This week, Omid Scobie tweeted out some criticism of the royal rota, the “royal reporters and commentators” who cover the Windsors full time. You would think that if your whole thing is the palace beat, you would be all over the Times and Channel 4’s revelations about the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, and how thoroughly King Charles and Prince William are profiting from public services like hospitals and fire stations, plus they’re charging the military preposterous rates for sh-t like “mooring” and fuel. Not to mention, William and Charles are lining their pockets by charging charities for rent, even if they themselves are patrons of the charities. Well, Richard Kay is the first royal reporter to actually highlight the reporting and criticism (in a meek way) the Windsors. From his latest Mail column, “Amid a cost of living crisis, these revelations about the Royals’ finances could gnaw away at hard-won public trust.”

Just over 25 years ago, an internal Buckingham Palace report recommended steps the monarchy should adopt to rebuild trust after the catastrophic collapse in public support for the Royal Family that followed the death of Princess Diana. Many of the suggestions were practical – less formality for official engagements and opening royal events to a wider cross-section of the population – and approval ratings quickly rose. But buried in the report was a warning about one aspect that was not addressed – the wealth of the royals and a need for what it delicately put as ‘greater transparency’.

Two and a half decades on, and the monarchy – thanks to the dedication to duty of King Charles and a modern-looking Prince William – is more popular than ever. But there is an Achilles heel, and it remains the thorny issue of their private finances. In particular, the opaqueness and complexity that surrounds the running of the Duchy of Lancaster held by the King and the Duchy of Cornwall held by his son – which provide both with vast sums.

Now an investigation into these two private fiefdoms has uncovered some eye-raising details which, if not confronted, risk generating suspicion that will gnaw away at the hard-won public trust. For years, speculation about how rich the royals are has been just that, a guessing game. But revelations from Channel 4’s Dispatches programme and The Sunday Times about the millions the duchies are raking in from public services, including hospitals, schools and even the hard-pressed Armed Forces, have provoked worrying questions that highlight potential conflicts of interest and strike at the issue of transparency. The feudal-sounding duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall are actually property companies with assets worth £1.8 billion and 5,410 landholdings, ranging from rental houses and flats to farmland, mining rights and drilling sites.

And the investigation has thrown up some intriguing details. One 15-year deal will see the Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust in London pay £11.4 million to store its fleet of electric ambulance in a warehouse owned by the Duchy of Lancaster. The King will also make at least £28 million from windfarms because the duchy retains an ancient right to charge for cables crossing the foreshore across a swathe of coastline in the northwest of England.

William’s Duchy of Cornwall has signed a £37.5 million deal to lease Dartmoor prison for 25 years to the Ministry of Justice, which is liable for all repairs. His estate also owns Camelford House, a 1960s tower block on the banks of the Thames, which has brought in £22 million since 2005 from rents. It is known as ‘Charity Towers’ because so many, including Macmillan Cancer Support, Marie Curie and Comic Relief, have rented offices there.

The King is patron of both Macmillan and Marie Curie, while William has promoted Comic Relief. A charity that has the King or heir as its patron, or a cause advocated by them, that pays rent to the duchy, must surely touch on a possible conflict of interest. A Member of Parliament in the same position would have to declare it. Shouldn’t the Royal Family be held to the same standards?

At a time when many households are struggling with the cost of living – and Labour’s higher taxes – the findings are bound to provoke debate. There already have been calls for the two duchies to be folded into the Crown estate, which sends its profits to the Government.

The late Queen had a unique ability to divine the mood of the nation. After the Windsor Castle fire, amid public anger that taxpayers should be asked to meet repair costs, she funded the restoration herself. It would be a shame if her successors facing a potentially similar test of public confidence, failed to grasp the nettle.

[From The Daily Mail]

“Feudal-sounding” – no, they’re actually FEUDAL. They’re genuinely a remnant of feudal England. While it’s not shocking that Charles and William are up to their necks in this kind of feudal catastrophe, I think the scope of their profiteering from public services surprised people. Like, grabbing millions from the NHS? Profiting from a prison? Charging exorbitant rent from charities? Skimming money from the military? It’s insane. It will be interesting to see if other commentators follow Kay’s lead and oh-so-gently suggest that Charles and William need to do more to clean up this gigantic mess.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Instar.

Back in my younger, pre-motherhood days, I loved that Sunday morning when daylight savings time ended. Of course, I hated how it got darker earlier, but I sure did love the excuse to get an extra hour of sleep. This all changed after my older son was born and I quickly learned that babies do not observe the time change. And thus, I joined the legions of parents who complained on social media about the travesty of it all.

Well, fellow moms, we can now add Kaley Cuoco to the club. Kaley welcomed her daughter Matilda in March 2023, so she is still right in the thick of it with a toddler. On Sunday morning, Kaley made a post on Instagram, sharing that she “finally understands” why parents of young children are always complaining on the first Sunday in November. She also reposted a video that joked about it being a “direct assault” on parents.

“I finally understand what parents were always bitching about regarding their kids and daylight savings time,” Cuoco wrote over a photo of herself. “Now I know. I get it. I see you. Why is the world doing this to us?”

In the light-hearted snap, the Based on a True Story star — who shares her daughter with fiancé Tom Pelphrey — gave the camera a playful glare as she partially covered her face with hair while clutching a coffee cup.

The Big Bang Theory alum later reposted a video about daylight saving times from Caitlin Murray’s Big Time Adulting Instagram page.

“What are we doing here with the changing of clocks?” Murray asked. “Why are we doing this? This is a direct assault on parents of young children. It’s a well-known fact that when you have young children, hours in the day are measured in dog years.”

She joked, “By 11 a.m., some of us would have already been awake with our children for 42 hours.”

Meanwhile, Cuoco also shared a video of Matilda appearing to be tired, but refusing to fall asleep.

“I wish she would admit she’s tired. Look at those yawns… Look at them! WHY ARE WE AWAKE,” Cuoco wrote as her daughter sat in her highchair. The adorable tot was filmed holding onto her juice packet while yawning.

[From People]

Ha, the quip about being awake with kids for 42 hours by 11 a.m. made me laugh because it’s so true. Hey, I get it. The struggle is real. The only fun thing about setting the clocks back is getting that extra hour of sleep. Usually, my biggest complaint after daylight savings ends is that my kids would be waking up later throughout October because of the later sunrise time, and once we changed the clocks back, they’d be back to being awake super early. It felt like that was standard time’s gift that kept on giving. This is the first year when both of my kids slept until a reasonable time after we moved the clocks back, and only had a tough time adjusting their body clocks for meal times. So, if you’re also dealing with a younger child and measuring hours in dog years, hang in there! It gets better and more restful.

Note by Celebitchy: this story was written before the election was called

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A post shared by Kaley Cuoco (@kaleycuoco)

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A post shared by Kaley Cuoco (@kaleycuoco)

Photos from Instagram/Kaley Cuoco via People Magazine and credit Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon

Donald Trump was so pleased when Robert Kennedy Jr. dropped his Independent candidacy and endorsed the Trump-Vance ticket. Kennedy was truly a political threat to Trump – there are so many morons who are single-issue voters, with their sole issue being “I hate vaccines/science/medicine,” and they were fully prepared to vote for Kennedy. The Republican operatives who were running Kennedy panicked when they were faced with the reality that he would siphon votes away from Trump, because they intended Kennedy’s candidacy to siphon votes from Democrats.

Once Kennedy endorsed Trump, Trump made all kinds of promises about putting Kennedy in charge of this or that. Just a few days ago, Trump once again said that Kennedy can do “pretty much anything he wants” on women’s health specifically in a Trump administration, and it’s been widely assumed that he wants Kennedy for Secretary of Health and Human Services. Basically, we’re getting an anti-vaxxer who will remove fluoride from tap water and advocate for a national abortion ban as HHS Secretary or Trump’s top health/medical advisor. Don’t forget that Trump and Congressional Republicans also have big plans to dismantle the Affordable Care Act.

I still haven’t watched Trump’s dumbf–k speech but he apparently gave Kennedy a shoutout. I bet Olivia Nuzzi is happy.

Trump: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He’s going to help make America healthy again.. he wants to do some things and we’re going to let him go to it… Stay away from the liquid gold. Other than that, go have a good time Bobby pic.twitter.com/0geobg6kIX

— Acyn (@Acyn) November 6, 2024

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Daniel Craig’s latest film Queer, directed by Luca Guadagnino and adapted from a book by William S. Burroughs, debuted at the Venice Film Festival two months (and a lifetime) ago. Before the premiere, I thought Daniel was supposed to be a major contender this awards season, but it feels like he disappeared after Venice, no? I mean, Angelina Jolie started her Maria campaign in Venice and she has been go-go-go ever since. Maybe the plan all along was to wait for Daniel to give a big push closer to the release, which brings us to his new Variety cover story. Daniel and costar Drew Starkey pose on the cover with the headline “The Year’s Most Provocative Movie” printed over one of the most un-provocative photos ever taken, but I digress. During the interview, Daniel is asked about the next Knives Out installment, and Daniel confirmed that he very much wants Netflix to give the film a wider theatrical release than Glass Onion got in 2022:

Daniel Craig knows the “Knives Out” franchise belongs in movie theaters, so he’s hoping Netflix will give the upcoming third installment, officially titled “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery,” a theatrical release that lasts more than just one week. That’s how long Netflix put 2022’s “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” in theaters for, which seemingly is not Craig’s preference. The actor told Variety during an interview for its “Queer” cover story that “Knives Out 3” deserves a more robust theatrical rollout.

“You know I do,” Craig said when asked if he thinks “Wake Up Dead Man” should play in theaters for longer than one week. “Hopefully, Netflix will push it out a bit, and people will get to see it. The people I speak to — the fans, I suppose — all they want to do is take their families and go see it at the cinemas. That’s all they want to do. Hopefully we can give them that experience.”

The first “Knives Out” movie was released by Lionsgate in 2019 and became a word-of-mouth smash hit over the holiday movie season with $312 million at the worldwide box office. Writer-director Rian Johnson also picked up an Oscar nomination for best original screenplay. Netflix ultimately struck a deal with Johnson to develop two “Knives Out” sequels, the first of which played for just one week in theaters across the country.

While Netflix gave “Glass Onion” a one-week theatrical release, it did strike deals at the time with the country’s largest theater chains — AMC Theaters, Regal Cinemas and Cinemark — in order to put the “Knives Out” sequel in 600 theaters. That remains the widest release Netflix has ever done. Notably, the sequel was the first Netflix movie to screen in AMC and Regal locations, as the two exhibitors had long refused the streamer’s films because Netflix would not adhere to more traditional theatrical windows. “Glass Onion” remains the only time Netflix did such a wide release for one of its films. It’s unclear if the streamer intends to do the same for “Wake Up Dead Man.”

Johnson once again wrote and directed the third “Knives Out” movie, which once again features Craig as the detective Benoit Blanc. The new supporting cast includes Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack and Thomas Haden Church. Plot details remain under wraps. Netflix will release “Wake Up Dead Man” in 2025.

[From Variety]

I don’t know anything about the plot of this new movie, but I’m telling you now: Glenn Close did it. She’s the murderer, without question. Sorry to spoil it, but the filmmakers did that themselves when they cast her. And Andrew Scott is just there to fool you until an hour and a half into the story. As for what kind of theatrical release it gets, good luck, Daniel! Apple TV+ didn’t give a hoot what George Clooney and Brad Pitt thought when it came to Wolfs (though there’s a legit argument that had to do with that particular movie itself). But still, I wouldn’t expect much more from Netflix, unless they’re possibly thinking of Wake Up Dead Man as an awards contender. Oh my stars, wouldn’t it be sublime if Glenn Close FINALLY won her Oscar for a Knives Out film!! Let’s reconvene for the 2026 Academy Awards to see if I called it. In the meantime, Queer is set for a limited theatrical release on November 27.

Note by Celebitchy: this story was written before the election was called

Photos credit: Rian Johnson for Netflix, Abaca Press/INSTARimages, IPA/INSTARimages

Embed from Getty Images

The New York Times just called it a short time ago – Donald Trump has officially won the presidency again. I still will never refer to him that way though, I managed to get through four years of never, ever referring to him that way and I’ll avoid it again.

Since nothing matters, I thought I would provide one moment of levity today: imagine how upset Melania Trump is. Imagine how bummed out she is. She doesn’t want to go back to the White House. She wanted her husband to go to prison. She wanted to be the Widow Trump. She wanted to stay at Mar-a-Lago and get spa treatments. She maybe did a half-dozen campaign events this entire year. She kept dropping weird grifts like “Melania NFTs” and her tragic memoir.

There were lots of videos of Melania with her husband yesterday when they went to vote in Palm Beach. Because Melania kept her sunglasses on, there was a renewal of the Fauxlania conspiracy, which is that Melania has body-doubles who sometimes appear at events. I’m 100% a Fauxlania Truther, but I think that was the real Melania yesterday.

Melania’s been wearing sunglasses inside all day today. pic.twitter.com/4Wv3PwyA2h

— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) November 5, 2024

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Photos courtesy of Getty.

Americans voted for Donald Trump in 2024, knowing that he would completely f–k over NATO, Ukraine, Palestine and all of our international allies. Europe held their breath, praying that Americans wouldn’t be stupid enough to elect this monster again. I’m sorry to all of our friends and allies across the world. I imagine the mood internationally is a lot like the feeling in the “blue states” here in America: numb, horrified and terrified. Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer and London Mayor Sadiq Khan made statements:

Keir Starmer has congratulated Donald Trump on his “historic election victory” and said that “as the closest of allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise”. The British prime minister said the UK-US special relationship would “continue to prosper” after Trump’s “historic election victory”.

However, the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, who had a long-running row with Trump during his first term in the White House, said he knew many Londoners might be “anxious” and “fearful” about the election outcome and what it could mean for “democracy and for women’s rights … the situation in the Middle East or the fate of Ukraine” and “the future of Nato or tackling the climate crisis”.

He added: “The lesson of today is that progress is not inevitable. But asserting our progressive values is more important than ever – re-committing to building a world where racism and hatred is rejected, the fundamental rights of women and girls are upheld, and where we continue to tackle the crisis of climate change head on.”

Starmer said: “Congratulations President-elect Trump on your historic election victory. I look forward to working with you in the years ahead. As the closest of allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise. From growth and security to innovation and tech, I know that the UK-US special relationship will continue to prosper on both sides of the Atlantic for years to come.”

Britain’s foreign secretary, David Lammy, also offered his congratulations to Trump, saying on X: “The UK has no greater friend than the US, with the special relationship being cherished on both sides of the Atlantic for more than 80 years. We look forward to working with you and JDVance in the years ahead.” In 2017, Lammy tweeted he would protest if “racist and KKK/neo-Nazi sympathiser Trump” visited London.

[From The Guardian]

Yeah, Starmer is going to suck up to Trump, Macron will as well. They’ll try to talk Trump out of undermining and destroying NATO. They will be unsuccessful. Say goodbye to NATO. Say goodbye to Ukraine. The leader of Britain’s Lib Dems, Ed Davey, was seemingly the only British MP who understood the catastrophe unfolding in America. This is his statement:

“This is a dark, dark day for people around the globe. The world’s largest economy and most powerful military will be led by a dangerous, destructive demagogue. The next President of the United States is a man who actively undermines the rule of law, human rights, international trade, climate action and global security.

Millions of Americans – especially women and minorities – will be incredibly fearful about what comes next. We stand with them. Families across the UK will also be worrying about the damage Trump will do to our economy and our national security, given his record of starting trade wars, undermining NATO and emboldening tyrants like Putin.

Fixing the UK’s broken relationship with the EU is even more urgent than before. We must strengthen trade and defence cooperation across Europe to help protect ourselves from the damage Trump will do. Now more than ever, we must stand up for the core liberal values of equality, democracy, human rights and the rule of law – at home and around the world.”

[From Lib Dem Voice]

I’m glad that someone over there understands what Trump’s victory means.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Donald Trump is on track to win outright. He won Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Georgia. He’s on track to win Wisconsin, Michigan, Arizona and Nevada. He had zero ground game. He’s a felon. He incited an insurrection less than four years ago. But he was running against a woman again, and if there’s one thing Americans hate, it’s women.

In 2016, I still had some sense of hope that whatever happened during a Trump presidency, we could find a way to survive and recover. I don’t have that hope this time. Not after everything that’s happened, not after the past nine years of this utter sh-tshow. This is the American electorate looking at this orange clown and saying “that’s my guy.” They heard “mass deportations” and they said “anything to bring down housing costs.” They heard every single warning about Trump’s authoritarian fascism and they said “sounds amazing.” They heard the promise of authoritarianism and they said “sign me up.”

What’s especially crazy is that Trump doesn’t even want to be president again. He was just running to avoid prison. This senile, hateful, disgusting 78-year-old man was exhausted and phoning it in for most of the campaign. He kept disappearing for weeks at a time to golf and sundown in peace. When he went to vote in Florida yesterday, he sounded almost resigned to losing. Even he underestimated the stupidity of Americans. Even he can’t believe that people fell for it again.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images, Instagram.

In 2016, in the hours after Hillary Clinton lost, I was partly in a fugue state, half-numb and half-enraged. Accusations flew across the political spectrum – what if Hillary had done more in the Rust Belt, what if she did this or that differently, why did she run given the “Clinton Fatigue,” why did James Comey f–k her over in the final weeks. There’s really none of that eight years later. We couldn’t have asked for a better candidate than Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris was disciplined, joyful, wonkish, fun and cool. She energized the base and she had widespread cross-party appeal. The only things “wrong” with Kamala Harris were: she’s a woman, she’s a Black woman, and she isn’t Donald Trump.

As I’m writing this, Kamala Harris lost Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia. She’s on track to lose Michigan by about 200,000 votes. She’s on track to lose Wisconsin by about 100,000 votes. Joe Biden’s Rust Belt strategy in 2020 didn’t hold up when Joe Biden wasn’t on top of the ticket. The Sun Belt states are looking like losses too – Kamala is down in Nevada and Arizona, although she won New Mexico. This isn’t even because of one particular demographic – white women, men of all races, Latino voters, suburbanites, they all swung wildly against Kamala Harris.

I hope Kamala knows that she did the best she could with the hand she was dealt. The numbers don’t reflect a failure on her part, in my opinion. The numbers reflect a failure of the American electorate. Good news for the American electorate: Donald Trump promised that this would be the last votes you would ever have to cast, that he will “fix” everything so no one has to vote anymore. Congrats on making it count.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

Happy Election Day, Americans! Remember to vote!

Is Pamela Anderson a sleeper Oscar contender? [LaineyGossip]
I love Jonathan Bailey, but it’s insulting that he isn’t making more an effort for Wicked’s Australian promotion compared to Ariana Grande & Cynthia Erivo. [JustJared]
Barry Keoghan responds to the “deadbeat dad” allegations. [Buzzfeed]
Today marks six months of Florida’s abortion ban. [Jezebel]
People keep raving about The Diplomat. [Pajiba]
Tom Cruise wants to make a Days of Thunder sequel?? I guess he really is beefing with Brad Pitt, who is still filming that stupid F1 movie. [Socialite Life]
What we know about Wednesday Season 2. [Hollywood Life]
Can someone close to Ariana Grande tell her that this hair color is awful? [Seriously OMG]
Lucy Liu wore Zuhair Murad to a Berlin premiere. [RCFA]
There’s a new Luther Vandross documentary! [OMG Blog]

Here are some photos from Kamala Harris’s Philadelphia rally last night. She staged the rally on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, made famous by Rocky. Thousands of Philadelphians packed Benjamin Franklin Parkway to hear VP Harris speak and to watch the star-studded final rally before Election Day. Ricky Martin, Lady Gaga, The Roots, Fat Joe and Oprah were all there. The Harris-Walz campaign has had a lot of celebrity involvement and it hasn’t been a big criticism at all. I’ve said this all along – the Republicans can’t slam Democrats for being “too Hollywood” because Republicans worship a degenerate reality star. Plus, the degenerate reality star is sick with jealousy that Democrats have all the “good celebrities.” Speaking of, the Hollywood Reporter took the temperature in Hollywood for Election Day and Election Night:

There’s a common refrain running through Hollywood regarding election night plans: Put the champagne on ice. Celebratory and star-packed shindigs of years past — basically anything prior to 2016 — are just that, history, and have been replaced by casual, more intimate and anxiety-filled gatherings. The reason? It’s complicated, and best explained by one of the industry’s most politically active producers.

“The biggest change for me personally is the understanding that we most likely will not have a confirmed outcome by the end of election night. We’ve now seen major swings with vote-by-mail being counted later than in-person voting, so the idea of doing a ‘party’ on election night doesn’t make sense due to that uncertainty, and others probably feel the same way,” explains Jamie Patricof, founder of Hunting Lane, an auteur-driven film, TV and documentary production company and a longtime political activist. “The 2016 election was also traumatizing for a lot of people, and the fact that 2020 extended until that Saturday has changed the course of election night plans. For me, it’s now more important to be with friends, family and people who have poured their hearts, time and effort into getting candidates elected that are critical to the policies and issues important to them and us. There are plenty of other days and nights to have parties.”

Another one of Hollywood’s most politically active producers reports that they will be “pacing” on the set of their new movie while watching results trickle in. A well-placed communications executive will be playing poker with friends as a distraction. Couch surfing with remote in hand for more than a handful who were asked to share plans. “People are honestly too scared to jinx anything,” one said. Pizza and cable news is on the menu for a veteran manager. Kelli McNeil-Yellen, writer, producer and founder of KLA Media, will be focusing on a different menu by tackling a challenging recipe from Julia Child.

“My husband [director/cinematographer Alexander Yellen] and I got a mid-priced bottle of pinot noir to accompany the meal — nothing in the celebratory price range but also nothing cheap — and are tackling the original Julia Child boeuf bourguignon recipe from scratch for two reasons: One, it’s going to take hours to make and hopefully keep our minds off things, and secondly, we’re going to need some comfort food and we can’t think of anything that sticks to your ribs better than an OG Julia Child recipe,” said McNeil-Yellen.

As for Patricof, he plans to be stuck like glue “to all the pundits I’ve spent every day and night with for the last few years.” He continued: “This is like my Super Bowl. I can’t wait for the Steve Kornacki cam [on NBC]. I totally envy and respect anyone who can play Monopoly Deal and enjoy Tuesday night by taking their mind off the election. I will definitely be taking advantage of watching four windows at once on YouTube TV.”

[From THR]

I make no qualms about it, I’m going to be watching MCNBC and scrolling Twitter. I’m not sure we’ll know who won tonight, but I actually think we’ll know by Wednesday evening. The situation in 2020, where it took four days to count votes in Michigan, Philly and Georgia…I just feel like people are more prepared overall. But yeah, I’m all for people being cautious and not expecting a huge celebration tonight. The Harris campaign knows what they’re doing and they’re preparing people to tuck in because it could take a few days.

FULL VIDEO: Lady Gaga performing “The Edge of Glory” at the final Kamala Harris rally in Philadelphia.pic.twitter.com/gteiPlNRo9

— Lady Gaga Now (@ladygaganownet) November 5, 2024

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.