'My special Christmas date with the Princess'

Well-known Torbay businessman and impresario Lionel Digby has been rubbing shoulders with the Royals this Christmas, remembering the Queen and his late wife.

Lionel, 87, had tea with the Princess of Wales at Windsor Castle which was then followed by a VIP invite to the Royal Family's annual Carol Service at Westminster Abbey where a wedding picture of him and Yvonne, who died in September after 63 years marriage, was placed on the Abbey Christmas tree as part of the special service.

'Legend' Lionel has led a colourful life, including working in the hotel sector, the rock 'n roll industry and running a costume hire business in Market Street. He is also a renowned historian, collector of military memorabilia and has taken part in many historic re-enactments. He also made a name for himself as a leading costumier, supplying costumes for several famous films, TV series and world-renowned actors and actresses.

He also does a lot of charity work and is a staunch member and standard bearer with Torquay's Royal British Legion after serving in the Household Cavalry Regiment between 1953 and 1956

It was his military background, charity links and the fact that will be spending Christmas without his beloved Yvonne for the first time in more than three decades that particularly interested the Royals, especially the Princess of Wales as they celebrate Christmas for the first time without the Queen after her death in September.

The Yuletide dates with the Royals came as Lionel was filming a documentary with ITV about auctions and the time he auctioned off a poster from the Sex Pistols!

Lionel says: "I worked with the producer of the show in the film industry and got on well with her. She then switched to the BBC and was working on the Carol Service for the Princess of Wales

"This year is 'Bereavement Year' because of the Queen's death. They wanted somebody on the programme who was recently bereaved and who was going to be on their own at Christmas."

A video of a 'zoom' meeting involving the producers and Lionel was shown to the Princess and she liked what she saw.

Soon he, a midwife from Liverpool who has worked on every Christmas Day for the past 23 years, and a man who spends every Christmas looking after needy families, were on their way to Windsor Castle for a extra special tea party with the Princess.

Lionel was able to tell her that he once supplied costumes to her future husband William and brother Harry when they were students at Eaton College and were talking part in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing play. They also shared family photographs.

He added: "She was amazing. It was as if I had known her for years. She was lovely and very comforting."

Lionel subsequently went to the Abbey service with grand-daughter Rebecca Fetherlin and met Princes Eugene. He lit a candle for Yvonne and was able to remember her with the wedding photo on the Abbey tree.

He has already attended to two Royal garden parties and carried the Queen Mother's standard on her 100th birthday.

'Cameos' from the tea with the Princess will form part of the carol concert service when it is shown on BBC 1 on Christmas Eve at 7pm.

Meanwhile Lionel will be helping to serve Christmas lunch to dozens of people at the Acorn Centre in Torquay on Christmas Day.