Roya Nikkhah
Sunday Times
With 13 years of experience on the royal beat, Roya has established unrivalled expertise. Her balanced and impeccably-sourced coverage gives unique insight and her pieces are among the most-read articles across The Sunday Times.
The definitive profile of Queen Camilla ahead of the Coronation - shows why her royal coverage is unparalleled, revealing how Camilla was “hurt” by Prince Harry’s attacks in his memoir Spare, and charted her extraordinary journey from toxic mistress to Queen. Roya’s unrivalled contacts book and trusted reputation enabled her to speak to those closest to Camilla, including her best friend Fiona Lansdowne, who had never spoken publicly before, revealing new insights into how Camilla coped with being scrutinised for so many years, the success of her partnership with the King and behind-the-scenes of her life off-duty. The profile also examined Camilla’s influence behind palace walls where she has had to fight to “get her voice heard”, her enduring friendship with her ex-husband Andrew Parker Bowles and the body of public work and charities she has established.
When extracts of Spare leaked before its publication, the royal family once again faced a storm of allegations from Harry. The palaces officially took a vow of silence, but Roya’s network of contacts, trusted her to tell the other side of the story in her news feature on the reaction to the book. It included revelations that William felt like Harry’s “punchbag” and was “burning inside” at his behaviour, why some of Harry’s close friends were considering severing their loyalty, how the King found his actions “painful” and how Harry had been written out of the Coronation with no role as a royal duke, a major break with precedent. Roya also spoke to Harry’s close friends to shed light on his motivations. Roya’s interview with Prince William in June was a major scoop - his first as the Prince of Wales, and the only one he has given to a newspaper. William told Roya about ambitious plans to end homelessness and also revealed he will put social housing on his own Duchy land. William also spoke about carrying forwards his mother’s legacy with his children and acknowledged that after a bumpy period for the monarchy, “it’s hard sometimes to see what the family bring and what we do”. The interview was widely followed by national broadcasters, outlets and publications around the world.
A world-leading expert on the royal family, Roya also works with major national and international broadcasters and is a regular on Times Radio. She was a key contributor to the BBC’s coverage of the Coronation and following the death of Queen Elizabeth, co-anchoring the national service of Prayer and Reflection from St Paul’s with James Naughtie. Roya also co-anchored the BBC’s coverage of the national Service of Thanksgiving for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with David Dimbleby.