Duke praised for ‘lovely’ message after Angus couple hoaxed

A fundraiser has been contacted by the Duke of Rothesay after a cruel hoax.

Wilma Whyte from Forfar and husband Mick received a card of condolence from Clarence House in November after the death of their Labrador, Jade.

The message did not ring true, however, and Mrs Whyte contacted the Earl of Strathmore, a cousin of Prince Charles, to inquire into the card’s provenance and he confirmed it was a fake.

Last week, a “lovely” missive dropped through the couple’s letter box from the heir to the throne.

It read: “Dear Mrs Whyte, Lord Strathmore told me before Christmas that you had received a hoax card following the very sad loss of your dog and I wanted to say how much I sympathise with you.

“I am also sorry that you and your poor husband should have been unnecessarily upset by such a silly card particularly when I know that you do so much for so many local charitable causes.”

Mrs Whyte has raised tens of thousands of pounds for equipment at Whitehills and Stracathro hospitals, and more recently for the Angus Threeway Fundraisers.

She said: “It is unbelievable Prince Charles took the time to write to us … it is lovely to know there are a lot of good people out there.”