Edited by tumpanglalu74 at 14-1-2021 07:04 PM
The Queen's wild child cousin who is facing jail for sex attack: Flashy aristocrat, 34, boasts of friendships with Made In Chelsea stars, was banned for speeding at 100mph and broke Covid rules with 200-mile trip to lodge
- > Simon Bowes Lyon, 34, is a great-great nephew of Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, and distant cousin of Queen
- > Aristocrat barged into a woman's bedroom at his ancestral home Glamis Castle and groped her in 20-minute attack
- > At Dundee Sheriff Court yesterday Bowes-Lyon admitted sexually assaulting the woman on February 13 2019
- > He faces up to five years in jail at delayed sentencing and has been placed on sex offenders' register
- > Drove to near Barnard Castle during lockdown in June but was caught when his butler went to the paper shop
- > In 2010 he was banned from the road for nine months after he was clocked riding his motorbike at 100 mph
Published: 12:29 GMT, 13 January 2021 | Updated: 13:49 GMT, 13 January 2021
The Queen's playboy cousin facing jail for sexual assault is friends with a host of stars and was recently shopped to the police for breaking Covid-19 rules by driving 200 miles to the Barnard Castle area during lockdown after his butler was spotted in the local shops, MailOnline can reveal today.
Simon Bowes-Lyon, who was named in the top 50 of the UK's most eligible bachelors by Tatler in 2019, faces up to five years in prison and has been placed on the sex offenders register after abusing his victim, 26, at his Glamis Castle home in Scotland last February.
The 19th and 6th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne was styled Lord Glamis until his father's death in 2016 and among his famous friends are Made In Chelsea TV stars Hugo Taylor and Oliver Proudlock, Bryan Ferry's son Otis and model and socialite Poppy Delevingne.
Today MailOnline can reveal that just weeks after the sex attack, in June 2020, Durham Police contacted the Earl, whose friends call him Sam, for violating the COVID-19 related travel restrictions banning from people leaving home.
The charge stated that he repeatedly pushed his victim on to a bed, tried to pull up her nightdress, pushed her against a wall, and tried to kiss her and touch her during the event at the 16,500-acre estate last year.
The young woman managed to fend off his advances until he eventually left her room, located in his private wing of the castle in eastern Scotland.
Bowes-Lyon – who as a 15-year-old walked behind Prince William in the Queen Mother's funeral cortege – issued an apology to his victim as he left court, adding that he is 'greatly ashamed' of his conduct and that 'alcohol is no excuse'.
Bowes-Lyon called the victim 'a rude, mean, bad and horrible person' and told her she could not tell him what to do in his own home during the attack.
After more than 20 minutes she eventually managed to get him out of her room - in his private wing - and sent a series of messages asking her colleagues and boyfriend for help.
Bowes-Lyon returned and tried to get into the room again, but she managed to get hold of the publisher in another part of the castle and he came to help.
He later reported that she was 'distressed' when he spoke to her and that Bowes-Lyon had fallen asleep when he went to confront him about the incident.
She eventually managed to get him out of the room and sent messages asking other guests for help, only for him to return and try to get into the room again.
Bowes-Lyon, 34, who is the Queen's cousin twice removed, admitted a charge of sexually assaulting the woman at Dundee Crown Court yesterday.
He faces up to five years in jail for the offence. The aristocrat was granted bail yesterday and placed on the sex offenders register as his sentence was deferred for reports.
The court was told the incident happened as Glamis Castle hosted several people for a luxury weekend.
On the first night, the victim noticed nobody was talking to Bowes-Lyon, who is known as 'Sam', during dinner and she engaged him in conversation.
The following evening there was a black-tie dinner and, after the woman went to bed, Bowes-Lyon carried on drinking before arriving uninvited at her room at 1.20am.
Fiscal depute Lynne Mannion said: 'She was asleep and was woken by knocking at the door.'
She said Bowes-Lyon, a great-great nephew of the Queen Mother, told the woman: 'It's Sam. It's important. Please let me in.
'She thought something was wrong so she got up. It was pitch black. The second she opened the door he pushed his way in and pushed her on to the bed.
'He was very drunk and smelled of cigarettes. He told her he wanted to have an affair. He tried to pull her nightdress up.
'She went into the en suite to get away but the accused followed her, stopped her closing the door, and lit a cigarette. She squeezed past and went back to the bedroom.'
Miss Mannion said Bowes-Lyon then pushed his victim up against a wall and groped her and grabbed her bottom.
She added: 'She raised her voice in the hope that another guest would hear her. She panicked because she did not know the layout of the castle. She had no signal. He refused to leave. He got into bed and began pulling at her. She had to keep pushing him off.'
Bowes-Lyon called her 'a rude, mean, bad and horrible person' and told her she could not tell him what to do in his own home.
After more than 20 minutes she eventually managed to get him out of her room and sent a series of messages asking other guests for help.
Bowes-Lyon returned and tried to get into the room again, but the woman managed to get hold of another guest in another part of the castle and he came to help.
The man later reported that she was 'distressed' when he spoke to her and that Bowes-Lyon had fallen asleep when he went to confront him about the incident.
The woman fled the castle in the morning and flew home to immediately report the matter to police.
Bowes-Lyon emailed an apology to the woman and he offered another apology for his behaviour in court yesterday.
His barrister, John Scott QC, said: 'He is truly sorry for what he accepts was shameful conduct.'
He said Bowes-Lyon had since been to counselling to try and understand his behaviour.
Speaking outside court yesterday, Bowes-Lyon said: 'I am greatly ashamed of my actions which have caused such distress to a guest in my home.
'Clearly I had drunk to excess on the night of the incident. As someone who is only too well aware of the damage that alcohol can cause, I should have known better. I recognise, in any event, that alcohol is no excuse for my behaviour.
'I did not think I was capable of behaving the way I did but ave had to face up to it and take responsibility.'
Bowes-Lyon, known for his love of fast cars and holidays with reality TV stars, was named one of the UK's most eligible bachelors by Tatler in 2019.
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