MEMBERS of Tavistock Ladies' Luncheon Club will get a fascinating insight into the Royal household today (Thursday) when they welcome a former Royal Butler as their guest speaker.

Paul Kidd, who served as butler to the Queen in the 70s, will share anecdotes of his time at Buckingham Palace, during his lunchtime speech at the Bedford Hotel.

He was promoted in 1979 and transferred to Clarence House to serve the Queen Mother.

Three years later, his career was cut short when he was diagnosed with cancer.

However, he made a full recovery and now travels the world enthralling audiences with his after-dinner talks.

His presentation, which will include memorabilia from the Royal home, marks the 40th anniversary celebrations of the lunchtime club, which has 62 members.

Club secretary Wendy Stackhouse said everyone was thoroughly looking forward to Mr Kidd's talk.

'We thought we would really splash out on our Christmas speaker this year to celebrate our 40th anniversary.

'He's very much in demand as a speaker, and in fact we booked him two years ago — so this really is something of a coup for us.

'He's got so many stories up his sleeve, including his time aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia during the Silver Jubileee tours. I think it should be a very entertaining lunch.'

She said the club meets at the Bedford Hotel on the last Thursday of every month to enjoy a meal followed by a talk from a guest speaker.

'We want to attract new members so we can afford to keep getting good speakers like Paul Kidd to come along,' she said. Anyone interested in joining the club can contact Wendy on 01822 832308.