Royal news live: Charles faces surprising ‘snub’ as Zara Tindall’s husband opens up about marrying into royals
The couple’s royal reception is set to be sparsely attended by officials
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King Charles and Queen Camilla are facing an embarrassing snub by leading Australian politicians ahead of their tour of the country.
As the couple prepares to kick off their nine-day visit Down Under on Friday (18 October), every single state premier has turned down invitations to attend their royal reception in Canberra on October 21, reports suggest.
The King is set to deliver a speech at the event to recognise Australians for their achievements in the arts, culture, sports and health.
Victoria’s Premier Jacinta Allan is the latest representative to snub the invitation, whilst other politicians have given excuses such as “schedule clashes” and “election campaign duties”.
Meanwhile, the reality of marrying into the royal family has been revealed by Zara Tindall’s husband, who described the experience as “pretty easy”.
Mike Tindall, 45, made the revelation in his new book, The Good, the Bad & the Rugby, following Meghan Markle’s claims that marrying into the firm was far from plain sailing.
“Believe it or not, marrying into the Royal Family was pretty easy for me,” he wrote. “They were always nice to me, and I was always nice to them. Simple really.”
Meghan, 43, cited several issues that came with royal life, including press intrusion, when she and Prince Harry chose to give up their positions as working royals in 2020.
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King Charles to ‘pause’ cancer treatment for royal tour to Australia starting this week
The King is to pause his cancer treatment during his high-profile tour to Australia next week.
Royal doctors gave Charles, 75, permission to briefly halt the weekly cycle in order to fly around the world for his key visit Down Under, followed by a state visit to Samoa in the South Pacific.
Charles and Queen Camilla will arrive in Australia on 18 October, with stops in Sydney and Canberra during their six-day visit.
King to ‘pause’ cancer treatment for Australian tour
Charles has been given the go-ahead by his doctors to briefly stop his cycle of treatment in order to fulfil his royal duties on the long-haul trip.
Melania Trump reveals she is pen pals with King Charles
Melania Trump has revealed she is pen pals with King Charles after the pair bonded over their passion for environmental conservation.
The unexpected friendship between the monarch and the former fashion model, who is married to Donald Trump, was revealed last week in her memoir, Melania.
The former First Lady, 54, explained that after their first meeting in New York in 2005, the pair reconnected in 2019 during a state visit to the UK, by which point Trump was in the White House.
Melania Trump reveals she is pen pals with King Charles
The pair are said to have bonded over their shared passion for environmental conservation
In pictures: Princess of Wales’ surprise appearance to meet Southport victim’s with Prince William
The Princess of Wales has ramped up her return to public duties by making a surprise joint appearance with Prince William to meet the bereaved families of the Southport attacks.
Marking their first joint engagement since Kate’s cancer treatment, the couple privately met the families in Merseyside last week.
The Princess, 42, is said to have attended because she wanted to show her “support, empathy and compassion to the local community”.
“Meeting the community today has been a powerful reminder of the importance of supporting one another in the wake of unimaginable tragedy,” the couple later said in a joint statement.
Sarah Ferguson describes Kate in two words as princess makes first public appearance after cancer treatment
Sarah Ferguson described the Princess of Wales in two words as Catherine made her return to work following her cancer treatment
The Duchess of York called the Princess “brave and courageous” as she made her first public appearance on Thursday (10 October), after finishing her chemotherapy treatment.
Kate joined the Prince of Wales to meet with families of victims of the Southport Taylor Swift dance class tragedy.
The Duchess told Channel 5 News on Friday: “It’s such a brave and courageous move and it is so wonderful to see.
“It will inspire and help those poor families. That’s what we should be looking at, courage and courage and courage.”
Sarah Ferguson describes Kate in two words as princess returns to public life
Sarah Ferguson described the Princess of Wales in two words as Catherine made her return to work following her cancer treatment The Duchess of York called the Princess “brave and courageous” as she made her first public appearance on Thursday (10 October), after finishing her chemotherapy treatment. Kate joined the Prince of Wales to meet with families of victims of the Southport Taylor Swift dance class tragedy. The Duchess told Channel 5 News on Friday: “It’s such a brave and courageous move and it is so wonderful to see. “It will inspire and help those poor families. That’s what we should be looking at, courage and courage and courage.”
Recap: Campaigners are demanding ‘full disclosure’ of gifts to King Charles after four-year silence
Campaigners have called for “full disclosure” of gifts received by the royal family after it emerged King Charles has failed to publish an annual list for four years.
Recent delays in sharing details of presents received by royals have been attributed to a challenging few years for the family, including the pandemic, the change of reign and high-profile state occasions such as the coronation, The Independent understands.
Read the full story:
Campaigners demand ‘full disclosure’ of royal gifts after four-year silence
King Charles and the royals have not published a list of official gifts since 2020, it has emerged
ICYMI: The King ‘greatly saddened’ by death of Alex Salmond
The King said he was “greatly saddened” by the sudden death of Scotland’s first SNP first minister Alex Salmond, aged 69.
The monarch led tributes after news of the politician’s death broke on Saturday afternoon from a suspected heart attack during a trip to North Macedonia.
King Charles said in a message issued by Buckingham Palace: “My wife and I are greatly saddened to hear of the sudden death of Alex Salmond.
“His devotion to Scotland drove his decades of public service.
“We extend our deep condolences to his family and loved ones at this time.”
Mr Salmond served as first minister of Scotland from 2007 to 2014 and was leader of the SNP on two occasions, from 1990 to 2000 and from 2004 to 2014.
The Alba party said it understood he had suffered a heart attack, although there will be a post-mortem examination to confirm the cause of death.
Former first minister of Scotland Alex Salmond dies aged 69
The Alba Party leader passed away on Saturday after giving a speech in North Macedonia
Royal aide reveals late Queen was a ‘gutsy’ driver who left passengers with white-knuckles
One of Queen Elizabeth’s most trusted aides has revealed the late monarch was a “gutsy” driver who loved speed behind the wheel.
In her first interview about her 18 years as one of the royal’s most trusted confidantes, former communications secretary Samantha Cohen recalled spending summers with the Queen at her Scottish estate Balmoral.
She told The Sunday Times: “She loved hosting everybody for summer, allocating the rooms and checking them herself.”
The aide said her children, who would stay with her in a lodge near the castle for the summer, would often look up at breakfast and see the Queen riding by on her horse.
She also revealed the monarch had a taste for speed behind the wheel as she drove around the remote Scottish estate.
“She was gutsy,” Ms Cohen said. “She would drive her cars fast around Balmoral.”
What are royal gift lists?
Unlike MPs, members of the royal family are not required to declare gifts, donations and hospitality on a public register of interests.
Nevertheless, they began publishing an annual list of official gifts received by the royal household following scrutiny of jewellery given to Queen Camilla by a Saudi royal in 2007.
However, it has emerged King Charles and his family have not shared such a list since 2019.
It included a 24 carat gold-plated horse comb from President Borut Pahor of the Republic of Slovenia and three gifts the late Queen Elizabeth II received from Donald Trump during his presidential visit.
Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic, has insisted: “It is vital that the public knows about any possible conflicts of interest or attempts to curry favour with royals, as they have direct access to the highest levels of government.”
Under rules reviewed in 2003, gifts received during official duties such as state banquets or royal tours are classed as an official gifts. Those given by someone a royal knows in a personal capacity are considered private.
Buckingham Palace has said the list will be published in due course.
Royal gift list row: Republic’s statement in full
Anti-monarchy campaign group Republic has called for “full disclosure” of gifts handed to King Charles and other royals after annual lists have not been published for four years.
Responding to the news, first reported in the Observer, Republic’s Graham Smith said: “If politicians are being lambasted for failing to declare gifts, the same should apply to the royals.
“It is vital that the public knows about any possible conflicts of interest or attempts to curry favour with royals, as they have direct access to the highest levels of government. And we need to know if official gifts are being handed over to the state or surreptitiously kept for personal use.
“Charles and senior royals have access to government papers, can have secretive meetings with ministers and the prime minister and they have leverage to pressure government to do favours for them and their friends. So it’s vital we know what gifts they’re receiving.
“The royals have form when it comes to blurring the lines between what’s theirs to keep and what’s an official gift. So full disclosure is needed on what’s been received and where those gifts are now.
“There’s usually a good reason why billionaires and Saudi businessmen give gifts, because something is expected in return. So we need full disclosure, not just of royal gifts but also royal lobbying.
“If we demand high standards from politicians, we must demand those same standards from the royals.”
Buckingham Palace has said the list will be published in due course.
King Charles facing calls for ‘full disclosure’ of royal gifts after four-year silence
Campaigners have called for “full disclosure” of gifts received by the royal family after it emerged King Charles has failed to publish an annual list for four years.
Unlike MPs, members of the royal family are not required to declare gifts, donations and hospitality on a public register of interests.
Nevertheless they began publishing an annual list of official gifts received by the royal household following scrutiny of jewellery given to Queen Camilla by a Saudi royal in 2007.
However it has emerged King Charles and his family have not shared such a list since 2019.
Recent delays in sharing details of presents received by royals have been attributed a challenging few years for the family, including the pandemic, the change of reign and high profile state occasions such as the coronation, The Independent understands.
Anti-monarchy campaign group Republic has hit out at the delays, insisting: “If we demand high standards from politicians, we must demand those same standards from the royals.”
Buckingham Palace has said the list will be published in due course. Read the full story:
Campaigners demand ‘full disclosure’ of royal gifts after four-year silence
King Charles and the royals have not published a list of official gifts since 2019, it has emerged
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