Queen calls in top lawyer to fend off photographers

London: Queen Elizabeth has authorised a crackdown on the paparazzi after growing increasingly angry at intrusions into the private lives of the Royal family and their friends.

The get-tough approach has the full support of the Prince of Wales, Prince William and Prince Harry, who are all prepared to take legal action against what they see as the "intrusive and unacceptable behaviour" of photographers.

The strategy is likely to be tested later this month when the Queen, accompanied by other members of the Royal family, enjoys her traditional Christmas break at Sandringham, her Norfolk estate. Freelance photographers often spend hours touring Sandringham in the hope of "snatching" photographs of the Royal family "at play" on the estate. However, senior aides at both Buckingham Palace and Clarence House have said that they will no longer tolerate the use of telephoto lenses to capture such photographs.

Previously, the Royal family has turned a blind eye to the practice, provided the pictures were taken from public roads and did not involve trespass on private land.

The Queen and Prince Charles have now instructed Gerrard Tyrrell, a senior lawyer specialising in media law, to mastermind the new privacy strategy.

Diana's death

Many senior members of the Royal family still blame the paparazzi for the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in a car crash 12 years ago.

Prince William has studied privacy law carefully after what he saw as intrusions into the private lives of himself and his girlfriend, Kate Middleton.