NEW BOOK ALLEGES MARGARET USED DRUGS

LONDON: A new biography of the late Princess Margaret alleges that she used
the illegal drugs cocaine and marijuana, two British newspapers reported
yesterday.

The Sunday Telegraph said relatives and friends of Princess Margaret,
including her sister, Queen Elizabeth II, are angry about the book's
allegations, which they vehemently deny, and the timing of its publication,
less than one month after the princess died at the age of 71.

The biography, Margaret, The Last Real Princess, by Noel Botham, a former
tabloid journalist, was to be published yesterday, The Sunday Telegraph and
the Sunday Express newspaper said.

In its front-page article, The Sunday Telegraph said the book alleges that
the princess was seen snorting cocaine in the dressing room of the Rolling
Stones rock band before a concert at Earls Court here.