Posted in Concert for Diana, Diana, Diana Concert, Joss Stone, Kate Middleton, Prince Harry, Princess Diana, Wembley on June 29th, 2007
A concert in memory of Princess Diana, who died ten years ago this summer, is being held at the new Wembley stadium on Sunday, July 1, which would have been her 46th birthday.
The concert is being organized by her two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, with the help of Chelsy Davy and Kate Middleton, both of whom are expected to be there.
Already lined up to perform are Elton John, Rod Stewart, Duran Duran, Take That, Lily Allen, Bryan Ferry, Pharrell Williams, The English National Ballet, Joss Stone, The Feeling, Fergie, James Morrison, Natasha Bedingfield, P. Diddy, Will Young and Andrew Lloyd Webber, who will stage a medley of songs from some of his greatest West End shows.
The event will be shown worldwide on TV and by internet streaming. You can find out how to view it in your country here.
Posted in Comments, England, Exeter, Moderation, Paris Hilton on June 29th, 2007
I’m getting a few emails about normal comments going into the moderation panel, so here’s a quick guide to what’s happening.
We have very strong spam comment guards as we get around 500 of them per site per day. Many of them are totally horrific, and the rest are attempts at grabbing free advertising space.
We also have “first-comment moderation”, which means the first time you comment on the site, it will be moderated. Once you get that cleared, you should get through every time unless you put in two links or more. Some words also trigger the trap.
The Royal Anecdotes site has always been a law unto itself in moderation, blocking quite ordinary comments. Gigi had one in there this morning which I’ve now released from captivity. Long comments are more likely to be blocked than shorter ones.
We normally look at the moderation panel around 5 to 6 times a day, so they will pop out at some time. If you’re commenting in the U.S. in the evening, or in Australia, you will have to wait till the sun comes up over Devon, England for its release.
Just think of Paris Hilton and wait patiently.
Posted in Buckingham Palace, Gordon Brown, Politics, Prime Minister, Royal Family, The Queen, Tony Blair on June 27th, 2007
Anyone who has seen the Oscar-winning film The Queen, with Helen Mirren in the title role, will remember the amusing scene in which Tony Blair is appointed HM’s 10th Prime Minister.
Today, that process was reversed when Tony Blair went to Buckingham Palace to tender his resignation.
Dour Scot, Gordon Brown, Chancellor of the Exchequer, was then appointed Prime Minister — the 11th of the Queen’s reign.
I mention this because, here in Britain, it seems such a momentous occasion. Blair has been in office for 10 long years and the public was yearning for a change.
But also because the film got it wrong. Nowadays, the incoming PM doesn’t have to kneel, nor kiss the Queen’s hand. It’s all done with just a brief exchange of words. Unlike in America, it’s the Queen who takes the oath, at her Coronation, and simply appoints the Prime Minister by asking him/her to form a Government.
However, the incident in the film pin-pointed a trait in Blair’s character : his lack of grasp of the detail. It’s a case of art casting light on reality.
The Queen appeared to get along well with Brown as he spent an hour in her company. In the movie, Blair was only there for a few minutes.
It’s at moments like these that the constitutional nature of the Monarchy is apparent to all.
No-one does it better than Elizabeth II.
Posted in Clarence House, Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, Kate Middleton, Prince William, Royal Family, Royal Wedding on June 25th, 2007
Clarence House appears to be damping down Saturday’s story of a rekindling of the romance between Prince William and Kate Middleton. On Sunday, a “source close to William” is reported as saying that rumours of romance are wide of the mark and he was far from ready to commit again.
Given the enthusiastic quotes from “sources” close to both parties on Saturday, it would seem we’re into a Battle of the Sources.
If the “source close to the Prince” is William’s equerry and aide Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, these are clearly William’s own views. However, this is a dangerous game to play. The public were fed up with the merry-go-round of unrebutted engagement stories that swirled around over Christmas and New Year. A repeat performance is almost certainly not in the best interests of either party.
If these two are back together, it has a clear path — marriage. If they are not, why then are they acting like love-sick teenagers?
Maybe William should hire Alastair Campbell as his publicist — for the sake of Kate’s reputation, if not his own.