Queen 'Told Police To Stop Eating Palace Nuts'

Police officers eating nuts left out as snacks in Buckingham Palace irritated the Queen, the trial into alleged phone hacking at the News Of The World has heard.

The revelations about the Queen's feelings were found in an email sent by Clive Goodman, former royal editor at the now-defunct Sunday tabloid newspaper to former editor Andy Coulson.

A memo was sent to palace officers, telling them to "keep their sticky fingers out", the Old Bailey heard.

"Problem is that police on patrol eat the lot ... memo now gone around to all palace cops telling them to keep their sticky fingers out," the email read.

Prosecutor Andrew Edis QC told the jury what the Queen apparently thought about the behaviour of the officers, according to Goodman's email.

"Apparently they were helping themselves to nuts," the barrister said.

"They were all being scoffed by police. That irritated Her Majesty, apparently.

"Queen so narked she has started marking the bowls to see when the levels dipped."

In another email sent in March 2005 by Goodman, the former royal editor claimed he knew the printer doing the order of service for the Prince of Wales' wedding to the Duchess of Cornwall and had a man checking out the wedding invitations.

"Only person to accept so far is Tony Blair," he wrote.

Goodman, 56, along with former spin doctor Coulson, 45, and a number of others, faces conspiracy allegations over misconduct in public office and other charges.

The court later heard that one of the accused, former NOTW journalist Ian Edmondson, is "currently unfit" and will take no further part in the trial.

"Bearing in mind the current estimate of the length of this trial, I do not think it is appropriate to adjourn to wait for his recovery and accordingly I shall discharge you from giving a verdict in his case," said Mr Justice Saunders.

"He will be tried by a different jury at a later date."

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