Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet believed to have had private reunion with king
King Charles has enjoyed a private reunion with the grandchildren he has not seen for four years, it is understood.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their children, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, were hosted by Charles and Queen Camilla at the king’s private residence, Highgrove House in Gloucestershire, on Friday afternoon.
Continue reading...The monarch’s declaration does not tell us much, except that his bill is lower than for people with much smaller fortunes
The veil of secrecy that surrounds the royal finances was nudged aside a little on Thursday to allow the release of a new piece of information. We learned for the first time how much the king’s annual tax bill comes to.
This was not a full tax return. It was a two-sentence declaration, stating his tax payable amounted to £12.9m in 2024-25, and a slightly smaller sum the year before. His total tax payable since accession comes to £30m.
Continue reading...Despite £369m upgrade, King Charles will never live in palace but aides stress it will remain ‘buzzing hive’ of activity
Not all modern British monarchs have viewed the prospect of moving into Buckingham Palace with unalloyed joy. So in announcing he will never live there, after the completion of its £369m upgrade next year, King Charles has at least grasped that nettle.
Queen Victoria was initially dismayed by the damp, dingy and disorganised building that greeted her and her husband, Prince Albert, in 1837. It was Albert who refashioned it into “Monarchy HQ”. After his death in 1861, Victoria retreated mainly to Windsor, Balmoral and Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.
Continue reading...We know the monarch paid £24.6m in tax over the last two years, but we still don’t know how wealthy he actually is
Crown estate makes more than £1bn profit for third year running
King and Queen will not live at Buckingham Palace after £369m refit
King Charles has become Britain’s first monarch in modern times to reveal how much tax he pays on his private income: £24.6m over the last two years.
It’s a move celebrated by some as heralding an era of greater transparency from the monarchy. But just how open has it been?
Continue reading...Buckingham Palace says move is intended to increase ‘clarity and accessibility’ of monarchy’s finances
King Charles will become the first head of state to reveal their personal tax bill in what the palace said was an attempt to enhance the transparency of royal finances.
Charles, 77, will publish his financial details as part of the royal household increasing the “clarity and accessibility” of the monarchy’s finances by producing a new report on the subject.
Continue reading...Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet last visited Britain in 2022 during late queen’s platinum jubilee celebrations
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will bring their two children to the UK for the first time in more than four years, it has been reported.
Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, last visited Britain in 2022 during the late Queen Elizabeth II’s platinum jubilee celebrations.
Continue reading...Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol’s health had worsened since she was hospitalised in December 2022 with heart problems that left her gravely ill
The eldest child of Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn has died aged 47, the palace has said, after nearly four years in a coma.
Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol, known in Thailand as Princess Bha, had been in hospital since December 2022 when she became gravely ill after having heart problems while out training her dogs.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Ukrainian leader says he has ‘a very good relationship’ with British monarch, who has supported his country
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has revealed that he plans to invite King Charles on a state visit to Ukraine as early as this year, which would make him the most senior royal to travel to Kyiv since Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The Ukrainian president said he had a close relationship with the king, whom he has met on numerous occasions, including when he gave a public show of support after Zelenskyy’s explosive visit to the White House last year.
Continue reading...Unspecified number of officers from royalty and specialist protection team being investigated, force confirms
Police officers accused of being asleep when they were supposed to be protecting the royal family at Windsor Castle have been placed under investigation.
An unspecified number of officers from the Metropolitan police’s royalty and specialist protection team are being investigated after concerns were raised, the force confirmed. The Sun, which first reported the story, said up to 30 officers were involved.
Continue reading...Remarks by US president likely to cause embarrassment for aides of UK monarch, who usually remains neutral
Donald Trump has said King Charles agrees with him that Iran should never be allowed nuclear weapons.
Trump made the remarks at a White House state dinner on Tuesday in honour of the visiting Charles and Camilla, after the two men sat down to bilateral talks earlier that day.
Continue reading...The king faces possibly his most important ever speech and a thin-skinned president, in the shadow of the Sussexes and the Epstein scandal. What could go wrong?
On his high-stakes four-day state visit to the US, King Charles will have to walk a diplomatic tightrope as the guest of an erratic Donald Trump against the backdrop of Iran and security concerns after Saturday night’s shooting at the White House correspondents’ dinner.
Many challenges lie ahead as he takes up his UK government-decreed task to “reaffirm and renew” bilateral ties amid a worsening “special relationship” on the 250th anniversary of American independence.
Continue reading...The author, who will interview members of royal family for book, says being chosen for role is a ‘profound honour’
Anna Keay, a historian whose most celebrated book is about Britain’s republican period, has been confirmed as Queen Elizabeth II’s official biographer.
Keay will interview members of the royal family and the late queen’s friends and servants. She will also have access to the monarch’s personal and official papers held in the royal archives.
Continue reading...Ex-footballer to decorate gnome for annual event after organisers lift ban on the ornaments dating back to 1927
Rare roses and stunning irises are usually among the most coveted items at the Chelsea flower show. But this year, the star attraction might be pink, sequined – and decorated by David Beckham.
The former England football captain is co-designing a garden at the May event with King Charles and as part of that effort he has been given a garden gnome to paint. It will be auctioned off for charity.
Continue reading...Legal action follows war of words with Sentebale chair after Duke of Sussex’s resignation as patron
The Duke of Sussex is being sued by Sentebale in the latest twist in the bitter fallout over the African charity he co-founded.
The charity has lodged papers in London’s high court over defamation claims naming Prince Harry and the former Sentebale trustee Mark Dyer as defendants.
Continue reading...This blog is now closed
Starmer says he understands why people are concerned about the cost of living.
He says he has already set out a five-point plan to deal with the crisis.
Just look at what’s happening today. Today your energy bills will be cut because of the action that we took at the budget. And whatever happens in Iran, that price is now fixed until July.
The most effective way we can support the cost of living in Britain is to push for de-escalation in the Middle East, and a reopening of the strait of Hormuz, which is such a vital route for energy.
To that end, we’re exploring each and every diplomatic avenue that is available to us.
Continue reading...Keir Starmer previously reassured that the war in Iran would not distract the UK from supporting Ukraine
Nigel Farage is speaking now at the Reform UK event.
The website promoting the lottery is up. It is called nigelcutmybills.com.
Continue reading...Advisers say to ‘assume the cameras are always rolling’ as exchanges can be decoded in seconds and posted online
Royals and celebrities are being warned by their representatives and advisers to watch what they say when they are out of the house – or palace – as a lip-reading phenomenon means videos can be posted online and translated in seconds.
Prince William was recently embroiled after a video of him speaking to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was translated by an expert lip-reader who was working as part of a forthcoming Channel 5 documentary, Lip-Reading the Royals.
Continue reading...Royal couple criticise Tom Bower’s ‘fixation’ on them and describe released extracts as ‘conspiracy and melodrama’
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have launched a scathing attack on a “deranged” author whose new book claims Queen Camilla once told a friend: “Meghan’s brainwashed Harry.”
The royal couple hit out at Tom Bower, the author of Betrayal: Power, Deceit and the Fight for the Future of the Royal Family, criticising his “fixation” on the pair.
Continue reading...Forward Trust patron says ‘compassion and love’ is needed to end fear and shame felt by those affected
The Princess of Wales has called for an end to the “stigma” surrounding addictions, saying the experiences of those dependent on drugs, alcohol or gambling are “shaped by fear, shame and judgment”.
Catherine, who is a patron of the charity Forward Trust supporting recovering addicts, said more open conversations were needed to bring the issue “out of the shadows” and for society to show “compassion and love” to those affected.
Continue reading...Messages sent months after former prince said he ended relations and also appear to confirm Virginia Giuffre photo
Newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails have cast further doubt on Andrew Mountbatten Windsor’s account of when he cut ties with the child sex offender and his denials about meeting his accuser Virginia Giuffre.
In March 2011, four months after he later claimed to have ended his relationship with Epstein, the former prince told him and the convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell “I can’t take any more of this” in response to allegations put forward by the Mail on Sunday.
Continue reading...