Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen has delivered a withering verdict on one of Britain's most famous buildings – while also sharing his thoughts on Meghan Markle's experience of royal life.
The former Changing Rooms star, 61, has never been one to hold back his opinions and has revealed he recently visited Buckingham Palace and suggested the iconic royal residence could do with one of his trademark makeovers.
"I was at Buckingham Palace recently and it looks like Fawlty Towers. Once a grand, lovely space, it now has a feeling of a shuffy old golf hotel, which smells of cabbage and sticky carpets," he told Heat.
The interior designer, who hosts the True Royalty podcast, also reflected on the Duchess of Sussex's time within the Royal Family, claiming: "I think she felt that she was in The Princess Diaries and mistook joining the British royal family for Genovia."
Discussing the ongoing rift between Prince Harry and the Royal Family, he said: "I might live quite close to the King, but he keeps very close counsel on that. I'm sure it's a source of great sadness that he doesn't have easy access to Harry and his grandchildren. As a grandfather myself, it would break my heart not to see my silly, foolish, flighty grandchildren every day."
Away from the royals, Laurence also spoke about family life with wife Jackie, whom he has been married to for 37 years after the pair met as teenagers.
"We've done everything together. Me being on telly and everything I've achieved has been with her motivating it and calling the shots. We are such incredible friends and have this great life with more than enough gin, because that is the secret to a happy life," he said.
He joked that Jackie has now banned him from taking part in any more reality TV after his frightening experience on Celebrity Bear Hunt, where he had to be rescued after passing out beneath an overturned raft during a challenge with Bear Grylls in Costa Rica.
"I loved it! Despite the whole dying thing," he said, before adding: "It was an extraordinary experience. In my head, I was James Bond, but in reality, I was Grandpa Pig."
He also quipped: "Mrs Llewelyn-Bowen has forbidden me from doing anything. I can't even do Bake Off because the cherry falls off the top of the cake and hits me in the eye."
The TV favourite is now enjoying what he calls a "reinvention" as an artist and recently reflected on the life he has built in the Cotswolds.
Laurence and his family moved to a 17th-century Grade II-listed manor house in Siddington, a village just outside Cirencester, in 2007.
Laurence has previously described nearby Cirencester as "a wonderful place" thanks to its thriving independent businesses, while saying he and his family are in the "slumming end" of the region alongside the King, Princess Anne and the late Jilly Cooper rather than the celebrity enclave associated with David Beckham, Jeremy Clarkson and David Cameron.
"It's all about start-ups," he said. "It's all about people who've got a real passion for what they do, be that furnishing accessories, be that fashion, be that coffee, be that restaurants. We've got some incredible restaurants in Cirencester now as well."
