A right royal refusal to Devizes Festival performer (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

A right royal refusal to Devizes Festival performer

8:00pm Saturday 23rd June 2012 in Devizes By Lewis Cowen

Her Majesty the Queen will never give an interview, least of all to ace radio interrogator John Humphrys.

Mr Humphrys revealed this information during his open and frank revelations on Saturday night before a full house in the Ceres Hall of the Corn Exchange, one of the most prestigious events in this year’s Devizes Festival programme.

Mr Humphrys, looking slimmer and slighter than he does on TV, was in relaxed mood as he admitted to a string of bloopers, mostly early in his career, and revealing insights into the behaviour of the great and the not so good.

But it was a reply to a question from the floor that provided the most interesting information of the evening. Asked who is left for him to interview, he admitted to an ambition to interview the Queen.

He had been invited to an intimate private lunch at Buckingham Palace, where he was surprised to see Her Majesty take out her powder puff and repair her make-up at table, something his mother would have frowned on.

After the meal, he raised the subject of an interview. He was met with a firm royal “no”. Pushing his luck, he tried again. The Queen replied: “If one were ever to do an interview it would certainly not be with you, Mr Humphrys.”

His career began in his native Wales with a job as a cub reporter on a local newspaper in Penarth. He moved to ever better papers until he was offered a job on the Sunday Times.

At exactly the same time a job came up on the infant Television West and Wales, the forerunner of HTV, and he took it. He worked all over the world as a foreign correspondent before landing a job as a newsreader on BBC’s Nine O’Clock News, a period he described as six wasted years. He gladly he accepted the offer to present the BBC’s award-winning Today programme on Radio 4, despite the 3.30am rises.

He has interviewed every major politician in Britain and many other parts of the world during his time on Today, but the prospect of interviewing Margaret Thatcher had him shaking in his shoes.

Knowing of her religious convictions, he thought he would trap her and asked her what the basis of Christianity was – hoping for a response about love and charity. Without hesitation Mrs T shot back “choice”, rendering Mr Humphrys speechless.

Mr Humphrys donated his fee for his appearance to his Kitchen Table Charities Trust, which supports poor communities in Africa.

He also signed copies of his books, also donating the proceeds of the sales to the trust.