Royal family face another race row

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Charles has been referring to Kolin Dhillon by the moniker for years whenever they meet at Cirencester Polo club where they are both members, according to a source.

Princes William and Harry also play at the club, which is close to their father's Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire, but the source was not aware of the young royals using the nickname.

The development comes a few days after Harry was widely condemned for calling a former Army colleague "Paki".

The source said Mr Dhillon was "comfortable" with the nickname which Charles uses, but when William and Harry were boys they referred to the player by his surname and Christian name.

The use of the word is at odds with Charles' interest in Britain's wide-ranging ethnic minority community and his championing of inter-faith dialogue.

Graham Smith, campaign manager for the organisation Republic, said: "I think it goes to show the royal family are not a symbol of unity, it's not something we can rally around, they're quite divisive.

"People are saying they are not racist but on the evidence in the public domain I think that's to the contrary. It also shows how hugely out of touch they are and that they live in a very isolated world, only mixing with a certain kind of person."

When asked about Charles' use of the nickname Sooty both Clarence House and Cirencester Polo Club declined to comment.