Apologies for disrupted service
Regular readers will know that there has not been much activity in Royal Anecdotes for the past two or three months.
There are various reasons for this, not the least being that Royal news of any consequence has been thin on the ground. The rest is explained by a major reorganization of Syntagma sites, the development of a new business: Syntagma Books, and my own writing activities: The Eternal Quest for Immortality: Is it staring you in the face?, to be published very shortly.
Starting on Monday October 26, RA will be one of eight remaining sites in Syntagma Digital (down from 55), which will receive full attention and posting.
I hope you will forgive the tardiness and continue to support RA in its new incarnation.
Best wishes
John
We wish you the best in all your endeavors, John, and look forward to your more active involvement at RA!
I’ve been seeing lots of reports about Prince Harry & Chelsy’s reconciliation. I think the renewal of their romance is a bright spot on the Royal scene.
By Evelyn on October 18th, 2009 at 3:46 am
Thank you, Evelyn.
I’ve seen the speculation too, and who knows. However, they do share the same social scene and many friends so it’s not always easy to separate heavy dates from casual meetings.
By John on October 18th, 2009 at 9:14 am
I too will be supporting the new incarnation of RA.
Looking forward to more John time!
By Cristina on October 19th, 2009 at 6:59 am
My dear John, I assure you that we understand that there are only 24 hours in the day and that you have been burning the midnight oil well past the point of utter exhaustion! We shall not forsake you, nor our dear Royal Anecdoes, in any of it’s evolving manifestations. There shall be more Royal Anecdotes Gala Tea toasts to be proposed and drunk, more Balmoral Dundee cake to be enjoyed, I shall swear.
RAers, keep dieting and excercising, Christmas Season is afoot! I shall not spare the sugar nor the chocolate and the champagne shall continue to flow like the Thames at High Tide. I would express a few sentiments regarding our own Dan at the sideboard, but since all RAers are aware of the history and traditions of our Teas, I feel there is no need. 
By Gigi on October 19th, 2009 at 7:21 pm
John, best of luck with the exciting new endeavors! Glad to see things are beginning to settle down, and here’s hoping that there will be plenty to discuss here at RA in the near future!
By Leslie on October 19th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
gigi – looking forward to our holiday tea – must watch myself as i’m on a diet wanting to drop 10 by holidays.
john – good luck with the book – can we get it on amazon?
By coni on October 19th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Gigi, if John’s book is to be published “shortly,” would it be appropriate to organize a special tea to mark that accomplishment?
By Evelyn on October 19th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
Coni, it’s being distributed by Ingram, the biggest book service in America, so it will be available from Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and every other conceivable outlet.
Our designer and production person, Deborah Woehr, who lives in the Silicon Valley area of California, is very experienced in the US book market so no stone will be left unturned.
We hope to get it published next week, and it takes about three weeks to hit Amazon. It should be out for Christmas purchase.
By John on October 19th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
Thanks, everyone else for the good wishes. Gigi, I’m going to be in need of sustenance once we get this thing out there. Don’t spare the calories.
By John on October 19th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
John, what day next week would it suit you for us to celebrate Royal Anecdotes John Evan’s Gala Book Launching Tea? Please let me know what day you would prefer!
By Gigi on October 19th, 2009 at 11:13 pm
Gigi, I’ll let you know what the day the book is out. We’re moving mountains this week to get it published quickly. And we’ve got a series of postal strikes over here.
By John on October 20th, 2009 at 8:07 am
http://tinyurl.com/yhhrv9z
In light of Rome’s move today to poach traditional Anglicans, I wonder whether Buckingham Palace will reconsider the meeting between Her Majesty and the Pope this Autumn?
As a conservative Episcopalian who feels increasingly lost within the Episcopal Church (US), I’m struggling to come to terms with Rome’s move, myself.
Rowan Williams, who admitted he was caught out by the announcement (!!!), insists that it’s business as usual between the two churches. I won’t comment except to say that my eyebrows have risen so far as I type this that I suspect they are somewhere on top of my head at this point.
I can’t help but wonder what is going through Her Majesty’s mind today, knowing she is a devout Christian who clearly has been troubled by the schism in the Anglican Communion.
By Leslie on October 20th, 2009 at 2:34 pm
Leslie, this is another case where the outer show takes precedence over inner meaning.
As someone brought up in the Anglican faith, but who thinks Christianity has partly lost its way, I take the view that rules are less important than the search for inner knowledge.
But I’m anticipating my book.
By John on October 20th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
john – will mark my calendar to look for your book early december – talk about small world..silicon valley is only an hour south of me here in san francisco!
gigi – we’ll have to pull out all the stops for johns book party
By coni on October 20th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
I have no insight into HM’s feelings about gays in the priesthood (they are able to serve openly in HM’s armed forces), but I wonder if her dismay at the Anglican Church’s direction extends to the controversy about women as priests and bishops. (I didn’t realize this was still a controversy.)
If a woman can be Supreme Governor of the Church (as she is) surely a woman is qualified to be a priest or a bishop in it?
If she believes a woman should not be anointed in Christ’s name to be a priest or bishop, how can she believe a woman could be anointed in Christ’s name to govern the Church or, for that matter, to reign as Monarch?
The two positions are unreconcilable.
By Dan on October 20th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
Dan, I’m not aware that the Queen is against women priests. Most of us here are all in favour. Women are often better at the pastoral role of a priest than men are.
Personally, I would have no objection if a woman became Archbishop of Canterbury — on merit, of course. I’m sure HM thinks the same.
By John on October 20th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
I hardly think Rome is trying to “poach” traditional Anglicans. The Vatican is making it easier for Anglicans and Episcopalians, who feel disaffected by recent changes in their own Communions, to be reunited with the Roman Catholic church.
As far as Rowan Williams being caught out by the announcement,
a joint statement from Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster and Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury was included in this morning’s announcement of the pending new protocols by the Holy See. In their message, the twin primates saw the development as “a fruit of ecumenical dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion.”
Bottom line, traditional Anglicans, happy with their church, will choose to remain Anglicans and those who fell unhappy will find it easier to make a new home within the Roman Catholic church.
By Arthur on October 21st, 2009 at 12:58 am
Well said, Arthur. These are troubling times for a great many Christians, and my own belief is that Christ would wish for us all to assist those troubled persons in finding their own bridge to God. Our Lord Jesus Christ was inclusive in His compassion, His teaching, His healing and in seeking out those who were in need. We are called to continue His work and I hope we will do so, each to the best of his/her ability.
By Gigi on October 21st, 2009 at 2:56 am
John – I’m so looking forward to your book! Congrats! And of course, I’ll be supporting your updated site here as well.
By Julie on October 24th, 2009 at 1:31 am
Thanks, Julie. Should get the site cranked up again in the next few days.
By John on October 24th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
The Daily Mail has an article (“Throne Clones”) that show photos of current members of the Royal Family and their ancestors from whom they may have inherited physical features. The most striking is Princess Beatrice, who does bear an amazing resemblance to the young Queen Victoria, especially her eyes.
By Evelyn on October 26th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
I saw the article as well, and in many examples I saw more of a resemblance of poses than anything else. They matched poses perfectly, where often a true likeness was less obvious.
Still, in most of the examples offered, we are looking at only three generations of the SAME FAMILY. Of course they look alike!
By Dan on October 26th, 2009 at 11:36 pm
I agree with you, Dan. But I do think that in the first example– Princess Beatrice’s eyes compared with a painting of the young Queen Victoria– there was a striking resemblance. People have often commented (sometimes negatively) on Beatrice’s eyes, so it was very interesting to see where they came from.
By Evelyn on October 27th, 2009 at 12:25 am
Beatrice does resemble portraits of the young Victoria painted by Winterhalter and others. The portrait in the Mail’s piece has been reversed to match Beatrice’s pose. In the actual painting, Victoria is turning to the right.
I would sooner have flipped the photo than the painting!
By Dan on October 27th, 2009 at 1:17 am
Could someone provide the link to that story? I just got back from four days out of state and I can’t find theat feature in the Daily Mail. Thanks!
By Gigi on October 27th, 2009 at 4:50 am
Gigi, the link is: http://tinyurl.com/yk4vn8d
By John on October 27th, 2009 at 9:35 am