Camillagate / Tampongate / Prince Charles Tampon Scandal

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Overview

Camillagate, also known as Tampongate or the Prince Charles Tampon Scandal, refers to a scandal surrounding a 1989 audio recording leaked in 1993 of then-Prince Charles III (now-King Charles III) and Camilla Parker Bowles allegedly flirting and having phone sex. At one point in the call, Charles reportedly joked that he wants to become Camilla's tampon. The audio recording and its transcript spread over the following decades as a point of criticism against Charles and the royal family, especially because it seems to prove that Charles was cheating on Princess Diana. In late 2022, following Queen Elizabeth II's death, the recording saw a resurgence in interest after Charles was crowned King of England.

History

In January 1993, a recording of private conversations between Prince Charles III and Camilla Parker Bowles was leaked to the Australian women's magazine New Idea and the British newspapers the Sunday Mirror and People.^[1] The scandal was deemed "Camillagate." The Camillagate leak happened one month after a recording of a private conversation between Princess Diana and James Gilbey was leaked, deemed "Squidgygate."

The conversation between Charles and Camilla, allegedly recorded in 1989, features the two of them flirting and having phone sex. The tape purportedly confirms that Charles and Camilla, both married at the time of the recording, were having an affair with one another. An article about the leak published in the LA Times^[2] in January 1993 suggests the leak may "keep Charles off the throne," writing, "Several newspapers and experts on the monarchy questioned whether the reputation of the Prince of Wales and heir to the throne could survive the published text."

At one point in the call, which is available on Geocities^[3] as a transcript, Charles jokes that he wants to become one of Camilla's tampons:

Charles: "What about me? The trouble is I need you several times a week."

Camilla: "Mmmm, so do I. I need you all the week. All the time."

Charles: "Oh, God. I'll just live inside your trousers, or something. It would be much easier!"

Camilla: (laughing) "What are you going to turn into, a pair of knickers?"

Both laugh

Camilla: "Oh, You're you're going to come back as a pair of knickers!"

Charles: "Or, God forbid, a Tampax! Just my luck!" (Laughs)

Camilla: "You are a complete idiot! (Laughs) Oh, what a wonderful idea!"

Charles: "My luck to be chucked down the lavatory and go on and on, forever swirling round on the top, never going down."

Camilla: (Laughing) "Oh, Darling!"

Charles: "Until the next one comes through."

Camilla: "Oh, perhaps you could come back as a box."

Charles: "What sort of box?"

Camilla: "A box of Tampax, so you could just keep going."

Charles: "That's true."

Camilla: "Repeating yourself…(Laughing) Oh, darling I just want you now."

The leaked tape damaged Charles III's reputation and played a part in the dissolution of his marriage to Princess Diana. The identity of the person who leaked the tape is unknown. The tampon section became a worldwide subject of mockery. For example, on February 6th, 1993, Saturday Night Live referenced Camillagate in a sketch where Charles is transformed into a tampon, which was uploaded to YouTube^[8] in 2013, garnering over 45,000 views in nine years (shown below).

Online Presence

The tape remained a point of discussion throughout the 2000s and 2010s. On July 31st, 2011, the Sydney Morning Herald^[4] published a story about the tapes where they discuss who the leaker could be. On August 10th, 2017, the Independent^[7] reported that Diana was happy about the Camillagate leaks based on a section from the book Guarding Diana: Protecting The Princess Around The World, written by her ex-personal protection officer Ken Wharfe.

On March 8th, 2021, Twitter^[5] user @Jasamgurlie posted an alleged clip of the audio from the call (shown below). The source of the audio is unknown but may be from a now-deleted upload about the calls by YouTuber^[6] Shaun Attwood.

2022 Resurgence / King Charles III Crowned

The scandal became an increasingly prominent subject of discussion following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8th, 2022, and the subsequent crowning of King Charles III. People began sharing the story as a point of criticism towards the king and to paint him in a negative light. On September 11th, 2022, TikToker^[9] @jim_nauseum posted an animation using the audio from the call, garnering over 4.3 million views in two days (shown below).