Royal Family RECAP: King Charles makes 'declaration of war' on Harry and Meghan

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Princess Catherine has spoken of a sweet pastime that she shared with her children during the Coronavirus lockdown.

The 44-year-old is currently in Northern Italy for a two-day visit on behalf of The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood.

Princess Catherine has opened up about a beloved family member following their "sad" passing.

The 44-year-old is currently in Italy for a two-day visit on behalf of The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood.

Meghan Markle has carried on her frenzied posting just hours before Princess Catherine arrived in Italy for her first major overseas trip since her cancer diagnosis.

On Monday, the Duchess of Sussex posted a new promotional video on Instagram for her lifestyle brand, As Ever, which coincided with a major rebrand of her website.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been left humiliated as he’s "left with just three members of staff" following his move to Norfolk earlier this year.

In the updated paperback edition of his book, Entitled, author Andrew Lownie claims that the 66-year-old's domestic arrangements have meant that he is now left with a scaled-down staff.

Royal fans were delighted today after the Princess of Wales began her two-day trip in Italy.

Princess Catherine received a warm welcome as she arrived in Reggio Emilia for her first major royal tour in nearly four years to learn about an innovative approach to early years teaching.

Flora Vesterberg has shared some behind-the-scenes pictures from her London-based baby shower. The 31-year-old, who tied the knot with Timothy Vesterberg in 2021, announced her pregnancy back in January.

The royal, who is one of Princess Alexandra's granddaughters, shared some pictures from the special day on Instagram to her 73 thousand followers.

Princess Catherine will travel overseas this week with a solo visit to Reggio Emilia in Northern Italy.

Whilst his wife travels to Italy, Prince William is set to remain in the UK to care for their three children at their family home in Windsor.

Good afternoon. Royal reporter Lauren Welch here and I will be bringing you live updates this evening.

You can contact me at lauren.welch@reachplc.com.

A former member of the Royal Household has lifted the lid on what King Charles absolutely refuses to have in his car while travelling. Grant Harrold, a butler who previously served the monarch, has opened up about the royals and their relationship with motor vehicles.

The King himself has a long-standing passion for being behind the wheel, particularly when it comes to his cherished Aston Martin DB6 Volante, which was presented to him as a gift on his 21st birthday.

Speaking on behalf of Select Car Leasing, Grant went into greater detail about the King’s preferences regarding what he likes — and what he most certainly does not like — to have in his vehicle.

King Charles and Queen Camilla arrived at the Palace of Westminster today to attend the State Opening of Parliament. Their Majesties left Buckingham Palace in the horse-drawn Irish State Coach and arrived for the King to read out The King's Speech and set out the government's planned new laws for the next Parliamentary session and beyond.

The King and Queen's carriage was accompanied by a Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry as they travelled in the carriage procession to the House of Lords.

There were initial questions over whether the speech should take place after the "bloodbath" of the local council elections. Politico reported that top palace aides privately asked whether King Charles should proceed as planned with the ceremonial State Opening of Parliament.

According to those familiar with the discussions, the King’s team made clear to Starmer’s officials the importance of protecting the monarch from any impression that he is being used for political ends. “The Palace view is ‘we do not want to be any part of this conversation — do not bring us into it.'”

Here, the Daily Express have gathered the best pictures from the historic ceremony.

The Princess of Wales has arrived in Italy today and is feeling “energised and enthused” for her first overseas trip since her cancer diagnosis in early 2024, Kensington Palace has said. Eighteen months after the princess announced she was in remission, the visit is seen as an “important step” in the princess's recovery, as she throws herself into her early years' work with renewed vigour, with plans to “take it up a gear”.

Catherine made a beeline for a group of preschool children and spoke to them in Italian shortly after she arrived in Reggio Emily on Wednesday afternoon.

Princess Eugenie was reportedly left fuming by comments made by Prince Harry in 2019 after she announced she was pregnant with her third child. Harry claimed that he and his wife, Meghan Markle, would have no more than two children due to fears of overpopulation and climate change during a conversation about climate change and sustainability.

Many royal experts at the time believed that the comments were a veiled dig at his brother, Prince William, who had welcomed his third child just a year prior. However, after Harry’s cousin Eugenie announced that she and husband Jack Brooksbank were expecting their third child, the comments are believed to have resurfaced in royal circles.

Sarah Ferguson was reportedly “chaotic” to work for, it has been claimed in the new chapter of Andrew Lownie’s book, Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York. The author, who sent shockwaves around the world when he published the book last year, has added a new chapter of revelations to the paperback version, which will be published on May 21.

One of these revelations is the fact that Sarah, 66, was not the easiest person to work for. This was told to Lownie by one of Sarah’s long-serving personal assistants.

The personal assistant, who has not been named, was not complimentary about having the former Duchess as a boss, and even summed it up with a surprising eight-word comment.

If there is one thing Zara Tindall consistently does well, it is bringing a fashion-forward edge to classic royal dressing - and her Buckingham Palace Garden Party look on Friday was no exception. Joining the Prince and Princess of Wales at the annual event, Zara delivered a real Cinderella moment in a beautiful powder blue designer dress, but it was her Aspinal of London clutch that truly caught our attention.

The 44-year-old was spotted carrying an embroidered handbag from the British luxury label, crafted from a summery raffia-style canvas and detailed with delicate blue floral stitching. While Zara opted to wear it elegantly tucked under her arm as a clutch, the design also comes with a detachable matching blue chain strap, allowing it to be easily styled over the shoulder or crossbody for a more relaxed daytime feel.

Aspinal of London has long been one of the Royal Family’s most-loved handbag brands. From Queen Camilla through to Princess Catherine, the label’s timeless British craftsmanship has made it a firm fixture within royal wardrobes over the years.

Princess Lilibet has been given an adorable new nickname after her recent trip to Disney. Meghan Markle took to Instagram yesterday to share photographs from a recent family trip to the theme park with Prince Harry, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, alongside her own mum Doria Ragland.

The photographs showed the family enjoying Disney to the full, meeting characters and having fun on the rides. However, there was one photograph that seemed to get the attention of royal fans online.

This was a picture of Princess Lilibet hugging Cinderella.

For years, the world has watched the boundary between respect for the monarchy and hunger for drama blur into an indistinguishable line. And, with shows like Netflix’s The Crown, the days of quiet deference are gone, with years of shifting politics and fading empires to tackle, drama will always prevail.

With the update that new episodes of the show, which will examine the years following Queen Victoria's death in 1901 and Princess Elizabeth's wedding in 1947, have been greenlit, there is a chance for further scrutiny when every event from the two World Wars to Edward VIII’s abdication crisis and the uneasy accession of George VI will be looked at with fresh eyes.

While many fans of the Royal Family will be delighted by the news, one of Britain's leading historians has issued a stark warning.

Flora Vesterberg has shared some behind-the-scenes pictures from her London-based baby shower. The 31-year-old, who tied the knot with Timothy Vesterberg in 2021, announced her pregnancy back in January.

The royal, who is one of Princess Alexandra's granddaughters, shared some pictures from the special day on Instagram to her 73 thousand followers. The caption read: "A heavenly baby shower! Thank you to all of my wonderful girlfriends for equipping me for motherhood. "I’m very grateful for your wisdom. And to my husband and parents for the garden flowers and endless Swedish buns and blackberries."

Over the last 10 years, the British monarchy has changed considerably. Not only do we have King Charles on the throne now, rather than his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, but we also have a different number of working royals too.

With Prince Harry and Meghan Markle having quit royal life in 2020, and Andrew having had to step away from royal duty just before that, the pool of working royals does seem significantly smaller. However, it is still working for now.

This is because King Charles and Queen Camilla, the head of the family, are supported by some very loyal working royals.

There is no denying that the monarchy has fewer working royals than it once did, which some may see as a concern. However, it seems that this is not something Express readers are worried about.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been accused of kicking his dog in the head by a royal biographer. Andrew Lownie’s upcoming book, Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, alleges the incident happened at Sandringham.

According to the book, a friend of the Royal Family joined the former prince at the monarch’s Norfolk estate for a pheasant shoot. Lownie writes: "Mid-morning, everyone gathered for hot soup and sausage rolls. The guest was standing next to Andrew, who had his Labrador by his side. Suddenly, the dog leapt and snatched the guest’s sausage roll from his hand, causing him to laugh.” Lownie alleges that Andrew then "kicked the dog in the head, leaving her whimpering on the ground." According to the author, the guest told Andrew: "That is the most disgusting thing that you have just done to your beautiful dog. You should be ashamed of yourself!"

Royal fans have been sent into a frenzy after one of Princess Catherine’s relatives were spotted with Queen Camilla this week. The Princess of Wales’ brother, James Middleton, was all smiles on Tuesday as he attended a reception at Clarence House hosted by Queen Camilla.

The reception was in honour of cancer-detecting dogs trained by Medical Detection Dogs. The dogs are trained to sniff out signs of cancer in humans.

James was present at the event as his company, Ella & Co, donates treats for the dogs, who carry out life-saving work.

King Charles has made a telling five-word comment about his health this week at the latest Buckingham Palace garden party. The King and Queen Camilla hosted the party on Tuesday, which was the third garden party of 2026, and were joined by The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.

The royals spent time talking to as many of the thousands of guests as possible. The party was held to honour frontline workers across the country.

As well as learning about the vital work the guests carry out, the King also chatted to one lady about health and ageing.

The Princess of Wales’s two-day trip to Italy has been described as a “significant moment” for the future Queen as she seeks to expand her early childhood campaign on the global stage. Catherine, who will arrive in the red-roofed Renaissance city of Bologna on Wednesday afternoon, is feeling “energised and enthused” for her first overseas trip since her cancer diagnosis in early 2024.

Eighteen months after Catherine announced she was in remission, the trip is seen as an “important step” in the Princess’ recovery as she throws herself into her early years' work with renewed vigour and plans to “take it up a gear”. Though her team are mindful to find the right balance as she manages her return to work alongside her ongoing recovery.

“This is a huge moment for the princess,” an aide to the princess said. “There will be many highlights of 2026 but this being her first international visit post her recovery… this is a really significant moment for her.”

Prince William is determined to watch his favourite football team compete in the Europa League final, a Palace source has revealed.

The Prince of Wales attended the semi-final of the Europa League on May 7, where his beloved team beat out Nottingham Forest for a place in the final. A lifelong Villa supporter, Prince William was gripped by the drama unfolding at Villa Park. A brace from John McGinn capped off a momentous evening following earlier strikes from Ollie Watkins and Emiliano Buendia, with the future king barely containing his excitement. He was seen punching the air and singing along to "Sweet Caroline" as fans celebrated the victory, their first major European final since 1982. Now, Aston Villa is set to face the German team Freiburg in Istanbul, Turkey, on May 20, and the prince looks set to hopefully take part in the celebrations. A win would be the club’s first major trophy in 30 years.

A former butler to King Charles has spoken about the many cars the monarch has driven in his lifetime, and some have special features or additions. This includes a Jaguar on which a small, but pertinent, message about the King’s stance on nature is displayed. Speaking on behalf of Select Car Leasing, Grant claimed: “He also has a Jaguar which has a big sticker on the back saying ‘Save the Red Squirrel’.”

The endangered native animal has seen a severe population decline due to the introduction of American grey squirrels. For over 50 years, Charles has been a prominent advocate for environmental sustainability, focusing on organic farming, climate change action, and biodiversity conservation. He established organic practices at his Highgrove estate and is a passionate champion for conserving natural landscapes.

Princess Catherine will travel overseas this week with a solo visit to Reggio Emilia in Northern Italy. The visit will be the 44-year-old's first overseas trip since 2023, and her first since her cancer diagnosis in early 2024.

Travelling on behalf of The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, Catherine will be studying the "Reggio Emilia Approach," an educational philosophy focusing on community-based, early-years education that emphasizes nature, creativity, and the role of the child. The trip follows her previous work on early childhood development and aligns with her efforts to promote outdoor learning and human connection over excessive screen time for children.

Here, the Daily Express looks at everything we need to know about Catherine's upcoming Italian visit.

Good morning. Royal reporter Jasmine Carey here and I will be bringing you royal updates today.

You can contact me at jasmine.carey@reachplc.com.

Prince Harry has been branded a "spoiled brat" after it was reported he is "very sad" that Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet are "missing out on life with the rest of their family". Describing his heartache, a source close to the Duke of Sussex, 41, said he was saddened that his two children are missing out on the "extensive family network that their cousins are enjoying," referring to Prince William's children.

"I don't know what this spoiled brat expects," raged Sky News Australia host Danica De Giorgio. "What did he expect when he uprooted his family and went to live in Montecito and constantly slammed the Royal Family?"

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the Royal Family. We'll bring you the latest throughout the day.