This made me cry: Jimmy Kimmel’s compassion for Regina King and, in turn, her strength and compassion for him. This first part of the interview, with Kimmel’s voice breaking and Regina reaching out to him, is really beautiful. [Buzzfeed]
Another sexy look from Kristen Stewart. [RCFA]
Normani has new music! [Socialite Life]
I sort of want to see Late Night with the Devil. [LaineyGossip]
Paul Rudd is a big fan of Taylor Swift. [Pajiba]
The Roksanda collection was already hard-launched by Zendaya. [Go Fug Yourself]
Saltburn Funko-pops! [OMG Blog]
Henry Cavill & Natalie Viscuso were out in London. [Just Jared]
The Breakfast Club turns 40 years old (sob). [Seriously OMG]
Ah, the reality star to food blogger pipeline. [Starcasm]
Is Olivia Rodrigo still dating Louis Partridge? [Hollywood Life]

Buckingham Palace is currently doing the most to piggyback on the outpouring of sympathy for the Princess of Wales. Nevermind that they went radio silent during the past month of Kensington Palace’s clownery, although some of it (not all, but some) can be explained by the fact that I don’t think King Charles and Queen Camilla were informed about Kate’s cancer and chemotherapy for a while. If we’re going by the timeline being provided by Kensington Palace and Kate herself, she got the cancer diagnosis around February 20th or thereabouts. No one is saying when Kate and William informed Charles. They’re only overemphasizing Charles and Kate’s special connection now. The Sunday Sun’s cover was all about a private lunch Kate and Charles had on Friday, before KP released Kate’s video:

The Princess of Wales and the King had a heart-to-heart at Windsor Castle hours before she announced she had cancer. Charles, who also has the disease, travelled from London for a private lunch with his “beloved daughter-in-law” Kate on Thursday.

Kate was keen to speak to the 75-year-old King about his struggle and find out how he was coping. It is believed the pair also talked about Kate’s video announcement in which she said the discovery was a “huge shock” but vowed she was “going to be OK”.

A source said of the Windsor Castle get-together: “It is highly unusual for just the two of them to sit down together like this. The King had already been made aware that the woman he calls ‘my beloved daughter-in-law’ had cancer. They would have had lots to discuss and share because just weeks earlier the King had begun his course of treatment and dealt with announcing his diagnosis. The King left his lunch feeling very emotional. They are very close and he thinks of Catherine as his daughter. There is no doubt there is a lot they can share and can use each other for support during their own deeply personal cancer battles.”

It is understood Charles had been made aware of Kate’s cancer struggle before he travelled from London for the lunch. Queen Camilla is also said to be a pillar of support and in regular contact with Kate.

[From The Sun]

“It is understood Charles had been made aware of Kate’s cancer struggle before he travelled from London for the lunch.” Yeah, but when? They make it sound like Charles became aware just days beforehand. Or was he made aware around the same time that Buckingham Palace courtiers were gleefully watching Kensington Palace staffers throw Kate under the bus for a manipulated photo? It’s wild to me that William and Kate seemingly demanded total secrecy about Kate’s cancer diagnosis to the point where they might not have informed the literal KING for a month. There’s medical privacy and then there’s… telling your family and your “boss” what’s going on.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images, Instar. Cover courtesy of The Sun.

Following the Princess of Wales’s cancer & chemotherapy announcement on Friday, the weekend was full of stories about… Prince William. How William is doing, how William is coping, how William is the hero of this situation. Even though it’s clear, in retrospect, that William’s staffers were the ones throwing a woman with cancer under the bus to protect their clownish media strategies. That’s all been wiped clean, I suppose and we’re being introduced to Heroic William, the man who would stand by his wife through thick and thin. Interesting. From Rebecca English’s piece, “When I saw William this week, he looked like he’d the weight of the world on his shoulders. But he’s proving what a class act he is.”

He is a man born into centuries of tradition and steeped in duty – but is a husband and father first. Time and time again over the years, Prince William has made clear that while he takes seriously the burden of his future role as king and his current responsibilities as heir to the throne, he will never put them before his wife and family. Those qualities will be needed now, more than ever before.

William has always made clear how proud he is of Kate, both personally and in the way she has embraced her role. Indeed not so long ago, while talking to me about his own work, he made a point of bringing her into the conversation, stressing how he would see her sitting in their lounge, night after night, poring over papers relating to her groundbreaking work on children’s early years. It was abundantly clear he wanted the world to know that she was his equal, and more. And he has always emphasised that it was Kate who was the brains behind their joint Heads Together campaign with Prince Harry to break the national stigma around mental health.

But more importantly, I would suggest, it is the princess’s grounded brilliance as a mother, and the joy and happiness that she and their family have brought him, that has irrevocably changed William’s life.

He is a child of a broken marriage and warring parents, and grew up in the white heat of the public limelight. Kate’s steadiness, diligence and discretion have been just what he needed as a man. I don’t think any of us can even begin to understand how difficult the past few months will have been for William. Just watching what his wife has been going through: The worry of major abdominal surgery, the joyous news that the surgery had been successful, and then the heart-stopping diagnosis that, in fact, cancer had been found. Add to that his father’s own surgery and subsequent cancer diagnosis… well, that’s a hard load for anyone to bear.

…It is also a sign of the solidity of their relationship that both they and their staff were at pains to stress yesterday that their children have been at the heart of everything they have done since January, in spite of the sometimes hideously unbearable provocation they have received, particularly on social media.

Indeed, as aides briefed a small group of journalists, including myself, about the cancer news that they were about to break to the world yesterday, there was not one attempt to finger-point at the gossip-mongers who have caused the prince and princess so much distress in recent weeks. The fact that the couple have not publicly lambasted the trolls, and instead focused on their children and those who have found themselves in the same, frightening position, shows what a class act they are. Several of us asked whether their statement had been issued now to counter those vultures. And while it was made clear that they hoped that speculation would now end, it was also stressed the announcement was very much being made around the children.

[From The Daily Mail]

Much is being done, right before our eyes, in real time, to pivot everything around Kate’s statement. Palace incompetence is being buried and forgotten, conversations about manipulated photos (blamed entirely on Kate) are being wiped clean, and William’s odd behavior this year is also being rewritten, clearly. Some of what we could see in the past few months can legitimately be explained by William and Kate focusing on their children and Kate’s recovery. But there is a lot being buried, whitewashed and covered up too. Also: why the f–k did Kensington Palace allow that Tatler cover story to go through? It’s insane in retrospect – there’s barely any mention of Kate, and it’s all about embiggening William alone.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, cover courtesy of Tatler.

As we’ll see throughout the week, the British media clearly sees the Princess of Wales’s cancer confession as a greenlight to attack the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The British media is coming at the Sussexes from every angle – H&M should volunteer to come back and help out, except Kate and William should throw them out of the country, except Kate and Harry should go back to being friends, except Kate doesn’t need Harry’s support at all. Story after story, article after article, all with the same messages: the Sussexes better come back so we can throw them out and punish them again; how dare the Sussexes show their faces around here anymore, where are they, why aren’t they back? One of the most chaotic and vile pieces was published in the Daily Mail, unsurprisingly. Columnist A.N. Wilson openly discusses how fun it will be if Donald Trump is reelected and he deports Harry, because I guess that’s the only scenario in which Harry would be “forced” to come back to them.

The Sussexes’ message of support to Kate: This communication, which followed a public statement from Montecito wishing Kate ‘health and healing’, is said to have been the first in months between the warring Wales brothers. Let’s all hope that the truce, if there is one, lasts and that Meghan and Harry are eventually welcomed back into the Royal Family, and – one day, perhaps – into the hearts of the British nation. Lord knows the royals could do with it. With the King and Kate both temporarily out of action through illness, there’s a real need for others to pitch in, especially in the low-profile, less glamorous work of charities and patronages.

Trump’s threat: Let’s also not forget Donald Trump’s veiled threat, if he is re-elected to the White House this November, that he might expel Harry from the United States for allegedly giving misleading accounts of his previous drug use in his visa application. ‘If he lied, they’ll have to take appropriate action,’ the ex-president said. Were this frankly hilarious development to take place, Meghan would presumably be asked to give up her Californian lifestyle – to say nothing of her hotly anticipated new luxury jam enterprise – and bring Archie and Lilibet to live in Windsor Great Park, and perhaps go to school with George, Charlotte and Louis. If you were writing the script of the royal soap opera, you could not hope for a more delicious twist in the plot.

How Harry must have felt: Yet still I ask myself: How must Harry have felt last Friday when he heard Kate’s sad news, so bravely expressed? It is he, after all, who averred in his tawdry Netflix show: ‘I think, for so many people in the family – especially obviously the men – there can be a temptation or an urge to marry someone who would fit the mould as opposed to somebody who you perhaps are destined to be with.’ His meaning was clear. He, Harry, had married for love: whereas William, and perhaps their father, had coldly married someone who merely looked the part, out of a misguided sense of duty.

How Harry treated Kate: Before Harry met Meghan, he and Kate had been true friends: by his own admission, she was ‘the sister I’ve never had and always wanted’. So if her brave video last week achieved anything, I hope it made Harry reflect on how he has had treated her. After all, it seems to me that a great many of the problems facing the Royal Family at the moment can be laid at his and Meghan’s door. It is they who lifted the lid on the rift between the two brothers. It is they who raised the inflammatory claim that some royals are secret racists. It is they who insulted Kate, knowing she could not respond. Their foolish decision to go public with their seething resentments against the House of Windsor has done far more damage to the royal image than any supposed intrusions into their privacy by the Press, let alone the delusional fantasies of social media trolls.

The Sussexes were the lazy ones, you see: The truth is, he and Meghan were too self-absorbed and ultimately too lazy to carry out the day-to-day slog of royal duty which Kate, Princess Anne and the King and Queen have so faithfully done for years. Their little strops, and their decision to flounce out in early 2020, were a sort of mini-abdication. And the malice with which they have derided and vilified the Royal Family is another way in which they seem to want to echo the bad behaviour of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson, aka the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. (The eerie thing is that as time goes by, Meghan has increasingly come to look like Wallis, her fellow American divorcee.)

[From The Daily Mail]

I doubt the Sussexes had any kind of conciliatory urges last Friday, but for arguments sake, let’s say they did. Wouldn’t those urges die swiftly the moment they read this vile bullsh-t peddled with implicit or explicit palace approval? The same British media which is now shaming everyone for merely wondering why Kensington Palace was lying about Kate for months is the same media pouring scorn, hatred, and deeply unsettling bullsh-t about the two people they’ve terrorized for years. The point of it is not that Harry should or should not come back – the hatred seems to be the point. Just churning evil, pain, damage and trauma throughout every media outlet.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.

Ryan Phillippe has entered the nepotism conversation. Over the last year or so, the term “nepo baby” has been thrown around to describe people in the entertainment industry who have benefitted from their parents’ success. Some celebs own it while others take great offense to the idea and either tie themselves into knots trying to prove why they’re the exception. Ryan, as you know, has two kids with Reese Witherspoon, Ava and Deacon. The Phillippe children are interested in following in their parents’ footsteps. While doing press for his new movie Prey, co-starring Mena Suvari, Ryan brought up the nepo baby discussion, and guess what? He finds the whole topic offensive!

When asked if Ava was pursuing acting, he answered, “She is. She’s sort of getting her feet wet, you know? She’s taking time to kind of figure out exactly what it is she wants to do.”

Ryan elaborated, “That’s what always annoys me about this whole nepotism talk with the industry. You know, so many people grow up and end up doing what their parents do, you know, to some degree or another… To me, I always get offended for the children of actors and entertainers when people bring that up because yeah, of course, that’s what they’ve grown up around. By the way, that familiarity makes them handle some of what is hard about this industry. You’ve gotta have a thick skin. There’s so much rejection and nasty things that can be said about you. It’s not all celebration.”

He emphasized, “These kids have grown up watching on set with Reese or with me. It seems natural, I think.”

While Ava is exploring acting, Deacon is an aspiring musician. Ryan said he is “insanely” proud of his son. “He makes me proud every single day of his life just in regards to the young man he’s become, to how he operates in the world,” Ryan remarked. “He’s just such a source of light and love, and he’s very solid and spiritual. He’s got an incredible work ethic.”

He added, “Deacon and I are particularly close because we have so much in common. We like all the same things, same music, same sense of humor.”

Ryan also revealing, “He may be joining me on this series and playing my character’s brother in the flashbacks, so I’m kind of excited about that possibly happening.”

Talking about Deacon’s music, Ryan raved, “He’s really evolving as a musician. He’s put out a lot of really good stuff at a young age, and I’m excited to see what the future holds for him, and I just feel the world is lucky to have him.”

Ryan says his own future is one about “spiritual growth.” He reflected, “I’m sort of segueing into other sort of business realms, really into the restaurant thing. I’m working on opening a hotel in the next year. I will always be open to working as an actor, but it’s becoming less and less a solitary focus.”

[From Extra]

I cannot roll my eyes hard enough here. He tried to take the Tom Hanks talking point! Of course it’s perfectly normal for a kid to want to follow in their parents’ footsteps and continue on in the family business. No one is even saying that a nepo baby can’t be talented! But, it’s a little disingenuous to pretend like they’re not starting on 3rd base, especially in a super competitive industry where tons of incredibly talented people don’t make it. I mean, he’s literally getting his son cast in a role on the series he’s currently filming. It’s so silly to pretend that this isn’t a case of nepotism. Ryan knows it is and that’s why he’s uncomfortable with the conversation. It’s okay to admit that nepo babies are a thing. I find it offensive when people like Ryan poo poo or get all huffy about it.

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Photos credit: Jeffrey Mayer / Avalon, Marie Goujon / Panoramic / Avalon, IMAGO/Jennifer Bloc / Avalon, Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon

In the Princess of Wales’s public statement announcing her cancer, she didn’t get into the nitty-gritty of the timeline of when she learned her diagnosis and when she began the chemotherapy treatments. She said: “In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London and at the time, it was thought that my condition was non-cancerous. The surgery was successful. However, tests after the operation found cancer had been present. My medical team therefore advised that I should undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy and I am now in the early stages of that treatment.” The palace’s initial statement about the abdominal surgery in January did not include anything about cancer or even concerns that her condition might be cancerous. The palace also briefed reporters at the time that Kate’s condition was “not cancer.”

Kate’s statement also creates a timeline in which she apparently learned of the cancer weeks, perhaps even a month or longer, after the initial abdominal surgery. Kensington Palace then leaned into that new timeline. On the heels of Kate’s video, KP briefed reporters that Kate’s cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy were the reasons why Prince William suddenly pulled out of his scheduled appearance at King Constantine’s memorial on February 27th, 40-odd days after Kate’s surgery. William’s withdrawal really started the four weeks of “Where is Kate” speculation, and KP once again insisted (at the time) to the British media that William’s withdrawal was a “personal matter” but “Kate is doing well.”

When the Prince of Wales unexpectedly pulled out of attending a memorial service for his godfather King Constantine of Greece last month, there was widespread speculation it was connected to the death of Thomas Kingston, the husband of Lady Gabriella Windsor.

It has now emerged that the unspecified “personal reason” given for his absence from St George’s Chapel in Windsor on Feb 27 was that his wife, the Princess of Wales, had recently received a cancer diagnosis. Having undergone major abdominal surgery at the London Clinic in January, which was deemed a success, post-operative tests discovered that cancer had been present, contrary to all pre-operative tests – and a statement from Kensington Palace – that had suggested her condition was not cancer.

The news of the Princess’s cancer – which comes on top of the King’s cancer diagnosis in January – comes at a difficult time for the Royal family but also explains much of the mystery that has prompted wild speculation about the Princess’s health in recent weeks, including, perhaps, the now infamous doctored Mothering Sunday picture of her. The fury in royal circles over the controversy the picture generated is more understandable in the light of what we now know. The Prince of Wales was trying to protect his wife at a time when she was at her most vulnerable, and together they were trying to find a way of telling their children about their mother’s medical diagnosis.

Whether or not the photograph was altered by the Princess to hide any tell-tale signs of her treatment we may never find out, but what was driving the anger at the international response to the touched-up image of the Princess and her three children now becomes clear.

While internet trolls were speculating that the Princess had faked the picture because she was not well enough to pose for one, or even that she was dead, the couple and their staff were having to bite their tongues, primarily for the sake of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

The fact that the Princess has only released details of her cancer diagnosis on the day her children have broken up from school for Easter is no coincidence. Royal aides said the couple wanted to be able to tell their children at a time that was right for them and to “understand and process” the news before it became public. Only after the children had finished school for Easter did they feel that it was “the right time to share this update”. Aides have made it clear that the decision to go public about the cancer diagnosis, and the timing of it, had nothing to do with the ongoing speculation about Catherine’s health.

[From The Telegraph]

So… William abruptly pulled out of the memorial (just an hour before it began), and told everyone it wasn’t about Kate and Kate was fine, and now they’re saying oh, it was all about Kate and he was trying to protect her because he just learned about her diagnosis? The moment he pulled out of the memorial, all hell broke loose within the British AND international press and it put a huge spotlight on Kate’s health at a time where (as they’re saying now) they were trying to keep everything as normal as possible for their kids. As I said at the time, it felt like William thought it was just going to be a local story which he could control but that was a huge misjudgment across the board. The stuff about the Mother’s Day photo makes no sense either – “The Prince of Wales was trying to protect his wife at a time when she was at her most vulnerable.” William and his office tossed a cancer-stricken Kate under the bus for that fiasco! They blamed her repeatedly and in print!

Not for nothing, but the photos in this post are from March 1st, two days after William pulled out of the memorial service. He traveled to Wrexham and took shots with Rob McElhenney.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

The first weekend after the Princess of Wales’s “Mother’s Day frankenphoto fiasco” was March 16-17. Magically, Roya Nikkhah at the Times got a big exclusive from the Kensington Palace team in which they attempted to do damage control on the frankenphoto and began to introduce plans for when the public would see Princess Kate. There were several follow-up exclusives in the Mirror and the Daily Beast, with sources insisting that staffers were working round the clock to plan for Kate’s big return, whether it would be a “big bang” on Easter Sunday or sometime after her kids’ Easter holiday (which ends around April 17th). It’s extremely odd that KP was pushing the “we promise Kate will get back to work soon” angle when the truth was so much more sympathetic – Kate is receiving adjuvant chemotherapy and she will be out of public view for a while. That’s what we know now, after Kate’s public statement on Friday, March 22. So why all of the stories just days earlier about her return to work? Now KP sources are telling outlets that Kate will only return to public duties when she’s cleared by her medical team:

The Waleses will not join other royals for the traditional Easter service in Windsor as the young family seek time and space to come to terms with Kate’s cancer treatment. Kate, 42, had been out of the public eye for most of the year, having undergone abdominal surgery in January, leading to widespread speculation about her health and wellbeing. In a video message yesterday, she revealed she has been undergoing preventative chemotherapy, after tests after her operation found that cancer had been present.

“The statement was a great shock to so many people because the feeling was that the Princess of Wales was over the worst and on the road to recovery,” said Joe Little, editor of Majesty magazine. “I don’t think anybody expected her to tell us in such a direct personal way that she has cancer. It’s a remarkable situation and a significant moment for the monarchy and the institution so early in the King’s reign that two senior figures should be out of action.”

The royal expert said it was “inevitable” that the number of royal engagements would have to be reduced, adding “the royal diaries will have been revised anyway because of these health considerations”.

In her statement, Kate said her work has always brought her a “deep sense of joy”, adding: “I look forward to being back when I am able, but for now I must focus on making a full recovery.”

A Kensington Palace spokesman said: “The Princess will return to official duties when she is cleared to do so by her medical team. She is in good spirits and is focused on making a full recovery.”

The Prince of Wales is due to return to public duties after his children return to school following the Easter break, but the family will not appear at Windsor Castle’s St George’s Chapel for the Easter Sunday service.

[From ITV]

So, no Easter church appearance, and I would consider it doubtful for all of April too. This is why Kensington Palace was so squirrelly about Trooping the Colour in June as well, although no one has said that yet – KP didn’t know if Kate would be ready by June (and she might not be and that’s understandable). But magically, they thought she would be ready by mid-April? Again, there was and is a perfectly reasonable explanation for why Kate needs to take it easy and everyone understands that now. Why then were her staffers applying public pressure on Kate to do this or that in the next month? Why did the staffers create a situation in which Kate’s absence on Easter Sunday would be global news, if not for her public statement?

Screencaps courtesy of Kensington Palace’s video.

On March 12th, Stephen Colbert included a three-minute segment in his opening Late Show monologue about the rumors of an alleged affair between Prince William and Rose Hanbury, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley. The rumors have been around since 2019, when Dan Wootton and Richard Eden began reporting of a cryptic rural-rivalry between the then-Duchess of Cambridge and Rose. Bread crumbs were left out and before long, William was sending out legal threats to British media outlets and selling out the Sussexes to deflect. The Rose story – whether it’s true or false – is central to everything that’s happened with the Windsors in the past five years, including the Sussexit. Well, Colbert aired out all of that tea in the Late Show segment. The Telegraph even noted, in their coverage the next day, that Colbert didn’t “warn” Kensington Palace about the segment, which led to a lot of flag-waving patriotism from Americans. Well, here’s something interesting: Rose is apparently threatening to sue Colbert.

Rose Hanbury is prepared to take legal action to shut down speculation that she had an affair with Prince William. In Touch confirmed that Hanbury’s lawyers sent a legal notice to The Late Show with Stephen Colbert after Stephen Colbert poked fun at rumors she was unfaithful with William in 2019 — and linked the alleged affair to speculation about Princess Kate Middleton‘s whereabouts as she recovers from surgery.

“The rumor appears to have entered into the mainstream media recently as a result of another joke made about it on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” Hanbury’s lawyers said in a statement. “We have written on our client’s behalf to CBS and various other reputable media organizations to confirm that the allegation is false.”

Colbert rehashed the drama on The Late Show on March 12. “Internet sleuths are guessing that Kate’s absence may be related to her husband, and the future King of England, William, having an affair,” he began. “I think we all know who the alleged other woman is, say it with me, The Marchioness of Cholmondeley. Now there have been rumors of an affair between William and [Rose] since 2019. According to tabloids, back then, when Kate supposedly confronted him about it, he ‘laughed it off, saying there was nothing to it.’ Aha, always a good response when your wife accuses you of cheating.”

[From Us Weekly]

Colbert is smart, his writers are smart and CBS’s lawyers are smart. These jokes likely made it through several layers of corporate bureaucracy, which is why they had such an impact in real time – it was the first time a major American talk show host even brought up the subject and Colbert threw in enough “allegedlys” and “guesses” to cover his tracks. Us Weekly also spoke to a defamation lawyer about whether Rose has a case:

“If you really go back and listen to what Stephen Colbert said, he was really just saying there are rumors and people are speculating no different than you and I are here,” attorney Neama Rahmani, who is not affiliated with the case and doesn’t represent either party, exclusively told Us Weekly on Wednesday, March 20. “We’re just reporting what other people are speculating. We’re not saying that it’s absolutely true that Rose had an affair with William or putting out a definitive statement because of the nuanced nature of what Colbert said.”

According to Rahmani, Colbert, 59, didn’t state the rumors as fact, which wouldn’t make a “a good defamation case” for Hanbury.

“She potentially can [sue], but I don’t think it’s going to be that good of a case,” Rahmani told Us. “These rumors have been going on for quite some time [and] obviously they resurfaced recently because of Kate’s disappearance and a doctored photo … Rose and [Princess] Kate [Middleton] have a relationship and there appears to have been a falling out.”

[From Us Weekly]

Yeah, as I said, I don’t think Rose would have much of a legal case, but it’s possible that she’s aiming for an on-air apology from Colbert or some kind of acknowledgement that she now claims the affair story is false, and let’s be real, she might get that. I could see Colbert agreeing to that, especially if he got corporate pressure from CBS. The thing is, if Colbert acknowledged it again – even if it was to apologize or say “Hanbury now says the rumors are false” – the Streisand Effect of this is kind of bonkers.

Meanwhile, the Atlantic’s Helen Lewis quickly published a piece called “I Hope You All Feel Terrible Now” in which she name-checked Colbert as some kind of ringleader for “why Kate had to announce.” Lewis wrote: “Stephen Colbert’s ‘spilling the tea’ monologue, which declared open season on the princess’s marriage, should probably be quietly interred somewhere.” Declared open season on Kate’s marriage? It was commentary on how William has treated Kate and William’s alleged lack of fidelity.

Never forget what James Palmer, the deputy editor of Foreign Policy, tweeted in 2021. This wasn’t some story randomly thought up by Stephen Colbert.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

What a moment for Gary Goldsmith to give a tell-all interview to the Times of London. The Times actually put a disclaimer on this piece, that the interview was conducted on March 14th, a full week before the Princess of Wales’s cancer and chemotherapy announcement. The Times still published it in the wake of Kate’s video, and honestly, I can see why. Dodgy Uncle Gary was extremely chatty and he was doing all of the Windsors’ dirty work. That’s what we saw during Gary’s four days on Celebrity Big Brother as well – he toed the company line, bad-mouthing the Sussexes and treating the Princess of Wales and the other royals like they are god’s gift. In retrospect, he did all of the CBB stuff while Kate was dealing with her cancer diagnosis too. In this piece, Gary once again has a lot of nasty sh-t to say about the Sussexes, quelle surprise. I wish the Middletons and Waleses understood that Gary makes them all look crass and tacky. Some highlights:

How much he was paid to appear on CBB: “Half a watch. £100,000. That’s a half a watch. I collect them.” Goldsmith shows me his beautiful blue Rolex. It’s 1.30pm. He has already drunk at least one bottle of champagne.

Changing perceptions: “I’m the uncle to the future queen of England and yet the perceptions I want to change are that I’m this wife-beating, drug-dealer pimp. Will you help me do that?”

The Mother’s Day frankenphoto: “Can we just agree that my Kate photoshopping a beautiful family photo is not the crime of the century?”

The Goldsmiths are not racist: “That’s why it makes me so angry about what Meghan said about Kate. Me and Carole grew up in a community as diverse as a Woolies pick’n’mix counter. All the cultures you can think of. The idea that Laughing Girl says Kate is racist makes me furious. Kate knows her family’s roots and is proud of them. I’m sorry, but Laughing Girl is not good people.” Occasionally we’ll need a glossary to get through this interview. Laughing Girl is Meghan Markle. “Not good people” obviously means Goldsmith is not a fan.

He told Carole to take Party Pieces online: “I said to her, ‘Why haven’t you taken it online?’ She says, ‘Women don’t go on the internet.’ Can you believe that?” he marvels. Party Pieces was sold but guess what: Goldsmith knows the guy at Teddy Tastic Bear Co who bought it. “He’s a mate and he picked it up for less than the six weeks’ rent I got for my villa last summer. I mentioned that to Carole; it didn’t go down well. I can be somewhat of a dick sometimes.”

Is Kate OK? “Yes. I called Carole before I did CBB. And no, she didn’t read me the riot act like the papers said, didn’t even ask about it. I just asked about how Kate was doing. She’s getting the best care imaginable. Leave her be.”

Whether William & Kate are still happy: “Great question. And I’m going to be as honest as I can be. Our beloved Queen Elizabeth dies and they lose the security of their grandmother. Then Will’s father has only just had his bloody coins printed and suddenly he’s got significant health worries too. Then they’ve also got this bloody uncle that no one would want, because the arrogance and naivety of Andrew is just beyond me. I’ve been in the same room as him and, believe me, that was enough. I’ve got more chance of making it onto the Palace balcony than he has. And then you’ve got Harry. F*** me! He and that woman are chasing the American corporate dollar and that is so, so ugly. William, Harry and Kate were such a happy little trio and it got totally ruined. With all that going on — and there is other stuff going on that is not in the public domain — are they at their absolute happiest? No. Their kids bring them a lot of joy, but no.”

More about the Sussexes: “No, I don’t have insider knowledge but my sense is the fam will never turn their back on Harry fully. He’s naive to think he can throw his family under the bus and still get invited for Christmas at Sandringham. I mean, how stupid can you be? Harry wouldn’t even make my pub quiz team, but he was loved by us all and he had the best job in the world. He had all the privilege but with diminished duties. He had the house, the money, the polo and could choose his royal patronages, with everyone accepting he was a bit fruit bat with the whole prince thing. I think he’ll be back but only if he says sorry. He upset his nan and that is unforgivable. But let’s face it, Laughing Girl isn’t going to be around for ever, is she? I think she’s fickle. And I think she’s so bad for Harry and for our country.”

His thoughts on ‘Spare’: “Spare was a joke. It’s pathetic. A frontline soldier for this country getting tearful because he broke his string necklace and landed in the dog bowl. [In Spare, Harry recounted how, when William called Meghan “rude” and “abrasive”, they got into a physical fight in which Harry’s bracelet was broken and he fell into a ceramic dog bowl.] Putin will be laughing at us, if that’s the best we’ve got.”

Whether Carole masterminded William & Kate’s relationship: “All that stuff about Carole trying to get Kate and William together in a house in Hungerford was bollocks. Yes, my sister is quite cunning and devious. She’s like me — that’s how you run a business. If you haven’t got that wily attitude in you, you are not going to make things happen. But 100 per cent there was no dastardly plan to put William and Kate together. And all that stuff about them meeting at St Andrews is wrong too. They met at school. The Marlborough girls and Eton boys do a lot of stuff together. But even when there were events where Kate knew William would be there, she sometimes didn’t go. Always puts family first, that girl.”

[From The Times]

Excuse me? “He and that woman are chasing the American corporate dollar and that is so, so ugly. William, Harry and Kate were such a happy little trio and it got totally ruined. With all that going on — and there is other stuff going on that is not in the public domain — are they at their absolute happiest? No. Their kids bring them a lot of joy, but no.” That is… a lot to unpack. Finally, an acknowledgement that William and Kate are pretty unhappy, although it does seem like Gary knew something about Kate’s health at this point. The whole thing with Gary – and many other people – being so obsessed with Harry “coming back” to be with William and Kate is so unhealthy and gross too. They really want Harry to leave his wife and children, all to be William’s doormat and fall guy? The stuff about William’s violent assault on Harry too, the way people continue to minimize it is really creepy. Anyway, the world would be a much better place if Gary Goldsmith took Harry and Meghan’s names out of his f–king mouth.

Photos/screencaps courtesy of Celebrity Big Brother.

Just a few hours after the Princess of Wales’s video was released last Friday, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex issued their simple and compassionate public message of support. Soon, we also heard that Harry and Meghan had “reached out” to Prince William and Kate privately. I tried to track down which outlet had that information first, or whether the “contacted privately” line was simply a mass assumption, mostly by British media. Someone said it, but I could not find one original citation. We also know that Harry is likely to visit England in May for some kind of church service for the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games, and perhaps Meghan will join him, who knows. So, obviously, the British media put those two stories together and spent the weekend claiming that Harry and Meghan will try to reconcile with the Waleses in May. Obviously, Kensington Palace is currently doing the most to once again say that William and Kate will thwart any attempt at reconciliation or olive-brand-extension from the Sussexes. The same Sussexes who (once again) have not offered anything but a simple statement of support.

Prince Harry’s decision to contact the Prince and Princess of Wales privately in the wake of her cancer diagnosis may have signalled a thaw in fraternal relations. Such devastating health scares often change perspectives and priorities. However, if the Duke of Sussex harbours any hopes of reconciling with his brother and sister-in-law during an expected return to the UK in May, he will likely be disappointed.

Harry is hoping to attend a service at St Paul’s Cathedral to mark the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games. His travel plans have not yet been confirmed. But having recently lost his legal battle with the Government over his right to automatic police protection, he is unlikely to be joined by Meghan or their children, Prince Archie, four, and Princess Lilibet, two.

The solo visit could therefore prove an opportune moment to build bridges with his brother, from whom he has been estranged for many months. But such a development would require will on both sides. And sources close to the Waleses suggest that, with everything else the family is coping with, the “Harry problem” is the very last thing on their minds.

They have made abundantly clear to their staff, the wider family and the public that they need time and space to focus on each other and the Princess’s recovery. William “has always done all he can to protect his family”, a royal source told The Telegraph this weekend. Now, more than ever, he is focused on ensuring her privacy and shielding their children.

The very notion that they would have the mental capacity to face the Duke is roundly rejected by insiders, who note that the couple now have far more significant concerns requiring their full attention.

Trust in the Sussexes has been well and truly shattered. If there was a moment they could envisage letting Harry back into their inner sanctum, now is not the time.

Prince William currently has the weight of the world on his shoulders. He, more than anyone, was furious with his brother for the array of barbs and slingshots fired from across the pond in recent years.

[From The Telegraph]

One, it speaks volumes about William’s character and mindset that in the midst of his wife and father’s dual cancer battles, he spent yet another weekend full of rage about his brother. Another round of incandescent briefings about how much William hates Harry and how Harry needs to do this or that and beg William for forgiveness. Two, William “has always done all he can to protect his family” – which does not include “managing the public relations around his wife’s health issues” and yet does include “throwing Kate under the bus for manipulating a photo.” Also: I’m pretty sure Harry is the one who did everything he could to protect his wife and children too – protect them from William and Charles and this cruel, vile institution.

Last thing: the mention of the Sussexes’ security issues in the UK in the same breath as Harry’s potential May visit TO HONOR INVICTUS. The point is that they want to demand that Harry should come back so they can put him in physical danger. All while Britain is making this major bid to host the Invictus Games in 2027.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.