Queen Camilla reveals one place she'd love to visit without King Charles

Queen Camilla has expressed a desire to visit a place on her own, without being accompanied by King Charles.

The 75-year-old monarch was unable to join Camilla at Lamb House in Rye, East Sussex, for today's event as he had been "dragged away to more menial tasks."

Queen , who enjoyed a performance by actors Timothy West and Hayley Mills at the event, mentioned that Charles is recovering well but was "quite cross he could not be there" at the National Trust property, home of the author E.F. Benson.

She said the King is "getting better" before joking: "Well, he would be if he behaved himself." Camilla, though, enjoyed her literary-themed day by the coast, aptly timed as she herself has launched her own literary festival. Her event at Hampton Court Palace next month will see her A-list actor friends, including Miriam Margolyes and Helena Bonham-Carter, gather for a spectacular performance.

And Camilla, who married Charles 19 years ago last month, told today how she particularly enjoys the Harry Potter series. She was asked by local schoolgirl Bess, nine: "Are there any fictional places from a book that you would like to travel to and why?"

The Queen Consort replied: "One place I think I'd love to go is Hogwarts. I'd like to jump on the Express and I'd like to go to Hogwarts and sit in that wonderful hall and wait for the hat to come round and pick a house for me.

"I'd like to look at Dumbledore, and Hagrid, and Snape, and see all the pictures going mad and people jumping out of pictures and the food flying about, I think it would be a proper magical experience, and that's a place I'd really like to go to."

The event was also attended by children's laureate Joseph Coelho, Jacqueline Wilson, author of Tracy Beaker, actress Jenny Agutter, and Francesca Simon of Horrid Henry books, as well as Sir Lenny Henry.

Although he missed this function, Charles is set to lead the Royal Family at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show next week. The father of two is said to be delighted that his doctors have given him permission to undertake more public engagements again.