Wednesday 14 November 2018

Harry and Meghan Celebrate Charles' 70th & the Sussexes Attend African Parks Dinner!

A year of celebrations for the British Royal family culminated with Prince Charles' 70th birthday party at Buckingham Palace tonight.


Following a weekend of Remembrance events and a commemorative dinner in support of African Parks last night, Harry and Meghan have been very much getting back into the swing of engagements in the UK following a packed sixteen-day tour of Oceania. When the tour itinerary was released, I suspected it was planned to ensure the Sussexes would be back in the UK with plenty of time for Charles' birthday. The night saw immediate and extended family members come together to celebrate the future king.


The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge departing Kensington Palace.


Mark Stewart photographed a selection of arrivals including Lady Helen Taylor, the Earl of Snowdon and the Grand Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg.


A host of European royals were in attendance. The Norwegian Palace shared a photo of King Harald, Queen Sonja, Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit before the party. Both the Queen and the Crown Princess look terrific. Last month, Mette-Marit revealed she was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis. Mette-Marit said: "For a number of years, I have had health challenges on a regular basis, and now we know more about what these are, although such a diagnosis will limit my life at times, I'm glad that the disease has been discovered so early. My goal is still to work and participate in the official programme as much as possible." It was wonderful to see her there tonight looking so well.


Clarence House shared this lovely photo of Charles and Camilla leaving their residence.


Her Majesty paid tribute to her son and heir in an incredibly heartfelt and touching speech: “It is a privilege for any mother to be able to propose a toast to her son on his 70th birthday. It means that you have lived long enough to see your child grow up. It is rather like - to use an analogy I am certain will find favour - planting a tree and being able to watch it grow. My mother saw me turn 70, of course. And she was heard to observe that 70 is exactly the age when the number of candles on your cake finally exceeds the amount of breath you have to blow them out.


"Over his 70 years, Philip and I have seen Charles become a champion of conservation and the arts, a great charitable leader - a dedicated and respected heir to the throne, to stand comparison with any in history - and a wonderful father.


"Most of all, sustained by his wife Camilla, he is his own man, passionate and creative. So this toast is to wish a Happy Birthday to my son, in every respect a Duchy original.


"To you, Charles. To the Prince of Wales."


Duchy Originals is a company which the Prince of Wales set up in 1990, principally to sell organic food products. Since then, it has become established as a leading organic and natural food brand.  In 2010 the brand went into partnership with Waitrose. The Duchy Originals biscuits are a particular favourite; a splendid joke from Her Majesty.


Royal photographer Mark Stewart tweeted images of Zara Tindall, Crown Prince Frederick and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, The King and Queen of Norway and Prince Albert of Monaco leaving the event.

Clarence House released this photo of Charles to mark the day.


A previously unseen photo of Charles with William and Harry was released as part of a set of six commemorative stamps. This image was taken during the RAF celebrations in July.


Earlier today, the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery fired a 41-gun Royal Salute to celebrate Prince Charles' 70th birthday in Green Park, central London.


A very nice video with highlights from the future king's 70th year.


Now, time for the bad news. We had hoped to see an official family portrait (and a proper look at Meghan's gown) for Charles' birthday. According to royal reporter Rebecca English the Palace confirmed no photos will be released from inside. For the time being Meghan's look remains a mystery. From what we can see, she wore a strapless gown for the evening.


Meghan accessorised with a dazzling pair of statement earrings.


Readers will recognise the sparkling earrings as the pair Meghan wore for the Fiji State dinner. At the time, Emily Andrews reported: "The mystery of Meghan’s earrings...all KP will say is that they’re “borrowed”. From whom, they will not say. Most likely the Queen." The fact Meghan is wearing them again suggests they are a long-term loan. Several of you suggested it's possible they are Camilla's as the shape of the stones bears similarities to pieces from her Saudi suite. The Palace has been open in revealing the provenance of jewels from the Queen and pieces from Diana's personal collection. For the moment, my guess is they do indeed belong to another royal lady.


Many happy returns to the Prince of Wales!

*************

As noted above, the Duke and Duchess attended a private commemorative dinner at Kensington Palace for African Parks, of which Harry is president. As the event was private, photos were not officially released, however a guest shared a couple of snaps on Instagram.


African Parks is a non-profit conservation organisation that takes on the complete responsibility for the rehabilitation and long-term management of national parks in partnership with governments and local communities. They currently manage 15 national parks and protected areas in nine countries covering 10.5 million hectares: Benin, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Zambia. The organisation was founded in 2000 in response to the dramatic decline of protected areas due to poor management and lack of funding. African Parks utilises a clear business approach to conserving Africa’s wildlife and remaining wild areas, securing vast landscapes and carrying out the necessary activities needed to protect the parks and their wildlife.


In October, the African Parks team met with Harry in London, coinciding with their participation in the Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference.


The Duke and Duchess with other guests.


The Duchess wore a black dress for the black-tie affair with the Pippa Small Peepal Leaf earrings she wore in Fiji. They are from the brand's 2015 collection.


A reminder, we'll see Harry and Meghan at the Royal Variety Performance on Monday night.

72 comments:

  1. Same earrings she wore in Fiji??

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    1. Thought those were supposed to be "borrowed"!

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    2. Sometimes the loans from the Queen are lifetime loans.. at the end of either your time in the BRF or your death they go back to the crown.

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  2. I love these earrings! Her dress looks strapless...both the duchesses look glamorous tonight 👌

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  3. Pretty! I wonder what colour she's wearing tonight!

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    1. Likely black or navy blue. It will be a pleasant surprise if it is a bright colour.

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  4. She is stunning. Simply stunning

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    1. Agree 100%. She is glowing and looks absolutely beautiful.

      I wish we could see some of her dress. Hopefully they will release a few pictures from inside like they did for Charles's 60th party.

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    3. Inthekitchen, maybe the necklace was reworked, how interesting.

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    4. Whoops I just looked at the necklace link. Rubies in that necklace but the image above of Meghan looks like diamonds or a yellow stone?

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    5. One more whoops, I finally see that you are not talking of the rubbies in the necklace but of reworking only the diamonds from it.

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  5. Je suis tellement impatiente de voir ce que la belle Meghan porte

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  6. I would love to know whose earrings these are, meaning who they’re borrowed from. I really like them.

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  7. no more withdrawal affects:)....Can't wait to see more. Thanks Charlotte

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  8. Charlotte - I saw speculation on another site (grrrr...cannot remember which royal jewel site it was, sorry to the OP) that the earrings were from this (Saudi) ruby necklace of Camilla's: https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/02/20/25C5A08400000578-0-image-m-37_1424475518495.jpg

    I think this may be correct because the little pear-shaped diamonds on Meghan's earrings look exactly the same as the ones on Camilla's necklace. It's hard to tell, of course, but I thought it also make sense that this is why KP refused to say the origin of the earrings.

    What do you all think?

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    1. I also saw speculation about them being from a collection of jewelry Camilla was gifted from Saudi Arabia--not necessarily made from that necklace but maybe matching earrings? If they are from Camilla I wonder if they've just been gifted outright to Meghan, since she's worn them twice now.

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    2. A p.s. to my comment about Camilla's necklace being the source of Meghan's earrings -- I forgot to add that I also think it's a match because there are 14 tiny teardrop diamonds on Cam's necklace and each of Meghan's earrings have 7 teardrop diamonds.

      Assuming this is the source of the earrings, I wonder if any other parts of the necklace is another present for Meghan that we've yet to see? A nice ruby necklace, perhaps?

      (I originally posted this in the wrong place...moving here, under the correct comment and will delete the above.)

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    3. Found the original site who posted this idea: http://www.thecourtjeweller.com/2018/10/meghan-sparkles-in-fiji.html

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    4. Some of the diamonds in Meghan's earrings are teardrop shaped, and some are round. I think they are all larger than the diamonds in Camilla's necklace. They could be Camilla's earrings, of course, but I don't think they were made from the ruby necklace. More likely, I think, they are similar in age to the Duchess of Kent's chandelier earrings.

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  9. Do you think we might learn who she borrowed the earrings from?
    Love the hair!

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  10. WOW, Meghan's earrings sparkle just like she.

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  11. The updo and earrings are gorgeous!! Hope to see her dress.

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  12. I love what isee. Meghan is a beautiful.

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  13. Kate also has some amazing earrings! I don't remember seeing them before. Wonder if both duchesses received gifts.

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    1. According to Charlotte's post of February 2017 on the Duchess Kate blog, Kate has had these earrings since 2011. She wore them to the Hedge Funds Gala in 2011 and she also wore them to the 2017 BAFTA awards. Lovely to see these spectacular earrings again.

      Meghan looks wonderful. I do wish we could see a peek of her dress! Would love a little history on her earrings. Hopefully Charlotte will have an answer soon as she so often does.

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    2. Thanks, Helena! They sure are beautiful.

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  14. Silvia from Tuscany14 November 2018 at 23:07

    Beautiful earings and hairstyling... waiting to see more!

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  15. Those are some seriously amazing earrings wowza

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  16. Lovely and so glamorous. What a night!

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  17. i love those earings and i love she wearing it the same earing in fiji hmm i love too se she wearing that she regal she does not look like a star. She looks like princess

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  18. From what can be seen, the Duchess of Sussex looks beautiful. I really enjoyed the toast that the Queen gave Prince Charles. Lovely picture of Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall. Happy birthday, Prince Charles and may God bless you with many more healthy happy years. Thanks, Charlotte.

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  19. I enjoyed reading about African Parks; a first for
    me. Thanks, Charlotte.

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  20. So nice to see Meghan wearing larger earrings recently. Her earrings are always so tiny sometimes they can hardly be seen! Here's hoping she will branch out and wear a nice necklace or brooch occasionally.

    On a side note - so sorry to hear of Crown Princess Mette-Marit's health issues. From what I've read the prognosis is grim to hopeful. Praying that therapy will keep her with us for many years to come.

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  21. Absolutely beautiful post. Is there any way Charlotte that we can watch the Queen's full speech to her son? How touching that must have been.

    I adore the photo of Prince Charles with his sons in full uniform very handsome and they look so happy.


    I love Catherine's hair do here and Meghan's. I would have loved to see Princess Mary of Denmark's dress as well as she is pure class.

    I love seeing the norwegian Royal family being of Norwegian decent myself. I am so sad to hear about Mette Marit's health diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis.

    I will be praying for her and hoping for the best of this awful diagnosis.

    Thank you Charlotte.

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    1. Very sadly not Melissa, it was an incredibly touching speech.

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  22. Love Meghans look at the black tie dinner for Africa Parks. So simple and elegant the boat neck neckline is so flattering on her. It is nice to know what works and favor it. We are all guilty on wanting to look our best. The particular pair of earrings she wore that evening have both a contemporary and classic look all at once. I think we may see them again. We are all disappointed that we will not have the pleasure of seeing our ladies in new formal attire but hopefully there will be an occasion for them to wear in a more public forum. Unfortunately, we don't even have a hint about Meghan's gown as it appeared to be strapless. But, we all know she glowed!

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  23. I would guess not navy or dark blue for Meghan because Camilla is wearing a rather royal looking blue. Hope they realease some pictures eventually.

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  24. If those earrings are indeed part of a Saudi-Arabian present to her or Camilla or someone else they probably won’t disclose it. The relationship to the country is rather stretched right now and it would be a PR disaster. I can almost see the headlines.
    C.

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  25. Nicole from France15 November 2018 at 07:57

    That’s Unfair , I got up this morning and rushed to my tablet, beeing impatient to see Meghan’s gown and .... nooooo ! No photo ! I just had to try and imagine what she choose for the event .... anyway the updo is lovely , and the earrings perfectly fitting her face and head shape ! And I do like Camilla’s gown , perfect in any point !

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  26. Royal 👑 Watcher15 November 2018 at 08:45

    Love the gold leaf earrings, so beautiful and different. Meghan's make up is immaculate, I love her eyes like that. I wonder if she pinches herself and wonder when she will wake up. I would. Especially seeing all the European royals together in the one place, wow, talk about not star-struck but royal-struck. Even for a Hollywood celebrity, this must be something else! Finally, I really appreciate Queen Elizabeth's sense of humour. She clearly adores her son, the Prince of Wales. He has done very well, he is at peace with his life finally and she can be proud.

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  27. Meghan looks great as always! I was glad to see her wearing a seatbelt, as sometimes when they are sitting in the back we do not see seatbelts in the photos. If Harry also drove them home, does it mean he didn't drink at the party?

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    1. I've read reports that he has given up alcohol during Meghan's pregnancy in solidarity. I don't know if that's true but he apparently toasted with a glass of water in Fiji. And also back at that engagement when she wore that blue Jason Wu dress with the ruffles on the stomach, there was a video of them arriving and shaking their heads no when someone offered them drinks. So maybe it's true.

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  28. How unfair is this?? We saw Kate's fabric and some design element. There are photos of a sorts of royal guests leaving the party. There's a photo of PP being driven away. A beautiful portrait of Charles and Camilla. The Queen!! Someone should have known that we needed details on MM's dress. Assuming it was dark blue, navy, or black, we still need to know so much. :)

    And I was thinking of when MM went to Pippa's wedding reception and the report was that she wore back but not everyone believed that---now we know how likely that was.

    On another thought, the Queen had a terrific smile, always!!

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  29. Meghan looks absolutely stunning!!! Why isn't the palace releasing any photos? It's been years, before William married, since they've released an extended family photo and with all the new members tonight would have been the perfect time to do so. I just don't understand why the palace is being so stingy.

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  30. Having been whinging, I'd hoped to have a beautiful gown to praise - I like to keep things in balance. Alas, we were not given a picture of that so I'll settle for praise for the African Parks engagement. One place where I often see criticism I don't agree with is in the overall colour of Meghan's clothes - with one or two exceptions, I believe she wears her choices very well. This dress looks nice. Wish we could see the grander one of the next night but that's life.
    I like the leaf earrings too, I'm a Pippa Small fan - almost as well as the mystery diamonds - interesting if they came from Camilla's Saudi rubies - I never thought much of those and they have no historic value so wouldn't be a loss.

    For those who think of me as a ranter - my rant against car photo shots - my single gravest peeve about general royal family policy may appear on the Duchess Kate side. For now, I'll just say I think that policy of not allowing photos and thus encouraging car shots needs to go - they're as unflattering to royals as they are unattractive and frustrating to the public who in this case was left excluded and teased about an event that there had been a massive build-up to and publicity about including the royals on the guest list. That's not to say the event should be public - but allowing better photos perhaps at arrival - wouldn't interfere with the overall private nature of the event and would allow us to see the gowns - what most of us want.

    And a thank you to the Norwegian royal family for their photo - and praise to Mette-Marit for her courage and best wishes for her continued health. I had a close relative die of IPF recently - I can only describe it as a nightmare you can't escape from - a death I'd wish on no one.

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    1. I agree Julia, with all the build up to this event and then not releasing any photos is a rather miserly thing to do. I do wish that the BRF would follow the example of the Danish Royal Family, they have a nice long hallway that all the guests walk down which allows for wonderful photos and videos while not intruding on the actual event. Plus, I imagine that those flashes coming through the car windshield could be quite a safety hazard.

      I did mention above that the BRF used to release fairly regular group portraits taken at various events but it's been years and years since that's happened. I wonder why they stopped?

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    2. Maybe they will release something later or as part of a Christmas card?

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  31. Read at Hello magazine that Meghan wore Marks and Spencer dress under her Stella M. coat at Festival of Remembrance.

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  32. Marina duchess of Kent had a very similar pair of earrings :

    https://www.historyofroyalwomen.com/wp-content/uploads/marina.jpg


    Born in Athens, Greece, on 13 December 1906, Princess Marina was the youngest child of Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark.She married the duke George of Kent the fifth child of King George V.

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    1. I think those earring look nothing like the pair Meghan wore.

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    2. Parts of the designs are very similar, though they are not the same pair. They probably are similar in age.

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    3. Regalia, Wow talk about some diamonds. That necklace and the earrings not to mention the tiara and everything else she is wearing:).She is very beautiful.

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  33. I'm not sure if my link will show up here (I never comment, but found a site that might be interesting), but if you look at this Hello! article from Prince Charles's party, the photo at the top appears to show a tiny bit of Meghan's dress, and it looks like it's maybe not ALL black or navy!!! Everyone looked lovely!! https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/gallery/2018111464564/prince-charles-birthday-dinner-royals-gallery/1/

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    1. I saw that picture too!! Looks like white/silver or maybe even light purple?! And it looks sparkly as well. Such a bummer to miss out on seeing this dress.

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  34. Not related to the Birthday party but with the shots of them leaving KP last night and hosting a party the night before at KP I suddenly focused on the fact that their cottage will not work for the addition of a baby and a Nanny. Has anyone heard any rumblings of where they are going to live? They do not have time to do any major renovations so it has to be somewhere that is basically ready to go and if they are going to stay as busy as they have I am guessing either in London or very close. This is just for fun speculation.

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    1. I always hoped they would get the renovated Apartment 1 at KP.

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    2. They'll almost certainly stay in KP. Media reports keep saying they'll take over Apartment 1 from the Gloucesters but they haven't yet, and may not want to displace older relatives. They could also move into Diana's old apartment there.

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    3. Thank you. I had no idea if there was any space at KP these days or at least space that does not need a major overhaul.

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    4. So I just looked up all the places BRF members live and Princess Anne has a Spot at St James and Prince Edward and Sophie have a spot at Buckingham Palace. So I guess there could be apartments at those two spots that Meghan and Harry could move into.

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    5. I am facilitated by the musical houses that they will play in the coming years, because there are so many variables.
      The first question that comes to mind is what is happening to Clarence House when Charles becomes king and move to BP? W&K said they are planning to stay at KP (but things can change). CH might be nice for H&M as a permanent home, which means they need something temporary (with no big renovation cost)
      Or they could move into the Apartment next to the Cambridges which could be a permanent solution. But there has been no official word on the Gloucesters moving out.

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    6. Queen of the Sun, I actually wondered if Charles would maintain his place of residence at Clarence House after becoming King. Would he have to live at BP during the week like the Queen does?

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    7. I think Charles would definitely prefer to stay at CH, as did the Queen when she ascended. (Apparently CH is the nicest of the royal residences in London) But I think the fact that BP is the residence of the monarch goes a long way in justifying the money needed for its upkeep. Churchill made it clear to HM that not staying at BP was not even a consideration, I suspect the same will apply to Charles.
      There is always the option that H&M use their own money to buy a place for themselves. If they are serious about giving their child(ren) as normal a life as possible, then getting their own place might not be a bad idea.

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  35. I wonder whether the royal family received a memorandum that said, "You will only be seen in an automobile. Wear your flashiest earrings!"

    Perhaps there was a deliberate effort to keep the emphasis on Prince Charles, rather than letting pictures of the duchesses take over. Other royals were photographed, however. Interesting that the Norwegian ladies wore the same gowns the had worn when Kate and William visited them in Norway.

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    1. I expect you are right about the desire to have the focus be on Charles, Patricia I. Also, I may be wrong but I believe the few non-car photos of royals from other countries we've seen were released by those royals themselves, not by BP. (And probably those were released mostly for consumption in the royals' home countries.) I've seen comments here and elsewhere saying BP should have at least released a group photo of the BRF members who were guests at this event. I would have liked to see the outfits too, but releasing such a picture not only could have taken the focus off of the honoree, but likely would have had the effect of downplaying the value of the other guests, many of whom traveled great distances to attend vs driving in from a nearby residence. So that could have seemed rude. (And it would have been rude to ignore other guests while setting up a photo op!) Some comments I've seen say it should have been handled the way state occasions are. And it's true at state dinners group photos of the British senior royals in attendance have been released. But in those cases, only senior royals attend (not extend family) and ALL the senior royals pictured were effectively (if not technically) serving as hosts. At Charles's party there was no suggestion hosting duties were shared across the extended family.

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  36. I was hoping to see what Meghan is wear but with no luck but seeing the little that I see she's looking radiant

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  37. Yes to everything you said, Julia. I have a dear friend losing his life to this disease. It’s ghastly.

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