Captain Tom Book employees thought a “significant profit contribution” would go to the veterans’ foundation

“Everyone who contributed to Captain Sir Tom Moore’s books” was told that a “substantial donation” from the proceeds would go to the fundraiser’s foundation, it says.

Captain Tom has written three books – Captain Tom’s Life Lessons, One Hundred Steps and his autobiography Tomorrow will be a good day – before he died in 2021.

The Second World War veteran wrote in the prologue to his memoirs that the publication had “provided the opportunity to raise even more money for the charitable foundation now established in my name.”

The Captain Tom Foundation was launched a month after the then 100-year-old’s fundraising walk in his garden, which raised £39 million for the NHS in 2020.

But in an interview with Piers Morgan on TalkTV, Captain Tom’s daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore admitted to keeping £800,000 from her father’s three books.

The money, she said, went to Club Nook, a family-run business independent of the foundation, at Captain Tom’s request.

“He (Captain Tom) had an agent and they were working on this deal, and his wish was for the money to stay in Club Nook,” she said in the interview.

Last week, the Charity Commission, which is investigating the Captain Tom Foundation, disqualified Ms Ingram-Moore and her husband Colin from serving as trustees of the charity for ten and eight years respectively.

The regulator said its investigation found “misconduct and/or mismanagement.” The investigation has not yet been made public and it is not clear whether it will focus on Captain Tom’s books.

In a statement, the family said they “fundamentally disagree” with the regulator’s decision and complained that the investigation had turned into a “relentless chase.”

But now a report has emerged claiming that those involved in the discussions about publishing and publishing the books assumed that part of the profits would go to the foundation.

A source told the Times: “Everyone who worked on the books was specifically told that the family would make a substantial donation to the foundation,” it said.

“I don’t know if I thought it would be all of it or a large portion, but I thought it would be a significant donation.”

The outlet further reports that the source stated that the books were not published solely for the purpose of raising money for the charity.

The three books were published by Penguin Random House. The sun reported that a book deal was signed for the first time in May 2020 – the same month the foundation was founded.

Captain Tom’s Autobiography Tomorrow will be a good day was released in September 2020.

His prologue read: “Amazingly, at my age, the offer to write these memoirs also gave me the chance to raise even more money for the charitable foundation now established in my name.”

The picture book One Hundred Steps: The Story of Captain Sir Tom Moore was published in October 2020 and Captain Tom’s life lessons was released in 2021.

There is no evidence that the Ingram-Moore family acted illegally by keeping money from book sales.

A fourth book entitled One hundred reasons for hope For all hardback prints sold, £1 was donated to the charity, as stated on a sticker on the front.

In 2022, the Foundation confirmed The Independent that the company had received donations from Penguin for the “books, with one pound being donated for each sale”.

The foundation, which was set up to continue the veteran’s fundraising legacy, is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the Charity Commission into its management and independence from the family.

Ms Ingram-Moore became a trustee of the charity in February 2021 before stepping down the following month to become its interim CEO.

In July 2023, the foundation stopped accepting donations – and after the regulator’s investigation, it is likely to be closed, according to family lawyer Scott Stemp.

The Independent has asked Penguin Random House and Hannah Ingram Moore for comment.