BBC showed nine out of 10 most popular shows, according to overnight data, with Strictly coming second and Doctor Who third
King Charles’s Christmas broadcast came top of the TV ratings on Christmas Day, with the BBC showing nine out of the 10 most watched shows.
The king’s message, which reflected on the “increasingly tragic conflict around the world”, attracted an average of 5.9 million viewers, according to overnight ratings.
Continue reading...Monarch says in his second Christmas Day message that his coronation was ‘a call to us all to serve and care’
King Charles has praised the work of volunteers, calling them a “selfless army of people” who form an “essential backbone of our society”.
In his second Christmas speech, the king said he was delighted that hundreds of volunteers and their representatives attended his coronation in May, saying their presence “emphasised the meaning of coronation itself, above all, a call to us all to serve one another, to love and care for all”.
Continue reading...Mia Mottley tells London audience that King Charles’s comments about slavery’s impact were welcome
King Charles’s comment that the “time has come” to acknowledge the enduring impact of slavery has been welcomed by the prime minister of Barbados as she spoke in London about the need for reparations.
Mia Mottley said Barbados was owed $4.9tn (£3.9tn) by slave-owning nations, noting that conversations over how this debt should be repaid would “be difficult and will take time”, she said on Wednesday evening.
Continue reading...A book has named Charles and Catherine as royals alleged to have discussed skin colour of Harry and Meghan’s unborn son
The royal race row that erupted more than two years ago, when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told Oprah Winfrey that a member of the royal family had remarked on Prince Archie’s skin colour before he was born, has simmered ever since. Now it has exploded once more as the Dutch version of a new book appears to have named King Charles and the Princess of Wales as family members alleged to have made such remarks.
Continue reading...Copies of book about British monarchy changing hands on resale websites for up to €175
Dutch first editions of the book Endgame, which names two members of the British royal family alleged to have discussed the skin colour of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s unborn baby, are selling online for many times above the original retail price of €22.99.
As parts of the British press reached fever pitch trying to find out whether the Dutch version had contained a mistranslation, or had failed to adopt final excisions or was running a strange publicity stunt, bids for a Dutch version on Marktplaats on Thursday reached €175 (£150).
Continue reading...Pink top designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel among the famous items of clothing to be sold
A top worn by Diana, Princess of Wales for her engagement portrait in 1981 is among the items in an auction of famous clothing.
The pink crepe blouse with ruff-like collar and loose pleats to the front, worn by Diana, was captured by royal photographer Lord Snowdon and is being put up for sale by Julien’s Auctions.
Continue reading...Elizabeth Debicki has spoken about filming car chase through Paris that led to Diana’s death for final season of royal drama
The actor who played Diana in The Crown said the moments leading up to her death must have been “completely unbearable” after the cast reenacted the car chase through Paris that led to her death for the final season of the divisive royal drama.
The sixth season of The Crown deals with the weeks preceding Diana’s death, as well as the fallout, after a car crash in Paris in August 1997. The first instalment of the season is released on 16 November.
Continue reading...Labour party leader criticises speech as ‘admission that government has no faith in Britain’s ability to avert decline’
Here is Ben Quinn’s guide to what will be in the king’s speech.
In a statement about the king’s speech issued overnight, Keir Starmer said:
Britain is crying out for the long-term change that harnesses the ambition of our young people, the innovative drive of our businesses, and the ordinary hope and optimism that exists around every kitchen table.
A government acting in the national interest would deliver a big build programme to kickstart growth in every region and begin to turn around 13 years of decline with a plan for a decade of national renewal.
Continue reading...Rights groups repeat calls for apology while President William Ruto says ‘much remains to be done to achieve full reparations’
King Charles’s expression of “greatest sorrow and deepest regret” over colonial atrocities committed by British forces in Kenya has been criticised as a “miss” in the east African country.
Reactions to the king’s statement were mixed, with the president, William Ruto, diplomatically welcoming Charles’s “courage and readiness to shed light on uncomfortable truths that reside in the darker regions of our shared experience”, but calling Britain’s colonial suppression of Kenya’s freedom movement “monstrous in its cruelty”.
Continue reading...Visiting monarch speaks of sorrow and deepest regret for past ‘wrongdoings’ under British rule
King Charles has spoken of Britain’s “abhorrent and unjustifiable acts of violence” committed against Kenyans during their fight for independence, but stopped short of an apology despite human rights groups demanding one.
The monarch made the comments in a speech, delivered during a banquet in Kenya held in his honour, in which he referred to the “greatest sorrow” and “deepest regret” for the “wrongdoings” of the past.
Continue reading...King urged to offer apology while in Kenya for UK’s ‘brutal and inhuman treatment’ during the Mau Mau uprising in the 1950s
The Kenya Human Rights Commission has called on King Charles to offer an “unequivocal public apology” for colonial abuses, during his visit to the country this week.
“We call upon the king, on behalf of the British government, to issue an unconditional and unequivocal public apology (as opposed to the very cautious, self-preserving and protective statements of regrets) for the brutal and inhuman treatment inflicted on Kenyan citizens,” the KHRC said.
Continue reading...Animals and plants feature heavily in coinage that allows ‘everyone to celebrate British nature’
A new collection of coins bearing the face of the king has been unveiled by the Royal Mint, breaking tradition with designs inspired by plants and animals found across the four nations.
The eight designs, overseen by King Charles, depict the flora and fauna found in different parts of the UK and reflect his interest in conservation and nature.
Continue reading...Monarch’s recognition will come as country prepares to celebrate 60 years of independence from Britain
King Charles will acknowledge the “painful aspects” of Britain’s past actions in Kenya during a state visit later this month.
The visit follows an invitation from the country’s president, William Ruto, whose country will celebrate the 60th anniversary of its independence from Britain on 12 December. The two countries have enjoyed a close relationship in recent years despite the violent colonial legacy of an uprising in the early 1950s, which led to a period known as “the emergency”, which ran from 1952 until 1960.
Continue reading...Part two of the Netflix historical drama will follow in December
The final season of The Crown will be released in two parts later this year, Netflix has announced.
The first instalment of the historical TV drama’s sixth season will be released on 16 November with part two to follow on 14 December. The series, broadly based on historical events, depicts a fictionalised version of the British royal family.
Continue reading...William became largest private landholder in the national park when he inherited Duchy of Cornwall
Campaigners are urging Prince William to invest in significant rewilding across swathes of Dartmoor’s predominantly farmed land.
The land became William’s after he inherited the Duchy of Cornwall, an extensive landholding including the largest privately owned area of Dartmoor national park, from his father, King Charles, when he succeeded to the throne.
Continue reading...Trip designed in part as show of friendship to reset UK-French relationship after Brexit years
King Charles was welcomed at a lavish state banquet at the Palace of Versailles on Wednesday night, at the start of a state visit to reinforce the renewed London-Paris relationship after the near total collapse in trust during the Boris Johnson years after Brexit.
In Versailles’ Hall of Mirrors, the famed 17th century gallery built by the “Sun King” Louis XIV to project the power and majesty of the French monarchy, King Charles and Emmanuel Macron were to make toasts celebrating French-British relations after a pre-dinner music recital.
Continue reading...Lloyd’s of London and Church of England also to be approached over role in past exploitation
Caribbean nations are preparing formal letters demanding that the British royal family apologise and make reparations for slavery.
National reparations commissions in the region will also approach Lloyd’s of London and the Church of England with demands of financial payments and reparative justice for their historic role in the slave trade.
Continue reading...Monarch writes of ‘great affection’ for Queen Elizabeth II and releases a favourite official portrait of her
King Charles III has paid tribute to his late mother Queen Elizabeth II and re-pledged his own service to the nation in a message marking the first anniversary of her death and of his accession.
In a signed message he wrote: “In marking the first anniversary of her late Majesty’s death and my accession, we recall with great affection her long life, devoted service and all she meant to so many of us.
Continue reading...King Charles and Queen Camilla to dine at Palace of Versailles banquet and meet sports stars
King Charles will address members of both houses of the French parliament and will have a bilateral meeting with French president, Emmanuel Macron, during a state visit to France with the queen later this month.
The visit, originally due in March, was postponed when pension-reform protests in France spiralled into violent clashes.
Continue reading...Decision not to fly to Australia has been questioned by those who say Lionesses deserved top-level support
The Prince of Wales may have cheered on the Lionesses from afar, but has faced criticism from some quarters at home over his reluctance to get on a plane to support the England team in person.
William was absent from Stadium Australia on Sunday despite being president of the Football Association, and is understood to have made the decision not to go because of the long flight involved for such a short period of time.
Continue reading...