A PRINCE who worked as a science teacher and kept his royal background
a secret from his pupils and friends was killed in a road accident on
Islay at the weekend.
Prince Christopher of Yuglosavia, who was a great nephew of the Duke
of Edinburgh, preferred to be known simply as Christopher George.
He arrived last August with friend and fellow physics teacher Alan
Innes to work at Islay High School in Bowmore.
Strathclyde Police confirmed that he was killed at 2am on Saturday
after his bicycle was involved in a collision with a car. He died before
an ambulance reached him. The car driver suffered facial injuries. A
report is being prepared for the procurator-fiscal.
On Saturday many pupils from the school, which has a roll of about
300, gathered at the spot where the accident occurred to pay their
respects. They laid flowers and stood in silence for two minutes.
It is not known why Mr George, 34, a bachelor and the son of Prince
Andre of Yugoslavia and grandson of Princess George of Hanover, chose to
play down his royalty.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said members of the royal family had
been ''very saddened'' to hear of the death. He said Princess George had
been staying at Windsor Castle at the weekend as a guest of the Duke and
the Queen when she learned of her grandson's accident.
Meanwhile, residents on Islay were coming to terms with the death of
one of their teachers and news that he had in fact been a prince.
Sergeant Lachlan MacLean, senior police officer on the island,
described Mr George as a quiet man who had been well liked by islanders.
He had never hinted at his royal connections.
He was killed while returning by bicycle from a friend's house in Port
Ellen, about 10 miles south of Bowmore. It is understood he had been at
a ceilidh.
Ms Alison Law, 23, a partner in the family-run Harbour Inn in Bowmore,
described him
as ''a great bloke'' who was
well respected and liked locally.
''We all cared for him very much. His death has come as a real shock
to the whole community,'' she said.
Ms Law, who was a mature student in Mr George's science class, said
news of his royal connection was ''a sur
prise, but not a complete
shock''.
She said members of the aristocracy often visited the island and
sometimes settled there to escape the pressures of life on the mainland.
''Sometimes you only realise who they are when they sign a cheque,''
she said.
She said Mr George had occasionally told of his time as a flight
engineer with the Royal Air Force.
A post-mortem examination will be carried out at Vale of Leven
Hospital, Alexandria, today.
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