From Rosie: I’m back from vacation, bitches, and need to sing the praises of those packing cubes I bought back in December. They worked GREAT and kept us organized through five cities in three different countries. Mr. Rosie and I each give them two thumbs up. Some colors are still on sale with additional coupons applied at checkout. Reviews echo my enthusiasm for how they’re a great travel tool. “These bags hold a lot. I packed multiple plus- sized jeans & sweaters, t- shirts & leggings, & other items for seven days, & had room to spare.” “They are the perfect dimensions for my carry on suitcase, and help keep everything organized when I travel. This product has made packing easier and more efficient!” Here are some more things CB and I are looking at on Amazon this week.

Air dry clay for hours of artistic fun

From Rosie: This air dry clay is a rainy day lifesaver! We initially bought this pack for my younger son, who is an “art kid,” but my older son, a true “STEM kid” through-and-through, also loves using it. We’ve had hours of creative fun with it, most notably culminating in two interesting-looking figures that now adorn our tchotchke shelf. Right now, it’s on sale for $20 with an additional 5% applied at checkout. It has a 4.6 star rating, more than 1,000 reviews, and an A on Fakespot. Users comment on how it’s a great activity for all kids. “My grandson lives this, he makes all kind of things with it. Easy to use, easy to clean up, lots of fun to be had.” “We pretty much used all the clay on day one in my classroom for a project. Great vibrant colors and super fun and soft. I will definitely buy it again.” “This clay is so fun, especially with kids!! I use it in all my ABA sessions, it’s calming, sensory, and helps to teach kids to follow directions (through a planned activity), and to follow through with projects!”

A storage box that helps organize your cords and cables

From Rosie: Our “cord drawer” has become a disaster and is in desperate need of organization. These storage boxes are exactly what I’m looking for. They’re perfect for eeping them organized in one spot. They can be used to organize drawers, desktops, personal effects, tea bags, and more. They come with cable ties, too, and are even stackable, which is awesome because the drawer I want to use them for is pretty deep. It has a 4.4 star rating, almost 150 reviews and an A on Fakespot. People who’ve bought them rave about how great an organization tool this box is. “Our electronics misc. drawer was a mess and I needed something that would separate and organize. This compartment is perfect for separating cords and charging blocks. It comes with velcro straps to keep your cords wrapped and cleaned up. Highly recommended!” “I used it in my electronics cabinet to keep all the cords & plugs organized & very neat. Well worth the purchase!”

Fun earring sets to accessorize your outfits

From Rosie: Earrings are my favorite things to accessorize with. This value pack comes with 58 different pairs and a variety of styles, including hoops, tassels, geometric shapes, acrylics, and more. They are nickel and lead-free, too. You can pick out a pink-toned set or an orange-toned one for around $20. They have a 4.3 star rating, more than 9,000 reviews, and a B on Fakespot. In reviews, people are happy with the variety and designs. “There’s a lot of choices in this set. I like the versatility of sizes, textures and colors!” “Lots of options! Loved them and can’t recommend them enough.” “This is a perfect set for gifting! I kept a few for myself that weren’t suitable for my niece and her friends! They’re all lightweight and easy to switch between for younger people with newer piercings.”

A lego succulent display is fun to assemble and display

From CB: This lego succulents set is on sale for around $40 and would make a great gift for a young person or adult. It would make a beautiful display in your home too. This listing has over 9,700 ratings, 4.9 stars and the same score on ReviewMeta. People say it’s fun to build and looks great too. “When I saw this set was coming out, I had to get it! The build is [not] difficult. You can arrange the 9 pods as you like. They look great and I always get compliments when others see it. Great to display in the home or office.” “We have several of the Lego ornamentals and this is tied with the orchid for most visually striking. I left the kit on a table over the holidays and invited anyone who wanted a few minutes of quiet to spend some time assembling one part of it. In the end, five different family members had a hand in building the finished item, which means it’s not just beautiful, it has special memories to go with it.”

An under $7 carpet stain remover that works like magic

From CB: I bought this carpet stain remover back when we first featured it two years ago and I have used it to remove so many stains. It works like a charm on my area rugs and even got blood out . Folex instant carpet stain remover is under $7 and will be your go-to for everything from food to wine. This listing has over 91,000 ratings, 4.1 stars and a B on Fakespot. People say it can get out just about any stain. “This is hands down the best carpet stain remover I’ve used, especially for the price. A little goes a long way so the bottle lasts me a good few months, even with four pets.” “While I am by no means a very experienced spot cleaner, using this was a breeze. I got this for our car’s roof upholstery which had all sorts of marks on it from years of kids and moving things. I didn’t really have much hope for anything getting out the stains, but this worked amazingly! I simply sprayed it on, rubbed it a little bit in then dabbed with a cloth! “

A long light puffer vest that will be your go-to this spring

From CB: I love my long puffer coat but it’s getting a little too warm this time of year. This long hoodie puffer vest by Elfjoy is under $40 and comes in five colors and in sizes small to xx-large. This listing has over 2,000 ratings, 4 stars and an A on Fakespot. People say they love this vest and that it’s comfortable and stylish. “Make sure you measure your hips before ordering because it is more of a slender fit, it’s very comfortable and lightweight! it’s perfect for turtlenecks as I have on or a sweater for underneath.” “Very nice vest, not too thick just right, also it’s long enough to cover your bottom. The fit is perfect.”

A stainless steel portable door lock for peace of mind

From CB: Hotel doors are notoriously easy to break into and staff can enter your room at any time. We’ve previously featured this other portable travel door lock, which is popular and effective. I wanted to talk about this hotel door lock that I saw on Twitter recommended by a locksmith. It’s a two part stainless steel lock under $9. This listing has 1,152 ratings, 4.2 stars and a B on Fakespot. People say it works really well and prevents anyone from getting in, even with a key. “Once I had these in place on the doors, as you can see in the video I posted, the door does not budge! I highly recommend this product. It is very small, it is very light and it is very easy to use! Great for any young travelers that are traveling solo or for anyone looking for that little bit of extra protection on their doors!” “Super easy to use and I wasn’t afraid of locking myself in the room like some of the other products available online. Super simple instructions and installs in less than 30 seconds. Only criticism is the straight flat side doesn’t have any rubber to protect the door frame. You don’t want to over tighten it, but still provides excellent protection.”’

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Prince William stepped out last night in London, for the Air Ambulance Charity Gala Dinner. It was a fundraiser and William is the royal patron of the charity. Tom Cruise was there. It does not look like William wore his very special velvet plane slippers, the ones he wore to the Top Gun: Maverick premiere, the same ones he had to show to all of the actors. As he was entering the venue, someone in the press pack outside asked him about the public support for the royal family in recent weeks. William’s response: “We really appreciate everyone’s kind messages. Thank you.”

NEW: Prince William arriving to support @LondonAirAmb tonight was asked about the King and Kate and told reporters: “We really appreciate everyone’s kind messages. Thank you” pic.twitter.com/ATMciestRB

— Chris Ship (@chrisshipitv) February 7, 2024

As many have noted, this was a little play, acted out by the journalist and William. A little script was written and both actors performed their roles. Reminiscent of the “we’re very much not a racist family” play. While he was inside the gala, he also gave a speech. He said, in part:

“I’d like to take this opportunity to say thank you, also, for the kind messages of support for Catherine and for my father, especially in recent days. It means a great deal to us all. It’s fair to say the past few weeks have had a rather ‘medical’ focus. So I thought I’d come to an air ambulance function to get away from it all!”

[From The Daily Beast]

That was actually a half-decent joke? Give that scriptwriter a raise! Anyway, as I was looking through these photos, I realized one of the reasons why William hasn’t been doing events in recent weeks – it’s actually quite discombobulating to see him in a tuxedo, smiling and waving, while his father has cancer and his wife is incapacitated. I get it now – they actually worried that the optics would make William look too cavalier, too cold-hearted.

This air ambulance event was his second event of the day – hours earlier, William hosted an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle. He was swaying quite heavily and he apparently dropped one of the medals. Butterfingers! Or something else. All I have to say is that I used to drink (it’s been years) and when I drank, I swayed like this. When you’re around drinkers, you recognize that sway. This was mid-day as well – I guess they had several hours to sober him up for the air ambulance gala.

The Prince of Wales has returned to royal duties after his wife’s abdominal operation and following the announcement of the King’s cancer diagnosis.https://t.co/Ig4ZQJ3Vi4 pic.twitter.com/KUXAYfZZfp

— Sky News (@SkyNews) February 7, 2024

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

I really like Kumail Nanjiani. He’s had such an interesting, varied career and seems like a really solid, thoughtful, intelligent, and down-to-earth dude. I listened to his and his wife Emily’s podcast for a little while back in 2020 and found them to be really endearing. There was one episode in which they were arguing about whether you should wet your hands before or after applying soap to wash them and – no joke – this debate has lived rent-free in my mind for four years. I think about it at least once a week.

Anyway, after Kumail was cast in one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movies, The Eternals, he started working out and underwent a major body transformation to get mega-buff. The transformation was so widely talked about in an industry that values physical looks more than anything else that Kumail ended up getting worried that he was unintentionally part of the problem. Unfortunately, The Eternals didn’t do so well amongst critics or at the box office. Kumail took it so hard that he had to seek therapy afterwoods.

The actor Kumail Nanjiani has said that bad reviews for Eternals, Marvel’s little-loved 2021 blockbuster, affected him so deeply he started seeing a therapist. Speaking on Michael Rosenbaum’s podcast, Inside of You, the actor said: “The reviews were bad, and I was too aware of it. I was reading every review and checking too much.”

Eternals features a group of immortal aliens who emerge from hiding after thousands of years to protect the planet from their ancient counterparts. Nanjiani played Kingo, a fame-loving Eternal who can create cosmic energy projectiles and becomes a Bollywood star to blend in on Earth. Nanjiani undertook many months of fitness and dance training to prepare for the role; his physical transformation attracted much heat on social media in the run-up to the film’s release.

Anticipation was high for the movie, the first from acclaimed director Chloé Zhao since Nomadland swept the Oscars. Trailers had hinted at the ambitious scope of the plot and visuals – which often eschewed CGI, to the surprise of Marvel boss Kevin Feige – and the inclusivity of the film’s cast, which featured the franchise’s first gay and first deaf protagonists, was much applauded.

But critics were lukewarm on the final film, with the Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw saying: “There are some nice touches and an attractive new diversity worn lightly, but this is an underpowered and uncertain film.”

The film has a 47% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and US audiences exiting the film polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of B – the lowest score ever achieved by a Marvel Cinematic Universe film.

“It was really, really hard,” said Nanjiani, “because Marvel thought that movie was going to be really, really well reviewed, so they lifted the embargo early and put it in some fancy movie festivals and they sent us on a big global tour to promote the movie right as the embargo lifted.”

Nanjiani said this unfortunate timing was “heightened” by the press tour taking place during the Covid pandemic.

“I think there was some weird soup in the atmosphere for why that movie got slammed so much, and I think not much of it has to do with the actual quality of the movie,” he said. “It was really hard, and that was when I thought it was unfair to me and unfair to [my wife] Emily, and I can’t approach my work this way any more. Some shit has to change, so I started counselling. I still talk to my therapist about that.

“Emily says that I do have trauma from it,” he continued. “We actually just got dinner with somebody else from that movie and we were like, ‘That was tough, wasn’t it?’ and he’s like ‘Yeah, that was really tough’, and I think we all went through something similar.”

[From The Guardian]

I feel bad for Kumail. I think Marvel thought the movie was going to be well-reviewed because of the amount of well-known actors that appeared in it. I saw The Eternals in theaters and while I liked it, I was underwhelmed. It was way too long, there were too many storylines going on at once for a movie that was introducing new characters, and there were a lot of plot holes. Plus, none of that movie has really come back into play within the MCU to make people revisit it. None of this was Kumail’s fault, though! He was great and one of the better parts of the movie. But I can absolutely see why he’d take it so hard. He put in *the work* for that movie. At the time, Marvel still had a decent track record, as it was still early in Phase 4 and IMO, things didn’t really go sideways until Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. (I love Black Widow and will die on that hill.) Hopefully, the Marvel gods find another way to get Kumail back for a future movie.

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Photos credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images, Cat Morley / Avalon, Getty

I’ve been around long enough to remember a time when Robert DeNiro was famously a curmudgeon who would barely mutter through a few interviews for his film promotions. Something has really shifted in recent years. Part of it seems to be Donald Trump and DeNiro’s extremely vocal hatred for all things Trump. I honestly think that energized DeNiro, it made him more eager to give interviews, because he could trash Trump whenever he felt like it. But there also seems to be a shift in DeNiro’s perspective towards promoting his work and family. He became a father again last year at the age of 79/80, he arguably gave one of his career-best performances in Killers of the Flower Moon, and he’s still committed to working as much as possible. Maybe he’s just loosened up. Anyway, here’s a sentence I never thought I’d write: Robert DeNiro gave a warm, light interview for this week’s second People Magazine cover story.

He’s forward-looking: “As things come, you don’t expect them. You got to be ready. I’m ready to take whatever life gives me.”

His new baby Gia: He welcomed his youngest child, Gia, last year, with his partner, martial arts instructor Tiffany Chen, 45, with whom he’s been linked romantically since 2021. “She’s such an adorable baby. So sweet,” he says of the smiley 10-month-old. “[When I] look at her, everything else goes away. So it’s a great joy and relief to just be with her in the moment.”

His other kids love Gia: De Niro’s other children, Drena, 56, and Raphael, 47 (with his first wife Diahnne Abbott), twins Julian and Aaron, 28 (with ex-girlfriend Toukie Smith) and Elliot, 25, and Helen, 12 (with ex-wife Grace Hightower), are proud older siblings. “The kids all get a big kick out of her,” he says of Gia. “The grandkids even. She’s their aunt— [and] they’re about to be teenagers!” (Raphael has three children; Drena’s son, Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, died at 19 last July.) A family man to his core, De Niro loves when they can all gather. “The fact that they’d all be together,” he says, “is everything to me.”

Where he was when he heard about his latest Oscar nomination: De Niro was on the set of his upcoming Netflix series Zero Day, a political thriller he’s also executive producing, when he heard the news of his latest nod. How does it feel to be recognized at this point in his career? “Great.” Did he savor the moment and pop some champagne? “No.”

Retirement: Asked about retirement, he says he’s isn’t ready: “Not at the moment.”

[From People]

LMAO, did AppleTV tell him to do a People interview as part of an Oscar campaign?? I think that’s exactly what it is and that’s so funny. Anyway, people aren’t ready to talk about this yet, but DeNiro acted circles around everyone in KOTFM and the only reason he isn’t the leading contender in the supporting actor race is because he basically hasn’t campaigned for it at all. This is the first time I’ve thought “oh, he’s really doing an Oscar campaign.” I mean, sure, Robert Downey Jr. was always going to be “the guy” but still. As for his 10-month-old baby Gia… it’s kind of sweet that he keeps talking about her in interviews too.

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Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, cover courtesy of People.

I’m finding Austin Butler to be a fascinating young(ish) actor. Granted, I’ve only seen him in one performance, the one where he plays a leading man breaking out and desperate to make all the right moves and be taken seriously. But he’s really giving that role all he’s got! Right now Austin is doing double promo duties for his Apple+ series Masters of the Air (out now), and Dune: Part Two premiering March 1. Esquire put him on their March cover, and Austin gave them the kind of extra, overly self-aware yet somehow not self-aware at all interview we’ve come to love and expect from him. A few highlights:

‘The architecture of your mouth’: [Butler] has spoken about how certain face movements and poses are subconsciously adopted and how a voice is just the architecture of your mouth, which can get caught in patterns that make you sound like someone you aren’t. Weren’t. How living as another person — which is exactly what he did — isn’t something you drop, no problem, simply because the cameras are down. He does it again today. “There’s no denying you create habits … I had been practicing one way of using the muscles in my mouth for a long time, so it was a process of trying to unlearn those.”

The quick turnaround from Elvis to Masters: Having a project to distract him from the despair he felt over leaving the titular role was, Butler thought, going to be helpful. “There was something comforting about knowing I could pour myself into something else,” he says. His body had other plans. Three years of spiraling further and further down the rabbit hole of someone else’s psyche and abandoning his own sense of self completely had taken their toll. The morning after production on Elvis ended, at 4:00, he woke up in excruciating pain. Possibly his appendix? Butler was admitted to the hospital. Except it wasn’t his appendix. Or Covid. “My body just crashed.”

Oh good grief: The space between what you want to know about Austin Butler and what he wants to reveal is not a gap but a gulf. A throwaway question like “Do you live in an apartment or a house?” leads to a pause. A house in L.A., he answers at first, and an apartment in New York. “How much do I want to say about this?” he wonders aloud after the admission. I ask him if he’s eaten anywhere good while in town. “This is also hard,” he says in response to my second-easiest question. “I never know when I’m giving my favorite spots away.”

He’s curating his stardom: The thing is, Butler wants to be a particular kind of star. Not just a celebrity. Not just an actor. And he doesn’t want to mess it up. Certainly not by sharing too much. … That desire to probe and share is diametrically opposed, he says, “with the type of career that I want to have, which is to be able to step into all these different types of people. I think of the days of Paul Newman — we didn’t know a ton about his personal life.” It’s like that with a lot of the stars he admires. Leonardo DiCaprio. Christian Bale. Daniel Day-Lewis.

The friend faux pas: Last winter, as his Best Actor campaign began to bubble, it blew up in his face. When asked if he’d always wanted to play Elvis in a movie, Butler answered that “a friend” once told him he was a fit for the part. Except that friend was his former partner of nine years, Vanessa Hudgens, and she had, before and after his casting, posted about it on Instagram. The Internet ate him up, accusing him of downgrading her role in his life. “Oh, yeah, I learned a lesson with that one … I felt that I was respecting her privacy in a way and not wanting to bring up a ton of things that would cause her to have to talk. I have so much love and care for her. It was in no way trying to erase anything.” … The two dated for most of their twenties; their relationship saw the death of both Butler’s mother and Hudgens’s father. It was real, and those moments, as Butler sees it, belong only to them. “I value my own privacy so much,” he says. “I didn’t want to give up anybody else’s privacy.”

[From Esquire]

Where do we start? Austin is way over the top, for sure, but I feel like the interviewer was really meeting him halfway here. Case in point: “A project to distract him from the despair” of finishing Elvis. He’s got his own Greek Chorus with this writer! The part that had me howling the most, though, was his treating the fairly innocuous questions of “where do you live and eat” like he’s an undercover agent tasked with guarding state secrets. “A house in one city, and an apartment in another. CURSES, I’ve said too much!!” I also barked out a laugh at the suggestion that we don’t know anything about Leo DiCaprio’s personal life. Please.

With regards to Vanessa Hudgens, are we buying his explanation? It’s not a (state) secret they dated, nor that she championed him for Elvis. Why would saying “my ex” instead of “a friend” have been betraying her privacy? And finally, “not wanting to bring up a ton of things that would cause her to have to talk,” was… not the best assemblage of words from him.

Photos credit: Robbie Fimmano for Esquire, received via promotional email, Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon

The trailer for AppleTV’s Palm Royale, starring Kristen Wiig, Ricky Martin, Allison Janney, Kaia Gerber & Carol Burnett. [OMG Blog]
Kelly Rowland backs up Jay-Z’s Grammy speech. [Just Jared]
Lainey’s dog needed surgery, poor Barney. [LaineyGossip]
Jonathan Bailey is so hot. That is all. [Socialite Life]
What haunts the detectives of True Detective: Night County? [Pajiba]
Paul Mescal & Andrew Scott at the LCCAs! [Go Fug Yourself]
Should we read sexy dragon books?? [Jezebel]
I would have loved Maisie Williams’ outfit without the hat. [RCFA]
Animal Control got a third season. [Seriously OMG]
What were Lisa Barlow’s controversial fur comments? [Starcasm]
Details about Mariah Carey’s new Vegas residency. [Hollywood Life]

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People may make fun of me for not being up on any sports — and by “people” I mean anyone who knows me — but the truth is I’ve had it marked on my calendar for weeks now that this Sunday is Puppy Bowl XX. Ha, so there. Featured in this anniversary-year game will be over 100 pups coming from 73 shelters across 36 states. Returning to referee duties for the 13th year in a row is Dan Schachner, who will have an assistant ref for the first time: his family’s newly adopted poodle mix Whistle. While Whistle is the first dog Schachner has adopted as an adult, he and his brood have been fostering four dogs a year for the past 10 years. They wanted to make sure they did their homework before committing to an adoption. That’s some research period! But it makes it all the more fitting for Schachner to be the host/referee of this great event.

Why he fostered first: “When I first got the job, I was tempted, of course, every year we’re tempted,” the Puppy Bowl ref remembers, “But, I was like, ‘Let me learn.’ There is no better way to learn than through fostering. I remain a staunch advocate for fostering. If you are unsure of what kind of dog to get, if you can handle caring for a dog, or any trepidation, you should 1000% foster.”

The merits of fostering: In his 10 past years of pet fostering, Schachner and his family have helped care for 40 different dogs and have enjoyed the company of each pup. “You’re doing good because you’re making room in the shelter for the next dog. So you’re automatically winning here, and you’re helping the shelter,” he says about the many pros of pet fostering, adding, “Forty different dogs in 10 years has really given me perspective.” Schachner’s family had fostered large, small, special needs, and senior dogs before adopting Whistle. All of the pet care experience left them feeling confident that they would know the pet that was the right fit for them.

Whistle was ‘the one’: When Schachner met Whistle through Phoenix Animal Rescue at an adoption event in Pennsylvania while searching for a puppy to foster as his assistant ref, he had an inkling that the puppy mill rescue dog might become a permanent family member. He brought Whistle home, and after the second night of fostering the dog, Schachner’s family sat together, “and we’re just like, ‘This is the one, right? This is the one.’” Schachner adopted Whistle in December after several months of fostering, during which the puppy received several vet exams for luxating patella, a “fancy way of saying displaced kneecaps,” per the ref. “It’s hard for her to run. She can’t do stairs well because of her kneecaps. It’s something that’s going to require surgery down the line. But so far so good,” Schachner adds.

Whistle gives him legitimacy as Puppy Bowl ref: Animal lovers can expect to see Whistle refereeing most of Puppy Bowl 2024 from Schachner’s arms. He says the spot gives the pup the perfect view to cover the game. “I think a Puppy Bowl assistant ref is probably an idea that’s a long time coming; I’ve always needed a little help on the field. And honestly, having a dog in stripes along on the field helps enhance my authority because the other dogs see me with a dog, and they’re like, ‘Ah, this guy’s cool. I trust this guy,’” Schachner explains.

How Whistle is adapting: “It’s been great,” the ref says of having Whistle as a pet. “It’s been a lot of changes for this little dog. If you think about it, going from the breeder, being surrendered to the rescue, and having the medical issues, and going to Puppy Bowl.” Whistle has handled it all with a cuddly demeanor. “She’s the clingiest, sweetest dog you’ve ever met,” Schachner says.

He keeps up with former fosters on Instagram: Schachner notes that adopting Whistle doesn’t mean the dogs he fostered before were “disappointments.” “They were all awesome, and they were all incredible learning experiences. It’s like Santa Claus doesn’t have his own kids. He has kids around the world. … I get to follow these dogs on Instagram and see their forever lives, these 40 dogs, and it’s just the most fulfilling thing,” he says. The Puppy Bowl referee hopes his enriching experience with pet fostering inspires others to foster and adopt. “Adoption and fostering are the way to go, and I’ll shout it from the rooftops forever that you’ve got to adopt, not shop,” Schachner shares.

[From People]

Fostering is a big-hearted, but also sensible way to get the practical experience of caring for a dog. I just can’t believe Schachner and his family were able to say goodbye to 40 pups!! And speaking of adorable floofs looking for homes, the bowl is this Sunday at 2pm ET and can be streamed on Max, Animal Planet, Discovery, TBS, and TruTV. You can check out the players for Teams Ruff and Fluff and vote in the Pupularity Playoffs until Friday morning. I’ve already selected my MVP from the lineup: a dachshund from New Orleans named Beignet.

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Around the coronation last year, there was an interesting and macabre discussion about what would happen if Queen Camilla survived her husband. The Windsors and their staff make all kinds of contingency plans, and obviously they are dealing with a king and consort in their 70s, so I understand why the courtiers were already considering what would happen if X, Y or Z happened. In any case, the courtiers seemed to settle on the idea that if Camilla survives her husband, her new title would be Dowager Queen Camilla. What goes unsaid is that the title and style a widowed Camilla would receive will be largely up to King William, and I even suggested last year that William would probably prefer something like Dowager Consort. I was reminded of that story and conversation this week because, following King Charles’s cancer diagnosis, friends of Charles and Camilla claim that Charles is more concerned about Camilla than himself.

The King will be most concerned for the Queen in the wake of his cancer diagnosis, his closest friends have said. Dame Julia Cleverdon, who served as chief executive of one of the King’s charity organisations when he was Prince of Wales, and Lord Dobbs, a friend of Their Majesties, discussed the repercussions of the King’s health revelation on the rest of the Royal family.

Dame Julia, who worked closely with the monarch while running Business in the Community, said: “The real heroine it seems to me in all of this is Queen Camilla, who he will be most concerned, I suspect, about the effect on her and the conversations and the load that she will take as he goes through his treatment.”

The King began regular treatment at a London hospital on Monday, as an outpatient, but has not revealed what type of cancer he has or what kind of treatment he is undergoing. However, the Palace confirmed that he did not have prostate cancer after the illness was discovered during his corrective surgery for a benign enlarged prostate.

Dame Julia, who was also a special adviser to the Prince’s Charities, the King’s non-profit organisation, is such a trusted friend of the monarch’s that within hours of Princess Diana’s death, he rang her for advice on how to speak to his two sons. She has gradually reduced her workload over the years but at one point was said to speak to the then heir to the throne twice a day. She was appointed DCVO at the personal direction of the late Queen Elizabeth II in 2008.

Dame Julia told the Today programme that the King “loves to work” and will be “very disappointed at the disruption to his plans” from his cancer diagnosis.

“He will be awash with the things that he can’t do as he steps back, but he will be absolutely clear and totally determined to do everything he can to recover fast and well,” she added.

The 73-year-old also hailed the support that the rest of the Royal family has shown him, including his sister the Princess Royal, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Waleses.

“I’m absolutely sure that this reign will continue…and that he will be A, knowledgeable, B, determined and C, absolutely clear that the show will go on,” she said.

[From The Telegraph]

Putting aside my personal feelings about the monarchy, it’s going to be hard on both Charles and Camilla and they have my sympathy. I also think Charles is very concerned about Camilla, and I’m sure people inside the monarchy are concerned too. Camilla has always “managed” Charles and his moods, and a lot of what comes next will fall on her shoulders. And that’s always tough, to be the spouse of someone going through a big medical situation or illness. Add to that, there will be the expectation that Camilla balance being there for Charles and trying to cover for him at public events. It’s a lot to put on a 76-year-old woman. The reason I mentioned the “what if Camilla survives her husband” issue is because I bet that’s also something concerning both Charles and Camilla – while Camilla has gathered a lot of power in recent years, so much of it is dependent on her proximity to Charles and the crown.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

Felicity Huffman is currently promoting a play, Hir, which is being staged in London for a month. Which means she’s giving interviews to British outlets like the Guardian, and the Guardian didn’t really want to talk about the play. They wanted to talk about Felicity’s arrest and brief imprisonment, her guilty plea and her politics. I’m used to reading bonkers interviews and profiles and let me tell you, this Guardian piece is very, very weird. Partly because Felicity so clearly does not want to talk about many subjects and partly because the Guardian interviewer is making it extremely awkward. Some highlights:

How she feels about her criminal past: “You mean Varsity Blues? ‘How I am is kind of a loaded question. As long as my kids are well and my husband is well, I feel like I’m well. I’m grateful to be here. But how am I? I guess I’m still processing.”

She has barely worked since the scandal broke. “I did a pilot for ABC recently that didn’t get picked up. It’s been hard. Sort of like your old life died and you died with it. I’m lucky enough to have a family and love and means, so I had a place to land.”

She has encountered a range of reactions from the public. “I’m not in any way whitewashing what I did but some people have been kind and compassionate. Others have not.”

David Mamet defended her: Among her defenders is her good friend David Mamet, who wrote an open letter insisting that Huffman should have received the “Texas Verdict” which means: Not guilty, but don’t do it again. “I thought it was kind and brave of him to say something, regardless of what it was.” What does she think of his Texas Verdict argument? “I don’t know,” she says flatly, bringing the matter to a close.

She’s a Democrat, David Mamet is not: “The country is so siloed. My husband and I are Democrats and we thought we should try watching different news channels that don’t tell us what we want to hear.” Or they could speak to Mamet, a proud Donald Trump supporter. “It’s really hard to do with someone you love,” she sighs. “I can’t understand it.” Isn’t it worth trying, now that a second Trump presidency is a possibility? “Anything I can do on the ground with my actions and my pocketbook to help that not happen, I am committed to doing. But talking a loving friend out of their political convictions? I’m not signing up for that.” Was she surprised when Mamet swung to the right in his 2008 essay Why I am no longer a “brain-dead liberal”? “Yeah, I don’t really wanna go into it,” she says, squirming in her coat. We move on again.

[From The Guardian]

In late November, Felicity gave her first big interview since the guilty plea and jail, and while she sounded humbled, she also claimed (bizarrely) that she thought she had to do fraud and break the law “to give my daughter a future.” The pushback on Felicity was immediate. I think she realized that she needs to talk about all of it in a different way, but she still hasn’t figured out what to say so she’s just sort of stilted and awkward about it.

This is such a tangent, but let me compare Felicity and Halle Berry in a narrow way – in 2020, Halle got probation, a fine and court-ordered community service for a hit-and-run. Halle began working with Jenesse Center for her community service and simply never stopped. She’s an ambassador for the domestic-violence charity and she’s spent over two decades doing amazing work with them. I actually believe that Felicity is trying to do something similar, which is continue working with charities beyond her community service. Lean into that and work with a publicist to figure out a way to talk about your crimes so you don’t come across like a privileged a–hole. Like, it’s so simple but Felicity still hasn’t figured out a way to do it.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

To recap, Prince Harry flew fourteen hours to have a 45-minute sitdown with his father, and then King Charles immediately flew to Sandringham and Harry checked into a hotel overnight, having seemingly been banned from staying at any royal property. All of those big reconciliation narratives and “what if Harry comes back to work for the firm” fantasies were blown up in less than an hour. Charles doesn’t give a sh-t. Harry loves his father but cannot change him or force him to be a better person or a better father. But please, let’s hear from some “sources” who insist that Harry wants to spend more time in England now:

Prince Harry plans to ‘spend more time’ in England following dad King Charles’ cancer diagnosis – and Meghan has given her blessing.

The father-of-two was pictured as he touched down in London from California where he now lives with wife Meghan Markle and their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. It comes as Harry hopes to put the rift between his brother Prince William behind him and be a support to William as he takes on more responsibility while King Charles undergoes treatment.

Harry is ‘keen to start healing his rift’ with Wills for the sake of their family, and Wills is coming around to this idea too, says a source close to the family. An insider told us: “Harry is making plans to spend more time in England so he can be there physically for his father. Meghan has given him her blessing to do this as she knows family is paramount. It’s early days yet and they are working out logistically how they can make it work as Harry’s life is now in the States with his wife and kids. Harry and Wills have always been there for each other through tough times, and it looks like they will restart building their relationship again. The brotherly love never really went away. It will take time.”

[From The Mirror]

I honestly did have a moment where I hoped that Charles’s cancer diagnosis would help Charles reevaluate his relationships with his sons and perhaps even begin to repair some of the damage with Harry. But no, it’s clear that won’t happen. Granted, we don’t know what Harry and Charles said to each other, but three facts in evidence show that Harry won’t be welcomed back for frequent visits: Charles only gave Harry 45 minutes; Harry wasn’t invited to Sandringham; Harry wasn’t welcomed overnight at a royal property and had to stay at a hotel. The Windsors don’t want him back, especially because Harry has been so successful and he’s not broke and divorced.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.