In celebration of the recent coronation of King Charles III, Lakeview Lodge Care Home in Milton Keynes is excited to share a fascinating life story of their resident Douglas, aged 94 who worked for the Royal Family. Douglas worked as a Butler for a number of years and even had the pleasure of meeting Kings Charles during his service.
As part of their person-centred approach, the Wellbeing team at Lakeview Lodge regularly enjoy sitting down with their residents on a one-to-one basis to learn about their unique life stories. This enables the care team to gain a better understanding of people’s backgrounds and interests and helps to tailor all aspects of their care and support.
Jane Harrod, the wife of Douglas, kindly shared his life story.
“Doug started his career in Private Service at the young age of 14, where he began as a Hall Boy and worked his way up to become a Footman and eventually a Butler. After briefly serving in the Army for five years, he returned to work as a Butler for the Bishop of Coventry.
Doug's responsibilities included preparing for events, such as dinner parties and shooting parties, ensuring everything ran smoothly.
He later worked for Earl Spencer at Althorp House where he met Lady Diana Spencer. She would often come into the Butler’s pantry and sit on the table chatting to Doug and eating roast Lamb.
When I met Doug, he was working for financier Evelyn De Rothschilds and eventually began working for Robert Maxwell at the Mirror Newspaper in London. Whilst working for Robert Maxwell he travelled around the Mediterranean with him on his yacht.
During his career, Doug met King Charles at a hunting lodge in Scotland, whom he described as a charming man.”
Douglas Harrod, picture on the left
‘We love hearing Doug’s stories about all the people he’s worked for over the years’ said Marijana Tokic Wellbeing Coordinator at Lakeview Lodge. ‘Learning about his keen interest and first-hand knowledge of the royal family has given us talking points and helps us plan activities we know he will be interested in.’
To learn more about life at Lakeview Lodge, please contact our Customer Relations Manager, Sharon Guntrip at sharon.guntrip@countrycourtcare.com or call 01908 641 200
