Soaring Wings

London, Agencies: There is a string of revelations about high-profile figures in former British prime minister Tony Blair’s autobiography wherein he said he was a “sucker” for the late princess Diana but there was an emotional “wildness” to her which made him wary of her. (VOTE BELOW: Do you believe Tony Blair?)

The former premier will donate all book proceeds to the Royal British Legion, a charity which helps severely injured war veterans. According to reports, he has already received a 4.6-million-pound (5.6-million-euro, 7.2-million-dollar) advance.

The book is being published in English worldwide this week and translation rights have been sold to 17 territories. Within hours of its release, online seller Amazon said “A Journey” was already ranked first on its British bestseller list.

He also tells of “trying” visits to the royal family’s Scottish retreat, Balmoral, and how Queen Elizabeth II would don rubber gloves to do the washing up after the royals’ traditional barbecue there.

The charismatic Blair came down heavily on his rival saying he was “maddening” but “brilliant”, “difficult” and wore him down with “relentless personal pressure”, as he unleashed his feelings on his party colleague’s shortcomings.

[polldaddy poll=3707985]

Elsewhere, he makes public as never before the private tensions which simmered between him and Brown, who served as his finance minister, throughout his premiership.

Brown had long craved the top job and he and those close to him exerted increasing pressure on Blair to quit, particularly in his final years.

“It is easy to say now, in the light of his tenure as prime minister, that I should have stopped it; at the time that would have been well nigh impossible,” Blair wrote.