And of the High Court judge who originally put a temporary injunction on the book, he recalls: "He was speaking in hushed tones, saying he was very worried what the Queen might think of all this. Born in the US, he has lived in Britain for 25 years, but says he cannot get used to British deference to royalty. "Fergie is just a dim girl who happened to marry someone in the Royal Family," he says. He is the publisher who last week forced the Duchess of York into a humiliating climbdown in her legal battle to get a permanent injunction against Dr Allan Starkie's book, Fergie: Her Secret Life. "I Certainly couldn't be called a monarchist. That would raise some really loud guffaws," admits Michael O'Mara. Martin McGartland believes his brother, who can now barely walk unaided, was attacked because of his family name..

Nevertheless, the case threatens to deeply undermine the Special Branch informant network.Mr McGartland is threatening publicly to vilify the RUC by holding a press conference to accuse them of betrayal.In his statement he says: "It seems to me extraordinary that the British government should be treating a former agent in this way, someone who risked his life for a number of years working for British intelligence."Mr McGartland claims he still suffers regular nightmares with flashbacks of the moment when he threw himself through the window.In court, he will produce medical reports showing that he suffers from depression and anxiety attacks, as well as his mainly superficial physical injuries.Earlier this year, Mr McGartland's younger brother, Joseph, was kidnapped by the IRA in west Belfast and severely beaten. After initial resistance, the RUC acquiesced and has assigned him a team of police bodyguards.Mr McGartland has raised his fears with Harry Barnes, the Labour MP, who has passed details of the case and its likely repercussions to Sir Patrick Mayhew, the Northern Ireland secretary. He is believed to be seeking more than pounds 10,000 compensation from the court case.Mr McGartland, furious that the Northern Ireland office is contesting his claim and forcing him to risk appearing in court, has demanded high levels of security for the case. He has had to move several times and personal relationships have collapsed under the pressure of the constant threat. He lost consciousness but was rescued by local people who called an ambulance.His Special Branch handlers tracked him down and had him transferred to the the Musgrave Park military hospital before moving him to a new home outside Northern Ireland.For the past five years he has lived a fraught existence trying to keep ahead of the IRA which he believes is still committed to executing him.