Queen's abdication speculation nothing but a PR stunt

Tim Ewart

Former Royal Editor

The bookies clearly do believe there's one born every minute!

Welcome to April Fool's Day 2!

When a leading bookmakers announced it was suspending betting on the Queen abdicating in her pre-recorded Christmas message it was job done: a PR stunt that got the Twitterati jabbering and palace officials forced to offer a firm denial.

Apparently, you could have got odds of 10-1 on the Queen stepping down on Christmas Day until a "rush of bets" raised suspicions of insider knowledge.

The bookies clearly do believe there's one born every minute!