Duke fined and banned for speeding 30mph over limit

The Duke of Marlborough has been fined £500 after driving his car at 30mph above the speed limit on an Oxfordshire road in 2024.

Charles James Spencer-Churchill was also disqualified from driving for a period of 28 days during a hearing at High Wycombe Magistrate's Court on Friday.

The duke, who is a relative of Sir Winston Churchill and Diana, Princess of Wales, did not attend the hearing and was sentenced in his absence.

His solicitor entered a guilty plea to the speeding offence on his behalf, after he was caught driving at 80mph in a 50mph zone on Woodstock Road, Yarnton, in October 2024.

District Judge Kamlesh Rana told the court Spencer-Churchill had a "clean driving record".

She also imposed a £200 surcharge fee, and £300 in prosecution costs as part of the duke's sentence.

Spencer-Churchill had also been charged with another count of failing to give police information relating to the identification of the driver of a Hyundai in Banbury between November and December 2024.

But the prosecution offered no evidence on Friday after Spencer-Churchill pleaded guilty to the speeding charge.

Spencer-Churchill's ancestral family home is the 300-year-old Blenheim Palace - Sir Winston's birthplace - in Woodstock.

The duke does not own the 18th century baroque palace and has no role in the running of the residence and vast estate.