The accident that happened on Saturday wasn’t related to terrorism and nobody got hurt, according to the Metropolitan Police.
The police arrested the driver and took him to the hospital, where he was held under the Mental Health Act. He has been let out of jail after paying money.
Buckingham Palace made a solemn announcement on February 5, revealing that King Charles has received a cancer diagnosis.
The specific type of cancer has not been disclosed; however, it is confirmed not to be prostate cancer. Rather, it was detected during his recent treatment for an enlarged prostate.
The King has commenced “regular treatments” as of Monday and will be temporarily stepping back from public duties during this period, as conveyed by the Palace.
The British Royal Family has long been a subject of global intrigue, with their lives steeped in tradition and public duty, often intersecting with moments of both triumph and tragedy that capture the world’s attention.
Here are ten significant occurrences within the Royal Family that have dominated world news:
The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee (2012) Celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s remarkable 60-year reign, the Diamond Jubilee was a testament to her enduring presence and the reverence she commands worldwide. The event was marked by widespread celebrations across the Commonwealth, underscoring her global impact.
The Marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton (2011) The enchanting nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton captivated millions worldwide, symbolizing a fresh chapter for the British monarchy and introducing a modern royal couple to the world stage.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Wedding (2018) The union of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle defied royal conventions and exemplified a more inclusive and diverse monarchy. Their wedding was celebrated globally and distinguished by its contemporary interpretation of royal traditions.
The Birth of Prince George (2013) The arrival of Prince George, the future heir to the British throne, was cause for national jubilation. It signaled the continuation of the Windsor lineage and brought joy to royal enthusiasts worldwide.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Stepping Back (2020) In a stunning announcement, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry revealed their decision to step back from royal duties, sparking global discourse on media scrutiny, mental health, and the monarchy’s role in contemporary society.
The Death of Prince Philip (2021) The passing of Prince Philip marked the end of an era. His lifelong dedication to public service and unwavering support for the Queen were commemorated worldwide, reflecting on his profound contributions to the UK and the Commonwealth.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee (2022) Queen Elizabeth II made history as the first British monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking an astonishing 70 years on the throne. This monumental milestone underscored her unparalleled role in British history and her enduring influence on the global stage.
Interviews and Public Statements Revealing interviews and public statements by royal family members have often made headlines, offering insights into their personal lives and challenges. Particularly noteworthy was Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey, which shed light on internal struggles within the royal family and ignited global dialogue.
Charitable Works and Global Initiatives The Royal Family’s involvement in charitable endeavors and global initiatives has left a profound impact, from environmental conservation efforts to mental health advocacy. These endeavors underscore their commitment to public service and global betterment.
Changes in the Line of Succession Adjustments and updates to the line of succession, such as the birth of new heirs or alterations in royal protocols, consistently captivate those following the monarchy, signaling shifts within the traditional structures of the Royal Family.
King Charles III has been diagnosed with a form of cancer, according to Buckingham Palace.
The diagnosis was not related to prostate cancer but was discovered during his recent treatment for an enlarged prostate.
Although the type of cancer has not been disclosed, the palace stated that the King commenced “regular treatments” on Monday and remains optimistic about his treatment. As a result, he will postpone public engagements, with senior royals expected to stand in for him.
The palace revealed that the King, 75, began “regular treatments” on Monday for the diagnosed cancer, expressing his positive outlook on the treatment.
While he will temporarily halt public events, the King will continue with his constitutional role as the head of state, managing paperwork and private meetings.
There is an established constitutional mechanism for situations where the head of state is unable to fulfill official duties, allowing “counsellors of state” to be appointed.
Currently, Queen Camilla, Prince William, Princess Anne, and Prince Edward fulfill this role, with Prince Harry and Prince Andrew no longer serving as non-working royals.
The type and stage of cancer, as well as any prognosis, have not been disclosed. The King personally informed both of his sons about the diagnosis, with Prince William staying in regular contact with his father.
Prince Harry, residing in the United States, also spoke to his father and is expected to travel to the UK in the coming days to visit him. Despite the diagnosis, the King’s constitutional responsibilities will be maintained.
The King had undergone a prostate procedure at a private London hospital more than a week ago, making the details public to encourage more men to undergo prostate checks.
He expressed satisfaction at raising awareness about prostate health, leading to increased inquiries on the NHS website.
The King was seen waving to crowds at a church service in Sandringham on Sunday. Buckingham Palace stated that he returned to London from Sandringham on Monday morning and commenced outpatient treatment.
As the King undergoes treatment, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, and Commons Speaker Sir Lyndsay Hoyle have all wished him a “full and speedy recovery.” Prince William, who had temporarily withdrawn from public engagements to support his wife Catherine’s recovery from abdominal surgery, is set to return to public duties later this week. The constitutional arrangements will ensure the continuity of the monarchy’s functions during this period.
At a reception at Buckingham Palace, Kenyan expatriates in the UK are greeted by King Charles III and Queen Camilla. From October 31 to November 3, the royal couple will travel to the East African nation.
This will be Charles’s fourth official visit to Kenya and his first trip to a Commonwealth nation since ascending to the throne last year.
The royal couple was invited by Kenyan President William Ruto to the country, which is gearing up to commemorate its 60 years of independence from Britain in December.
The King and Queen will undertake a State Visit to Kenya, from Tuesday 31st October to Friday 3rd November 2023, to celebrate the warm relationship between the two countries and the strong and dynamic partnership they continue to forge,” said the palace.
“The King and Queen will visit Nairobi City County, Mombasa County and surrounding areas,” said the palace.
Charles III will be making his first trip to a Commonwealth country since ascending to the throne in September of last year.
The statement went on to say that the program will showcase the various areas of cooperation between the two nations.
These objectives encompass endeavors such as enhancing economic well-being, addressing climate change, fostering youth empowerment and employment, promoting sustainable development, and contributing to the overall stability and security of the region, as stated in the communication.
The King is scheduled to engage with various stakeholders during his visit to Kenya, including government officials, United Nations personnel, religious leaders, young individuals, and Kenyan Marines involved in joint training with the UK Royal Marines. Additionally, he will participate in an event celebrating Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai.
Lingering tensions
In addition, Charles plans to address “the more painful aspects” of the relationship by examining the time frame surrounding the end of British colonial rule in 1963.
This will include examining the “Emergency” of 1952–1960, when the Kenyan Kikuyu tribe, known as the Mau Mau, launched a guerrilla campaign against European settlers, leading to the declaration of a state of emergency.
“His Majesty will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya,” said the palace.
It has 775 rooms, a cinema, pool, tennis court, secret doorways, 42 acres of gardens and a lake, so why has it fallen out of favour?
Each year, millions of tourists press their faces through the gates of Buckingham Palace just to marvel at its Portland stone facade and imagine the sumptuous interiors that lie beyond.
But, for all its majestic scale and appearance, admirably central location and extraordinary range of accommodation and facilities, none of those qualified seem keen to take up residence.
Elizabeth II and Prince Philip had no affection for the place, and King Charles and Queen Camilla do not, by all accounts, relish the prospect of relocating there from Clarence House once current refurbishment work is completed. The late Queen signed off the ambitious £369 million project in 2017.
Earlier this month, a spokesman for the King said it was “currently the intention” that their majesties would move in when workmen move out in 2027. It was a long way short of saying they could not wait to live in the world’s most famous palace, and will do little to dampen speculation that the couple might never occupy it.
By the time the reservicing work is completed, the King and Queen will both be pushing 80 – not the sort of age at which most people are considering a house move. The King has lived at Clarence House for 20 years and made it his own with the help of interior designer Robert Kime, whereas the Palace’s interiors are preserved in aspic.
The grand White Drawing Room Credit: Getty
The truth is that Buckingham Palace is the least homely of the 12 residences that the King uses each year, so it is little wonder that it inspires so little affection.
Even his mother, the epitome of duty, was reluctant to move in when she became sovereign in 1952. According to legend, it was only when her prime minister, Winston Churchill, put his foot down that she gave up hope of staying in Clarence House.
“You are basically living above the office,” said one former servant, “so it doesn’t lend itself to privacy and it’s not an easy place to relax.”
Monarchs only stay at Buckingham Palace when they are working, meaning that for them it is a physical representation of the responsibilities that weigh heavily upon them, rather like the Downing Street flat is to the Prime Minister. Conversely Balmoral, Sandringham and Windsor (and Highgrove in the King’s case) represent a chance to get away from those duties, even if red boxes and prime ministerial visits continue.
Nor does the Palace compensate its occupants by offering them the sort of luxury living that those millions of tourists might imagine.
“Ironically, you couldn’t describe the Royal living quarters at Buckingham Palace as palatial,” says one former servant. “When private citizens buy a big house, they use all of it as their living space, but at Buckingham Palace they are confined to a small corner of quite a draughty building.
“You are talking about a bedroom, bathroom, sitting room, reception area and not much more than that.
Buckingham Palace’s State Dining Room has hosted many special events over the decades Credit: PA
“It has to be said that the King has always operated on the basis that he is happy with a bedroom, study and sitting room, but even Clarence House has more private living space, as the first and second floors are just for the King and Queen.”
Generations of Royal family members have found Palace life challenging. Edward VIII complained about “the gloom of Buckingham Palace” and how the family would “freeze up” as soon as they went inside. When the then Princess Elizabeth moved in with her family in 1937, the Palace had a full-time pest controller to dispose of mice, and her governess likened staying at the Palace to “camping in a museum”.
The mice were still in residence when the Obamas stayed at the Palace in 2011 (Barack Obama was terrified his wife, Michelle, who is frightened of mice, would find out), and the couple found themselves accommodated for the first and only time in a presidential guest suite that did not have an en-suite bathroom. The Obamas had to cross a corridor to clean their teeth and wash.
Queen Elizabeth II, US President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, arrive for a state banquet at Buckingham Palace Credit: Getty
The private apartments are contained at the back of the north wing – the rear right-hand corner when looking at the front of the building – with a view looking out onto Constitution Hill.
The majority of the 775 rooms are accounted for by the 188 staff bedrooms, 52 guest rooms, 92 offices, 78 bathrooms, 19 state rooms and various other service rooms, including kitchens, storage rooms and staff canteens.
Clarence House is also rather easier to heat. Throughout her life, the late Queen used a two-bar electric fire to heat rooms at Buckingham Palace in which enormous fireplaces were never lit. The King is so appalled at the energy bills for Buckingham Palace that he has ordered staff to set the thermostats at no higher than 19C (66F) in the winter, and when rooms are not being used they are turned down to 16C, with radiators turned off completely at weekends. He has also stopped heating the swimming pool. It has cut the carbon footprint and kept costs down, but adds to the impression of a building that has been mothballed.
The King likes his homes to be well ventilated anyway, but the Queen feels the cold, and friends of the couple say it is no secret that Her Majesty is even less keen on a move to Buckingham Palace than her husband.
“The King is very mindful of appearances and having the monarch living at monarchy HQ,” said one royal source. “He doesn’t view these things as a choice; he just views it as what is done.”
The King knows that staging balcony appearances in a vacated building would not be the same Credit: PA
Would all those millions of tourists still flock to Buckingham Palace come rain or shine if it were unoccupied?
Visit Britain says it has never asked that question in any tourist surveys, but the King does not want to risk finding out the answer. He knows that family appearances on the balcony, in particular, are a hugely important driver of public affection for the monarchy, and that staging such moments in a vacated building would never be the same.
Sir Michael Stevens, keeper of the privy purse, said last month that the Palace will remain “at the heart of Royal and national life” once the current refurbishments are complete, which have included rewiring and the installation of lifts to make the building more accessible.
He was at pains to point out that even with building work going on, the Palace hosted garden parties, receptions, lunches, investitures and formal dinners.
It will take 18 months to clear 70,000 objects from the north wing, which houses the royal apartments, followed by two years of construction work on the wing.
At the presentation of the Royal Household’s annual accounts last month, a Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “It is currently the intention that Their Majesties will occupy the private apartments of Her Late Majesty at the end of the reservicing programme. At this point, I’m not in a position to speculate about the future use of Clarence House.”
Part of the equivocation could be down to a realisation that as the King and Queen approach their 80s, their health could be a factor in any decision to upend their lives with a move to the Palace.
If for any reason they did not move in, it could mean that the late Queen was the last monarch to reside in the building.
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the late Queen Mother, at the Palace in 1948 Credit: Corbis/Getty
What, then, would become of it? One thing that is already guaranteed is that the Palace’s 10-week summer opening to tourists will be extended in order to maximise revenue (all of which goes towards running costs), and more parts of the Palace could be opened up to the paying public.
There has already been speculation that the whole building could be turned into a museum, enabling the Royal Collection Trust to display more of its million-object collection.
The drawback with that idea is that it would clash with set-piece events such as garden parties, investitures and state banquets, which cannot realistically be carried out at any other royal building in the capital.
There is also little appetite from the London Assembly for another art gallery in a city that already has the National Gallery, the Tate, the National Portrait Gallery, the Royal Academy, the Hayward Gallery and the Wallace Collection, among others.
So it seems likely that the King will have to become a reluctant resident in a home built for Georgian tastes and finances, embraced by Queen Victoria, but imperfect for the means and mores of a 21st-century monarch.
Buckingham Palace has rejected a request to repatriate the remains of Prince Alemayehu, an Ethiopian prince who was laid to rest at Windsor Castle in the 19th century.
At the age of seven, Prince Alemayehu was brought to the UK as an orphan after his mother passed away during the journey.
Queen Victoria took a personal interest in him and arranged for his education, eventually organizing his burial at Windsor Castle when he tragically passed away at the age of 18.
However, his family has now expressed a desire for his remains to be returned to Ethiopia.
“We want his remains back as a family and as Ethiopians because that is not the country he was born in,” one of the royal descendants Fasil Minas told the BBC.
“It was not right” for him to be buried in the UK, he added.
But in a statement sent to the BBC, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said removing his remains could affect others buried in the catacombs of St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle.
“It is very unlikely that it would be possible to exhume the remains without disturbing the resting place of a substantial number of others in the vicinity,” the palace said.
The statement added that the authorities at the chapel were sensitive to the need to honour Prince Alemayehu’s memory, but that they also had “the responsibility to preserve the dignity of the departed”.
It also said that in the past the Royal Household had “accommodated requests from Ethiopian delegations to visit” the chapel.
Image caption,Prince Alemayehu lived in exile for a decade
The circumstances leading to Prince Alemayehu’s arrival in the UK at such a young age were a result of imperial actions and diplomatic failures.
In 1862, Emperor Tewodros II, the prince’s father, sought to forge an alliance with the UK in an effort to strengthen his empire. However, his letters requesting an audience with Queen Victoria went unanswered, leaving him frustrated and disillusioned.
Driven by anger and impatience, the emperor took matters into his own hands by holding several Europeans, including the British consul, as hostages.
This bold move triggered a massive military expedition, comprising approximately 13,000 British and Indian troops, with the objective of rescuing the captives. Remarkably, an official from the British Museum was also part of this force.
In April 1868, the expedition laid siege to Emperor Tewodros’ mountain fortress at Maqdala, located in northern Ethiopia. Overwhelming the defenses within a matter of hours, the British forces successfully overpowered the stronghold.
The emperor decided he would rather take his own life than be a prisoner of the British, an action that turned him into a heroic figure among his people.
Image caption,A 19th Century engraver imagined the scene when the soldiers discovered Emperor Tewodros II’s body
After the battle, the British plundered thousands of cultural and religious artefacts. These included gold crowns, manuscripts, necklaces and dresses.
Historians say dozens of elephants and hundreds of mules were needed to cart away the treasures, which are today scattered across European museums and libraries, as well as in private collections.
The British also took away Prince Alemayehu and his mother, Empress Tiruwork Wube.
The British may have thought this was to keep them safe and prevent them being captured and possibly killed by Tewodros’ enemies, who were near Maqdala, according to Andrew Heavens, whose book The Prince and the Plunder recounts Alemayehu’s life.
Following his arrival in Britain in June 1868, the prince’s predicament and his status as an orphan elicited the sympathy of Queen Victoria. The two met at the queen’s holiday home on the Isle of Wight, just off England’s south coast.
She agreed to support him financially and put him in the guardianship of Captain Tristram Charles Sawyer Speedy, the man who had accompanied the prince from Ethiopia.
Image caption,Captain Speedy became Prince Alemayehu’s guardian
They first lived together on the Isle of Wight and then Captain Speedy took him to other parts of the world, including India.
But it was decided that the prince should have a formal education.
He was sent to the British public school Rugby but he was not happy there. He later moved to the Royal Military College in Sandhurst where he was subjected to bullying.
The prince had a “hankering” to return home, correspondence quoted by Heavens says, but that idea was swiftly quashed.
“I feel for him as if I knew him. He was dislocated from Ethiopia, from Africa, from the land of black people and remained there as if he had no home,” Ethiopian royal descendent Abebech Kasa told the BBC.
Eventually, Alemayehu ended up being tutored in a private home in Leeds. But he became ill, possibly with pneumonia, and at one point refused treatment thinking he had been poisoned.
After a decade in exile the prince died in 1879 at the age of just 18.
His illness had become the subject of articles in the national press and Queen Victoria wrote in her diary of her sadness at his death.
“Very grieved and shocked to hear by telegram, that good Alemayehu had passed away this morning. It is too sad! All alone, in a strange country, without a single person or relative, belonging to him,” she said.
“His was no happy life, full of difficulties of every kind, and was so sensitive, thinking that people stared at him on account of his colour… Everyone is very sorry.”
She then arranged for his burial at Windsor Castle.
Image caption,There are several photographs of Prince Alemayehu including this where he is wearing a hat with the name of the ship, HMS Urgent
Demands that the body should return are not new.
In 2007 the country’s then-President Girma Wolde-Giorgis sent a formal request to Queen Elizabeth II for the body to be sent back, but those efforts proved fruitless.
“We want him back. We don’t want him to remain in a foreign country,” Ms Abebech said.
“He had a sad life. When I think of him I cry. If they agree to return his remains I would think of it as if he came home alive.”
She had hoped that she would get a positive response from newly crowned King Charles III.
“Restitution is used as a way to bring reconciliation, to recognise what was wrong in the past,” says Professor Alula Pankhurst, a specialist in British-Ethiopian relations.
He believes the return of the body would be “a way for Britain to rethink its past. It’s a reflection and coming to terms with an imperial past.”
Ghana has shown its respect and admiration for Britain‘s new monarch, King Charles III, by presenting him with a special gift from one of its talented artists.
Anthony Jefferson Hanson, also known as Ashenso, has created a stunning portrait of the King in his royal robes, framed in gold.
The painting was handed over to Ghana’s President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who attended the coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey on Saturday, May 6, 2023, along with the Asante King, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and his wife Lady Julia.
The painting will be delivered to Buckingham Palace through the Ghana High Commission as a gift from Ghana to the King.
Ashenso, whose work has been recognised both in Ghana and abroad, has also painted many Ghanaian heads of state and other prominent figures.
He wrote in an instagram post:
“Always an honor… Presentation of The King Charles III painting to the President, my President His Excellency @nakufoaddo the President of Ghana. The painting will be delivered to the Buckingham Palace through the Ghana High commission as a gift from Ghana to the King of The United Kingdom His Royal Highness King Charles III.”
King Charles III was crowned on Saturday in a magnificent and deeply religious ceremony that was attended by dignitaries from around the world. He succeeded his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September 2022 at the age of 96. She was the longest-reigning monarch in British history. His wife, Camilla, was also crowned as Queen Camilla during the same ceremony.
A military flypast over Buckingham Palace that had been highly anticipated has been curtailed.
The Red Arrows aerobatic display team and a variety of helicopters will now make up the formation due to poor weather, according to the Ministry of Defence.
After a ceremony at Westminster Abbey, the King and Queen were to be crowned, and a fly-past was organised to commemorate the occasion.
The royal couple was anticipated to view the flypast from the Buckingham Palace balcony.
The display over The Mall and Buckingham Palace was originally meant to last for six minutes, but the scaled-down version will last for less than half of that time.
Now, the MoD say it would last for two minutes and 30 seconds.
There had been fears all week that the display could be cancelled completely due to poor weather.
RAF Red Arrows take off from RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire(Picture: Cpl Phil Dye/MOD/SWNS)Crowds wearing rain ponchos in the grandstand opposite Buckingham Palace(Picture: PA)Soggy scenes in Windsor for the coronation(Picture: Maureen McLean/Shutterstock)
Royal fans got soggy throughout the day as they awaited a glimpse of the Coronation procession.
Coronation of King Charles III latest
Those who camped were left drenched in a series of showers.
The Queen’s own Coronation, 70 years ago on 2 June 1953, was hit by cool temperatures and torrential rain, with crowds huddled under umbrellas and raincoats, in scenes much like today.
And her Golden Jubilee was also hit with heavy rain, with the flotilla almost a washout – though as one would expect, the Queen carried on regardless.
According to police, a man has been detained outside Buckingham Palace after he allegedly threw suspected shotgun cartridges onto the palace grounds.
Following the incident, which happened Tuesday at around 19:00 BST, a cordon was set up and a controlled explosion was conducted.
The man was detained on suspicion of having a dangerous weapon. There have been no injuries reported.
The incident is not currently being considered to be connected to terrorism.
Rehearsals for the Saturday Coronation took place as scheduled during the night.
Police say the man was searched and a knife was found but that he was not carrying a gun. They say he was also found to be in possession of a suspicious bag and that a controlled explosion was carried out as a precaution following an assessment by specialists.
It is understood it is being treated as an isolated mental health incident.
The arrest comes just four days before the King’s Coronation celebrations – which will be attended by world leaders and other royals from around the world.
Security minister Tom Tugendhat described the response as “a fantastic piece of policing”, adding that “a huge security operation” is in place ahead of the Coronation.
“As you saw last night, the police and security services are absolutely ready to intervene when necessary,” he told BBC Breakfast.
The King and the Queen Consort – who live at nearby Clarence House – were not at Buckingham Palace at the time of the arrest, although the King did host Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the palace earlier on Tuesday.
Chief Supt Joseph McDonald said: “Officers worked immediately to detain the man and he has been taken into police custody.
“There have been no reports of any shots fired, or any injuries to officers or members of the public.
“Officers remain at the scene and further enquiries are ongoing.”
The BBC’s royal producer Sarah Parrish was in the broadcast compound outside Buckingham Palace when she was told to leave and wait outside.
She told the BBC News Channel that those who were evacuated had “heard the controlled explosion and then we were allowed back in again.”
The suspected shotgun cartridges have been recovered and will be examined by specialists. Roads in the area have now reopened and the cordons have been lifted.
Buckingham Palace has declined to comment.
Image caption,The King and Queen Consort will return from the Coronation in the Gold State Coach which was ridden alongside the military during a full overnight rehearsal of the Coronation ceremony
Rehearsals for the Coronation saw soldiers dressed in bright yellow and red uniforms file past the palace and along the Mall in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The parade also featured soldiers on horseback and the Diamond Jubilee State Coach, which will carry the King and Queen Consort from the palace to Westminster Abbey.
Extra security is expected in the capital for the Coronation, which policing minister Chris Philp has described as a “huge policing operation”.
Asked about the prospect of protesters disrupting the weekend’s events, Maj Gen Chris Ghika, a senior British Army officer overseeing the ceremony, said the Metropolitan Police has “an excellent security plan in place, which will allow the parade to go ahead”.
Chris Phillips, former head of the UK National Counter Terrorism Security Office, told the BBC that police have been planning for the Coronation for years, and that an “enormous amount of planning” has gone into the security operation.
“The police should be celebrated for it, and fingers crossed it all goes well on Saturday,” he said.
On Saturday, May 6, 2023, the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu IIand his wife, Lady Julia will witness the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty The Queen Consort in London.
Otumfuo and Lady Julia will join monarchs and global leaders from across the globe who will assemble at Westminster Abbey for what is expected to be a feast of pageantry marking the first coronation in over 70 years.
A statement issued by the Manhyia Palace on April 28 said, “His Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene, has been invited to attend the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty The Queen Consort in London on Saturday, May 6, 2023. He will be accompanied by Lady Julia. Otumfuo Asantehene and Lady Julia will join monarchs and global leaders from across the globe who will assemble at Westminster Abbey for what is expected to be a feast of pageantry marking the first coronation in over 70 years”.
The Manhyia Palace in its statement noted that Otumfuo Asantehene and Lady Julia will be received by King Charles in a private audience at Buckingham Palace on May 4, 2023, before the Coronation.
“Before the Coronation, Otumfuo Asantehene and Lady Julia will be received by King Charles in a private audience at Buckingham Palace on May 4, 2023. They will also attend the King’s official reception for overseas guests on May 5, 2023,” Manhyia Palace underscored.
Charles III instantly became King after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at her rural Balmoral home on September 8, 2022.
Read below the details of the statement by Manhyia Palace
Along with the couple’s two kids, the Duchess of Sussex will stay in the United States.
Their son Archie’s fourth birthday and the coronation both fall on the same day.
According to a statement fromBuckingham Palace,Prince Harry will attend the coronation of the King while Meghan will stay in California with their kids.
In a statement, it said: “Buckingham Palace is pleased to confirm that The Duke of Sussex will attend the Coronation Service at Westminster Abbey on 6th May.
“The Duchess of Sussex will remain in California with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.”
Harry, who revealed his troubled relationship with the royal family in his controversial Netflix documentary and autobiography Spare, will be there to witness Charles and his stepmother the Queen Consort be crowned in Westminster Abbey on 6 May.
The news ends months of speculation about whether the couple would show up to the King’s big day, but will undoubtedly see Meghan accused of snubbing the monarch and the royal family.
Image:The King and Queen Consort Pic: Hugo Burnand
The date of the coronation is also Archie’s fourth birthday.
In Harry’s controversial ghost-written memoir, he admitted to regular drug-taking and laid bare his frustrations with his family.
He claimed his brother William, now the Prince of Wales, had knocked him to the floor after calling the Duchess of Sussex “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive”.
The duke claimed his father, now the King, put his own interests above Harry’s and was jealous of Meghan and Kate, and that the Queen Consort sacrificed him on “her personal PR altar”.
Archewell, Harry and Meghan’s charitable foundation, issued a near identical statement to Buckingham Palace confirming the duke will join guests at the coronation.
A spokesperson said: “The Duke of Sussex will attend the coronation service at Westminster Abbey on May 6th. The Duchess of Sussex will remain in California with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.”
Award-winning Afrobeats singer, Tiwa Savage has paid a visit to Buckingham palace to commemorate International Women’s Day 2023.
She was among the VIP guests invited for the International Women’s Day reception held at the Buckingham Palace, England.
The mother of one posted a picture of herself and HRH Camilla, Queen Consort, taken in the palace and captioned it, “Proverbs 18:16-17. “A man’s gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men. International Women’s Day Reception at Buckingham Palace with HRH The Queen Consort.”
Only a few weeks ago, Jamie Foxx, an American actor, was seen hanging out with Tiwa Savage.
In a viral video, Tiwa Savage, was seen getting intimate with Jamie Foxx.
The two had joined Leonardo DiCaprio and Edward Norton at the American Vogue party in London (editor of vogue).
Jamie Foxx and Tiwa Savage were spotted dancing together as they had a wild night.
Buckingham Palace has revealed that the contentious Koh-i-Noor diamond won’t be displayed during the coronation.
Instead, Queen Mary’s Crown, which has been removed from the Tower of London and resized for the May 6 coronation, will be used to crown Camilla, the Queen Consort.
An existing crown will allegedly be “recycled” for a coronation for the first time in “recent history.”
There will also be diamonds added from Queen Elizabeth II’s jewellery.
After testing positive for COVID this week, Camilla, who will be crowned alongside the King at Westminster Abbey, was forced to postpone her public appearances.
Image caption,The Koh-i-Noor diamond, used in the Queen Mother’s crown, won’t be used for Camilla’s coronation
Ownership of the Koh-i-Noor, one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, has been disputed, and there were concerns about a diplomatic row with India if it had been used.
India has made several claims to be the rightful owner of the diamond, which was used in the coronation of the Queen Mother.
Instead, Buckingham Palace says Camilla will be crowned with Queen Mary’s crown – and claims its re-use is in the “interests of sustainability and efficiency”.
In a tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II, the crown will be reset using diamonds from her personal jewellery collection, using diamonds known as Cullinan III, IV and V.
These diamonds were worn by the late Queen in brooches and were taken from the Cullinan diamond, discovered in South Africa.
What we know about the Coronation long weekend so far:
Saturday 6 May: Coronation service in Westminster Abbey; coronation carriage procession; Buckingham Palace balcony appearance
Sunday 7 May: Concert and lightshow at Windsor Castle; Coronation Big Lunch street parties
Monday 8 May: Extra bank holiday; Big Help Out encouraging people to get involved in local volunteering
Although it is far from being the largest or most flawless diamond in the world, the Koh-i-Noor’s storied history has marked it out as perhaps the most controversial.
Competing theories and myths about the origins of the stone stretch over many years but historians agree it was taken from India by Nader Shah, an Iranian ruler, in 1739.
Through plunder and conquest it changed hands several times before being signed over to a British governor-general in 1849 following the annexation of the Punjab.
The circumstances in which it was signed over to the East India Company, which had conquered vast swathes of the Indian subcontinent, by a defeated boy king, are disputed.
It was reputedly a “gift” but Anita Anand, a BBC journalist who has co-authored a book on the Koh-i-Noor, said: “I don’t know of many ‘gifts’ that are handed over at the point of a bayonet”.
The official King Charles III coronation logo has been unveiled by Buckingham Palace for use in street celebrations, social media, and souvenirs.
Sir Jony Ive, a well-known designer of cutting-edge Apple products like the iPhone, created it.
In this more conventional picture, flowers are arranged to resemble the St. Edward’s crown that was worn during the coronation.
According to Sir Jony, the floral pattern highlights the “optimism of spring” and embodies the King’s love of the natural world.
Image caption,King Charles and logo designer Sir Jony Ive
“The design was inspired by King Charles’s love of the planet, nature, and his deep concern for the natural world,” said the former Apple design guru, who is more usually associated with sleek tech designs of equipment such as iMacs and iPods.
The logo, to be used for events over the coronation long weekend in May, features a rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock – emblems from across the United Kingdom.
It’s in contrast to the very stark design of the new King Charles stamps revealed this week, which has no crown or decoration.
The logo, also available in a Welsh-language version, is the latest detail to be revealed from the planned celebrations to mark the coronation, which will be held at Westminster Abbey on 6 May.
The day will include a carriage procession and traditional appearances on the Buckingham Palace balcony, although it is still not known who will be attending – with no confirmation yet whether the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will be there.
On Sunday 7 May there will be a music concert and light show at Windsor Castle, and this week a public ballot opened for the 10,000 free tickets on offer for the event.
There will be an extra bank holiday on Monday 8 May, with events highlighting the work of volunteers.
Prince Harry has called on his family to apologize to Meghan.
This week’s release of Spare has made history for the UK’s fastest-selling non-fiction book.
Among the claims made in the book, Prince Harry said his brother described Meghan as “difficult”, “rude” and “abrasive”. Prince Harry also accused his brother of physically attacking him.
“But the way I see it is, I’m willing to forgive you for everything you’ve done, and I wish you’d actually sat down with me, properly, and instead of saying I’m delusional and paranoid, actually sit down and have a proper conversation about this, because what I’d really like is some accountability, and an apology to my wife.”
Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace have both said they will not comment on its contents.
In an interview with the Telegraph’s Bryony Gordon – who travelled to California to speak to him – the Duke of Sussex said he was not “trying to collapse the monarchy”, but “trying to save them from themselves”.
Prince Harry said he left out some details because he knew his father and brother would never forgive him. He claims he had enough material for “two books.” “I just don’t want the world to know” about some things, he told the Daily Telegraph.
He added that said there was information he revealed to his ghostwriter JP Moehringer “for context” but there was “absolutely no way” it could be included in the book.
“It could have been two books, put it that way,” he said, adding that the first draft was 800 pages, double the final 400-page manuscript.
“And there were other bits that I shared with JR, that I said: ‘Look, I’m telling you this for context but there’s absolutely no way I’m putting it in there.’”
He said it was impossible to tell his story without his family members in it, “because they play such a crucial part in it, and also because you need to understand the characters and personalities of everyone within the book”.
“But there are some things that have happened, especially between me and my brother, and to some extent between me and my father, that I just don’t want the world to know. Because I don’t think they would ever forgive me,” he said.
“Now you could argue that some of the stuff I’ve put in there, well, they will never forgive me anyway.
He told the Telegraph that “no institution is immune to criticism and scrutiny”, claiming that if only 10% of the scrutiny put on him and his wife had been applied to the Royal Family “we wouldn’t be in this mess right now”.
He also spoke about therapy, describing it being “like clearing the windscreen, clearing away all the Instagram filters, all of life’s filters”.
And he said he feels a responsibility towards William’s children, “knowing that out of those three children,at least one will end up like me, the spare. And that hurts, that worries me”.
In an interview conducted ahead of the publication of his book Spare, Prince Harry stated, “I would like to get my father back; I would like to have my brother back.”
It’s unclear to whom he is referring when he says “they’ve shown absolutely no willingness to reconcile.”
He made the remarks during an interview with ITV’s Tom Bradby, as well as an interview with CBS in the United States.
Buckingham Palace has declined to comment.
Both interviews will be broadcast on January 8, two days before the autobiography is published.
Speaking to CBS News 60 Minutes journalist Anderson Cooper in a chat the broadcaster described as “explosive,” Prince Harry claims he was “betrayed” with “briefings and leakings and the planting of stories against me and my wife.”
He said: “The family motto is ‘never complain, never explain’, but it’s just a motto.
“They will feed or have a conversation with a correspondent, and that correspondent will literally be spoon-fed information and write the story, and at the bottom of it, they will say they have reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment.
“But the whole story is Buckingham Palace commenting.
“So when we’re being told for the last six years, “We can’t put a statement out to protect you,” but you do it for other members of the family, there becomes a point when silence is betrayal.”
ITV said its interview will cover Prince Harry’s personal relationships and “never-before-heard details” surrounding the death of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales.
Filmed in California where the Sussexes live, the ITV interview will also see Harry refer to “the leaking and the planting” of stories, before adding: “I want a family, not an institution”.
“They feel as though it is better to keep us somehow as the villains,” he adds.
Harry: The Interview, an exclusive in-depth discussion with Tom Bradby.
Prince Harry’s autobiography Spare, which is anticipated to give details about disagreements with his brother the Prince William, will be released on January 10.
Publisher Penguin Random House calls it “a landmark publication full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief”.
The autobiography follows the release of Netflix documentary Harry and Meghan, in which Prince Harry said it was “terrifying” to have his brother “scream and shout” at him during a summit to discuss the couple’s future in the Royal Family. Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the claims made in the programme.
The Sussexes also talked about why they decided to give up royal duties and move to the US, criticising the British press and the inner workings of the royal institution.
At the Queen Consort’s reception, a famous black advocate for victims of domestic abuse described how she was constantly questioned by a member of the Buckingham Palace household about her “true origins.”
Ngozi Fulani, the CEO of Sistah Space, called the conversation a “violation” and said she will “never forget” her experience at Camilla’s significant speech on violence against women on Tuesday.
When Ms. Fulani replied her organization was situated in Hackney, a family member reportedly disputed her, asking: “No, what region of Africa are YOU from?”
She described the complete alleged chat on Twitter, which she claimed occurred 10 minutes after her arrival and included the following question: “Where are you from?
“Me: ‘Here, UK’. ‘No, but what nationality are you?’ Me: ‘I am born here and am British.’ ‘No, but where do you really come from, where do your people come from?’ Me: ”My people’, lady, what is this?’
“Oh, I can see I am going to have a challenge getting you to say where you’re from.”
Ms Fulani, who founded Sistah Space in 2015 to provide specialist support for African and Caribbean heritage women affected by abuse, wrote: “Mixed feelings about yesterday’s visit to Buckingham Palace.
“10 mins after arriving, a member of staff … approached me, moved my hair to see my name badge. The conversation below took place. The rest of the event is a blur.”
She thanked Mandu Reid, leader of the Women’s Equality Party, and Safe Lives chief executive Suzanne Jacob for their support on the day.
Ms. Reid, who in British history became the first person of color to head a major political party, tweeted that she had also heard the conversation.
I have so much to say about this. Ultimately, this is violence. @Sistah_Space I’m so sorry this happened to you. I’m also sadly, unsurprised. To accept wilful erasure & be “dignified” in the face of continued violence is how we are expected to be.
“I was right there. I witnessed this first hand,” she said.
“We were at an event that was supposed to celebrate our work.
“For people like … people like us will never really belong here.”
Responding to messages of support, Ms Fulani wrote: “Standing there in a room packed with people while this violation was taking place was so strange, especially as the event was about violence against women.
“That feeling of not knowing what to do, will NEVER leave me. Almost alone in a room full of advocates.”
She said it was a “struggle to stay in a space where you were violated”.
She expressed her disappointment at being unable to report the incident and said she felt unable to tell Camilla about it.
“There was nobody to report it to. I could’nt (sic) report it to the Queen Consort, plus it was such a shock to me and the other 2 women, that we were stunned to temporary silence,” she wrote.
“I just stood at the edge of the room, smiled & engaged briefly with who spoke to me until I could leave.”
Ms Jacob tweeted it was “a horrible thing to happen, and in a space that should have been nothing but love and celebration” and said she would be raising it with the team who organised for them to be there.
As of right now, Buckingham Palace has refrained from commenting.
Serious issues are raised for the Palace in light of the alleged incident, which comes after the Duchess of Sussex accused an unnamed royal of racism against her unborn son Archie last year.
Meghan, the first mixed-race woman to marry a senior royal in decades, said during an Oprah interview that Harry was warned by a royal, neither the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh, about how dark Archie’s skin tone might be before his birth.
Here is the complete conversation between Ms. Fulani and Lady Susan Hussey, who has resigned as an honorary Lady of the Household, at Buckingham Palace, as described by Ngozi Fulani, CEO of Sistah Space:
Lady SH: “Where are you from?”
Ms Fulani: “Sistah Space.”
SH: “No where do you come from?
Ms Fulani: “We’re based in Hackney.”
SH: “No, what part of Africa are YOU from?”
Ms Fulani: “I don’t know, they didn’t leave any records.”
SH: “Well, you must know where you’re from, I spent time in France. Where are you from?”
Ms Fulani: “Here, UK”
SH: “No, but what Nationality are you?”
Ms Fulani: “I am born here and am British.”
SH: “No, but where do you really come from, where do your people come from?”
Ms Fulani: “‘My people’, lady, what is this?”
SH: “Oh I can see I am going to have a challenge getting you to say where you’re from. When did you first come here?”
Ms Fulani: “Lady! I am a British national, my parents came here in the 50’s when…”
SH: “Oh, I knew we’d get there in the end, you’re Caribbean!”
Ms Fulani: “No lady, I am of African heritage, Caribbean descent and British nationality.”
The member of royal staff has expressed her “profound apologies for the hurt caused” and has “stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect”, a spokesperson said.
A member of the Buckingham Palace household has resigned after “unacceptable” comments were made at a reception held by the Queen Consort.
Ngozi Fulani, chief executive of Sistah Space, said she was asked by the household member where she “really came from” during an event at the palace on Tuesday.
Ms Fulani, who is black, works as an advocate for survivors of domestic abuse and described the exchange as a “violation”.
She wrote on Twitter that the woman “approached me, moved my hair to see my name badge” and then insisted on asking her “what part of Africa are you from”.
Despite her saying she is British, the member of staff said: “I can see I am going to have a challenge getting you to say where you’re from.”
It comes after Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, claimed last year that a member of the royal household raised concerns about what colour skin her son Archie would have before he was born.
The palace responded by saying that “issues raised, particularly that of race” were “concerning” and the matters would be addressed privately.
Buckingham Palace said of Tuesday’s events: “We take this incident extremely seriously and have investigated immediately to establish the full details.
“In this instance, unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made. We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes.
“In the meantime, the individual concerned would like to express her profound apologies for the hurt caused and has stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect.
“All members of the household are being reminded of the diversity and inclusivity policies which they are required to uphold at all times.”
‘Treated almost like tresspassers’
Ms Fulani said the incident left her with “mixed feelings” about visiting the palace and the experience will “never leave” her.
Responding to messages of support, she added that being unable to report the issue or tell the Queen Consort added to her distress.
“There was nobody to report it to. I could’nt (sic) report it to the Queen Consort, plus it was such a shock to me and the other 2 women, that we were stunned to temporary silence,” she wrote.
“I just stood at the edge of the room, smiled & engaged briefly with who spoke to me until I could leave.”
Mandu Reid, leader of the Women’s Equality Party, who was next to Ms Fulani and witnessed the exchange, claimed they were treated almost like “trespassers”.
She said: “We really felt ‘oh, okay, we’re being treated almost like trespassers in this place’. We’re not being treated as if we belong, we’re not being embraced as if we are British.”
Ms Reid described the exchange as “grim” and like an “interrogation”, adding: “She was really persistent. She didn’t take Ngozi’s answers at face value.”
Based in Hackney, east London, Ms Fulani’s organisation Sistah Space is a support organisation for women of African and Caribbean heritage affected by abuse.
They said in a statement: “We at Sistah Space would like to raise awareness about this issue rather than shame another individual.”
Domestic abuse is one of the key causes championed by the Queen Consort since she entered into the Royal Family.
Released on Monday, his 74th birthday, the photograph marks Charles’ appointment as Ranger.
The photo shows the monarch leaning against an ancient oak tree in Windsor Great Park, with the winter sun gleaming in the background.
The photo shows the monarch leaning against an ancient oak tree in Windsor Great Park, with the winter sun gleaming in the background.
Britain’s King Charles III speaks in the Throne Room at St James’s Palace during the Accession Council in London in September 2022. He was formally proclaimed as King. Joining him were his son Prince William and his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort. Credit: Jonathan Brady/Pool/AP
The post of Ranger was previously held by his father, Prince Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh, for 70 years. Duties include offering guidance to the Deputy Ranger on the stewardship of one of the country’s oldest estates, Buckingham Palace said in a statement.
Festivities for the King’s birthday began Monday with a rendition of “Happy Birthday” by the band of the Household Cavalry at Buckingham Palace, where Charles was born in 1948. This performance was followed at midday by a 41-gun royal salute from the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery in Green Park.
Charles came to the throne on September 8, with the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at age 96.
Last month, the UK Royal Mint unveiled King Charles III’s coin portrait.
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed confidence that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC and its presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu will win the forthcoming 2023 general elections.
Buhari stated this on Wednesday in an interview in the United Kingdom after meeting with His Royal Majesty, King Charles III in Buckingham Palace.
According the President, APC is lucky to have Tinubu as its presidential candidate ahead of the 2023 general elections.
When asked the chances of the APC in the 2023 elections, Buhari said, “What are the chances of my party not winning the election? We are going to win the election.
“Tinubu, the presidential candidate, a very well-known politician in the country, he was a two-term governor in Lagos State, the most resourceful state and the most visited state. So, I think the party was lucky to get him to be the candidate,” he added.
Recall Tinubu contested presidential primary in June alongside Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Senate President Ahmad Lawan and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.
More than 2,300 delegates voted in the contest that produced Tinubu, who polled a total of 1,271 votes – over four times the votes scored by his closet rival, Amaechi who had 316 votes.
Osinbajo, Lawan, and Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State came behind the duo with 235, 152, and 47 votes respectively.
Tinubu will be contesting the presidency in 2023 alongside frontline contenders including Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Rabiu Kwankwaso of the News Nigeria People’s Party, NNPP and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP).
The Nigerian leader said the meeting was initially scheduled to take place in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in June but it was postponed.
President Buhari has been in London since last week for what his office called a “routine medical check-up”. He is expected back in Nigeria next week.
King Charles will later this month host the first state visit of his reign when he welcomes the South African president to Buckingham Palace.
The visit will take place from 22-24 November.
It will be the first time a South African leader has visited the UK in an official capacity in more than a decade, with the last state visit being in 2010 when Jacob Zuma visited the late Queen.
Buckingham Palace has unveiled the new cypher of the Queen Consort, Camilla.
Designed by Prof Ewan Clayton, it combines Camilla’s initial “C” and “R” for Regina – the Latin word for queen.
It will be used by Camillaon personal letterheads, cards and gifts.
Buckingham Palace added that the new symbol will be used on the Queen Consort’s cross which she will lay at the Field of Remembrance on Thursday at Westminster Abbey.
In September, the palace revealed the new cypher to be used by King Charles III which was personally chosen by him, from a range of designs produced by the College of Arms.
King Charles’s cypher will be used by government departments and on state documents and post boxes.
News of the Queen Consort’s cypher comes after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed an extra bank holiday will take place across the UK to mark the coronation of King Charles III on 8 May, 2023.
King Charles will be be crowned two days earlier and the Queen Consort will also be crowned on the same date in a similar but simpler ceremony.
IMAGE SOURCE,BUCKINGHAM PALACE
Image caption, The cypher was designed by Prof Ewan Clayton
But, there won’t be a sudden change on post boxes.
Almost 70,000 of the current post boxes, about 60% of the total, date from the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. But there are still boxes in use from the reign of Queen Victoria, Edward VII, George V and VI, and the original cyphers remain until boxes need to be replaced.
The government has set a date for Rishi Sunak to visit Buckingham Palace and meet King Charles on Tuesday.
Sunakwill meet the monarch after Liz Truss has chaired a final meeting of her cabinet at 9am, after which she will make a speech outside Downing Street. She will then go to Buckingham Palace for an audience with the King.
Afterwards, Sunak will go and meet the King, where he will be asked to form a government.
The new prime ministerwill then give a speech outside Number 10 at about 11.35am.
The Queen Consort is shown holding toy bears left outside Buckingham Palace by members of the public after the Queen’s death.
A new image shows the Queen Consort surrounded by teddies to commemorate the contribution of over 1,000 toy bears to Barnardo’s children’s charity.
Mourners paying their respects to the Queen after her death last month left the cuddly toys outside Buckingham Palace, including many Paddington Bears.
The Palace said the teddies had been collected and professionally cleaned before they are delivered to Barnardo’s children’s services in the coming weeks.
In the picture, Camilla sits on a low sofa in the Morning Room at Clarence House wearing a navy blue dress with white stitching, surrounded by toy bears.
It was taken on Thursday – the 64th anniversary of the publication of the first Paddington Bear book.
In a much-loved TV sketch during the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June, Elizabeth II had tea at Buckingham Palace with the popular children’s character where she dug out a marmalade sandwich from her famous handbag.
It prompted members of the public to leave teddy bears, and quite a few marmalade sandwiches, among the floral tributes which amassed outside royal residences following her death in September.
The Queen passed the patronage of Barnardo to Camilla in 2016, who was then the Duchess of Cornwall.
Barnardo’s chief executive Lynn Perry said: “Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was Barnardo’s patron for over 30 years, and we are honoured to be able to give homes to the teddies that people left in her memory.
“We promise to look after these bears who will be well-loved and bring joy to the children we support.
“We are incredibly grateful to Her Majesty The Queen Consortfor her support in helping us to raise awareness of the needs of vulnerable children and young people in the UK so that we can continue to support them through our vital services.”
Image:A Paddington Bear toy and marmalade sandwich among floral tributes outside the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh
Tom Jarvis, director of parks at the Royal Parks charity, said: “Over the last few weeks, we have been looking for a fitting and appropriate use for the hundreds of teddy bears that were left in Green Park and Hyde Park to honour the Queen.
“We are delighted that the teddy bears will now bring joy and comfort to hundreds of children supported by Barnardo’s.”
The bears were being “well looked after” at the Palace, Clarence House, and in the Royal Parks nursery in Hyde Park,Buckingham Palace said.
With the help of shire horses and almost 200 volunteers, the charity began gathering tributes from Green Park and Hyde Park late last month after the national period of mourning – with the toys collected then also set to be cleaned and donated to Barnardo’s.
A recent report claims that King Charles III’s coronation has been scheduled.
The date of Charles’ coronation will be June 3 at Westminster Abbey in London, according to Bloomberg, which cited U.K. sources.
However, a spokesperson for Buckingham Palace told the Evening Standard that any reports on the coronation date are “pure speculation.”
Sources told the London newspaper that a date for the coronation had not been decided and added that any reporting of the date should be taken “with a massive pinch of salt.”
According to Bloomberg, anonymous government officials said that plans for the coronation have centered on June 3, though discussions are ongoing as to which other dates could be proclaimed official holidays.
As the king’s coronation is a state event, the date on which it takes place will be observed as a bank holiday. Since June 3 of next year falls on a Saturday, Friday, June 2 could potentially be proclaimed a bank holiday.
If the coronation is officially set for June 3, King Charles III’s ceremony will take place almost 70 years to the day after his mother Queen Elizabeth II was crowned on June 2, 1953.
Coronations usually take place a year after the death of a monarch in order to allow for a period of mourning as well as to provide enough time for the planning that such a massive public event entails.
The late monarch was 25 at the time of her coronation while Charles was just four-years-old.
After the queen’s death on Sept. 8, Charles immediately ascended to the throne. He was officially proclaimed king by the Accession Council of the United Kingdom on Sept. 10.
Charles’ wife Camilla will be crowned Queen Consort at his coronation. Photo by Andrew Milligan – Pool/Getty Images
While Elizabeth’s coronation was attended by 8,000 guests, attendees of Charles’ ceremony will be limited to 2,000, due to safety and health concerns.
The monarch has also reportedly expressed a wish that the coronation is more inclusive of other faiths and communities to better reflect the nation’s diversity.
Due to the queen’s advanced age, preparations for the event have been underway for years, under the code name “Operation Golden Orb.”
Next month, King Charles III will host South African President Cyril Ramaphosa for three days of high-level negotiations in the United Kingdom. This will be the first official visit since the king succeeded his late mother Queen Elizabeth II last month.
In a statement on Monday, Buckingham Palace announced that Ramaphosa has accepted Charles’s invitation for a state visit from November 22 to 24.
The South African leader will be accompanied by First Lady Tshepo Motsepe.
South Africa is a member of the Commonwealth, a political association of 56 countries, mostly former British colonies.
Ramaphosa’s predecessors Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, and Jacob Zuma, the other presidents the country has had since its first multi-ethnic elections in April 1994, have also previously made state visits to the UK.
While still the prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, Charles, and Camilla, the queen consort, welcomed former South African President Jacob Zuma to the UK at the start of a state visit in 2010.
The new monarch has visited South Africa on several occasions since 1997. At Mandela’s funeral in 2013, he said the world would be a “poorer place” without the man who led South Africa’s transition from apartheid to multi-ethnic democracy, adding that Mandela was owed “an enormous debt of gratitude” for his achievements.
The visit comes as Ramaphosa faces a huge scandal back at home. Arthur Fraser, the former head of the country’s spy agency has accused the president of kidnapping, bribery, money laundering, and “concealing a crime” in relation to the alleged theft of $4m in cash found at his Phala Phala game ranch in northern South Africa.
Buckingham Palace says, King Charles will not go to the COP27 climate change meeting, which will take place in Egypt next month.
It was in response to a Sunday Times article that claimed Liz Truss, the prime minister, had “directed” the King not to attend.
The Palace said advice had been sought by the King and given by Ms Truss.
“With mutual friendship and respect there was agreement that the King would not attend,” the Palace stated.
Before his ascension to the throne last month, the King – then the Prince of Wales – had indicated he would attend the annual conference.
Royal correspondent Jonny Dymond said the BBC had put it to the Palace that the King must be personally disappointed given his long decades of passionate environmental campaigning.
But the Palace responded that the idea the King was uncomfortable was not the case, and he was ever mindful of the sovereign’s role to act on the government’s advice.
Last November – Prince Charles – the King travelled to Egypt with the then-government’s blessing to urge the Egyptian administration on its efforts, meeting President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi during a planned visit.
In the past, the King has demonstrated his deep commitment to environmental issues and, as Prince of Wales, had a long history of campaigning to reduce the effects of climate change.
Only last year he made a speech at the COP26 opening ceremony in Glasgow, when the summit was hosted by the UK. The late Queen also gave a speech at the event, via video link.
Senior Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood said he hoped “common sense would prevail” and the King would be allowed to go to Egypt.
He said in a tweet that King Charles was a “globally-respected voice” on the environment whose attendance would add “serious authority” to the British delegation.
At last year’s COP26 conference, King Charles – or Prince Charles as he was then – was one of the star turns, delivering a passionate call for world leaders to adopt a “war-like footing” over climate change.
This year he’ll have to keep his powder dry, after what’s presented, on the surface at least,as a dispute-free agreement that he shouldn’t go.
Although it’s worth noting this is about not attending “in person”, which might leave the door ajar for other virtual contributions.
There will inevitably be speculation that, below all the constitutional smoothing, this will have really disappointed the King. He has campaigned devotedly for decades, heart on sleeve, on such environmental issues.
And it could also raise the prospect of early tensions between a new King and a new PM.
But it’s a case of different roles, and different rules and the King has always known that as sovereign he would have to act within a different set of politically-neutral constraints.
The Egyptian authorities say they hope to use their presidency of COP27 to urge the international community to act on pledges of support for developing countries to cope with the devastating impacts of climate change.
However, there has been criticism ahead of the summit. Human Rights Watch has said Egypt has severely curtailed the work of environmental groups. Officials in Cairo said the report was “misleading”.
COP27, a United Nations event, is being held in the coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh from 8 to16 November.
Next week, King Charles will attend his first public engagements since the royal periodof mourning came to an end, including a reception in Edinburgh for South Asian communities from across the UK and a visit to Dunfermline Abbey in Fife.
IMAGE SOURCE, BUCKINGHAM PALACE/GETTY IMAGES/PA Image caption, A new picture of the King with the Queen Consort, Prince, and Princess of Wales was released on Saturday
The affected workers will be consulted, and Buckingham Palace said it hopes that life in the Household may carry on largely unaltered under the new monarch.
Staff who assisted the late Queen personally have been informed that some of their careers may be in jeopardy under King Charles III.
The letter, from Sir Michael Stevens, keeper of the privy purse, says: “I am sure you can appreciate that these are sensitive and challenging times.”
He adds that work is underway to support staff and ensure there are “good communications” over the coming weeks.
The letter says: “Consistent with continuity, the approach on Accession is essential that the requirements and the purpose of the Household continue unchanged following demise.
“While it is too early to confirm the position definitively, it is anticipated that only a very small minority of employees (fewer than 20) who provided personal services to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth will see their posts affected by Her Majesty’s death.
“We will be consulting with you and those affected in relation to these anticipated changes after the State Funeral. Those affected are being written to.”
Last week it was disclosed that up to 100 employees at the King’s former official residence, Clarence House, had been notified that they could lose their jobs.
Mark Serwotka, the general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, which represents a number of employees in the royal households, said staff had worked for the Queen for a number of years and felt “let down” after receiving the letter.
“Our members are disappointed and saddened by this development,” he said.
Meetings are being held with those affected and staff is being told they can contact Employee Assistance providers in the coming weeks.
On the eve of the Queen’s burial, Buckingham Palaceunveiled a never-before-seen portrait of her smiling brilliantly.
The image, taken by photographer Ranald Mackechnie in May prior to the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, depicts the late queen visiting Windsor Castle wearing a blue dress.
The portrait of her beaming at the camera was released as the Queen Consort paid a televised tribute on Sunday evening, recalling her “wonderful blue eyes” and “unforgettable smile”.
As well to her favourite three-strand pearl necklace, in the portrait, the Queen wore aquamarine and diamond clip brooches which were an 18th birthday present from her father, George VI, in 1944.
She wore the brooches when she addressed the nation on the 75th anniversary of VE Day in 2020 and for her televised speech on her Diamond Jubilee in 2012.
Mr Mackechnie also took the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee portrait, which was released in June to mark the start of national celebrations for her 70-year reign, the longest of any British monarch.
King Charles ordered specific flowers for the Queen’s funeral wreath, which also features a personal note from the new king.
The flowers and greenery were selected for their symbolic meaning and were taken from the gardens of the Queen-loved homes Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, and Highgrove House.
They include rosemary, for remembrance, and myrtle cut from a plant that was grown from a sprig of myrtle in the Queen’s wedding bouquet.
Myrtle is often seen as a symbol of a happy marriage and evokes images of the Queen’s 70-year marriage to Prince Philip.
Also included are English oak to symbolize the strength of love, pelargoniums, garden roses, autumnal hydrangea, sedum, dahlias, and scabious.
These are in shades of gold, pink and deep burgundy, with touches of white, to reflect the Royal Standard.
Also at the King’s request, the wreath has been made in a sustainable way, in a nest of English moss and oak branches.
The late Queen Elizabeth II‘s body will begin its final journey as part of a grand state funeral later after spending days lying in state. It will first travel to Westminster Abbey for a religious service in front of thousands of people, then move on to Windsor Castle for a more personal committal service, and finally, a private burial.
It will be a day filled with emotion, grandeur, and ceremony unseen since Winston Churchill’s last state burial over 60 years ago.
The Queen’s lying-in-state at Westminster Hall in the heart of London, where people queued for hours to view her coffin, has now come to an end. A short distance away, at Westminster Abbey, the doors have opened for guests to start arriving ahead of the funeral service at 11:00.
Heads of state from across the world have been flying in to join members of the Royal Family to remember the Queen’s life and service. Senior UK politicians and former prime ministers will also be there.
Members of royal families from across Europe, many of whom were blood relatives of the Queen, are expected – Belgium’s King Philippe and Queen Mathilde and Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia will be there.
At this point, the ceremonial part of the day will begin in earnest, as the Queen’s coffin is lifted from the catafalque where it has been resting since Wednesday afternoon, and taken to Westminster Abbey, for her funeral service.
She will be carried on the State Gun Carriage of the Royal Navy, drawn by 142 sailors. The carriage was last seen in 1979 for the funeral of Prince Philip’s uncle, Lord Mountbatten and was used for the Queen’s father, George VI, in 1952.
Senior members of the Royal Family, including the new king and his sons Prince William and Prince Harry, will follow the gun carriage in procession.
The Pipes and Drums of the Scottish and Irish regiments will lead the ceremony, along with members of the Royal Air Force and the Gurkhas.
The route will be lined by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines and a guard of honour will stand in Parliament Square made up of all three military services, accompanied by a Royal Marines band.
The Queen’s funeral service, expected to be attended by 2,000 guests, will begin at Westminster Abbey.
It will be a state funeral – an event typically reserved for kings or queens, which follows strict rules of protocol, such as a military procession and the lying-in-state.
The abbey, hosting the funeral service, is the historic church where Britain’s kings and queens are crowned, including the Queen’s own coronation in 1953. It was also where the then-Princess Elizabeth married Prince Philip in 1947.
There hasn’t been a monarch’s funeral service in the abbey since the 18th Century, although the funeral of the Queen Mother was held there in 2002.
The service will be conducted by the Dean of Westminster David Hoyle, with the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby giving the sermon. Prime Minister Liz Truss will read a lesson.
Towards the end of the funeral service the Last Post – a short bugle call – will be played followed by a two-minute national silence.
The national anthem and a lament played by the Queen’s piper will bring the service to an end at about midday.
Following the service, the Queen’s coffin will be drawn in a walking procession from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch, at London’s Hyde Park Corner.
With the route lined with military personnel and police, Big Ben will toll at one-minute intervals as the procession moves slowly through the streets of the capital. Gun salutes will also fire every minute from Hyde Park.
People can watch the procession in person from designated viewing areas along the route.
The procession, led by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, will be made up of seven groups, each with its own band. Members of the armed services from the UK and the Commonwealth, the police and the NHS will also be involved.
Once again the King will lead members of the Royal Family walking behind the gun carriage bearing the Queen’s coffin.
Camilla, the Queen Consort, the Princess of Wales, the Countess of Wessex and the Duchess of Sussex will join the procession in cars.
Once at Wellington Arch, at about 13:00, the coffin will be transferred to the new State Hearse for its final journey to Windsor Castle.
The castle, continuously inhabited by 40 monarchs across almost 1,000 years, had special significance to the Queen throughout her life. As a teenager she was sent to the castle during the war years as London faced the threat of bombing, and more recently she made it her permanent home during the coronavirus pandemic.
The hearse is expected to arrive for a walking procession up Windsor Castle’s Long Walk. The three-mile (5km) avenue will be lined with members of the armed forces.
Members of the public will be allowed access to the Long Walk to watch the procession pass.
The King and senior members of the Royal Family are expected to join the cortege in the Quadrangle in Windsor Castle a little later.
The castle’s Sebastopol and Curfew Tower bells will be tolled every minute and gun salutes will be fired from the castle’s grounds.
Then the coffin will enter St George’s Chapel for a committal service.
St George’s Chapel is the church regularly chosen by the Royal Family for weddings, christenings and funerals. It is where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan, were married in 2018 and where the Queen’s late husband Prince Philip’s funeral was held.
Attended by a smaller, more personal congregation of about 800 guests, the committal service will be conducted by Dean of Windsor David Conner, with a blessing from Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
The service will include traditions symbolising the end of the Queen’s reign.
The Imperial State Crown and the Sovereign’s orb and sceptre will be removed from the top of the coffin by the Crown Jeweller, separating the Queen from her crown for the final time.
At the end of the last hymn, the King will then place the Queen’s company camp colour, or flag, of the Grenadier Guards on the coffin. The Grenadier Guards are the most senior of the Foot Guards carrying out ceremonial duties for the monarch.
At the same time, the Lord Chamberlain, former MI5 chief Baron Parker, will “break” his wand of office and place it on the coffin. The snapping of the white staff will signal the end of his service to the sovereign as her most senior official in the Royal Household.
The Queen will then be lowered into the royal vault and the Sovereign’s piper will play before a blessing and the singing of God Save the King. The performance by the piper at Windsor was something the Queen had personally requested, Buckingham Palace said.
The committal service will come to an end and the King and members of the Royal Family will leave the chapel.
That evening, at a private family service, the Queen will be buried together with her late husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, at the King George VI memorial chapel, located inside St George’s Chapel.
Her marble slab will be engraved ELIZABETH II 1926-2022.
The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Sussex will be among the grandchildren of the Queen who will keep watch over her coffin this evening as she lies in state in Westminster Hall.
Prince Harry will don a military uniform for the first time in 2020 at King Charles’ request.
Since the Queen’s passing, Prince Harry has appeared in public wearing regular clothes.
The King and the Queen’s children manned the guard duty for around ten minutes on Friday night.
As they left the hall, members of the public applauded them.
The grandchildren’s vigil is expected to last around 15 minutes.
The King’s two sons will be joined by Peter Phillips, Zara Tindall, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, Lady Louise Windsor, and James, Viscount Severn.
He served two tours in Afghanistan as part of the Army. He now lives in California with his wife Meghan and their two children.
Prince Harry wore a morning suit to walk behind the Queen’s coffin, while his brother wore a military uniform
Prince Andrew was also allowed to wear his military uniform as he stood guard on Friday. The 62-year-old stepped down as a working royal in 2019, after a Newsnight interview about his relationship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The prince was later stripped of his military titles.
Before the vigil, the Queen’s youngest child, Prince Edward, thanked the public for their support.
“We have been overwhelmed by the tide of emotion that has engulfed us and the sheer number of people who have gone out of their way to express their own love, admiration and respect to such a very special and unique person who was always there for us,” he said.
“And now, we are there for her, united in grief.”
The Queen will lie in state at Westminster Hall until her funeral on Monday. The queue to see the coffin stretches as far as Southwark Park. Officials have said if the park reaches capacity, entry will be paused.
At the park, there is a queue for wristbands and to join the queue properly. Further along, an LED display warns people of how long they should expect to wait. Many are anticipating a long stay, wearing parkas, hats, and big jumpers.
At 14:00 BST on Saturday, the government website said the waiting time was now up to 16.5 hours.
Foreign dignitaries are traveling to London ahead of Monday’s funeral, which will be one of the biggest diplomatic events of recent years, with some 500 heads of state and other dignitaries expected to attend.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese laid flowers in Green Park, central London, before meeting King Charles at Buckingham Palace on Saturday. Mr Albanese said it was a “great honour” to represent Australia and commemorate “a life well-lived”.
Meanwhile, King Charles is back in London, having completed a tour of the UK’s four nations.
On Saturday the King met the heads of the armed forces at Buckingham Palace and visited the Metropolitan Police’s headquarters, New Scotland Yard.
He then went to Lambeth Bridge, alongside Prince William, to shake hands and greet those queuing for the lying-in-state. He is meeting world leaders this afternoon.
A senior Metropolitan Police officer described the Queen’s funeral as “the largest single policing event [the force] has ever undertaken”.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy said the “hugely complex” operation surpasses the London 2012 Olympics – which saw up to 10,000 police officers on duty each day.
Events, moments of reflection, and public screenings of the funeral are also taking place across the UK this weekend, outside London.
In Blackpool, the tower illuminations – which were changed to red, white, and blue for the period of mourning – will be switched off at 20:00 on Sunday, when a national one-minute silence will take place.
For a solitary day of reflection, King Charles has retired to his Highgrove palace in Gloucestershire.
A day was reserved for the incoming monarch to spend away from official duties at his family home as part of the London Bridge preparations for what would happen following the Queen’s passing.
Although it is thought he will be working in preparation for his new position and collecting his red boxes of state paperwork, he is not anticipated to attend any public events.
The King will spend his first day out of the public spotlight since the death of his mother at his beloved Highgrove House near Tetbury, Gloucestershire, a Georgian neo-classical house that serves as the private home for the monarch the Queen Consort.
A passionate gardener and environmentalist, King Charles has spent over 40 years transforming the gardens around the house.
over 40 years of transforming the gardens around the house.
The home has been owned by various families until it was purchased by the Duchy of Cornwall from former prime minister Harold Macmillan’s son, Maurice Macmillan, in 1980.
Image:The Prince of Wales in the gardens of his home in Highgrove
He and his then-wife Princess Diana renovated the property with neo-classical additions in 1987 and the interior was stripped out and redecorated.
The Duchess of Cornwall with her dog Beth at Highgrove
The King’s passion project has been the estate’s gardens, which were overgrown and untended when he first moved in but have since been completely overhauled.
The green-fingered monarch introduced a wild garden, formal garden, walled kitchen, and a stumpery.
His environmental beliefs are echoed on the estate, which includes solar panels, biomass boilers, and air source heat pumps, while waste from the house is filtered through a natural reed bed sewage system.
The Prince of Wales flanked by his sons Princes William and Harry at Highgrove
Fruit and vegetables from the kitchen garden are used for meals at Charles and Camilla’s table, while flowers in the garden are used to decorate the house.
The King has also planted rare trees and plants for future generations and heritage seeds have been planted to ensure they flourish.
The monarch has said: “One of my greatest joys is to see the pleasure that the garden can bring to many of the visitors and that everybody seems to find some part of it that is special to them.”
Guests and the public have been able to tour the gardens since 1994 and thousands visit each year.
It remains to be seen where the King will live during his reign.
Traditionally the monarch would live at Buckingham Palace, though a friend previously told the Mail on Sunday: “Despite what everybody thinks about him not wanting to live there, he will certainly have accommodation there – but it will be a much more modest flat-above-the-shop situation akin to that of the Prime Minister at Downing Street.”
The house technically belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall, so has passed to Prince William who is the new Duke of Cornwall.
It means the King could pay his son an estimated £700,000 a year in rent to stay at Highgrove, according to the Daily Mail.
Despite his grief, the King has already started carrying out royal duties, holding his first audience with and greeting well-wishers gathered outside Buckingham Palace earlier on Friday.
King Charles vowed to serve the people of the United Kingdom with “loyalty, respect, and love” during his first televised address to the nation.
Offering words of comfort following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, the King paid tribute to her “love, affection, guidance, understanding and example” in a speech from Buckingham Palace.
“Queen Elizabeth was a life well lived; a promise with destiny kept and she is mourned most deeply in her passing. That promise of lifelong service I renew to you all today,” he said.
“Throughout her life, Her Majesty The Queen – my beloved mother – was an inspiration and example to me and to all my family, and we owe her the most heartfelt debt any family can owe to their mother.”
A memorial service for the Queen is being held at St Paul’s Cathedral, with 2,000 members of the public joining politicians, including the prime minister, to watch his address.
Speaking from the Blue Drawing Room of the palace, where his mother recorded some of her Christmas messages, His Majesty dedicated part of his speech to other senior royals, including his wife and children.
Of Camilla, now the Queen Consort, he said: “I know she will bring to the demands of her new role the steadfast devotion to duty on which I have come to rely so much.”
Speaking about his eldest son Prince William, who is now the Duke of Cornwall, Prince of Wales, and heir to the throne, the King said he would “continue to inspire” alongside his wife, Catherine.
He expressed his love for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan “as they continue to build their lives overseas” – in what could be considered a symbol of his bid for reconciliation amid past troubles with the couple.
As he begins his reign, the King also set out his changing role, saying it will “no longer be possible” for him to give as much “time and energies to the charities and issues” he cares “so deeply” about.
‘To my darling Mama…’
King Charles sat to deliver his address, with a posy of sweet peas mixed with rosemary placed on a desk in front of him, which represents remembrance.
“On behalf of all my family, I can only offer the most sincere and heartfelt thanks for your condolences and support,” the King said.
“They mean more to me than I can ever possibly express.
“And to my darling Mama, as you begin your last great journey to join my dear late Papa, I want simply to say this: thank you.”
He thanked the Queen for her “love and devotion” before concluding his address with a quote from the William Shakespeare play Hamlet.
“May ‘flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest,” His Majesty said.
He shook hands with dozens of people and was also hugged and kissed before walking through the palace gates with his wife by his side.
Despite his grief, the monarch has already started carrying out royal duties, holding his first audience with Prime Minister Liz Truss earlier on Friday.
He returned to London with the Queen Consort, after spending Thursday at Balmoral to be with the Queen before she died.
Dressed in a black suit and tie, the grieving King left the royal residence seated in the back of a car, with his wife in the front passenger seat, as they were driven to Aberdeen airport.
The monarch is due to be proclaimed at the Accession Council at 10 am on Saturday in the State Apartments of St James’s Palace, Buckingham Palace has said – with the process televised for the first time in history.
Wearing the black dress she was pictured in earlier when she attended the audience with King Charles III at Buckingham Palace, she stands in front of the congregation to read from the Book of Romans.
“We do not live to ourselves and we do not die to ourselves; if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord.”
“So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s,” she reads.
Following the passing of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles III is expected to address the nation for the first time in his capacity as monarch later.
At Balmoral in Scotland, the longest-reigning monarch of Britain passed away quietly on Thursday. She was surrounded by her family.
Gun salutes will be fired and church bells will be tolled on Friday as the UK pays tribute to her reign.
Members of the public have traveled to leave flowers, messages of thanks, and condolence for the Queen and Royal Family, with many visibly tearful or overcome with emotion.
Union jacks are being flown at half-mast and Parliament will gather later to pay tribute to her momentous reign.
The bells of St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and Windsor Castle are expected to toll at noon in tribute to her life and service.
A gun salute in London’s Hyde Park has been arranged for the following hour, with 96 rounds to mark each year of her life to fire around 13:00 BST.
There will be a remembrance service at St Paul’s at 18:00 BST, attended by Prime Minister Liz Truss and other senior ministers.
Those wishing to attend must visit in person the City of London tourism office on Carter Lane in London to collect a wristband from 11:00.
A police officer appears to cry as he stands guard in front of Buckingham Palace
People gathered to pay tributes to the Queen in London
The King and his wife, Camilla, now Queen Consort, will later on Friday return to London, where the monarch is expected to address the nation after holding an audience with the new Prime Minister Liz Truss.
All of the Queen’s children and grandchildren, the Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex, traveled to Balmoral, near Aberdeen, on Thursday after the Queen’s doctors became concerned about her health.
Prince Harry left Balmoral on Friday morning to travel to Aberdeen airport, where he was seen placing an arm around a member of staff.
Prince Harry places his arm around a member of staff before boarding a plane at Aberdeen International Airport
On Friday, the palace released some details of plans for the coming days, with King Charles declaring a period of Royal mourning is observed for seven days after the funeral of his mother.
There will be no physical book of condolences for members of the public to sign, but the palace has opened an online book of condolences for those who wish to leave messages.
The government has said it expects large crowds to gather in central London and other Royal Residences as a mark of respect, warning there could be some travel disruption, traffic delays, and significant crowding,
A man wipes away tears next to floral tributes laid by an entrance to Balmoral Castle
Tributes to the Queen will also be paid by MPs and peers in the Houses of Commons and Lords from midday, with normal politics to be put on hold for a period of mourning which is due to last until late into Friday evening.
The Cabinet met on Friday morning, with the only item on the agenda to pay tribute to the Queen.
There will also be a rare Saturday sitting of the House of Commons, where senior MPs will gather to take an oath of allegiance to the new King from 14:00, with condolences continuing again until the evening.
Many people have come alone to take at the moment, while others have come in groups with friends.
Australian Chloe Hogan pictured with her two friends outside Buckinham Palace
Australian Chloe Hogan made her way to the palace after hearing the news about the Queen’s health in her family group chat down. She says: “I think it’s quite scary that we don’t know what’s going to happen.” The Queen is also the monarch of Australia.
Chloe adds: “I think if anything did happen Australians would be just as devastated as when Princess Diana died, the exact same thing.
“It would be devastating, and everyone would be like people in the UK would be.”
As news of the Queen’s health travel, some citizens are already gathered in front of Buckingham Palace
Tourists have started gathering in the rain outside Buckingham Palace in London, following news that the Queen is under medical supervision at Balmoral
People are keeping across the latest news on their phones
Some people have congregated on the stone steps up to The Queen Victoria Memorial, opposite the palace
At Buckingham Palace, some tourists are in tears at the news about the Queen’s health.
Sue and Andy Alderman from Somerset were visiting London and decided to head to Buckingham Palace when they heard the announcement that the Queen was unwell.
They said they were stunned by the news but that they thought the Queen had been looking frail since the death of the Duke of Edinburgh. They hoped there would be better news about her health.
Pam told me crying that: “She’s the only Queen we’ve had. All of my life. She’s such a lovely lady. It’s such a shock.” They added they were both thinkings of the Queen’s family at this time.
As would be expected, journalists, photographers, and camera crews from across the world are now reporting from outside Buckingham Palace, where just months ago the Queen appeared waving from its balcony during her Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Buckingham Palace says the Queen is being monitored by medics at Balmoral after they started to worry about her health.
“Following further evaluation this morning, the Queen’s doctors are concerned for Her Majesty’s health and have recommended she remain under medical supervision,” they said in a statement.
“This means that the Privy Council meeting that had been due to take place this evening will be rearranged.”
The Queen remains at Balmoral Castle, where she appointed Liz Truss as the new prime minister on Tuesday.
The Queen appointed new prime minister Liz Truss on Tuesday
The latest advice does not involve a hospital stay for the 96-year-old monarch, who has ongoing mobility issues.
She had been due to hold the Privy Council virtually on Wednesday.
During the proceedings, Ms Truss would have taken her oath as First Lord of the Treasury and new cabinet ministers would have been sworn into their roles, and also made privy counselors if not already appointed as one in past.
The Queen appointed the new prime minister at Balmoral for the first time in her reign, in a break from tradition.
In June, she missed Royal Ascot for the first time since her coronation, with the Duke of Kent taking her place in leading the royal carriage procession.
Earlier in May, the Queen missed the State Opening of Parliament for the first time in 59 years on doctors’ orders after experiencing “episodic mobility issues”.
And she withdrew from the traditional Easter Sunday service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor this year.
The Queen also contracted COVID-19 back in February, and later spoke about how it left her feeling “very tired and exhausted”.
The Conservative leadership election to choose Boris Johnson’s successor as prime minister is now over.
At 12.30 BST on Monday, the two candidates, Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss will learn who has won the vote of Tory members.
The winner will be formally appointed prime minister on Tuesday by the Queen.
They will then begin appointing ministers to their new cabinet.
Mr Johnson, who led the Tories to a landslide victory at the 2019 election, will remain in office until the transfer of power is complete.
The fractious campaign to replace him has seen the candidates regularly attack each other’s policies as well as the Tories’ record in government.
Ms Truss, the foreign secretary, is the clear favourite to win, according to polls of Tory members. She has promised to deliver billions of pounds in tax cuts in an emergency Budget if she wins power.
With the cap on domestic energy prices set to soar in the autumn, what to do about rising living costs has dominated the contest in recent weeks.
Both candidates have come under pressure to spell out how they would protect households from the rises, as well as give help to businesses, which are not covered by the price cap.
Mr Johnson left big spending decisions to his successor after his resignation in July, leading opposition parties to accuse the government of paralysis.
Ms Truss has said she would reverse April’s rise to National Insurance and cut green levies on energy bills to help households with costs. She has signalled she would provide more support on top of this but has offered no details.
Mr Sunak has said he would make further payments to pensioners and the low-paid over winter, on top of the payments they are already due to receive.
IMAGE SOURCE,PA MEDIA
Image caption,
Rishi Sunak’s wife Akshata Murthy (c) cheered him on at campaign hustings in London
The contest began in mid-July when Mr Johnson was forced out by a ministerial revolt over a string of scandals.
The original field of 11 contenders was whittled down to two in a series of Tory MP ballots, with the final two going into a run-off to be decided by the membership, which stands at around 160,000.
Although Mr Sunak had the most support among Tory MPs, opinion polls have suggested Ms Truss enjoys more support among party members.
As the campaign drew to a close, Mr Sunak thanked his supporters and said he had “loved every second” of his “six weeks on the road”.
Ms Truss also thanked volunteers on her campaign, and said if she is elected she would “do everything in my power to make sure our great nation succeeds”.
The British monarch, Queen Elizabeth has experienced mobility problems since last autumn, and she now frequently employs a walking stick. She had to reschedule a number of public events earlier this year, which meant that she significantly missed her Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
The Queen will receive the new prime minister at her Balmoral estate in Scotland for the first time in her long reign.
Her Majesty will meet them on 6 September, a day after the new prime minister is announced.
She would normally appoint prime ministers from Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle.
However, the 96-year-old monarch has been advised to remain at her Balmoral residence in Aberdeenshire, where she is enjoying her summer holiday.
It will be from there that she will install either Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss as prime minister on 6 September, breaking years of royal precedent.
It is understood the decision was taken at this stage in order to provide certainty for the prime minister’s diary.
If the Queen had experienced an episodic mobility issue next week and the plan had been to travel to London or Windsor, it would have led to alternative arrangements needing to be made at the last minute.
Since last autumn, the Queen has suffered from mobility issues and now regularly uses a walking stick.
This year, she has been forced to cut several official engagements short, and she notably missed much of her Platinum Jubilee celebrations, only appearing briefly on the palace balcony.
In June, she missed Royal Ascot for the first time since her coronation, with the Duke of Kent taking her place in leading the royal carriage procession.
She also contracted COVID-19 back in February, and later spoke about how it left her feeling “very tired and exhausted”.
The winner of the Tory leadership contest to succeed Boris Johnson is set to be announced on Monday 5 September.
His successor will then travel to Balmoral to be officially appointed by the Queen the following day.
For such a high-profile couple, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have maintained a remarkably low-key presence on the first day of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Prince Harry and Meghan’s travel over the Atlantic for the Jubilee weekend had been treated beforehand like some kind of unpredictable weather front approaching.
Storms were feared. Royal officials feared the damage. But it’s been very low-profile for a couple who provoke such a high level of public attention.
They watched Trooping the Colour from a window, not part of the carriage procession or the family group allowed on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
There’s no escaping their big box-office status, but here they were watching from the wings.
They also dodged any airport arrival photo-fest, with suggestions the Queen sent cars to collect them from a private airport. Everything stayed under the radar.
IMAGE SOURCE, REUTERS
Image caption, The Queen, it is suggested, sent cars to pick up Prince Harry and Meghan from a private airport
Such a low profile is not likely to be accidental, with Prince Harry and Meghan wanting to avoid any accusations of stealing the limelight.
This is the Queen’s big weekend, celebrating her 70 years as monarch, and there are likely to have been warnings about avoiding anything that could overshadow the Jubilee events.
So it’s likely that Prince Harry and Meghan will have been urged to stay on-message and remain in the background, part of the backing band rather than the centre of attention.
It might be seen as a way of building bridges. It’s the Sussexes back to take part in a big event in a way perhaps not seen since leaving their royal roles in 2020.
Their daughter Lilibet, aged one this weekend, until this week hadn’t met her great-grandmother the Queen.
This quieter approach, without appearances and interviews, might be a way of re-establishing family links and connections with home.
While limiting the Buckingham Palace balcony to “working royals” meant excluding Prince Harry, Meghan and Prince Andrew, the two California-based royals were still part of the family group watching.
Covid is going to keep Prince Andrew away from the Thanksgiving Service at St Paul’s on Friday – an announcement on Thursday afternoon that raised some eyebrows. But Prince Harry and Meghan will be there and it will be a further sign of inclusion.
If the ambition of Buckingham Palace is for Prince Harry and Meghan to be there but not to draw attention to themselves, it won’t be easy. Because there is no escaping how much public interest they generate and how easily they could start making headlines.
IMAGE SOURCE, GOFFPHOTOS
Image caption, Meghan Markle with Savannah Phillips and Mia Tindall watching Trooping the Colour
If many of the Jubilee events are rather worthy events like lighting beacons, Prince Harry and Meghan can generate media fireworks, touching on issues of race and representation, celebrity and wealth. They are a news tinderbox, even without trying.
They certainly divide opinion, provoking strong positive and negative responses. They attract and they irritate. And such interest drives media attention, not to say huge web traffic to news stories, like moths drawn to a digital light.
According to a survey from YouGov this week, young people are more likely to be supportive of Prince Harry and Meghan. But overall the couple have lost much public sympathy in the UK, with their popularity at its lowest recorded level. But everyone has an opinion.
As the Jubilee weekend progresses there will be more attention on the Sussexes.
There have been expectations they will meet the Queen, but it’s understood that any such meetings will be considered as private and any details will remain speculation.
If the appearances so far are any guide, it could be a case of cryptic smiles from a distance and a determined effort to say little. In PR terms, it might not be a bad tactic.
