There have been many strange twists and turns in the sensational search for legendary explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, but none more so than claims the Queen ordered helicopters to fly over the farm he shares with his wife.
Louise Fiennes (née Millington-Cotes), who married Ranulph, 82, in 2005, allegedly told friends that the King “hated” her husband – whom the monarch has been close friends with for almost 50 years – and that Camilla sent choppers over their property to irritate and intimidate her.
These outlandish allegations emerged when it was revealed Louise, 59, who is Ranulph’s second wife, reportedly told the palace to “back off” after Charles reached out to check on his old friend’s welfare.
Charles is among a string of famous friends – including Bear Grylls, TV presenter Ben Fogle, Dame Joanna Lumley and Ranulph’s actor cousin Joseph Fiennes – said to be trying to locate the explorer, who hasn’t been seen in public for almost two years.
According to an extensive investigation by UK newspaper The Telegraph, Charles was alerted to the explorer’s ill health and isolation, and was “most concerned” by rumours he’d heard.
I’ve grieved for him
He’d learned that friends and relatives had been attempting to contact Ranulph for some time but that nearly all efforts had been unsuccessful. Ranulph’s close mate and expedition leader Anton Bowring was among a small group who collectively approached The Telegraph earlier this year in the hope the paper might delve into what had happened to the famous adventurer.
“It’s the extraordinary final chapter in a remarkable life,” says Anton, who first met Ranulph in 1978.
“I know he’s still out there alive, but I’ve grieved for him. I’ve said goodbye.”
The explorer – who was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles without flying, using skis and dog sleds along the way, and the first to cross Antarctica on foot – was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019.
The newspaper published its findings last month, reporting concerns Ranulph was being unlawfully deprived of his freedom. There were also extraordinary allegations that he’d been staying in a number of care homes under false names and visitors had to sign nondisclosure agreements before seeing him.
Another of the adventurer’s close pals, German watchmaker Michael Kobold, tells Woman’s Day he’s long been concerned about Ranulph and soon discovered others felt the same.
“A lot of witnesses have come forward with stories of their own,” alleges Michael, who first met Ranulph in 2000 and claims he is being “deprived of his liberty”.
Among those witnesses is Ranulph’s former sister-in-law Arabella McIntyre-Brown. Back in 2025, with friends and family increasingly concerned, Michael suggested former journalist Arabella, 68, attempt to check into Ranulph’s care home.
A son’s fight for his father
Amazingly, the plan worked and in July, Arabella crossed paths with the explorer, reportedly finding him “lucid, personality intact, memory clear, sense of humour there”.
Michael claims, “He told her he didn’t want to be isolated, misses his friends and that he’s afraid to use the phone because he suspects his calls are being monitored.”
The owner of a Welsh care home where Ranulph resided for a time reported its own concerns about the aristocrat’s wellbeing to authorities and the police.
Staff also wrote to the Office of the Public Guardian, which helps people stay in control of decisions about their health and finances, “to raise safeguarding concerns” about the explorer’s wife Louise’s lasting power of attorney over him.
An inspection reportedly concluded earlier this year that Ranulph was being deprived of his liberty unlawfully because his wife had failed to ensure the relevant legal protocols had been put in place. She was ordered to provide them but allegedly never did, simply moving her husband to a different home.
A plea for his freedom
However, Cheshire police have since reviewed the extraordinary claims and stated they are aware of the concerns for Ranulph, but following their investigation, they’re satisfied he’s living in an appropriate setting with suitable care.
Louise has not offered formal or public comment on the allegations. Meanwhile, Louise’s estranged son Alexander Millington-Cotes, 31, is now spearheading a campaign to challenge his mother’s lasting power of attorney over Ranulph, who has an estimated fortune of up to $25 million. He’s launched a crowdfunding campaign to cover the legal fees to “locate and safeguard” the explorer.
Alexander wants Ranulph to live out his remaining days as he wishes, with “complete freedom”.
Alexander says, “If he wants to fly to California, let him. If he wants us to go to the park and have a cup of coffee, that would also be brilliant.”
Ranulph’s current whereabouts are not known.
The explorer’s nearest & dearest
The wife
Former horse trainer Louise married Ranulph in 2005, just a year after his first wife Lady Ginny died from stomach cancer. She holds a lasting power of attorney and control of his $25 million fortune. They share daughter Elizabeth, 20.
The stepson
Louise’s estranged son from her first marriage, Alexander recently set up a GoFundMe campaign to pay for lawyers to “locate and safeguard”
his stepfather Ranulph and revoke Louise’s guardianship.
“He needs us to fight for him,” Alexander says.
The famous cousin
Hollywood actors Joseph, 56, and Ralph, 63, are both Ranulph’s third cousins once removed. Joseph went to the Office of the Public Guardian to express concerns the explorer had been cut off from his loved ones after visiting him at a UK care home last year.
The fellow explorer
British adventurer and TV star Bear, 52, revealed he’d been “desperately trying to connect” with Ranulph for more than a year. He’s calling on authorities to investigate, saying, “That a hero like Ran should have to face this is very hard to read.”
