When the Princess of Wales visited the Royal Marsden Hospital last week, she brought cameras and members of the royal rota. Kensington Palace openly briefed all kinds of details about her visit, her chemotherapy treatments at the hospital last year, and something about how she was “smuggled in” for treatment. Kate mostly spoke to cancer patients during the visit, leaving some people to wonder why Kate hadn’t posed with her doctors and nurses, and why everyone working on the cancer ward looked like they were seeing Kate for the first time. Well, Operation Clean Up Keen’s Mess is still in full effect. Wouldn’t you know, Becky English at the Mail got a hot tip that Kate visited the Royal Marsden last month to thank staff.

Her return to the Royal Marsden this week to meet fellow cancer sufferers and thank nursing staff was as moving as it was surprising. The Princess of Wales undertook her first solo public engagement on Tuesday in more than a year as she visited the London hospital where she has secretly undergone her own chemotherapy treatment.

But the Mail can today reveal that it was not the first time that Catherine, 43, has returned to express her heartfelt thanks to the team who, as she so eloquently put it, ‘have walked quietly alongside William and me as we have navigated everything’. In fact, she secretly popped in to the specialist cancer care centre just before Christmas during an ‘under the radar’ festive visit, it can now be disclosed.

She was quietly taken through a back entrance at the hospital to avoid being spotted, just like she did during her treatment. And it is understood she also brought the doctors and nurses hand-picked festive gifts and treats, including biscuits, as a sign of her thanks. A source described the gesture as ‘typically thoughtful’ of Catherine – and yet another indication of how incredibly appreciative she is of all the team have done for her over the past 12 months.

It is not clear how long she spent with them during the strictly private visit, which was not recorded in the Court Circular, the official record of royal engagements. The last time she was there as a patient was before the autumn, when she joyously announced that she had complemented her course of preventative chemotherapy for an undisclosed form of the disease.

[From The Daily Mail]

As I’ve said before, I’m sure there are absolutely people buying what Kate is selling. I’m not one of them. This is a woman who went missing so thoroughly, the Sun had to fake photos of a “Kate sighting” last year. This feels like a story being pushed by the palace to explain why Kate didn’t pose for photos with doctors and nurses during her trip last week.

Meanwhile, this wasn’t the only “Kate sighting” we’ve been told about but not shown. The Mail also reports that Kate “toured two elite north London day schools – sparking rumours Prince George could be educated at one of them.” She apparently toured Highgate School and University College School last month as well, after both schools closed for the Christmas holiday. This comes after rampant speculation that Kate “won” the school battle and now plans to send Prince George to her alma mater, Marlborough. A source told the Mail that while a day school would be an unexpected choice for the heir to the throne, “With the year Catherine has had, she may well have thought to herself that she wants to soak up every drop of George’s childhood and tuck him into bed herself each night.” How would she tuck in her teenage son every night when she’s not based in London?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

Call me petty, call me unhinged, but I thought Melania Trump and Usha Vance both looked like crap yesterday. I can really tell that Usha, in particular, is not familiar with political-spouse dressing and she clearly doesn’t have the right kind of people advising her. Melania, on the other hand, just looked drugged, stiff, orange and old. Her Adam Lippes ensemble at the inauguration was tragic. But not as tragic as her inaugural ball dress – a custom piece by Hervé Pierre, Melania’s longtime style advisor. These people are so tacky.

Obviously, the fashion is not the point of the first 24 hours of the Trump administration. In between Nazi salutes, Lauren Sanchez’s fake t-ts and Melania’s horrible skin damage, some work was done. Surprising absolutely no one, Trump issued dozens of executive orders and he pardoned 1600 insurrectionists. He ordered all federal employees to work from the office, not from home. He once again removed America from any and all climate accords. And of course he’s ending birthright citizenship with a stroke of a pen.

President Trump on Monday declared that his government would no longer treat the U.S.-born children of undocumented people as citizens, signaling his intent to essentially ignore the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship in a move that is all but certain to invite a legal challenge.

His order directed federal agencies not to issue citizenship documents to such children, starting in 30 days.

It flew in the face of the guarantee, rooted in common law and enshrined in the Constitution for more than 150 years, that anyone born in the United States is automatically an American citizen.

In the executive order, Mr. Trump said he would interpret the 14th Amendment differently than had been done in the past, arguing that it “has never been interpreted to extend citizenship universally to everyone born within the United States.”

The order would mean that citizenship would not be extended to a child whose mother and father are not authorized to be in the United States at the time of birth.

[From The NY Times]

The 14th amendment gives citizenship to every child born on American soil, regardless of the immigration status/nationality of their parents. I was trying to figure out if I would be affected – my mother is American, but my father was an immigrant on a work visa when I was born (he became a citizen a few years later). I suppose it doesn’t matter – it will take some time for this issue to worm its way through the lower courts before eventually making it to the Supreme Court. And then the Supreme Court will suddenly find new and special ways to interpret the 14th amendment, I guarantee.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Remember when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Oprah interview was about to air on a specific date, and the Windsors organized a full smear campaign to drop in the days just before the interview? It was as obvious as it was stupid. Well, something similar is happening right now, only now I think the Windsors were just better at hiding their fingerprints, or maybe the Windsors are not the main ones behind this current thing. Harry will be in London for his long-awaited trial against News Group Newspapers. So a very special Vanity Fair cover story was organized, full of new variations on all of those years-old Windsor/royalist media talking points. The timing suggests yet another major piece of advance work to distract from whatever will come out in the NGN trial, just as they hoped to kneecap Meghan before the Oprah interview aired. To make matters even more bizarre, The Times of London ran a story about the Vanity Fair fallout. The Times is owned by NGN/the Murdochs.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are understood to have dismissed allegations against them reported in a Vanity Fair article that sources close to the couple described as distressing. In a cover article published on Friday and titled “American Hustle”, the magazine set out what life was like ­“Inside Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Big Business Ambitions, 5 Years After Their Royal Exit”.

The claims included comments from their neighbours in Montecito, California, who said that the duke and duchess had ruined the quiet and neighbourliness of the area by “bringing more attention” to the wealthy town, despite it already being home to other celebrities. However, friends of the Sussexes point to recent comments made by another neighbour, the actress Sharon Stone, who said that ­Meghan and Harry waved to people in the street.

Stone told Hello! magazine: “They’re a part of our community, they’ve become a giving, caring, participating part of our community. They’re not here to be like ‘Would you like to kiss my butt?’”

The latest article by ­Vanity Fair has proved to be difficult reading for the Sussexes. It speculated on rumours about the couple’s marriage and whether Meghan had been approached to write a “post-divorce” book. It also adds, however, that divorce was not on the horizon, quoting sources saying that “their love is real” and “they are hot for each other”. Yet the jibes about their work may prove the hardest to shake off.

Sources close to the Sussexes said that previous employees had gone on record in the past to dispute the claims made in the article.

The Sussexes declined to be interviewed for the Vanity Fair article and did not respond to a request to comment when approached by The Times.

[From The Times]

“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are understood to have dismissed allegations against them” and then use that “dismissal” as an excuse to reprint some of the accusations. As I said in my coverage of the VF story, I think some of the Spotify-specific stories were partially accurate, but it was a choice to put the Spotify issue under such a microscope. The angle of the VF piece was to lean into all of the tabloid reports/agendas of the British tabloids and newspapers, some of which are owned by the Murdochs. I also think that much like the smears advanced ahead of the Oprah interview, the point of the timing is to distract from the bigger thing (in this case, the NGN trial) but also put Harry and Meghan in a position where they can’t defend themselves immediately because they’re focused on the bigger thing. A “dismissal” today doesn’t mean they’ll always be so dismissive, at least that’s what I hope.

Photos courtesy of Instar, Avalon Red.

Elon Musk got a prominent position at Donald Trump’s indoor inauguration yesterday, as you can see in these photos. He was seated close to the Trump family, and beside Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Incidentally, Musk is now heading up the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) all by himself – Vivek Ramaswamy got pushed out before the inauguration, and Ramaswarmy’s face-saving cover story is that he plans to run for governor of Ohio. The real story is that Vivek irritated the f–k out of Trump. Trump is also irritated by Musk, but Musk is the virtual co-president and Trump’s puppet-master. Which means that contrary to internet rumors, Musk will be getting a West Wing office, and he already has a White House email.

Speaking of Musk’s power over Trump and Musk’s power within the Trump camp, Musk was the headliner at the Trump inaugural party at the Capital One Arena. As he spoke to the crowd of MAGA dumbf–ks, Musk decided to do a stiff-armed Nazi salute. Because he’s a Nazi, his father is a Nazi and I believe his grandfather was a card-carrying member of the Nazi party. I don’t have the bandwidth to describe the rhetorical journey the MAGAts have gone through in the past twelve hours to explain how Musk didn’t do the salute, but it was just a joke, but he did do it but it’s no big deal. I don’t care. Dude is a Nazi.

um pic.twitter.com/ISwJiM4EsH

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 20, 2025

Grandson of Nazi party members, Elon Musk, throwing up Nazi salutes at the US presidential inauguration while the crowd of Republicans go wild with applause and cheers. pic.twitter.com/S1rX9rX8E3

— Uju Anya (@UjuAnya) January 20, 2025

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Last week, Country Karen Carrie Underwood was confirmed to perform at Donald Trump’s inauguration. People were not surprised, although it did seem indicative of a larger movement. Trump supporters are taking their “masks” off – while there was reticence eight years ago to associate with Trump, that reticence does not exist anymore. Well, funny story. Underwood’s “America the Beautiful” performance was beset by technical difficulties, so she had to warble that sh-t out a cappella. It did not go well.

LOL. That’s what you get for throwing your lot in with the Trumpers. Who knew that cozying up to the American Idiocracy would lead to disaster, huh? According to the Mail, Carrie threw a hissy fit afterwards.

Carrie Underwood was left feeling like she had not been ‘afforded the same level of respect’ as the likes of Beyoncé and Lady Gaga for her performance at Donald Trump’s 2025 Presidential Inauguration, sources have revealed. The American Idol star’s rendition of America The Beautiful was hit by shock technical difficulties on Monday, leading the chart-topper to perform a capella due to issues with the backing track.

Following the performance, an insider exclusively revealed to DailyMail.com that the singer, 41, was furious over the fact she wasn’t given a ‘stage or platform even’ like previous performers. This was presumably because the event was moved inside at the last minute on Friday as extreme cold weather was predicted for the capital on Monday. However, The insider explained that this had a large impact on the singer’s performance, revealing: ‘Carrie was dissatisfied with her performance at the event, primarily due to the limited space she was given, which left her feeling cramped and uncomfortable.’

The source added: ‘Her anxiety was high throughout the performance, and she felt that she was not afforded the same level of respect or admiration that previous performers, such as Beyoncé and Lady Gaga, had received. She felt as if she was ushered in and out and had a mini hissy fit afterwards.’

The insider continued: ‘She is used to playing at massive venues with a stage to herself. She was not given a stage or a platform even. She felt like she was literally just in a room with people all around her and a microphone. This threw off the acoustics.’

[From The Daily Mail]

I absolutely believe she feels this way, and I believe she probably had a hissy fit backstage. She genuinely got screwed over ten different ways – the move indoors, the cramped quarters, the weird acoustics, the technical difficulties with the playback. Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, Kelly Clarkson… none of them had any of those difficulties. Because they performed at Democratic presidents’ inaugurations. You throw your lot in with Trump, you’re gonna get what you ask for.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

For months now, I’ve wondered if the Murdoch family’s News Group Newspapers have made settlement offers to Prince Harry. I’ve wondered about how many offers have been put on the table and the size of the offers. Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne has indicated in a couple of court hearings, ahead of the trial, that at least one offer was made but that Harry rejected it because he is hellbent on seeing this through. There’s an extra layer of danger for Harry – even if the trial goes in his favor and he wins a substantial award, he could still be out millions of dollars/pounds. That’s especially true if the trial doesn’t go in his favor. This is why the Murdochs have successfully avoided any and all trials for their years of hacking, blagging and harassment. NGN has spent over a billion dollars settling with their victims, and the trial which starts today in London will be the first time anyone has gotten this far with NGN. So, obviously, the Murdochs have now made a last-ditch effort to settle with Harry. NPR’s David Folkenflik has been following the case for a long time, and he’s in London for this trial. This is what he tweeted out this morning:

There has been a massive offer from Murdoch’s camp to resolve the hacking suits from Prince Harry and former MP Tom Watson, according to a person with knowledge.

Few want this more than Wash Post CEO Will Lewis, who is placed at center of allegations of a coverup…The complaints allege a conspiracy by top Murdoch British executives, including Lewis to conceal criminality at his UK tabloids 14 years ago.

Harry/Watson previously resisted offers, saying Murdoch empire & executives would escape full accountability for what happened at the Sun

Murdoch spokesperson at News UK declined immediate comment as did a lawyer for Harry/Watson

Much activity in lawyers’ meeting rooms in the Rolls Building High Court.

Lewis has denied all wrong-doing and is not a defendant in the case. News UK has denied hacking into Tom Watson’s voice mails and says Harry is bringing up charges too late.

Again, Murdoch’s lawyers and those for Prince Harry & have been granted more time to meet – presumbably to talk about offer of massive settlement from Murdoch camp to cut off epic tabloid hacking trial at its start

[From David Folkenflik’s Twitter]

This reminds me of the noticeable chill that ran down a lot of spines when the judge in this case gave Harry access to a treasury of messages and communications between NGN and Buckingham Palace/Kensington Palace. Harry has indicated that there is a lot more to expose in this trial. From the way NGN and the British media has behaved around this case, I’ve gotten the sense that Harry is in a much stronger position than many would have you believe. I wonder how much NGN is offering as a settlement, although the amount honestly makes no difference to Harry. I feel like he would only settle if NGN made a series of disclosures, admissions or acknowledgements, and I doubt that will happen. Still, I will update this post if/when we know more.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

These are photos from the Bidens’ White House greeting for the Trumps, plus a few pics of the formal goodbye on the Capitol steps between the Bidens and Trumps for the inauguration. All of what happened on Monday is a combination of inaugural protocol and tradition, and the Bidens followed it precisely, unlike the Trumps in 2021.

I’m giving all of this the low energy I feel it deserves, but I am be so sad to see Dr. Biden and President Biden go. Jilly looked lovely in her vivid purple Ralph Lauren ensemble. In case you were wondering about Jill’s earrings, they are diamonds from Briony Raymond. I didn’t see any ID for the black pantsuit worn by Kamala Harris, the princess who was promised.

As for the Republican women, Melania Trump wore a custom look by Adam Lippes. I saw “Carmen Sandiego” trending during the inauguration and I knew it was about this B. The hat was a choice, but hey, at least we didn’t have to see her pissy face. Usha Vance wore a dusty pink Oscar de la Renta coat. De la Renta also dressed Usha for an event Sunday night. People are already saying that designers will likely have a different energy when it comes to dressing or not dressing the women of this administration, and I think de la Renta dressing Usha Vance is evidence of that. To be fair though, de la Renta has always dressed political wives of all parties. Ivanka Trump was also in attendance at the inauguration – she wore green and carried a Dior bag. She got fresh face work too.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images.

Prince Harry’s trial against News Group Newspapers starts today. As we’ve seen in recent weeks, several “special” campaigns were prepared in advance of the trial, including the Vanity Fair cover story, which dropped like a bomb last Friday. There’s a high-level, multi-pronged campaign to smear Harry and his wife, to “force” them back to the UK, to disparage Harry as a henpecked man-child who doesn’t know his mind. In addition to all of this, Buckingham Palace has been briefing about Harry’s travel, security and hotel arrangements ahead of his trip to London for the trial. The British media indicated their belief that Harry would be in London this week for the first days of the trial, and perhaps even pop up in London today, where they prepared a million “King Charles and Prince William snub Harry” stories. Harry cut them off at the pass – the Sussex team went to People Mag with some information:

Prince Harry will not travel to London for the first day of his trial against Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid The Sun, refuting claims that he turned down an offer to stay at Buckingham Palace this week.

PEOPLE understands that Harry will not attend the first day of the NGN trial on Tuesday, Jan. 21, but is scheduled to testify in court in February, debunking false reports about supposed security offers.

The Duke of Sussex’s trial against News Group Newspapers (NGN), the publisher of The Sun, centers on allegations of unlawful information gathering by journalists and private investigators. Harry is set to testify later in the proceedings, which are taking place alongside former Labour MP Tom Watson. Harry has accused NGN of phone hacking and other privacy violations between 1996 and 2011, a period during which The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World allegedly targeted him. NGN has denied any wrongdoing.

The news refutes recent reports that Harry declined an invitation to stay at Buckingham Palace this week. A source reportedly told The Mirror that Harry was offered accommodation at the royal residence but chose to turn it down. It was also reported that he was set to be granted protection from the Metropolitan Police while attending the hearings.

[From People]

People didn’t get confirmation either way about Harry’s security, but Harry has known about his scheduled appearance in London to testify for a while now, so he would have been able to give the royal protection unit enough notice. That’s the current deal on Harry’s UK security – it’s decided on a case-by-case basis, and he has to give them 30-days notice, basically. It would be insane if the police/Ravec decided Harry didn’t need security for this highly publicized court appearance in London. As for Harry’s team telling People that he’s not going to London this week… that’s interesting, because I’m sure several briefings and hit pieces will be put on hold until he does arrive. But the wording on whether Harry turned down a room at the palace is a little bit weird – my guess is that Harry will be staying at a hotel, but that Charles didn’t offer Harry jacksh-t anyway.

Update: there’s a big commotion at the London court today, which I will cover separately!

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

I didn’t watch any part of Donald Trump’s second inauguration. Come to think of it, I didn’t watch any part of his first inaugural either. Since this is my job, I tend to microdose this kind of sh-t and just look through the photos to see what storylines are there. Imagine my shock when I came across the photos of Trump taking the oath of office… and he didn’t have his left hand on the bible. Did he forget? Is the oldest president ever to be elected too senile to remember to put his baby fist on the bible? Or is there something happening with his left hand/arm and he couldn’t move it properly? Come and get your village idiot, Evangelicals. This is what you wanted – a demon who couldn’t even put his ugly orange hand on a bible, lest it burn his rapist flesh.

The photos of that ugly man trying to kiss his wife are pretty funny too. As many suggested, that is probably why Melania wore the hat in the first place, so her husband would be blocked from kissing her. Other random thoughts… did George W. Bush fall off the wagon? He had the vibe of a man who started day-drinking.

As for the rest of it… I’ve seen the headlines about his inauguration speech and people are already feigning outrage over “the Gulf of America” and his “two genders only” crap. What did people expect? He didn’t turn into a completely new person? He’s the same serial sexual predator, fascist, moron, racist and dumbass as always. What I find interesting is the guest list – since the inauguration was held indoors, in the Capitol Rotunda, there was a very tight limit on which donors/celebrity guests could be invited. Rupert Murdoch got an invite, as did Elon Musk, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos. Bezos even brought Lauren Sanchez, who looked like a horse’s ass in her exposed lace bustier. What was somewhat shocking is that Logan Paul, Jake Paul and Conor McGregor were also on the shortlist. McGregor, like Trump, is an adjudicated rapist. The Pauls are sleazy influencer types. I’d love to know if all of those whackjob big-money donors are mad that they didn’t get a seat but Conor McGregor did.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images.

Joe Biden’s last act as president was to issue preemptive pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci, Gen. Mark Milley, Liz Cheney and everyone on the January 6th committee. [NYT]
TikTok made a point of restoring service in America and thanking Donald Trump, which tells you all you need to know about TikTok. [Just Jared]
Julia Fox’s haircut: love it or hate it? [Go Fug Yourself]
Cameron Diaz & Jamie Foxx are still on the promotional trail. [Socialite Life]
Should Wendy Williams be freed from her conservatorship? [LaineyGossip]
A Different Man is now on HBO/Max. [Pajiba]
Keke Palmer, SZA & Issa Rae? I’m there! [OMG Blog]
Women were especially well-dressed last week. [RCFA]
People are always surprised by this, but Christopher Walken has been around forever and he’s always been really well-connected. [Seriously OMG]
Southern Charm star takes in Californians. [Starcasm]
David Lynch would have turned 79 years old today. [Hollywood Life]