Michael David Fawcett (born 6 November 1962) is a former senior

valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

who today consults on various royal projects.

Career

Royal household

Fawcett began his service to the British royal family in 1981 as a

footman A footman is a male domestic worker employed mainly to wait at table or attend a coach or carriage. Etymology Originally in the 14th century a footman denoted a soldier or any pedestrian, later it indicated a foot servant. A running footman deli ...

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

. He later became first sergeant footman and eventually moved to the Household of the Prince of Wales. Fawcett rose to become

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

's assistant valet. In 1998, various staff complained about his bullying, after which he resigned, but within a week he was reinstated and promoted. Former royal press officer

Dickie Arbiter Richard Winston Arbiter LVO (born September 1940) is a British journalist, television and radio commentator on the British Royal Family and an international public speaker. He was a press spokesman for Queen Elizabeth II from 1988 until 2000; i ...

remarked of Fawcett, "Fawcett has been there for so many years, so close in times of stress, that he knows all the ins and outs and all the warts." This has been contrasted against biographies such as ''Behind Palace Doors'' where Major Colin Burgess pondered why Fawcett has been able to exert influence in royal circles to the degree he has with little formal education or professional experience.

Controversies

Prince Charles' denial of unspecified banned allegation

In 2003, Fawcett received an injunction against ''

The Mail on Sunday ''The Mail on Sunday'' is a British conservative newspaper, published in a tabloid format. It is the biggest-selling Sunday newspaper in the UK and was launched in 1982 by Lord Rothermere. Its sister paper, the '' Daily Mail'', was first pu ...

'', banning them from writing about an unspecified allegation. A few days later, Prince Charles issued a statement, asserting that the unspecified banned allegation was untrue. Fawcett resigned from his position in Prince Charles's inner circle in March 2003, following a report by

Sir Michael Peat Sir Michael Charles Gerrard Peat (born 16 November 1949) is an English retired accountant and courtier. He was the Principal Private Secretary to Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall between 2002 and 2011. Life and career P ...

that identified mismanagement at

Clarence House Clarence House is a royal residence on The Mall in the City of Westminster, London. It was built in 1825–1827, adjacent to St James's Palace, for the Duke of Clarence, the future king William IV. Over the years, it has undergone much exte ...

. The Peat inquiry found that Fawcett had accepted "numerous gifts in the course of his royal service", but cleared him of any financial impropriety. After resigning, Fawcett continued to work for Charles on a freelance basis as a fixer and party planner.

Cash-for-honours allegations

In September 2021, ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' and ''

'' newspapers reported that Michael Fawcett had fixed a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

for Saudi businessman

Mahfouz Marei Mubarak bin Mahfouz Mahfouz Marei Mubarak bin Mahfouz, Lord of Abernethy ( ar, محفوظ مرعي مبارك بن محفوظ) (born 14 December 1969) is a Saudi Arabian businessman living in the United Kingdom. Mahfouz is the executive officer of Saudi-based Marei ...

who donated more than £1.5 million to royal charities. The disclosures prompted a criminal complaint under section 1 of the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925. The activity was also said to be covered by the Bribery Act 2010. Prince Charles gave Mahfouz his Honorary CBE at a private ceremony in the Blue Drawing Room at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

in November 2016, though the event was not published in the

Court Circular The Court Circular (CC) is the official record that lists the engagements carried out by the monarch of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms; the Royal Family; and appointments to their staff and to the court. It is issued by St Ja ...

. ''The Mail on Sunday'' reported that Fawcett wrote in a 2017 letter to Mahfouz's aide: In response former

Liberal Democrat Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties ...

Norman Baker Norman John Baker (born 26 July 1957) is a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewes in East Sussex from the 1997 general election until his defeat in 2015. In May 2010 he was appointed ...

wrote to

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

Commissioner

Cressida Dick Dame Cressida Rose Dick (born 16 October 1960) is a British retired senior police officer who served as Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis from 2017 to 2022. She is both the first female and first openly homosexual officer to lead the Me ...

urging a police inquiry. Michael Wynne-Parker allegedly acted as a middle man in the affair. Wynne-Parker maintains he went into

by a rear entrance and discussed the honour with Fawcett and William Bortrick. Six months later Mahfouz got the honour. Wynne-Parker said, "It was amazing. I was shocked when I suddenly saw the reality later. They acted very quickly, as always is usual with Fawcett. I wasn't surprised in one sense because of what seemed like Fawcett's magical powers." An independent investigation arranged by the Prince's Trust found evidence that Fawcett and others co-ordinated over honours nominations. In November 2021, Fawcett resigned from his role as Chief Executive of

The Prince's Foundation The Prince's Foundation (formerly the Prince of Wales's Institute of Architecture until 2001, the Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment until 2012, and the Prince's Foundation for Building Community until 2018) is an educational charity est ...

, receiving a £60,000 payoff. The auditing firm EY, which was hired by the charity to carry out an investigation, published a summary report in December 2021, stating that Fawcett had co-ordinated with "fixers", but there was "no evidence that trustees at the time were aware of these communications". In February 2022 the

launched an investigation into the cash-for-honours allegations linked to Charles' charity The Prince's Foundation. In August 2022, ''The Sunday Times'' reported that Fawcett had not yet been interviewed by the police.

Personal life

Fawcett married former royal housemaid, Debbie, in the early 1990s. The couple have a daughter and a son.

Honours

* He was made a Member of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

(MVO) in the 2001 New Years Honours List. * He received the

Royal Household Long and Faithful Service Medal The Royal Household Long and Faithful Service Medal is a civil decoration awarded by the British monarch to servants of the royal household for long and faithful service. History The Royal Household Long and Faithful Service Medal was establish ...

for 20 years service to the Royal Family in 2001. * As a senior employee of the Royal Household, he received the

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'or de la Reine Elizabeth II) or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

in 2002.

References

BBC Profile of Michael Fawcett
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fawcett, Michael 1962 births Living people British domestic workers Members of the British Royal Household Members of the Royal Victorian Order