriving at Buckingham Palace after the fire, having gone into her Windsor apartments herself to personally retrieve some valued items.

"A few of us gathered to offer our sympathies, the Queen walked in and we all said how sorry we were.

"A huge smile broke out on her face and she said 'well at least we saved some of the pictures'.

"That ability to maintain equanimity, a bit of humour and a bit of positivity, she was always looking for the best thing to do."

Charles Anson, standing behind the Queen, meeting Sir John and Lady Norma Major

Recalling one of the Queen's last visits to Sussex in 2017, Mr Anson said: "She went to Newhaven and bought fish off the slab at the port, a marvellous way to start a day of monarch's engagement, at a fish counter."

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