The tale of two royal books
Why is everyone so mad Meghan has written a book, but happy for Kate?
It was the tale of two books this week – on the one side, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge published her photography tome Hold Still and on the other, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex announced her new children’s book The Bench.
Guess which one everyone went off about? But really, what’s the big deal with Meghan writing a children’s book? Of all the things to get annoyed about, “royal pens a kids’ book”, isn’t one of them. Kerry wrote a column on this for today’s The Sunday Telegraph, to read, click here.
You may consider it cheesy; you might roll your eyes and think, “there goes another chance for normal authors to ever get a book deal,” as publishers continue to default to printing the good, bad and downright rubbish efforts of anyone with a household name, knowing they would shift a gazillion copies even if every page was blank.
But does it really merit the criticism it received? Piers Morgan thundered: “She continues to cynically exploit her royal titles because she knows that’s the only reason anyone is paying her vast sums of money to spew her uniquely unctuous brand of pious hectoring gibberish.”
Here’s what we think: The book might be heartfelt, or cynical, disingenuous, or a work of genius. We really don’t care. What we do care about is the relentless sniping over everything Meghan does, mainly because it is getting extremely boring. The more the anti-Meghan brigade shout, the more publicity each venture gets anyway – the book is currently a top ten bestseller on Amazon and it’s not even out until next month. And after all, like Kate, she’s in no way the first royal to turn author. Here’s a few:
Sarah, Duchess of York: Fergie has been pumping out children’s books for years including her Budgie the Little Helicopter and Little Red series’. She’s written self-help and diet books and is even bringing out a Mills and Boon romance Her Heart for a Compass in July.
Prince Charles: The Prince of Wales is also a prolific author. Books include those on architecture and gardening, A Vision of Britain and ornithology and he also wrote one for children - The Ladybird Book on Climate Change.
Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge: Kate spearheaded an ambitious photography project called Hold Still, to capture images of the UK public during lockdown. The National Portrait Gallery has turned entries into an exhibition and now she has published a book of 100 portraits. Proceeds from the sale go to the National Portrait Gallery and Mind. To order, click here.
Princess Michael of Kent: Another busy author is Princess Michael of Kent who has produced non-fiction titles and novels including The Queen Of Four Kingdoms, Agnès Sorel: Mistress of Beauty and Quicksilver.
Fabulous Zara turns 40
It’s turning out to be a year of celebrations for Zara Tindall - aka the world’s most laid-back royal and our no-nonsense queen. Back in March, Zara surprised husband Mike when she gave birth on their bathroom floor to first son and third child Lucas Philip and this Saturday she hits the big 40. Zara will be celebrating at her Gatcombe Park home with family and close friends.
Zara and baby son (the Queen’s 10th great-grandchild) were seen out for the first time together last Sunday at the Cirencester Park International Horse Trials. Zara was there cheering on one of her horses, Classicals Euro Star, but we didn’t get a sneak peek of Lucas, who stayed tucked up in his pram. Press reports speculated Zara didn’t want to upstage Princess Charlotte’s sixth birthday. Tbf, there’s no way we’d disturb a sleeping baby either. Mike revealed on his podcast recently, “There's not much going on. Just newborn, a month-old, same old stuff. Feeding, bum-wiping, but otherwise all good.”
Meet The Crown’s new Camilla
Olivia Williams’ ears are probs red hot now she’s landed the gig every actress over 50 would love on their CV. The 52-year-old takes over as Camilla on The Crown from that other underachiever, Oscar-winner Emerald Fennell and will soon be snuggling up to Dominic West, as Prince Charles. Wondering where you’ve seen her before? Here’s seven things you need to know about the new Duchess…
1 She hung out with dead people - starring in The Sixth Sense with Bruce Willis
2 Matt Le Blanc was her boyfriend – but only in Friends, see the hot pair here
3 Actor and musician Rhashan Stone is her husband - they have two children
4 She’s a pancreatic cancer survivor – that’s after being misdiagnosed for four years
5 Olivia has royal schoolmates - she went to South Hampstead High School where Helena Bonham Carter aka Princess Margaret, was in the year above
6 She loves books like Camilla – she read English at Newnham College, Cambridge
7 Olivia met Camilla - at a party in 2017
The Crown starts shooting this July, where Olivia will join the rest of the new Royal Family: Imelda Staunton as the Queen; Jonathan Pryce plays Prince Philip; Lesley Manville is Princess Margaret and Elizabeth Debicki plays Diana. We. Can’t. Wait.
Royally approved: Olverum Pure Radiance Facial Oil
Olverum is famous for its relaxing bath oil, which Prince Philip is said to have discovered and brought back to the UK and still used by many members of the Royal Family. And now the company has brought out Pure Radiance Facial Oil.
Promising to calm, plump and restore vitality to your skin, it’s made of essential oils and botanical extracts including Bakuchiol, a natural retinol alternative, Rosehip and Cacay oils, Patchouli extract and Vitamins C and E.
So does it work? Kerry gave it a go and after a month of using, can report that yes, it does. “It’s a great alternative to moisturiser,” she says, “and not greasy at all. It has a lovely smell and my skin is noticeably smoother and blemish-free. So much so, I have already ordered another one.” Priced £60, for more information, click here.
The new vlog stars of YouTube
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are the gift that keeps on giving. One week it’s a heart-warming home video, the next they’ve launched a royal YouTube channel. Huzzah! We’ve been watching the launch on a loop ever since, see it here. As for the latest uploads - emotional chats Catherine’s had with Hold Still book contributors - well, try keeping a dry eye over four-year-old Mila. Impossible.