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| Most wills can be read for a fiver - but not those of the Royal Family |
Most wills held by the Probate Service can be viewed for £5, it says - except those of the Royal Family. Judging from this year's events, with someone suing for access to the late Queen Mother's will and the recent conclusion of a somewhat high-profile legal imbroglio concerning another deceased royal, getting access to royal wills will cost you quite a bit more than a fiver.
The blue bloods, of course, have more to leave than most of us. Most wills are, by contrast, standard, dry affairs, but the Probate Service did give Obiter a few examples that were, shall we say, less than normal.
Mrs Frederica Evelyn Stilwell Cook wrote a vast 95,851-word will in 1925, which is said to be the longest will in the world. In 1920 James Barnes wrote, 'To Mag everything I possess' - on the shell of a chicken's egg. The widow - Margaret (Mag) Barnes - found the egg on top of a wardrobe, but probate of the eggshell will was refused, as it was doubtful that the egg was really meant to be a will. This is not the shortest will ever. Legend has it that this was 'All to wife'. However, the Probate Service says the shortest will was proved on 3 May 1906. 'Laying on his deathbed, Frederick Thorn wrote, "All for mother", on an envelope. By "mother", Thorn was actually referring to his wife - fortunately, his sons witnessed the will and knew what was meant,' it says.
But perhaps the best wills are those in which the British can indulge their unquenchable appetite for mischief. On his death, Ian Fleming left four friends £500 each to spend within 12 months, 'on some extravagance'; but best of all is the wit who, in 1975, left a gift to the local HM Inspector of Taxes and Collector of Taxes, of half a lemon each. The message: 'And now squeeze this.'
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