TMZ reported this morning that Meghan Markle’s father, Thomas Markle, suffered a heart attack six days ago and following news that he participated with paparazzi shots will no longer be attending his daughter’s wedding on Saturday. The decision is said to have been his choice as he is deeply embarrassed by the news coverage and couldn’t face meeting the Royal Family or the attention that would come from walking Meghan down the aisle.
Continue reading “T-5 Days & the Hits Keep Coming [UPDATED]”
As we creep closer to May 19 more and more details about who, what and where keep coming out. Let’s start with the most official and work our way backwards to the straight up gossip, shall we?
Yesterday, the Instrument of Consent – the Queen’s official consent – for the marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was shared with the public. Many were quick to point out that Meghan wasn’t referred to as “trusty and well-beloved” the way that the Duchess of Cambridge was in the lead up to her marriage to the Duke. The simple answer to that is that Kate is a British citizen and Meghan isn’t – the language is dictated as such.
Continue reading “T-6 Days & the Wedding Details Keep Coming”
Marguerite of Anjou is, in my opinion, one of the most interesting queen consorts in England’s history. Her marriage, however, started as a glorified insurance policy for her uncle, Charles VII, and resulted in one of the most controversial and dramatic public careers a woman in 15th century Europe ever held. We’ve covered Marguerite on this site a few times, from rumors of her infidelity to her political maneuvers when her husband “went mad” to her mysterious childhood prior to joining French court as a teenager, to name but a few. Today we’re going to get into how it was that she became Henry VI’s wife and the very direct way in which that led to the later civil war that toppled them from their thrones.
Continue reading “When Marguerite of Anjou Arrived in England”
Kensington Palace announced details for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding on May 19. The ceremony is due to begin at 12 pm GMT at St George’s Chapel. The Dean of Windsor will conduct the ceremony, while the Archbishop of Canterbury will officiate as the couple makes their vows.
Continue reading “Kensington Palace Releases Wedding Day Itinerary”
While we were busy covering the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in Sweden and Norway last week, the rest of the British Royal Family was still conducting business as usual. We had television interviews, other foreign tours and wedding dates set while the rest of us were busy tracking Kate’s battle against floral Erdem dresses, so let’s catch up.
First and foremost, as we’ve discussed, this was a very busy January for Kate. Even taking away the tour, she carried out more engagements this month than she ever has for the month of January in the past. But more importantly, the entirety of the BRF’s workload is on the upswing.
Continue reading “Royal Roundup: Everything Else That Happened Last Week [UPDATED]”
I have gone out of my way to mostly ignore Sarah, Duchess of York (Prince Andrew’s ex-wife) due to the old adage, “If you don’t have anything nice to say…” Indeed, it’s for this same reason that I usually only reference Andrew when he happens to have attended a large family event. The only exception to this is a post from early last year that covered memorable public statements made by Andrew pertaining to the roles of his daughters in the “slimmed down” monarchy model that the Prince of Wales is said to favor.
My reason for writing that post was that it was particularly newsworthy and it is for that same reason I find myself circling back to the York family again today. So, here we go:
Continue reading “Royal Roundup: Autumn Dates, Possible Tours & the Yorks”
It was announced today that Princess Eugenie, younger daughter of the Duke of York and his ex-wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, is engaged to her long-time boyfriend, Jack Brooksbank. The couple are due to wed this autumn at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor – the same venue at which Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will marry in May.
Continue reading “Princess Eugenie is Engaged, Due to Marry in the Autumn [UPDATED]”
Guys, I know there’s been a dearth of historical posts this month and I promise we’ll start rectifying that this weekend. Between recapping The Crown and the sheer volume of current news coming out in the last few weeks it’s been a lot and a few posts planned have had to be punted for December and January to accommodate. I can promise that I’ve written a handful of posts scheduled for next week and that things should slow down a bit with the Windsors as we get closer to Christmas. Unfortunately, the Duchess of Cambridge’s absence from the spotlight in September and most of October means there’s been a flurry of activity and, well, here we are.
On that note, Kensington Palace followed up on yesterday’s exciting news of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s engagement with a few more details on their wedding. As they told us yesterday, it is indeed scheduled for this coming spring. Per their announcement, the wedding will be held in May 2018 at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
Continue reading “Harry & Meghan to Marry at Windsor, Carry Out Their First Engagement on Friday”
Royal wedding fever is definitely in the air thanks to the looming engagement of Prince Harry and the Queen’s 70th anniversary with the Duke of Edinburgh. Today we’re going to take a look back at the first of the Queen’s children’s weddings: Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips. Nearly eight years before the Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in St. Paul’s Cathedral and launched the wedding of the century, London was taken up with the very British romance of the Queen’s only daughter.
Continue reading “Royal Wedding ’70s-Style: Princess Anne & Mark Phillips”
Considering it’s August, there was certainly quite a bit of commentary this past weekend after news hit that Prince Harry took girlfriend Meghan Markle on a holiday in Africa for her birthday. And I say “Africa” because when the news first hit the location wasn’t specified beyond that, a fact that drew quite a bit of ire online.
We know now that the couple are in Botswana, a country with particular significance for Harry. He visited the country for the first time back in 1997, just months after the death of his mother, the late Princess of Wales. That trip, and his many subsequent visits to the larger continent, have resonated with Harry and he appears to enjoy a special connection with the place. While the Duke of Cambridge appears to have similar feelings for Africa – it played a role in the theme of his 21st birthday party and is where he proposed to his future wife in 2010 – Harry makes a point of visiting at least once a year, sometimes more.
Continue reading “Meghan, Botswana & Fitting in an Engagement”
