The attempted indecent assault was first reported in Power and the Palace, a book released earlier this year by former royal editor of the Times newspaper, Valentine Low.

According to the book, the Queen had been 16 or 17 years old when the incident happened on a train to Paddington Station.

It reported how the man touched the then teenage Camilla Shand and that she then hit him with the heel of her shoe. When she arrived in London, she reported the incident to station staff and the man was arrested, the book reported.

Buckingham Palace made no official statement when the story was first reported.

After hearing the Queen’s story, Amy Hunt told her: “Thank you for sharing that, Your Majesty. It takes a lot to share these things because every woman has a story.”

The interview focused on the grief and strength of the Hunt family and their determination to protect the memory of Carol, Louise and Hannah, who were all murdered by Kyle Clifford at their family home in Hertfordshire, in July 2024.

“It remains really difficult on a minute-by-minute basis,” Mr Hunt told the BBC.

“You have to try and find the strength in our position to arm yourself with as many tools as possible that are going to help you get through that next hour.”

Mr Hunt said throughout his life he had been “surrounded by fantastic men, fantastic role models”.

“To have this very dark world open up to me in the starkest possible fashion has been jarring and something I’ve had to navigate very quickly – I’ve had to educate myself,” he added.

Queen Camilla spoke about her work with victims of domestic violence and said the focus had to be on ensuring young men do not become abusive partners as adults.

“They may have had parents or relatives who’ve been abusive or done terrible things to them. So they’re almost brought up to believe that it’s a natural thing to do,” she said.

“But if you can get them early enough and teach them respect for women, I think that’s so important to get into schools… and the more I look at it, it is the most important thing we can do now.”

Baroness May brought together the Hunt family and Queen Camilla in her role of guest editor of the Today programme.

In 2015, while home secretary, Theresa May introduced the offence of coercive and controlling behaviour as part of the Serious Crime Act. During her time as prime minister, she set out plans for a Domestic Violence Bill, and – since leaving office – Baroness May has supported campaigns against sexual and domestic violence.

The former PM also spoke of her concerns about the influence of the online world.

“What people are able to see online is so important – because the law isn’t going to stop somebody who has just been so inculcated with that sense of anger and violence that they want to go out and do something like this,” she said.

“But we can try to stop that by… the education that they receive, showing them those positive male role models, so they are less influenced by the negatives they see.”

Queen Camilla is patron of the domestic abuse charity SafeLives and has worked alongside a number of other organisations, including Refuge.

“This is an epidemic that does not discriminate,” said Refuge’s chair Hettie Barkworth-Nanton.

“The more the Queen is prepared to share her own experience, not in a way that is ‘poor me’, but in a way that helps people recognise that so many are affected by this the better… she is helping give survivors a voice.”

Mr Hunt’s strong bond with his daughter, alongside their desire to create a powerful legacy out of what happened to their family, was evident throughout the Today interview.

“I think it’s really important to remember they had a sad death but they did not have a sad life… their life was full of so much love and joy and happiness and fun,” Ms Hunt said.

Mr Hunt told the Queen and Baroness May that his daughter’s strength had been a powerful comfort, despite them still working through things.

“I’m staggered that we are as well as we are. At the risk of embarrassing Amy, she’s been my best counsel from the word go. We talk all the time.

“I used to say ‘I couldn’t do it without you’, but now I say ‘I can do it with you’,” he said.

They have set up The Hunt Family Fund to support charities and projects that will inspire young women. It will work with initiatives around domestic violence and abuse but also get involved with subjects enjoyed by Carol, Louise and Hannah, including animal charities something Ms Hunt said was Louise’s “main passion in life”.

As the conversation wound up, the Queen told Mr Hunt and Ms Hunt: “I’d just like to say wherever your family is now, they’d be so proud of you both. Thank you.

“And they must be from above smiling down on you and thinking, my goodness me, what a wonderful, wonderful father, husband, sister.

“They’d just be so proud of you both.”

To listen back to the full BBC Radio 4 Today Programme guest edit with Baroness Theresa May head to BBC Sounds