Secret letters revealed

Whenever the demure world of Britain's aristocracy collides with its notoriously confrontational press pack, eyebrows are inevitably raised.

It comes as no surprise then that Prince Charles' top press adviser, Kristina Kyriacou, has found herself at the centre of a media storm after an altercation with Channel 4 News reporter Michael Crick.

Footage from the incident shows Ms Kyriacou jostling with Crick as he tried to confront the prince over a series of letters he wrote to government ministers between 2004 and 2005.

Dubbed the "black spider memos", in reference to the prince's unusual handwriting style, the letters have prompted allegations that the royal overstepped his position of political neutrality.

Hours before the court-enforced publication of the letters on Wednesday, Ms Kyriacou drew further attention to the issue when she body-blocked Crick who approached Charles as he arrived at a public engagement.

"Good morning, sir," Crick said to Charles as he got out of his car.

"Are you worried about these letters?" the reporter continued, as he tried to push past Ms Kyriacou, who resisted firmly, causing her momentarily to lose her balance.

Ms Kyriacou then tried to snatch Crick's boom microphone as he continued to lob questions at Charles.

"Are you writing any more letters to ministers?" he asked.

The press secretary's hands seized upon the microphone's fluffy protective covering, tearing it from its sheath, before discarding it on the floor.

The incident was over in under 30 seconds, but Britain's rapacious press has made a meal of the scuffle. It adds further colour to the contents of the prince's written exchange with government ministers, compromising 27 letters and replies, which were published on Wednesday following a 10-year court battle with The Guardian.

Among the more unusual complaints in the prince's missives is his dismay at the "intellectual dishonesty" of the "badger lobby".

"I do urge you to look again at introducing a proper cull of badgers where it is necessary," the prince wrote in February 2005.

"I, for one, cannot understand how the 'badger lobby' seem not to mind at all about the slaughter of thousands of expensive cattle, and yet object to a managed cull of an overpopulation of badgers – to me, this is intellectually dishonest."