The Queen hosted a lavish dinner at Buckingham Palace this evening in honor of the Prince of Wales’s 70th birthday. The event was quite the hot ticket…if you own a tiara. It was also a private one, so unfortunately the above photo released by Clarence House is the only formal image we’re going to receive from the evening.
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/1061487284Luckily we have some arrival pictures of our fave duchesses. William and Kate arrived after spending the day in South Yorkshire. They helicoptered back to London in time to slip into some black tie garb…which is actually very glam of them, so well done. It’s a shame that we can’t really see Kate’s gown, but it looks good from what’s visible! There’s been no definitive ID, but it’s pink, one-shouldered and featuring some kind of ruffling.
Her earrings are from her own collection and are believed to have been a wedding present. She first debuted them in 2011, and then wore them more recently at the 2017 BAFTAs.
Totally unclear on what Meghan is wearing, but it appears to be strapless. Her statement earrings will be familiar to those who remember the dinner in Fiji last month.
The newlyweds – Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank – were also on hand. (God, doesn’t their wedding feel like a million years ago?)
Mike and Zara Tindall were also spotted arriving. I haven’t seen images of the Duke of York, the Princess Royal, or the Earl and Countess of Wessex arriving, but it’s possible they were already at Buckingham Palace. After all, a number of crowned heads are in town, including the Crown Prince and Princess of Denmark, King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway, the Crown Prince and Princess of Norway, the Grand Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg and King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium.
What we’re missing in pictures, we’re getting made up in words. Specifically, the Queen’s birthday toast to her eldest son, which the Palace released earlier today. It reads:
“It is a privilege for any mother to be able to propose a toast to her son on his 70th birthday.”
“It means that you have lived long enough to see your child grow up. It is rather like —to use an analogy I am certain will find favour — planting a tree and being able to watch it grow.
“My mother saw me turn 70, of course. And she was heard to observe that 70 is exactly the age when the number of candles on your cake finally exceeds the amount of breath you have to blow them out.
“Over his 70 years, Philip and I have seen Charles become a champion of conservation and the arts, a great charitable leader — a dedicated and respected heir to the throne to stand comparison with any in history — and a wonderful father.
“Most of all, sustained by his wife Camilla, he is his own man, passionate and creative.
“So this toast is to wish a happy birthday to my son, in every respect a duchy original.
“To you Charles. To the Prince of Wales.”
I think that’s a fine note to end on.
I know I owe you all a post on William and Kate’s day in South Yorkshire – I will follow up tomorrow. In a choice between the two, I decided to go with the evening event!