Royal news live: Prince William breaks silence on Harry in touching tribute to their mother Diana
Previously unseen pictures show the prince on a visit to homeless shelter
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Prince William has mentioned Prince Harry publicly for the first time in years, as he recalls a childhood memory in his upcoming documentary.
The Prince of Wales recounted the time his mother, the late Princess Diana, took him and his brother to visit a homeless shelter more than 30 years ago.
“My mother took me to The Passage. She took Harry and I both there. I must have been about 11, I think probably at the time, maybe 10. I’d never been to anything like that before, and I was a bit anxious as to what to expect,” he said. “My mother went about her usual part of making everyone feel relaxed and having a laugh and joking with everyone.”
The last time William spoke about his brother publicly is thought to be six years ago, when the pair were interviewed at Royal Foundation Forum in 2018
Previously unseen pictures have also released as part of the documentary, Prince William: We Can End Homelessness, showing William as a child on the visit.
Meanwhile, Buckingham Palace officials have given a major update on King Charles’ work schedule, revealing he is set to return to his normal schedule of overseas tours next year.
King to embrace overseas tours despite cancer battle
The royal family’s finances are shrouded in mystery – it’s time to open the books
Prince William inspired by Princess Diana to end homelessness as he shares unseen family footage of charity visit
William recalls first visit to homelessness charity with his mother 30 years ago
Watch: King Charles and Queen Camilla depart Samoa after first visit as monarchs
Watch as King Charles III and Queen Camilla departed Samoa on Friday after a four-day visit.
The royal couple visited the Polynesian nation, which is hosting a major gathering of Commonwealth leaders, after their tour of Australia – the first by Charles after his coronation.
King Charles formally opened the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, which took place for the first time with him as its head.
Watch live: King Charles and Queen Camilla depart Samoa after first visit as monarchs
Watch live as King Charles III and Queen Camilla depart Samoa on Friday, 25 October, after a four-day visit.
Sarah Ferguson becomes first British royal on TikTok with poignant cancer video
Sarah Ferguson has become the first member of the British royal family to join TikTok.
The Duchess of York, 65, made her debut on the platform with a poignant video reflecting on her breast cancer diagnosis.
Ferguson how she felt “total abject fear” when she received the medical news and recalled not being able to speak as she drove between hospitals.
“I just shut down, I went back into [a] little girl. It was easier not to ask for support and just to deal with it because that’s what I’m used to, that’s what I was taught,” she admitted.
Commonwealth slavery reparations debate: What could the UK be asked to pay?
Keir Starmer has faced renewed calls for Britain to pay slavery reparations which could far exceed £200bn as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chgom) in Samoa gets underway.
A group of 15 Caribbean governments, as part of the Caribbean Community or ‘Caricom’ organisation, have all agreed to table reparations on the Chgom agenda when the group meets.
Defying the UK, with Sir Keir saying he does not want to discuss the matter, a draft communique for the summit places it firmly on the agenda, reading: “Heads, noting calls for discussions on reparatory justice with regard to the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans and chattel enslavement… agreed that the time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation towards forging a common future based on equity.”
All three candidates for the position of Commonwealth Secretary-General role have supported reparations for transatlantic slavery and colonialism.
Nadine White reports:
Commonwealth slavery reparations debate: What do experts say the UK should pay?
Reparations is expected to be a key talking point in Samoa
What is the Earthshot prize?
The Earthshot Prize gives five finalists £1 million each to help grow their environmental projects.
A winner is selected from each category or environmental challenge: Protect and Restore Nature, Clean Our Air, Revive Our Oceans, Build A Waste-Free World, and Fix Our Climate.
Both finalists and winners receive dedicated mentorship, resources and support during the year-long Earthshot Prize Fellowship Programme.
In 2021, Costa Rica won the Protect and Restore Nature award.
Since then, the country’s Cocos Island National Park and its surrounding marine protected area expanded to 26 times its size, and the Bicentennial Marine Area covers over 106,000 square kilometres.
Star-studded line-up set for fourth annual celebration of Earthshot Awards
The fourth annual celebration of the Prince of Wales’s Earthshot prize will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, next month.
This year, Earthshot Week will be hosted by actor and humanitarian Nomzamo Mbatha from November 4 to November 7.
She will be joined by fellow Earthshot Global Ambassador, Australian photographer Robert Irwin, the son of late wildlife conservationist, Steve Irwin.
The award ceremony, taking place on November 6, will be hosted by Grammy, Emmy and Tony award winner Billy Porter and award-winning television presenter Bonang Matheba.
Mr Porter said: “It’s an honour to co-host this year’s Earthshot Prize Awards and help to celebrate this year’s inspiring innovators working to create a better future for everyone. I’m so inspired by the Earthshot community, and I can’t wait to be part of an evening that celebrates creativity, human ingenuity, and artistry in all its different forms.”
Stars set to perform include the Ndlovu Youth Choir, Grammy award winner, Lebo M, Grammy nominated artist and producer, Davido, artist Diamond Platnumz, and DJ and producer Uncle Waffles.
The ceremony and green carpet hosted by media personality Ebuka, Obi-Uchendu, and rapper and TV presenter Moozlie will be available to watch live globally on The Earthshot Prize’s YouTube channel.
On top of that, supermodel and television host Heidi Klum, actor and activist Nina Dobrev, supermodel and beauty entrepreneur Winnie Harlow and artist and actor Tobe Nwigwe will join the broadcast to announce the winners.
King Charles says the Commonwealth mattered ‘a great deal’ to his mother
King Charles said the Commonwealth mattered “a great deal” his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, who was seen as a unifying figure among the body.
Charles attended his first Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, or Chogm as Britain’s head of state yesterday, where he indirectly acknowledged calls from some of Britain’s former colonies for a reckoning over its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Britain’s handling of its involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade is seen by many observers as a litmus test for the Commonwealth’s adaptation to a modern-day world, as other European nations and some British institutions have started to own up to their role in the trade.
The UK has never formally apologized for its role in the trade, in which millions of African citizens were kidnapped and transported to plantations in the Caribbean and Americas over several centuries, enriching many individuals and companies.
Studies estimate Britain would owe between hundreds of millions and trillions of dollars in compensation to the descendants of slaves.
None of us can change the past but we can commit with all our hearts to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to write the inequalities that endure,” said Charles.
Tower of London to be lit up with poignant light show over Remembrance period
The Tower of London is to be illuminated with a poignant light show in remembrance of those who lost their lives in the First and Second World Wars.
Visitors to the immersive after-dark experience will be invited inside the walls of the famous fortress next month to see the historic White Tower transformed with moving images reflecting on the conflicts.
The Luxmuralis sound and light installation, Poppy Fields at the Tower of London, will run for nine nights, from November 8-16, including Remembrance Day.
Falling poppy petals, silhouettes of soldiers and the World War One military medal “For Bravery in the Field” will be among the artwork lighting up the Tower, accompanied by music and poetry recordings.
Ticketholders will also be granted special access to see the Crown Jewels without the usual crowds, and learn about their removal from the Tower during both world wars.
Husband and wife team behind Princess Diana’s wedding dress settle High Court claim
The fashion designers behind Diana, Princess of Wales’s wedding dress have settled a High Court claim over the sale of the drawings for the famous royal gown.
David Emanuel had filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife Elizabeth Emanuel, claiming that she had infringed his copyright by reproducing drawings of the designs on which they had collaborated. The drawings, including those for Diana’s wedding dress, were put up for auction without his consent, he said.
The one-time husband and wife team announced on Friday that they had settled the case “amicably.” Terms of the settlement weren’t released.
Read the full story here:
Husband and wife team behind Princess Diana’s wedding dress settle High Court claim
David Emanuel brought legal action against his ex-wife and business partner Elizabeth Emanuel
Watch: King Charles sips traditional ava root tea during Samoan ceremony
King Charles sipped traditional ava root tea during a Samoan ceremony welcoming him and Queen Camilla to the island nation.
Samoa’s head of state and his village afforded the King the highest accolade by staging an ava ceremony where the drink, prepared by the statesman’s daughter from powdered ava root and representing community unity, was presented to Charles.
The ceremony was held at the National University of Samoa on Wednesday (23 October).
Following custom Charles poured a few drops of the ava away before drinking deeply from a cup, made from a coconut shell, and watched by village elders and dignitaries including Samoa’s prime minister Afioga Fiame Naomi Mata’afa.
Australian senator says Charles holds ‘stolen wealth’ after parliament protest - recap
An Australian senator who protested against the King during his state visit to the country has accused the monarch of refusing to return its “stolen wealth”.
Lidia Thorpe, who campaigns on First Nations issues, disrupted Charles’s welcome to the capital Canberra with an outburst on Monday.
Speaking in an interview with Australian broadcaster ABC on Wednesday, Ms Thorpe defended her actions and said she had been “overwhelmed with supporting messages”.
She said: “For those that don’t agree with what I have said and what I have done, I can tell you now there are elders, there are grassroots Aboriginal people across this country… who are just so proud. They say that it’s lit a fire back in their belly, and they want to join the resistance.
“I don’t listen to the noise of those who have chosen to assimilate into the colonial system, that’s their decision. I’ve decided to be a black sovereign woman and continue our fight against the colony and for justice for our people.”
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