Burrell under guard after 'arson' attack

Former royal butler Paul Burrell was today under 24-hour guard after receiving scores of menacing phone calls before the suspected arson attack on his flower shop, it was reported.

His brother Graham told the Daily Mirror that one particular caller had threatened to get Paul and "every single one" of his family.

The butler to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, was said to be extremely concerned by the events.

A blaze broke out at Mr Burrell's shop in Holt, north Wales, early yesterday with fire crews battling for 30 minutes to prevent the flames spreading.

Chief Inspector Bob Wilson of North Wales Police confirmed the blaze was being treated as arson. A police spokesman refused to comment on the threatening phone calls.

The calls reportedly began soon after the former butler's Old Bailey acquittal on charges of of stealing items belonging to Diana, the Prince of Wales and Prince William.

His brother Graham, 37, told the Daily Mirror: "This one particular caller has threatened harm to everyone close to Paul.

"Those threats have now become a reality. This is a family under attack".

He added that the calls had unsettled everyone at the shop and that the police and BT were in the process of logging and tracing them.

Mr Burrell's bodyguard, Mike Faux, told the newspaper that extra security measures were being enforced to protect Mr Burrell and his wife Maria, 48, and two sons, Alex, 17, and Nicholas, 14.

"Someone out there is prepared to act out these

threats," he said.

Mr Faux, who answered the door at Burrell's home in Farndon, Cheshire, yesterday, said the family was "under enormous stress".

Following the collapse of his trial, the former butler's private life came under intense scrutiny after he decided to sell his story.

At the damaged shop, black plastic bin bags covered the front window - already decked out with festive decorations - hiding what fire officials described as the "severe smoke damage" inside.

Two bin bags containing burned items were piled at the back of the premises.

Friends of Mr Burrell insisted he would bounce back after the fire.

Keith Bouchier, who runs The Farndon Arms, said Mr Burrell had been in "high spirits" when he popped in for a drink with friends on Saturday night.

Mr Bouchier, who hosted a homecoming party for the former royal butler when he returned recently from the US blamed "mindless idiots" for the attack.

He added: "Things were just getting back to normal for Paul and then this happens. It's just the work of mindless idiots in my opinion."

Mr Bouchier said he had visited the shop on Saturday with his two grandchildren.

"The place looked stunning. They had put up all the Christmas decorations. They sell unusual gifts, things you can't get anywhere else but they'll all be damaged now.

"Paul was just getting on with his life. I only said to him last night that he was back to his normal, bubbly self.

"We were having a right good laugh. Then just 10 minutes later somebody's kicking him in the guts again. But Paul will bounce back from this. He's a strong character."

The shop was opened in November last year by drag artist Danny La Rue and Brookside actor Stephen Pinder, who plays Max Farnham in the Channel 4 soap.

At the time Mr Burrell, still then facing charges of stealing items and clothing belonging to Diana, described the venture as "the beginning of a new career".

He added: "I have always been familiar with flowers, having arranged them for the Princess at Kensington Palace."

It is understood that Mr Burrell, who only recently returned to the business following the dramatic collapse of his theft trial, went to the scene to survey the damage.

A woman answering the phone at Paul Burrell Flowers and Gifts declined to comment on the fire.