With its heady mix of horses, competition and tradition, polo – dubbed the Sport of Kings – has captivated Britain’s male royals for decades. Their wives and girlfriends often get involved, too, with biographer Andrew Morton describing it as ‘a royal rite of passage’ for the female members of the …
Read More »Queen Elizabeth’s ‘anti-press secretary’: How former Navy commander treated journalists with ‘scorn and contempt’ – and went into attack mode when media saw monarch shout at Prince Philip
Richard Colville was first employed by Buckingham Palace in 1947 as press secretary to King George VI and dedicated more than 20 years to royal service. However, the former Royal Navy commander had no experience with journalists – and it showed. He treated the media ‘with a mixture of intolerance, scorn and …
Read More »King Edward VIII and the coins that never were: As exhibition reveals monarch’s portrait and scrapped coinage, historian IAN LLOYD tells how ‘vain’ monarch fell out with the Royal Mint over his desire to sit looking left
King Edward VIII was famed for his vanity. As a young man he flouted tradition by wearing the latest fashions, especially flannel trousers with sports coats, ‘turn-ups’ on his trousers and plus-fours for golf. His distinctive way of fixing his necktie has gone down in the history books as the …
Read More »The House of Mountbatten reigned… until it didn’t: How idle boast ensured Prince Philip’s children and the Royal Family would NOT formally adopt his surname – prompting him to say: ‘I am nothing but a bloody amoeba’
It was an idle boast made amid the Royal Family’s grief following the death of King George VI. At a party at his home, Lord Louis Mountbatten had proclaimed that the ‘house of Mountbatten now reigned’. It was a reference to how his nephew Prince Philip, as the husband of …
Read More »Inside Prince Andrew’s palatial Royal Lodge: BRIAN HOEY reveals how it was the beloved retreat of the Queen Mother, a playground for young Princess Elizabeth and the host for Margaret’s engagement photos
It has been the home of kings and queens and the playground of a future monarch. Royal Lodge – now in the spotlight amid the alleged refusal of current occupant Prince Andrew to move out – has stood in its current form since the 19th century. Situated in 98 acres in Windsor …
Read More »King Charles did not meet with Prince Harry as he was busy rewarding senior peer who masterminded his Coronation and Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, EMILY PRESCOTT reveals
It was a packed day of royal engagements that kept the King from meeting Prince Harry during his whistle-stop visit to the UK. Now I can reveal that one of the items of business which kept the monarch from seeing his son was rewarding the senior peer who masterminded both …
Read More »‘No love lost’ between the Spencers and the Windsors: ‘Stark divide’ was laid bare after Earl Spencer attended Harry’s Invictus service while the Royal Family stayed away, expert says
The divide between the Spencers and the Windsors was highlighted by those who did and didn’t attend Prince Harry’s Invictus Games service, an expert claimed today. Harry gave warm hugs to his uncle Earl Spencer and aunt Lady Jane Fellowes at St Paul’s Cathedral before the event to celebrate the …
Read More »Last time there was a crisis, the Royal Family time-travelled back to the stuffy world of Queen Victoria, says JANE MARGUERITE TIPPET. This time around they MUST modernise – and become a true symbol of our national life…
The Royal Family is no stranger to a crisis. It has been been rocked by scandals, extra-marital affairs and what felt in the mid-1990s like a never-ending stream of divorces that all but shattered the fairy-tale ideal of the modern royal marriage. Despite these upheavals, however, royal life, as a …
Read More »Royal Marines are poised to lead ‘Dunkirk-style’ evacuation of Britons living in the Middle East after Iran launched massive drone and missile attack against Israel
Royal Marines are poised to lead a ‘Dunkirk-style’ evacuation of thousands of UK nationals from the Middle East after Iran launched a huge drone and missile attack against Israel last night. Commandos have already conducted reconnaissance along the Lebanese coastline ahead of a potential maritime rescue mission. The daring mission …
Read More »Royal Marines preparing to lead ‘Dunkirk-style’ evacuation of Britons living in the Middle East should Iran launch missile attacks on Israel after consul blast that killed 13 people
By Mark Nicol Published: 16:43 EDT, 12 April 2024 | Updated: 19:47 EDT, 12 April 2024 Royal Marines are poised to lead a ‘Dunkirk-style’ evacuation of thousands of UK nationals from the Middle East should Iran launch a missile strike on Israel. Commandos have already conducted reconnaissance along the Lebanese …
Read More »