Prince Harry and Princess Anne seem to still be on good terms, despite all of the controversies and BS. Anne and Harry were seen together at QEII’s funeral last September, and Harry greeted his aunt with a big smile when they saw each other at King Charles’s coronation. Apparently, they’ve always gotten along well, so much so that the Daily Mail devoted an exhaustive article about Anne’s “soft spot” for her “troubled nephew.” Harry is not “troubled,” he just lives in America. LMAO.

Her famous work ethic, sustained over the course of many decades of unstinting royal duty and support for charity, has won Princess Anne plaudits across the world. Now, however, it seems the King’s only sister has earned admiration from an unlikely quarter: the Royal Family’s biggest critic, her nephew Prince Harry.

Eagle-eyed Royal watchers tuning into the Coronation might have been surprised to see the warmth of the encounter between Harry and his aunt at Westminster Abbey on May 6. Dressed in her Blues and Royals uniform beneath the dark green Thistle Mantle, the Princess Royal stopped to chat to Harry as she made her way to the front of the Abbey.

While most senior royals ignored the Prince who quit his duties to move abroad, Anne appeared to ask Harry – who remains the fifth in line to the Throne – if was okay with his seat three rows back. Would he be able to see beyond her high feathered cap? In what looked to be a good-humoured exchange, lip-reading experts reportedly revealed he told her: ‘I don’t mind’ before saying ‘Sit at the front!’ If viewers watching at home were surprised by the frank and jovial conversation so, it seemed, were some Royals in the pews behind.

Many may not realise that Anne seemed to have a soft spot for Prince Harry from the beginning, and the more so when he lost his mother at such a young age.And while her refusal to give her children Royal titles may seem at odds with Harry and Meghan’s insistence on their two children Archie and Lilibet being titled Prince and Princess, Anne and Harry have more in common than many people might realise. She was one of the few members of the Royal family who wasn’t targeted in Prince Harry’s excoriating take down.

An insider said: ‘The Princess Royal has always had a soft spot for Harry and they both have a wicked sense of humour. People talk about Prince Andrew being the Spare but Anne was the second-born, too, and particularly since Diana died has always felt a duty to support her nephew. Both Anne and Harry have a great sense of humour and more in common than it might seem.’

Could Anne be called upon by King and country to build a bridge between father and son? As with most acts of service – at least as far as the Princess Royal is concerned – if duty calls then she will oblige.

[From The Daily Mail]

They’re really running out of people who can act as middlemen between King Charles and Harry, right? First it was our bewigged peacemaker Kate, then magically it shifted to the York princesses, and then it was the Archbishop of Canterbury, and now it’s Anne. Every time it shifts, I hold my breath because you know Prince William hates that there are still people in or around the royal family who maintain good relations with Harry, or see Harry’s perspective. Would William go so far as to plot something to damage Anne? We’ll see soon enough. Now, will Anne bridge the family divides? No. She won’t. But I kind of wonder if Anne secretly loves that her nephew got away and she hopes that he thrives.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

The Chelsea Flower Show started on Monday and it runs until Saturday. The flower show has always been a popular event for the Windsors, and usually various royals will pop into the show on different days, especially if they have a connection to one or more of the exhibitions. On Monday, the Princess of Wales did her big “surprise” picnic with schoolchildren. Kate brought at least a dozen photographers to document her surprise picnic and the photos went viral for all the wrong reasons, mostly because those kids weren’t buying whatever the Duchess of Karens was selling. Still, it was a huge photo-op for Kate and she was on the front of most of the newspapers. On the very same day, King Charles and Queen Camilla also visited the Chelsea Flower Show… and their visit barely got any attention. Granted, their visit didn’t involve photogenic multiracial children, but still. Camilla staggered around like she was half in the bag and the king loves gardens. So, obviously, a message needed to be sent to She Who Keens.

Royal insiders have expressed concerns that King Charles was overshadowed by the Princess of Wales during his first visit to the Chelsea Flower Show as monarch. His Majesty, who is known to be a keen gardener and lover of nature, attended the annual event in London on Monday, May 22, for the first time since becoming King.

While there the monarch and his wife, Queen Camilla, presented a medal in memory of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, to honour the leading lights of gardening – and will be given to 70 people at any one time in memory of Her Majesty’s 70-year reign.

However, some royal sources have expressed concern that the visit by Charles and Camilla was overshadowed by a surprise appearance by Catherine, Princess of Wales, to the same event on the same day. Kate was seen meeting youngsters from ten schools taking part in the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Campaign for School Gardening where she encouraged participants to ‘work hard’. But the amount of coverage given to the younger royal’s visit has sparked alarm in some circles that Charles may find himself eclipsed by his daughter-in-law, a claim mirroring that when was married to his first wife, Princess Diana.

One insider told the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden: ‘With his love of horticulture, His Majesty’s appearance at Chelsea was an important engagement. It’s a shame that his visit with Her Majesty the Queen received less coverage than might have been expected. I hope they are not too disappointed.’

[From The Daily Mail]

“I hope they are not too disappointed” = Charles and Camilla are absolutely furious at Kate’s stunt-queenery with the children. Now, in my opinion, C&C are failing to see the big picture, which is that Kate’s asinine photo-op is still blowing up in her face – those photos are still going viral, the photos of little kids giving Kate the sideeye and looking distressed at the state of her wiglet, and Kate absolutely looks like a jackass who uses Black and brown children as her diversity props, as she’s been doing for years. Still, Kate got what she wanted: she dominated the 24-hour royal newscycle. She “won.” And trust me, Charles and Camilla will carry that grudge. We might actually see them turn on Our Lady of Perpetual Buttons.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

In case you’re still curious about what exactly Prince Harry’s “loss” in court yesterday means, the Telegraph had a somewhat helpful article which included straight reporting on what Harry’s side argued versus what the judge ruled. Basically, this was part of Harry’s larger case about Ravec (the secretive group which decides who gets royal protection) and whether his offer to pay for his own police security while in the UK was even properly presented to Ravec or the Met police. Harry’s argument was that he should have been able to personally make his case to Ravec or make an offer in writing, an offer which should have been properly considered. The judge said no, Harry doesn’t have a right to make a “formal representation” on the issue. Basically, it’s about the bureaucracy of Ravec and the royal protection services and the judge ruled in favor of the bureaucracy. There are still other parts of Harry’s protection case left to be adjudicated. Meanwhile, would you like to read some biased analysis on the case? From the Daily Beast’s Royalist:

A British judge’s ruling Tuesday that Prince Harry cannot legally challenge the British government’s decision not to allow him to pay for police protection while he is in the U.K. augurs badly for his overall argument that, when in the U.K., he should be entitled to automatic, high-level police protection of the kind he had when a working royal, a legal expert said today.

The ruling will come as a fresh blow to Harry and Meghan Markle just days after they were accused of exaggerating security concerns by claiming they were the subject of a “near catastrophic” chase with paparazzi through the streets of Manhattan.

Although the ruling Tuesday does not technically end Harry’s case seeking automatic police protection for him and his family while on British soil, which Harry believes he should retain due to the “inherited risk” of his position, it is being seen by some as a signal that Harry’s entire action is going down the tubes.

“The writing is on the wall for this case now,” Mark Stephens, a media lawyer at Howard Kennedy, told The Daily Beast, saying that he had always believed Harry was unlikely to prevail, and that he now felt more confident in that view.

Stephens said that the state’s essential argument—that it can decide who it wants to protect and to what extent, and that the police force cannot be obliged to hire itself out—had been sustained. The British Home Office argued that were wealthy individuals, such as Harry, to be allowed to buy police protection, it would undermine public confidence in the police and detract from their core duties.

A different hearing previously found, however, that Harry could bring a case arguing his core claim that he should simply be entitled to automatic protection in Britain. That was not ruled on Tuesday, and that case is proceeding.

[From The Daily Beast]

Personally, I think Harry’s case serves as a larger reminder that British institutions are poorly run and operate without intelligence or integrity. It’s perfectly reasonable for Harry to want and expect high-level police protection whenever he’s in the UK. He is an extremely well-known person and he’s a high-level target for domestic terrorists. The state is arguing that Harry’s security should be determined by his lack of “working royal” status, not the actual threats against him and his family. Harry feels that his police protection (again, solely when he visits the UK) should be automatic, and that he should have the right to simply reimburse the taxpayers for that automatic protection. The fact that Ravec and the police are fighting him about these issues is flat-out bonkers.

The Sun reports that the state has already spent £300,000 in legal fees to fight Harry’s legal actions. The Mail estimated that Harry will spend about £500,000 in legal fees. Again, the point is that Harry is drawing attention to how dysfunctional and backwards these institutions are. He also wants to show the British public that he would love to visit his homeland more often but the “powers that be” refuse to guarantee his safety, and are in fact fighting in the courts to leave him without police protection.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

Wes Anderson’s latest film, Asteroid City, will be released theatrically in mid-June. The film got its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, and if you ask me, Cannes should have made this the opening night film (instead of that Johnny Depp catastrophe). Wes Anderson always has star-studded ensemble casts and this one is no different. The film stars (in no particular order) Tom Hanks, Scarlett Johansson, Jason Schwartzman, Steve Carrell, Jeffrey Wright, Adrien Brody, Hope Davis, Maya Hawke, Edward Norton, Margot Robbie, Bryan Cranston, Rupert Friend, Hong Chau, Rita Wilson and like twenty other actors you would recognize. You can see the trailer here (it’s charming, as all of Wes Anderson’s films are).

Here are some photos from the Cannes premiere last night. Scarlett was there with her husband Colin Jost, and a very strange Prada dress. I’m aghast at her styling too – bright orange-red lipstick with this pale pink dress? Ugh. Maya Hawke also wore Prada, and if you ask me, both women’s dresses have severe darting issues. Also: Adrien Brody is still with Georgina Chapman, and she was there at the premiere.

Other notables at the premiere: Julia Garner in a vibrant emerald Gucci and Brie Larson in a feathered Chanel. I’m so disappointed in Brie’s Cannes fashion. When she was appointed to the Cannes jury, she must have just called up Chanel and asked them for whatever they had laying around. That’s what it looks like – she’s wearing the dregs which no one else wanted. Julia looks amazing.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

Just days after the coronation, the Duchess of Edinburgh was traveling through London with her police motorcade. They were driving like a bat out of hell, speeding down a road close to Kensington Palace. One of the police motorcyclists struck an elderly woman at high speed, and she was thrown yards away from the impact. An ambulance was called and the woman, Helen Holland, was immediately hospitalized. Her family told the media that she was in a coma. No one said anything about whether Sophie’s car had even stopped to check on the woman, and there was no word on whether Sophie went to the hospital or met with the family. Well, two weeks after impact, Helen Holland passed away.

An elderly woman who was hit by a police motorcycle escorting the Duchess of Edinburgh has died. Helen Holland had been in hospital in critical condition since she was hit on the afternoon of 10 May in west London.

In comments reported by the BBC, Ms Holland’s son Martin said she died after suffering “multiple broken bones and massive internal injuries”.

He said she fought “for her life for nearly two weeks… but irreversible damage to her brain finally ended the battle today”. She had been using the “safe route of [a] pedestrian crossing” when she was struck by the motorcycle, he added.

Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, had said after the crash that her “thoughts and prayers” were with Ms Holland, with Buckingham Palace adding that she would “keep abreast of developments”.

A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “The Duchess of Edinburgh is deeply saddened to hear that Helen Holland has passed away. Her Royal Highness’s deepest condolences and sympathies go to all of Ms Holland’s family.”

[From Sky News]

This is why you don’t go to a horse show the day after your police motorcade hits a grandmother at high speed. This is why you make an effort to not look so jazzed and smug right after your security put an elderly woman in a coma. Again, consider how any of this would be reported if it had been Harry and Meghan’s security. While I get that there could be liability issues after this kind of incident, issues about Sophie personally apologizing, especially when there’s some kind of internal police review… questions still remain, and Sophie still looks icy and uncaring. Questions also remain about where the hell Sophie was going, why she would have needed a high-speed police escort, and why she needs this kind of police protection at all.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Image.

Kyle Richards has been sober for almost a year. In that time she’s also lost a noticeable amount of weight. As soon as she started posting pics of her slimmed-down physique, people started commenting that she must have been on Ozempic. Kyle denied those rumors, but it also seems like she’s protesting too much. At this point Kyle has been talking about not using Ozempic since January. Like Peridot said in this story from March, I think her continued denials about Ozempic are making the association even stronger. Well, now she’s at it again, talking to Page Six about how she lost weight (not from Ozempic!!) and getting a swipe in at Erika Jayne.

Kyle says she’s never taken Ozempic because she has anxiety: “I can say that I have never tried it and I have never taken it,” Richards, 54, told Page Six. “I’m not on any weight loss drug. If you know me, you know I have terrible anxiety so that would scare me to death. I have never, ever ever taken it.”

Other Bravo stars have admitted to taking the drug: Although Richards went about her weight loss the old-fashioned way, many of her fellow Bravolebrities have admitted to using the drug — such as Dolores Catania, Jennifer Fessler, and Golnesa “GG” Gharachedaghi. Other celebs, including Richards’ “RHOBH” castmate Erika Jayne, were also accused of using the drug for weight loss purposes. “I don’t know about Erika, I have no idea, but I’m wondering why don’t people talk about her enough, she’s way skinnier than me,” Richards quipped. “I’m like, ‘Why are people talking about me?’ I’m so confused because she’s really lost a lot of weight.”

She made a lot of lifestyle changes, including getting sober: “What I don’t want to get lost in this is that I want to be able to inspire people,” she told Page Six in February, noting that she had to completely change her lifestyle to reach her dream physique. “I stopped drinking almost seven months ago, I don’t eat bad, sugar, pizza, donuts, carbs … so I’d rather be inspiring than people making up stories about me,” she continued. The reality star alleged that she also lost weight by working out for “two hours every day.”

[From Page Six]

First of all, I think it’s funny how Kyle uses this opportunity to be petty about Erika. I’m not super up-to-date on the Real Housewives shows but I’m guessing they don’t like each other. I’m going to shock some people by saying this, but judging by her physique, I do not believe Kyle is on Ozempic. I think she’s not on it because she has really good muscle tone. One of the downsides of Ozempic is that it can cause you to lose muscle along with body fat. For the people who need it to manage diabetes, this side effect is worth the trade. But I just don’t believe that Kyle is taking a semaglutide drug that suppresses her appetite while working out for two hours a day. Also, I looked it up and anxiety symptoms are not listed as a common side effect of Ozempic. But as someone who has suffered from multiple anxiety disorders, I get what Kyle’s saying. I’m also anxious (LOL) about how different medications could affect me.

It sounds like what really happened is that Kyle got sober, found a good trainer, and is on a strict diet. Getting sober is a great thing and I’m happy for Kyle that she’s made that change. I don’t think cutting out all “carbs” is necessarily balanced or healthy, because demonizing foods and food groups as “bad” can really backfire. But if you did all three of those things at once, the results could be pretty dramatic. She also had breast reduction surgery sometime in 2022, which Andy Cohen “accidentally” revealed on the air. That could also contribute to Kyle looking slimmer than before. We’ll never know for sure if Kyle lost weight the old fashioned way or with medication. But I’m going to take her word for it. If she would just stop talking about it, maybe other people would, too.

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Photos credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images, Getty and via Instagram

It’s been a big year for Phoebe Bridgers. She played Coachella with her band boygenius, and they also released their debut album. In the middle of all that, she opened for Taylor Swift on her tour, playing twelve shows. Phoebe and her bandmates, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus, were interviewed by the Wall Street Journal to promote their album, called the record. In that profile, Phoebe is asked about the curiosity her fans have about her dating life. After she was with actor Paul Mescal for a couple years, she was suddenly spotted out and about with Bo Burnham, about six months ago. But she and Bo have never said if they’re dating or not. Fans really want her and Bo to confirm their alleged relationship, and Phoebe’s had enough of it. Here’s what she had to say about the inappropriate fan attention, opening for her friend Taylor, and why she’s so transparent in her songs:

On opening for Taylor Swift on the Eras tour: “The craziest thing I could imagine is 60,000 people. It’s setting records as the biggest shows ever. It’s so cool to be a part of it,” Phoebe shared.

Fans of Phoebe and boygenius are overstepping boundaries: Phoebe told the publication that she “draws a line between fans who share a passing compliment while the band eats lunch and fans who run up to their car, trapping them inside.”

“There’s a higher chance that you’ll meet a fan that you hate than a fan that you love,” she shared. “You’re way more likely to be confronted with someone who just violated your privacy.”

She wishes people would stop speculating on her love life: Her personal lyrics and candid social media presence have led some listeners to believe they deserve an all-access pass to her offstage life. “I’ve had people take more than I’m giving, and I’m giving a lot. I’m pretty f—ing transparent, because I would value that in someone whose music I liked when I was a kid. Seeing any representation of any feeling and anything true was awesome to me. To be punished for that is so dark,” she said.

[From WSJ via Just Jared]

The first song that put Phoebe on the map–as far as I’m aware–is called Motion Sickness. The first time I heard it, the raw honesty of it completely floored me. In it, she describes a psychologically abusive dynamic between a young woman and an older man. I can’t find evidence that Phoebe confirmed this directly, but the song is believed to be about her relationship with Ryan Adams. She perfectly captures the conflicting emotions that come with surviving an abusive dynamic–love morphing into resentment, regret, relief, anger, and everything in between. Phoebe’s honesty in her lyrics is so unflinching that sometimes it’s hard for me to listen to.

But just because someone is open and vulnerable as a songwriter, that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have any privacy. What Phoebe describes when she talks about negative interactions with fans is the result of our parasocial era. Some people think they actually know a celebrity and overstep boundaries, while fans who are respectful keep their distance. As for what she’s dancing around when she says fans are “taking more” than she’s giving: Neither Bo Burnham nor Phoebe has acknowledged their relationship. They haven’t even done the Taylor Swiftian “We’re so in love and so private” exclusive to a friendly press outlet. They’re choosing to handle their relationship this way. Besides, Keith Urban accidentally captured them kissing in a TikTok at one of Taylor’s recent shows, and I think that should be confirmation enough. Somehow it makes perfect sense that it was Keith Urban, of all people. Keith and his highlights, letting the cat out of the bag without even knowing.

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photos credit: JPI Studios/Avalon, Yuri Murakami/Fotoarena/Avalon, Getty

An explainer on the Phillip Schofield & Holly Willoughby drama in the UK. It sounds very, very suspicious and I did not know the half of it. [Pajiba]
My sense was that the Cannes audience didn’t actually like Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Which I understand? [LaineyGossip]
Warner Bros’ CEO David Zaslav got booed at Boston University. [Dlisted]
Julianne Moore looked great at Cannes too. [Tom & Lorenzo]
A Nebraska lawmaker practically left their deathbed just to harm women and take away reproductive choice. [Jezebel]
Did Cardi B get a breast reduction? It looks like it. [JustJared]
Elle Fanning’s Cannes fashion. [GFY]
I’ve never been on the air fryer bandwagon! [Buzzfeed]
A Catholic group tried to get homophobic and people were not happy. [Towleroad]
Alabama Barker is a rapper! [Starcasm]
I really want to pretend like The Idol is not happening. [RCFA]

Kim Kardashian recently sat down for a podcast interview with On Purpose with Jay Shetty. She talked a lot about her kids and what her home life is like as a single mother. I know everyone climbs up Kim’s ass about everything, but she IS a single mother and she has been one for years. Even when she was married to Kanye, she was a single mom. Kanye was always in Wyoming or “running for president” or whatever, while she raised the kids in Calabasas. Now that they’re divorced, Kanye has time with the kids, but let’s be real – Kim is their primary parent and she’s with them like 90% of the time. Her kids’ ages now: North, 9, Saint, 7, Chicago, 5, and Psalm, 4. Some highlights from the pod interview:

On parenthood: “Everyone says the days are long and the years are short, and that couldn’t be like a more true statement. So, like, when you’re in it, I mean, especially when they’re babies and you’re feeding … there’s madness going on. It’s like full madness. It’s the best chaos though.”

On mornings with four kids: Detailing that “you have no idea what’s going on” in the mornings, Kardashian adds, “It’s like I always have to do one of my daughter’s hair — and it has to be perfect and it has to be a certain way — and then this one needs me to put his shoes on and they all need you. … It’s like full crazy madness, cooking, running around. Like, it’s wild.”

A mother’s tears: “Parenting is the thing that has taught me the most about myself. It has been the most challenging thing. There are nights I cry myself to sleep. Like, holy sh-t, this f—ing tornado in my house. Like, what just happened? You know, with all the moods and the personalities and sometimes they’re fighting, and you know, there’s no one there. Like, it’s [just] me to play good police officer and bad cop.”

Parenting is really “f—ing hard.” “That’s the only way I can describe it. It is the most rewarding job in the entire world. It is. There is nothing that can prepare you. … I don’t care how long you wait. I don’t care what you’re waiting for. You are never prepared. But you will figure it out, and it will make you so proud of yourself that you figured it out and that you got through the day.”

Nights with her kids: “We are going hour by hour to see if we’re gonna survive night by night. If a tantrum comes in, oh my God, your life is completely upside down. But it teaches you so much more about yourself than I think anyone, any parent, could have ever anticipated. I mean, there’s nights when you don’t wash your hair for days as a mom and you have spit up all over you and you’re wearing the same pajamas, especially in COVID. It was insane, you know?”

[From People]

I’m sure people will talk about her nannies, and she does have nannies and I don’t blame her one bit. She has four kids under the age of 10: bring on the nannies. I also remember when Kim used to make motherhood sound pretty easy and like her kids were always so well-behaved. It’s good that she’s now talking about how chaotic everything is and how they have tantrums and all of that. Anyway, I have no doubt that Kim will turn her kids into the next generation of reality stars and influencers, and yet… I think her kids will turn out to be more well-adjusted than most celebrity kids.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Kim’s IG.

Last year was the 25th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death. Like all of the “big anniversaries,” the British and American media did a number of articles, interviews and TV specials about Diana, her life, her work, and the questions people still have about her death. One of the most curious interviews I read last summer was with Lord Stevens, who headed up the British investigation into Diana’s death. Lord Stevens is no Poirot, let’s just say that – like so many figures in the British establishment, he seemed utterly committed to obfuscating and ignoring inconvenient facts in evidence, like Diana telling two separate people (one of them her lawyer) that she was going to be killed in a car accident… just months before she was killed in a car accident. There was also that interview with one of Mohammed al-Fayed’s bodyguards, Lee Sansum, who was guarding Diana for much of her last summer. Sansum said that Diana was being watched by intelligence officers that whole summer, and that she spoke often of a plot to assassinate her.

While Prince Harry’s Spare made it clear that it took him decades to even begin to process his mother’s life and death, it’s also clear that as an adult, he’s studied parts of Diana’s death in detail. He went through the Pont de L’Alma tunnel repeatedly, he studied the photos, he likely thought about what her final moments were like. So, the paparazzi chase in New York on Tuesday night happened, and apparently Harry is thinking a lot about Diana at the moment.

The duke told friends that it was the “closest I have ever felt” to understanding what happened on the night in 1997 when his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, died.

Harry and Meghan’s car chase with the paparazzi is the “closest” the duke has felt to understanding what happened to his mother on the night she died.

A source has confirmed to Yahoo News the incident in New York on Tuesday night left him with a better feeling of what Prince Diana went through prior to her death in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris in August 1997.

[From The Times & Yahoo]

I bet it was the closest he’s ever felt. The difference is that Harry was surrounded by top-notch security, he had his iPhone out and he was recording, and he was able to eventually get to safety. I keep getting this nagging feeling that people – specifically British establishment people – are actually really mad at the way things went down on Tuesday. It’s almost as if they’re mad that something didn’t go to plan. I absolutely believe that Harry was thinking about Diana as he sat beside Meghan in that SUV. And I believe his radar was up, because something wasn’t right about what was happening. That same radar which made him want to reopen the investigation into Diana’s death.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red and WENN.