Some of you claim that Sydney Sweeney is a charisma vacuum, but I kind of like her? She gives good interviews, she plays the game, she’s cute and sexy and she’s worked hard for everything she has. She’s not a nepo-baby, she’s a hustler (positive). Sydney is currently promoting the horror film Immaculate, where she plays a young nun who joins an Italian convent and sh-t gets wacky and probably sacreligious too. Sydney is the executive producer on Immaculate, just as she produced Anyone But You, the surprise sleeper rom-com hit. Shifting into producing while still just taking regular old acting gigs is such a smart play for her. She recently chatted with Variety about all of this and more:

Producing & acting in ‘Immaculate’: “There’s videos and pictures of me standing in video village, helping set up other shots, holding the script and switching some things around, all drenched in blood. I felt like a kid at a playground — endless imagination, and I felt so in control. Mike [Mohan], I’ve worked with him three times, and it’s just a dream, because he values my opinion and lets me take such charge.”

Doing a film about pregnancy/parthenogenesis in a moment when reproductive rights are being curtailed: “So the script has been around for 10 years — I auditioned for it when I was 16. And it was a very different draft. I called the writer, Andrew Lobel, and got the clean, original draft, then reworked it to fit who I am today, keeping a lot of the same themes and storylines. And one of the biggest ones that carried over was something innately in the project that, sadly, is still a topic of discussion today. What’s so cool is that there are so many different themes and points of conversation for people to draw their own conclusions or assumptions. That’s what I love — when a film doesn’t try to drive one message into an audience’s mind and tell them, This is what you need to believe. I love when a film has a variation of ideas and concepts and allows people to conclude their own opinion.”

She always want to do a straight horror film: “Being in the horror genre is fun, because in that genre, there’s no limitations or boundaries. I always find it so funny when people pick apart a horror film’s rules, or its storytelling. I’m like, It’s a horror film. You’re just having fun. It’s not a movie for the Oscars; you know that going into it. We want to create something good, but it’s fun having characters that can go to such extreme, absurd places, and people don’t question it.”

It’s important to her that her films get theatrical releases: “I love the entire experience of going to a theater. I love getting your popcorn and your candy, having your group of friends. And I also like that you have to put away your phone. You have to actually live in the moment and live in that world. We are all subjected to watching stuff on our computers or our TV, and we can do multiple things at the same time without really immersing ourselves into this world, letting the outside world shut off. That’s what I love about storytelling is being able to create a new world. Being able to bring people into a theater is to let them shut off the outside world for 90 minutes. It’s fun. It’s exciting. Get off the couch.

The box office success of Anyone But You: “I get chills just talking about it. We are all so beyond grateful and ecstatic that it has been loved to the degree that it has been loved. Seeing people shut off the outside world and feel all the emotions we wanted them to feel while we were making it, then leave the theater singing and dancing and wanting to fall in love — that is what the movie theatergoing experience is supposed to ignite inside you.

Whether a man with her CV would get more recognition: “There’s way more actresses in the pool in this industry than there are actors, so you have a higher rate of competition. But as a male, it’s much easier to do one movie that does really well, and then you can get offered any film that you want. And me, I’m still getting “Can she act?” accusations. Go watch “Reality,” “White Lotus,” “Euphoria,” “Sharp Objects,” “Handmaid’s Tale” — but, OK, I’ll keep trying to prove myself, and hope that one day I can get cast with an amazing director and have a film that people recognize.

Being an actress-for-hire on Madame Web: “I want to be as involved in the process for any project moving forward that I possibly can. I love being in the room to be able to problem-solve, and come up with ideas. It’s so important to have multiple people at the table instead of just one — everybody who can be collaborative and truly help build a project. It takes everybody. On “Madame Web,” it was so hard not being able to be as involved as I love being. And I felt very free with “Anyone But You” and “Immaculate” being able to have that.

[From Variety]

I like that she’s putting her work front and center – Variety tried to get her to talk about her body and how (basically) her boobs are going viral every week, and she just kind of shimmied out of the conversation, saying that people don’t see her as real and that she’s still doesn’t know how to feel about it. But again, it’s about the work for her, and it’s so cool that this young woman (she’s only 26) is already executive producing hit movies and she’s so involved with the business side. She’s also right about her CV – a man would be handed a superhero franchise with half of her CV.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Since I can barely keep track of all of Prince Harry’s lawsuits and court appearances, it would make sense if he was due back in the UK in the next few months on legal business. While he settled with the Mirror in February, he still has pending cases against News UK (the Murdochs) and the Mail (ANL), in addition to his appeal on his royal protection issue. Plus, Harry will likely go to the UK in May for that ten-year-anniversary event for Invictus. I bring this up because that royal biographer Tom Quinn is trying to make it sound like Harry will be heading back to the UK soon, but solely to see his father.

Prince Harry has revealed his plans to return to the UK and one royal expert believes it could happen sooner than fans think. The Duke of Sussex made a brief return to London last month after his father King Charles was diagnosed with cancer. Harry then gave a rare interview during which he announced he will be returning to the UK again, but he didn’t provide any exact dates.

Royal author Tom Quinn suggested Harry’s return could be “fairly soon”. Speaking exclusively to The Mirror, Tom said Harry will want to show the world “he is a caring member of the Royal Family.”

“The fact that he lost his High Court challenge will definitely make him think twice about coming back to the UK, but on the other hand, he feels under enormous pressure to show the world that he is a caring member of the Royal Family and the only way he can show he cares is to visit his father, even if that is difficult because Meghan won’t want to come and he is still completely unable to make things up with his brother,” Tom said.

He added: “The key thing is that it will look terrible if Harry doesn’t visit his father again – and fairly soon – because Harry and Meghan have made being caring and sharing a central part of their mission, their brand. How will it look if Harry cares about injured soldiers but doesn’t seem to care much about his stricken father?”

[From The Mirror]

Yeah, the fact that Harry immediately rushed to England when he was informed about his father’s cancer diagnosis did show that he cared. He cared more than his brother, who at that time had still not seen Charles in person (and waited a few more weeks to see Charles). Harry adores his dogsh-t father and absolutely wants to visit his dad, but I suspect Harry won’t make another dedicated trip to see Charles anytime soon. Maybe I’m wrong, Harry surprises me sometimes. My guess is that Harry will probably wait until he has other business, like a court appearance or something. As the royal-protection case showed everyone, the Windsors do the most to put the Sussexes in danger constantly, and I doubt Harry will step foot in the UK again without his father ensuring that he has police protection, and Charles probably plays fast and loose with all of that.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

For years, there’s been talk of the York princesses being drafted into full-time royal work. That’s what Prince Andrew wanted for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, for his two daughters to become “working royals.” King Charles always had other ideas, even when QEII was still alive. Charles always fought it. Now that he’s king, the Yorks are not being brought into any working-royal fold, although they’re still invited to family events and occasionally state events. Eugenie and Beatrice also have small charity portfolios and they both have full-time jobs. One might even say they’re part-time royals, half-in the institution. Well, now that Charles and the Princess of Wales have significant health issues and Prince William is solely obsessed with the school run, you would think that someone would suggest that Bea and Eugenie would step in for some of the lower-profile royal work? You would be wrong. From the Daily Beast’s Royalist:

Friends of Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie have said they are “very upset” but “not surprised” to have not been asked to carry out any royal engagements, while the threadbare royal family grapples with a double health crisis that has seen King Charles, Prince William, and Kate Middleton all step back from royal duties.

A friend of the young women told The Daily Beast: “It seems mean that the girls aren’t being used at all, when they have made it clear they want to be of service, especially when Prince Andrew has been accepted back into the fold. They have done nothing wrong, and they shouldn’t be visited with the sins of their father. They are very upset to have been ignored by the king as they feel they have a lot to offer, but, ultimately not surprised. They are sanguine about it.”

Another source, a friend of the wider family, told The Daily Beast: “Charles is very fond of the York girls but everyone, including them, accepts there is no place for them to be full time working royals. And as the late Queen Elizabeth made clear, being a part-time working royal isn’t an option.”

A former courtier, asked if the unavailability of Charles, William and Kate for public duties—leaving the monarchy with its official representatives being Queen Camilla (76), Princess Anne (73), Prince Edward (60) and wife Sophie (59)—pointed to the folly of cutting out the two younger royals (Beatrice is 35 and Eugenie is 33), said: “With hindsight you can make the argument that they should have been kept on, but a dramatic change of course now would not be helpful for anyone. The York girls have built successful lives as private individuals.”

Evidence of the king’s ongoing affection for his nieces can be found in the fact that since her 2020 marriage to Edoardo “Edo” Mapelli Mozzi in 2020, Princess Beatrice and her family have lived in a four-bed apartment in St James’ Palace, with two-year-old daughter Sienna and Edoardo’s older child from a previous relationship, Wolfie. They are understood to pay market rent. Eugenie, the younger sister, lives at a luxury golf and ocean club in Portugal, but spends time at her sister’s St James’ apartment when in the U.K.

Some believe, however, that if Charles and Kate were to be permanently sidelined, forced into greatly reduced roles for the longer term by ongoing health challenges, a Prince William regency would look desperately short-handed…This royal staffing time bomb is coming anyway, as the Waleses are unlikely to want their children becoming full time working royals until at least their mid-twenties. Their eldest child, Prince George, is only 10 right now. Some observers suspect that’s why the regular suggestions by associates of the Yorks that the daughters of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson could be invited back into the family—even on that oft ruled-out part-time basis— continue to be floated.

[From The Daily Beast]

“Part-time royals are not allowed” is an argument they created solely for Prince Harry and Meghan and it’s biting them in the ass. It’s fun to watch too – despite the revisionist history that QEII was somehow vehemently opposed to part-time royals, she was actually fine with it for everybody else. Many of her “working royal” cousins had other jobs and they also represented the crown from time to time and were still “allowed” on the fakakta balcony. Prince Michael of Kent had a whole-ass Russian-consultation business (operated out of the palace) and he was a working royal for decades. The Duchess of Kent worked privately as a music teacher while she was also a working royal. There’s absolutely no reason why Eugenie and Beatrice couldn’t step in for some store openings and general ribbon-cuttings. Well, no reason other than Charles, Camilla and William’s jealousy, short-sightedness and pettiness.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.

Good lord, In Touch Weekly has decided to go full-throttle with the royal tea lately. In Touch has done some good/interesting pieces about Prince William and Rose Hanbury in recent weeks, and now In Touch is tackling the dual health crises crippling the British monarchy. In Touch’s sources say, flat-out, that King Charles’s doctors are only giving him two years. Their sources are also saying that Charles knows William isn’t ready to take over. Take this with a huge grain of salt, but YIKES.

After announcing that King Charles was battling cancer, the palace insisted that he “remains wholly positive about his treatment.” But it’s far worse than anyone knows, an insider tells In Touch exclusively: “He has pancreatic cancer and has a maximum of two years to live.”

While reeling from the tragic news just over a year into their reign, Charles, 75, and Queen Camilla, 76, “are also worried about Prince William, who is next in line to the throne, because he’s currently facing a public relations disaster,” says the source.

“Charles knows the pressures of being the monarch,” the source adds. “And he just isn’t sure William is ready to take his place. It seems premature, and there could be consequences.”

Amid Princess Kate Middleton’s health crisis – she announced on March 22 that she had been diagnosed with cancer – old rumors of an affair between William, 41, and Rose Hanbury resurfaced. While Rose, 40, insisted that the rumors are “completely false,” Charles is still worried that his eldest son will repeat the same mistake he made himself when he cheated on the prince’s mother, Princess Diana. “It’s a very awkward situation,” the source admits.

William has also reportedly turned to alcohol to deal with the stress, “with as many as four drinks a night,” claims the source. Although the royal was nicknamed “One-Pint Willy” by his cousin-in-law Mike Tindall, the insider says he has a habit of having a few drinks when he’s letting loose with friends.

A 2021 report claimed that William would have beers after work and “several glasses of wine with dinner,” leading him to “wake up crabby,” which his father was not pleased about. “Charles has counseled him that there can be no more carefree outings to the pub anymore,” the source adds.

William’s temper is also a cause for concern in the king’s eyes. In his tell-all, Spare, Prince Harry recalled a fight he had with his older brother, writing, “William grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me.” A second source tells In Touch, “Word is, the altercation Harry mentioned in Spare wasn’t the first to occur. There was a growing rivalry between William and Harry ever since they were little and sometimes things got heated between them.”

Royals author Tom Quinn has also alleged that the “hotheaded” future king has directed his anger at Kate as well, to the point that they’ve had “terrible rows where they throw things at each other.

While Charles “is willing to try any treatment to extend his life by a few years, at least,” William remains frustrated by the rampant rumors about him as he waits to take the throne, the source says. “William does a very good job putting on a smile and calm face in public, but it does bother him. The feeling is that the current climate surrounding the monarchy has already cast a long shadow on his future as king.”

[From In Touch via Yahoo]

In many ways, this is just a more tabloidy version of what Tina Brown wrote in the New York Times this week: that Charles’s reign will be short, that no one thinks William is ready, that William is “frozen” with anxiety about the future. In any case, we don’t know what kind of cancer Charles has nor the kind of cancer Kate has. There are lots of rumors about both, and only one of them has been providing a constant stream of proof-of-life. Charles will do everything he can to ensure a long reign but he can’t ensure that he will beat cancer. Also: I totally believe that William has been drowning himself in booze for a while (and establishment figures have noticed) and I also believe that the assault Harry described was not the first or the last.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

The energy around Prince William and his wife is still decidedly weird and growing weirder by the day. One week ago, Kensington Palace released Princess Kate’s big announcement video, where she spoke about having cancer and undergoing chemotherapy. She seemed emotional and strained, and many noted that it was strange that her husband wasn’t sitting beside her, holding her hand or simply being present for this very difficult thing. Then, days later, the Times of London buried some exclusive information about William’s whereabouts when Kate (allegedly) filmed the video in Windsor on March 20th – he was not around, anywhere. He wasn’t even supporting Kate behind the scenes during the filming. The Times reported it as: “William was not present during the filming of Kate’s clip, as it is understood that the princess wanted to record it on her own. However, insiders said that she believed her recovery has been enormously helped by the daily support of her husband.” So… People Magazine is now running a similar story as an exclusive. Some highlights:

Prince William is a pillar of strength for Kate: “He is a very reliable, strong person. She doesn’t feel isolated in this because of William, who is right beside her,” a longtime family friend exclusively tells PEOPLE. “This is about supporting her and her feeling supported. It is a joint effort. She doesn’t feel isolated at all. The nuclear family that they have created so well is an immense support not only to him but to Catherine too.”

Kate chose to film the video alone: While Princess Kate deliberately chose to film the personal video message about her health news alone, Prince William has been there for her every step of the way. “It is a particular time in their lives, and I know their priority will be to look after each other,” the family friend explains. “His priority is on his family, and the other questions can wait.”

Why William didn’t join her in the video: Princess Kate appeared solo, prompting some to wonder why her husband, 41, didn’t join her. “It is a message from the princess about her health, and she wanted to personally deliver the message on her own,” a palace source tells PEOPLE. The insider says Princess Kate made clear her husband has been “supporting her throughout.”

William is proud of Kate: “William is extremely proud of his wife for the courage and strength she has shown not just this week but since her surgery in January, ” the source says. “Now more than ever, he’s focused on ensuring his wife has the privacy she needs to fully recover and that his children are shielded from the understandable interest in the news that has been shared.”

Time off during the kids’ school break: “The children are at the center of their world,” a close friend says of the couple in this week’s PEOPLE cover story.

[From People Magazine]

This is all authorized stuff from Kensington Palace, I can tell because of the circular nature of the arguments. What don’t you understand? Kate filmed it alone because she feels supported by William and that’s why he didn’t support her by showing up to the filming, because she feels supported. Like, I would have gone along with it if they said that Kate didn’t want William sitting beside her while she spoke to the camera. It was HER news, she was the one who went missing for three months, people were worried about her. There was probably also a completely reasonable belief that if William sat beside her, he would have looked coercive or… worse. But to not even be there, behind the scenes, to give her a hug after she finished filming? That says a lot and none of it good. Of course, plenty of people sort of doubt that Kate was even there for “filming,” but that’s a completely different story.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Backgrid.

Here are more photos of Queen Camilla going solo in Worcester on Maundy Thursday. She’s the first consort to stand in for the monarch at Maundy services, and as I said yesterday, Camilla was practically glowing. She loves being the last royal standing. She loves doing events solo. You guys need to lean into this: Camilla won. And it’s hilarious, in a way. By acknowledging that Camilla won, you’re acknowledging that the dumbass Windsors got played, and that the monarchy is now being defined by Queen Side Chick. Camilla played the game better than all of them, and she’s still playing the game. Thus, Becky English at the Mail did another sycophantic piece about how everything’s coming up Camilla!

The transformation of Queen Camilla from understudy to centre-stage star will, no doubt, continue to be discussed by historians many decades from now. When she married the King almost 19 years ago, royal aides were at pains to stress that the then Duchess of Cornwall very much saw herself as an adjunct. Her role, they said, was to support her husband in the pursuit of his increasingly heavy royal duties, while building up a small portfolio of patronages she was keen to support.

No one in her orbit – let alone the lady herself – dreamed that she would one day be crowned at her husband’s side (with the blessing and approval of Queen Elizabeth, no less), let alone stand in for His Majesty at events such as the annual royal Maundy service in Worcester. While King Charles diligently continues to undertake daily state business behind the scenes despite his ongoing cancer treatment, Queen Camilla now finds herself, to all intents and purposes, his front of house. Once considered to be one of the most hated women in Britain, many have been won over by her warmth, humour, strong sense of duty and, frankly, classic British ‘let’s just keep this bloody show on the road-ism’.

One royal retainer, who has witnessed many of the family’s twists and turns over the years, told me recently that they are genuinely glad to see Camilla’s diligence and sense of duty recognised at long last. ‘She’s been an absolute trooper, really she has,’ they said. ‘She’s worried about her husband, everyone is. His Majesty is doing amazingly well but it’s tough to see someone you love go through an experience like this. And yet she just gets up and goes out there, doing exactly what’s asked of her with a smile on her face.’

Like many people caring for a loved one with a serious illness, Camilla is torn between being by her husband’s side and doing what’s expected of her. But she knows the King (she respectfully never publicly refers to him as anything but the King or His Majesty, even to those she knows well) hates being fussed over and still has a prodigious work ethic.

‘She’s spending as much of her time as she can with her husband but also believes that one of the best ways she can support him is by going out in public to represent him,’ one aide remarks. Another member of their circle says: ‘She’s absolutely out there leading from the front.’

Of course, Buckingham Palace isn’t blinkered. Senior courtiers know full well that there will always be a vocal – and not necessarily small – group of people who will never accept Camilla on the throne (despite more than 2,000 genuinely excited people coming out to see her in Shrewsbury on a very wet, working Wednesday this week). But they also believe there is no point in wasting energy trying to convert the naysayers, and should let the Queen’s actions speak louder than their outdated murmurs of disapproval.

[From The Daily Mail]

“Senior courtiers know full well that there will always be a vocal – and not necessarily small – group of people who will never accept Camilla on the throne.” On the contrary, the monarchy’s biggest critics love the fact that Camilla got everything she wanted – Camilla’s game of thrones has left the monarchy weakened and historically unpopular. Camilla’s success in the royal arena showcases the absurdity of the arena itself. Long live Camilla, may she continue to be the monarchy’s downfall.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Buckingham Palace released a new photo of King Charles for Maundy Thursday, which we discussed yesterday. People were really surprised that this was an authorized palace photo and that little palace elves didn’t go to work on this image to make Charles look a bit healthier. You know why that is, though? Buckingham Palace doesn’t want to get caught manipulating photos like Kensington Palace. BP knew this photo would cause concern but they released it anyway, in the spirit of “oh well, at least we’re not lying unlike some people we could mention.” The Times noted that Charles looked “more gaunt” than usual and there were some concerned comments online. Some outlets (including us!) even published the side-by-side comparison between this pic and Charles’s desk photo from the day after his mother died, in September 2022. Same desk, different staging. Buckingham Palace is also doing the most to talk up Charles’s progress:

King Charles is “positive” about his cancer treatment. The King’s team is said to be thinking about a summer schedule for the monarch, 75, amid “amplified confidence” in light of the sophisticated treatment he is receiving, a royal source tells PEOPLE.

The King is “progressing well” in his treatment, a source close to the royal household says. The royal source adds, “He is positive, the doctors are optimistic.”

The source adds that King Charles has not been “operationally constrained” so far and Buckingham Palace is planning for “a summer diary.” However, his team won’t commit to any engagements and will rely on “medical advice nearer the time.”

The King’s outings and engagements have been restricted to small numbers of people since the palace revealed his diagnosis on Feb. 5, However, towards the summer when the risk of airborne illnesses eases, more engagements could happen outside – such as Trooping the Colour, the annual public celebration of the monarch’s birthday which will take place on June 15.

“There could be a slow increase of numbers of people they are able to meet indoors,” the source adds. A second source shared that King Charles’ team is “planning as usual.”

“One thing that has been wholly undiminished is his appetite for work,” the royal source added.

[From People]

BP has been heavily pushing the “Charles is still in charge” line for weeks, but it’s gotten even louder ever since Kate’s cancer-announcement video. My theory is still that Buckingham Palace seems to have finally taken over the messaging for KP, and/or they’ve cleaned up William’s mess behind the scenes. Whatever has happened, no one expects to see William for weeks and no one expects to see Kate for months. It’s now the Charles and Camilla Show, come hell or high water. I’m also curious about this “sophisticated treatment” Charles is receiving. I hope it’s medically sound, because Charles is a well-known lover of alternative medicine. Sausage-fingers crossed that Charles’s sophisticated treatment isn’t just berries, vitamin C and tree bark.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Embed from Getty Images
Alright, you guys, we are back to one of my favorite topics: the paranormal! To recap, I am fascinated by all of these supernatural, Universe-y type things. I’m talking about ghosts, dreams, intuition, synchronicities, aliens, psychic abilities, etc. I love hearing other people’s stories, too. But onto the topic at hand! Kumail Nanjiani was on The View this week to promote the new Ghostbusters movie, Frozen Empire. Naturally, the topic of conversation had to include a question about whether or not Kumail believes in ghosts, because of course it did. When Sunny Hostin floated it out there, Kumail responded that while he didn’t believe in ghosts, he does, in fact, believe in aliens. Whoopi really turned the convo up, though, when she shared that not only does she believe in extraterrestrials, she knows for a fact that they’re already here, “watching us.”

While Nanjiani said, “I don’t believe in ghosts, I’ve never had an encounter or anything,” he did bring another intriguing idea to the roundtable.

“I’ll tell you what, I do believe in aliens,” Nanjiani boasted. “I think aliens are circling us, waiting for us to get it together so they can come on down. … I think they’re waiting for us to clean up a little bit so that they can come here and tell us we’re really messing things up.”

That’s when a soft-spoken Goldberg, 68, spoke up and said, “They’re already here. They’ve been here for quite some time.”

A surprised Nanjiani needed clarification, asking, “You think they’re here? What are they doing?”

“They’re watching us,” a very serious Goldberg responded.

Hostin, 55, tried bringing some levity to the situation and joked, “They’re talking to Whoopi.”

Given the nature of the conversation, cohost Sara Haines couldn’t help but bring up Goldberg’s Oscar-winning movie to close out the wild conversation.

“She talks to ghosts, not aliens,” Haines, 46, said. “Duh, the movie was Ghost, not Alien.”

This isn’t the first time Goldberg brought up her belief in aliens. Back in 2023, Goldberg said she already “knew” about their existence before a congressional hearing on UFOs and aliens claimed the U.S. government recovered “nonhuman” remains from space objects.

“I don’t know why everybody else is so surprised. We’re not the only ones in the universe. We’re just not,” Goldberg explained. “There are more things in heaven and Earth that we are aware of, and we have to be aware of, because that is the nature of being an earthling. It’s going to happen, it has happened, and, so far, we’re alright.”

Still, Goldberg did her best to combat any panic about any supernatural beings, instead insinuating that perhaps they just want to be friends.

“I can say I haven’t seen any zapping happen, I haven’t seen things that you see in the movies, so, maybe they’re not adversaries,” Goldberg said. “Maybe they’re just trying to get along!”

[From Us Weekly]

Well, okay then, Whoopi! Tell us more, I am all ears. I’m not kidding when I say that I love hearing first-hand accounts of anything supernatural. When we talked about Kevin Bacon’s haunted shack, I loved hearing everyone’s stories so much. Some of y’all even recommended podcasts and I subscribed to them, so thank you! As far as aliens go, I do believe that there are so many things that we don’t understand about whatever exists outside of or even within our physical world. Like Whoopi said, it’s such a huge universe out there that it’s difficult for me to believe that we’re the only ones within it. It feels arrogant to think that we are. I mean, it would go a long way to explaining Ron DeSantis, #amirite? JK, JK. But seriously now I want to know what exactly Whoopi knows and how she knows it.

If you’re interested in hearing more on the subject of UFOs and aliens, CB covered the Netflix documentary Encounters last year. Definitely check it out if you’re into this topic.

Embed from Getty Images

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by WhoopiGoldberg (@whoopigoldberg)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by WhoopiGoldberg (@whoopigoldberg)

In January of this year, Prince Albert’s former accountant began a revenge tour, spilling all kinds of financial secrets of the House of Grimaldi. The accountant, Claude Palmero, had been fired last year and the dude has a grudge, although it seems like some of his information has checked out. Basically, Palermo claims that Albert is spending millions on his ex-girlfriends, baby-mothers and all of his kids, and that Albert’s wife Charlene spends like crazy and Albert lets her. Palmero also claimed that Charlene and Albert hired undocumented nannies for their children. There’s been some talk about what this all means and whether Albert is facing political pressure and… I just don’t see it? Monaco is a principality with a population of less than 40,000 people. Albert is basically a financially corrupt-yet-well-liked mayor of a small seaside town. And the mayor owns all of the casinos. Like, what are you gonna do? Anyway, Albert recently spoke to Paris Match and he shrugged off most of Palmero’s claims.

Prince Albert of Monaco has said his family and the public have supported him after his former accountant accused him of financial impropriety, but his wife Princess Charlene is ‘very upset for him’. The king, 66, spoke to Paris Match to mark his birthday two months after Claude Palmero revealed Charlene’s personal spending allowance rocketed to more than £1million-a-year. The leaked documents leaked documents also accused the royal family of hiring illegal immigrants as nannies.

Mr Palmero, 67, was in charge of palace finances for more than two decades but stepped down in July after he was targeted by an anti-corruption website. His damning report was leaked to French media earlier this year, with Albert not commenting on it at the time.

Speaking this week, he said: ‘Thankfully, my whole family is there for me, showering me with their affection, both my immediate family and the extended family of Monegasque. She [Charlene] was also very upset for me, and saddened by certain things that came out in the media. We supported each other. She has resumed many of her activities, more public engagements, to everyone’s delight.’

Mr Palermo’s ‘secret notebooks’ detailing the spending of the Monaco royal family were shared with French newspaper Le Monde in January. It was the ‘illegal migrants’ who made up much of Charlene’s full-time personal staff of eight that Mr Palmero was particularly worried about. The books also allege that Albert spends millions every year from a secret French bank account to pay his former mistresses and love children – with Jazmin Grimaldi, 31, and Alexandre Coste-Grimaldi, 20, receiving allowances of £344,000 a year each.

This was while Charlene was pouring £826,000 into redecorating her holiday villa in Calvi, on the island of Corsica, along with £860,000 to decorate her office back in Monte Carlo.

In a letter written in January 2017, Mr Palmero said another employee from the Philippines had been ‘illegal for five years’, despite solely being on a one-month tourist visa. ‘He gets paid 100 euros a day [£85] which is off the scale,’ Mr Palmero wrote.

Elsewhere in the interview, Albert said he was supported by his whole family and said Mr Palmero’s grievances were over ‘not accepting a courteous offer of retirement’. He added however that he had a ‘hard skin’ from past experiences.

Albert also discussed his children, Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, who turn 10 this year. ‘She’s a little miss with an independent character and she expresses herself quite freely. We thought Jacques was more of an introvert, but he’s been gaining confidence for some time now. He looks out for his sister,’ he added. Albert also explained that the family are all ‘very very close’ and despite their young age the twins ‘understand their obligations’.

[From The Daily Mail]

Yeah, this piece sounds like some stuff was lost in translation, but the point is that Albert is fine and Charlene is fine, I guess. Like, Albert isn’t actually sweating any of this. Maybe I’m wrong! Maybe Albert is facing political pressure given all of these dramas, but he seems to be treating this as tittle-tattle from a grudge-wielding former employee. Also: Albert came out of it looking okay? He financially supports his exes and all of his kids and he allows Charlene to do whatever she likes?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Backgid.

In today’s edition of “Celebrities Are Just Like Us,” we have Kristen Stewart! It turns out that K-Stew is a huge fan of Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie’s Barbie. She’s such a big fan that she’s even labeled herself “obsessed” and a “super-duper fan.” I love that so much! During an interview on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast, which was recorded the day after the Oscar ceremony, Kristen got even more relatable when she talked about watching “I’m Just Ken” from her couch at home. Just like most of us, she laughed and cried, thinking about the magnitude of Greta’s creation.

She loved this year’s Oscars: “Oscars were incredible last night,” said Stewart, who earned a Best Actress nomination in 2022 for Spencer. “Best they’ve been in years, I feel. Don’t you think it was just a good show?”

She got so emotional, baby: “I was, for some reason, crying and laughing while watching the Ken thing. It’s emotional, dude, watching Greta watch it. When they did the one cutaway of her and she was just, like, front-row belting and looking at the thing she helped kickstart….”

Barbie’s biggest fan?: Stewart said she’s “obsessed” with and a “super-duper fan” of Barbie, which starred Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Kate McKinnon and more. The actress said, though, she did not have Barbie dolls growing up, instead opting for the “Weird Barbie”-type toys.

Is Marvel in her future?: Elsewhere in the podcast interview, Stewart addressed whether she would star in a Marvel superhero movie. The Twilight alum said she’s a “yes man” and wouldn’t say no, though the idea seems “unlikely” to her. “It sounds like a f—ing nightmare, actually,” Stewart said with a laugh.

Her thoughts on blockbuster superhero movies: “I like big movies because I like people to watch them when I’m in them. The system would have to change. … What ends up happening is this algorithmic, weird experience where you can’t feel personal at all about it.”

She’d do it for Greta: “But maybe the world changes,” said Stewart, adding, “If Greta Gerwig asked me to do a Marvel movie, then I would do it.”

[From People]

I wonder if Kristen also re-watches “I’m Just Ken” on YouTube like us normies do, haha. I don’t watch it daily anymore but since it’s right at the top of my search history, I click on it every couple of days because it really does make me smile. I watched Barbie with my kids last week, too. They asked a lot of good questions about it and now my older son sings “I’m Just Ken” and “What Was I Made For?” all of the time, lol.

Anyway, It doesn’t surprise me at all that Kristen had a Weird Barbie growing up. I’d honestly be disappointed if she didn’t. I also love that she stans Greta so hard, too. Can you imagine a collaboration between the two of them? It would have to be more of an independent, artsy-type film, right? I also suspect that Greta is high on many people’s list of directors to work with now. A lot of people, myself included, are going to be watching to see what she does next.

Photos credit: IMAGO/Clemens Niehaus/RW/Mediapunch/Avalon, Diamond/JosiahW/Backgrid