Queen Camilla greeted Dame Jilly Cooper with a warm kiss on each cheek at a royal event marking the third annual Queen's Reading Room festival, held this year at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. The monarch, a longtime admirer of Cooper's bonkbuster novels and the raunchy Disney+ series based on Rivals, attended a reception that gathered Britain's leading writers and other literary talents as part of the charity's efforts to celebrate the transformative power of books.
Camilla told Cooper that Andrew Parker Bowles, the queen's former husband, and their daughter Laura Lopes had enjoyed an invitation to a party earlier this year at Cooper's Gloucestershire home with the Rivals cast. She added, "They enjoyed your party. They love a bit of your Rivals. Everybody's enjoyed your Rivals." Cooper, speaking afterward, said the exchange reflected a long-standing friendship between them. "We've known each other a long time. It's lovely they all like it." The conversation highlighted the personal links that intersect the royal world and popular fiction.
Cooper’s most famous male character, Rupert Campbell-Black, is widely understood to be inspired by Parker Bowles, with the onscreen portrayal by Alex Hassell in Rivals. Cooper later spoke of the ex-husband in their conversation, telling reporters, "Andrew is a wonderful man. Her Majesty and Andrew still get on so well. They are still great friends who are very fond of each other." The comments underscored the author’s assertion that personal histories can inform fiction, while noting that Camilla remains an admirer of Cooper’s work and its adaptations.
The Queen's Reading Room Festival, now in its third year, has taken up residence at Chatsworth House, one of Britain's best-known stately homes. The charity behind the festival promotes reading and the broader, transformative power of books in the United Kingdom and beyond. Its online reach has grown to more than 12 million people in 183 countries, reflecting the event’s international interest and the enduring appeal of British literary culture.
The gathering at Chatsworth underscores the royal family's continued engagement with literature and the arts, as well as the enduring cross-currents between real-life figures and their fictional counterparts. Cooper’s Rivals, including its Disney adaptation, has found a broad audience, while Camilla’s participation in the Reading Room festival emphasizes a commitment to literacy and cultural programming that extends beyond traditional royal duties. As the festival continues to expand its reach, organizers aim to broaden access to books and reading opportunities, reinforcing the idea that storytelling remains a shared national and international pursuit.