Royal Family

Families of the Birmingham pub bombing victims yesterday demanded that a former IRA commander implicated in the atrocity be arrested after he confessed to being behind Lord Mountbatten's (pictured, left) murder. Michael Hayes (right) told The Mail on Sunday that he designed and masterminded the attack that blew up the pleasure boat of King Charles 's beloved great-uncle in 1979. The unrepentant grandfather has always denied claims he was responsible for the two Birmingham blasts, which killed 21 people in 1974, despite claiming to have defused a third device. Yesterday Julie Hambleton (inset), whose sister Maxine, 18, was killed in the atrocity and who has led the Birmingham families' fight for justice, said that Hayes 'absolutely should be arrested'. Ms Hambleton, 61, added: 'He has made admissions, and if you or I said such a thing our feet wouldn't touch the ground.' Lord Mountbatten, a mentor to Prince Philip and Charles, was murdered aged 79 during a holiday at his summer home in Co Sligo.

Marking 20 years of marriage, the Spanish royals released a set of family photographs taken at the Royal Palace in Madrid this week. In the intimate new family portraits, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia smile alongside their two daughters Princess Leonor, 18, and Princess Sofia, 17, to mark the special occasion.

Dressed in a blue-patterned dress and matching hat, the Love Island host, 29, greeted King Charles, 75, and Queen Camilla , 76, and reminisced about her previous work - and awkward faux pas - with the monarch's charity, the Prince's Trust. She has previously attended fundraisers such as the Prince's Trust charity gala in 2022 and was also photographed meeting Charles in his role as the Prince of Wales at a trust event in 2019. At the garden party, Jama was humble about her previous encounters with the King as she apologised for previously breaking royal protocol.

The Palace sent a letter with 'the Queen's warmest wishes' to the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) which vowed Camilla 'will not procure any new fur garments'. The animal-rights group toasted the news with a glass of the finest claret and its managing director Ingrid Newkirk said: 'It's right and proper for the British monarchy to reflect British values by recognising that fur has no place in our society.' The letter did not state whether she would no longer wear any existing real-fur outfits, the BBC reported. She has followed in the footsteps of the late Queen Elizabeth II who made headlines in 2019 when Her Late Majesty's senior dresser Angela Kelly revealed she was no longer using real fur in her outfits. Camilla secretly switched to fake fur hats back in 2017 after receiving a barrage of criticism for wearing a Russian-style real fur hat to the Royal Family's Sandringham Christmas Day church seven years earlier. The latest row back by the royals continues the Palace's move towards becoming environmentally friendly with King Charles long championing green causes.

King Charles today unveiled the first completed official portrait of himself since the Coronation at Buckingham Palace. The painting, by the renowned artist Jonathan Yeo, was commissioned in 2020 to celebrate the then-Prince of Wales's 50 years as a member of The Drapers' Company. It depicts His Majesty wearing the uniform of the Welsh Guards, of which he was made Regimental Colonel in 1975. Today, Yeo spoke of a butterfly on the portrait echoing Charles's 'metamorphosis' from Prince to King during the process - and the monarch joked that it was nice to know he was a chrysalis. Yeo added: 'People often say is there a secret to doing a good portrait? And I say I don't know really. Actually I think there is one, and that's having an interesting subject to start with. And you couldn't ask for a better one than this, other than Her Majesty.' As he gestured towards Camilla - whom he painted in 2014 - the comment was greeted with much laughter in the palace. The canvas size - approximately 8.5ft by 6.5ft framed - was carefully considered to fit within the architecture of Drapers' Hall and the context of the paintings it will eventually hang alongside. Yeo had four sittings with The King, beginning when His Majesty was Prince of Wales in June 2021 at Highgrove, and later at Clarence House.

Dressed like a Hollywood A-lister at the Oscars , Meghan Markle's perma-smile throughout her three-day 'royal tour' in Nigeria said it all: 'I've won.' As she flies back to Los Angeles today, with a stop-over at Heathrow, she can reflect on having established herself as a popular British royal in Nigeria. I doubt she can quite believe it. In a brilliantly choreographed succession of events, the Duchess of Sussex could luxuriate in the sort of attention for which every Californian film star yearns.

As Meghan and Harry greeted Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Sunday afternoon, London-based photographer and close friend Misan Harriman stood behind them. The Sussexes walked hand-in-hand as they arrived at the State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu's house, where they were guests of honour, and Misan dutifully snapped the moment. (Pictured L: Misan capturing the moment Meghan greeted State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu. Inset is Meghan and Misan during a Netflix Q&A in December 2023)

Prince Harry has flaunted his 'presidential-style' four-man security team on his 'quasi-royal' trip of Nigeria. Critics have claimed the trip to the ninth most dangerous country in Africa is 'hypocritical' and have branded it the 'Harry and Meghan show'. Former royal protection officer Dai Davies said: 'Seeing all his presidential style security really does stick in the throat. 'For a couple who say all they want is privacy to visit one of the most dangerous places in the world and that's not me saying that, it's the Foreign office as well, is crazy and you have to wonder why.

Prince William, known as the Duke of Cornwall in the South West, couldn't resist picking up the traditional Cornish treat while visiting The Quay cafe on the Scilly Isle of Tresco. The royal said he would be taking the pasties home for Catherine and the children. (Pictured: Prince William on a tour of Tresco on Friday)

The Duke of Westminster's wedding next month is the most anticipated society event of the year. And the Duke, Hugh Grosvenor, 33, and his fiancée, Olivia Henson, 31, have been carrying out a very regal string of engagements this week in Chester, where they are due to exchange vows, visiting three charities - Cheshire Dance, Storyhouse and the Cathedral Music Trust. Prince George's godfather and Olivia, who works at sustainable food company Belazu, chatted with participants at a Young Leaders workshop. They later sat next to each other in the pews at Chester Cathedral, where their wedding will be held. They joined family music programme where Hugh joked: 'Next time we're in here will be slightly more nerve-wracking. 'He added: 'But I'm unbelievably excited.' (pictured: The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson).

Prince Harry's arrival in Britain had triggered speculation that father and son would meet. There was even murmur of an olive branch being extended. Instead, the hand-wringing excuses of 'full diaries' offers a different and, for Harry, a more ominous message. Unlike that dramatic flying visit in February, where the Prince was granted a less than 30-minute meeting just after Charles's cancer diagnosis had been made public, the palace gates remained firmly closed.

King Charles is predicted to finish building the final quadrant of his Poundbury model town in 2028 - with the area set to become one of the most sought after in the country. Poundbury is on Duchy of Cornwall land near Dorset in Dorchester, and wasKing Charles' vision of an utopian idyll, where private and affordable housing mix with boutique shops, places of work and services like schools and medical centres within walking distance. The royal started working on the project in the late 1980s, and since then, it has grown to boast around 2,320 homes, 4,600 residents and 240 businesses employing 2,400 people. Poundbury was named one of the best places to live in Britain by The Sunday Times last year (pictured L-R: King Charles; an aerial view of Poundbury's Great Field. Inset: Queen Mother Square in Poundbury).

He was crowned in a majestic ceremony (inset) inside Westminster Abbey a year ago today. But in the year since that stunning day, His Majesty has had a lot to deal with, both personally and as a father, husband and as head of the Royal Family. He continues to undergo cancer treatment after his diagnosis in February (bottom left), which was followed by the Princess of Wales's own shock health news. The nation was stunned when Kate revealed (top right) in March that she too is suffering from cancer, which was found after she underwent major abdominal surgery at the same time as Charles was initially treated for an enlarged prostate (left, leaving hospital). It came after the Royal Family was rocked by the death of Thomas Kingston, the son-in-law of the King's cousin Prince Michael of Kent . He took his own life at his parents' home on February 25. And in April, Charles grappled with renewed focus on his disgraced brother Prince Andrew amid the release of Netflix drama Scoop (centre right), which focused on his disastrous Newsnight interview following his relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and the fallout from the sexual assault allegations made by Virginia Giuffre. It came after the publication of Omid Scobie's book Endgame (bottom right) in November last year.

She enjoys many and varied interests, from gardening and riding to the serious task of championing literature. Yet, despite the time she spent at a Swiss finishing school, few would have had Queen Camilla down as a domestic goddess. But she has written the foreword to a new edition of An Unbroken Thread: Celebrating 150 Years of the Royal School of Needlework. And she makes quite a disclosure...

Seeming, once again, to present themselves as an alternative royal family, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will undertake a very regal visit to Nigeria next week, following their royal tour of Africa in 2019 (pictured). Invited by the West African nation's highest-ranking military official, the Chief of Defence Staff, Prince Harry and Meghan are guaranteed to receive the sort of security which they expected British taxpayers to provide. Harry, you might recall, sought a judicial review of the Home Office 's decision to strip him, Meghan, and their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, of their automatic right to police security in Britain after they chose to quit royal duties and seek their fortune across the Atlantic. King Charles's younger son lost the case in February, with the action estimated to have cost him about £1million, including his own legal costs and those due to the Home Office. There will be no such worries for Harry and Meghan next week, when the security tab will be paid by the government of Nigeria, a country where an estimated 87million people live below the poverty line.

ROBERT HARDMAN: His tie said it all. It has been a favourite since he became King, appearing on away days, at Palace receptions and even a trip to church. Featuring a blue dinosaur pattern on a pink silk background, it is a cheeky play on his official 'Charles III Rex' cypher. Staff know that when 'C-Rex' is wearing his 'T-Rex' tie, he probably has a spring in his step. And so it was as the King came to the Macmillan Cancer Centre at London 's University College Hospital to mark his cautious return to regular public duties for the first time since his own diagnosis in February.

The Duke of Sussex, 39, will fly to Britain next month for the first time since the Princess of Wales revealed her cancer diagnosis. Neither the Sussexes' office nor Buckingham Palace have confirmed any plans for Harry to meet with either his brother Prince William, sister-in-law Princess Kate, or his father King Charles. He will give a reading at St Paul's Cathedral on May 8 to mark the Games' tenth anniversary, but no mention has been made of the attendance of any senior royal or his wife Meghan Markle, 42, and their two children - Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. It is thought Harry will stay in a hotel during his stay in the UK - as he done on his previous recent visits - before days later jetting off to Nigeria to join Meghan.

Kate, 42, has been made a Royal Companion of the organisation, which was founded by King George V in 1917 to recognise outstanding achievements in the arts, sciences, medicine and public service. The Mail understands it is the first time that a member of the royal family has been appointed in the order's century-long history. Sources say it is a symbol of the 'great esteem' the princess is held in by her father-in-law, King Charles. As well as being a personal thank you for her loyal service to the Crown since she married Prince William almost 13 years ago, it is also an acknowledgment of her contribution to the arts. The Princess of Wales has received a unique honour from the King in recognition of her years of public service after being appointed to The Order of the Companions of Honour. Above: Charles and Kate at the premiere of James Bond film No Time To Die in 2021. Inset: The Order of the Companions of Honour.

Rebel Wilson has claimed a member of the Royal Family invited her to a drug-fuelled orgy at the home of a US tech billionaire. The Australian does not name the royal, but gives three hints: he is male, it happened in 2014 and he was 'fifteenth or twentieth in line to the British throne'. In her memoir, Rebel Rising, she tells how she got 'a last-minute invite to a tech billionaire's party' from the royal who had told a male friend, 'We need more girls'. What a perfect opportunity to find a boyfriend, I thought.' According to the book, the medieval-themed party was held at a rented ranch just outside Los Angeles .

When 23-year-old Anne Coke married the Scottish aristocrat Colin Tennant at St Withburga's Parish Church in Norfolk on 21 April 1956, it must have seemed like a fairytale match. After all Lady Anne, the daughter of the 5th Earl of Leicester, was a wealthy and beautiful former Debutante of the Year whose family had been close confidantes of the Royals family for generations. Her grandmother was Edward VIII's mistress and her father an equerry to George VI, while she had been maid of honour at the late Queen's coronation three years earlier and would later become lady-in-waiting to Princess Margaret. Indeed, Anne had been great friends with the young Princesses Margaret and Elizabeth ever since they had played together as children both at Sandringham and at her own grand home a few miles away - Holkham Hall, a stunning Palladian mansion set in its own glorious 25,000-acre estate. The suave and charismatic Hon. Colin, meanwhile, was heir to Baron Glenconner and the family's 3,500-acre estate at The Glen, near Traquair in the Scottish Borders. As part of Princess Margaret's rather raffish set, he knew many glamorous people from the world of literature, art and show business.

King Charles' goddaughter, India Hicks, posted about her mother, Lady Pamela Hicks, on her Instagram account and revealed the precious story behind her unexpected birth in 1929. India began the post and said: 'My mother's arrival into this world was somewhat of a surprise.' She then went on to say that her grandmother, Edwina Mountbatten, was eight months pregnant with Lady Pamela when she went on a trip to Spain for a few days. She added that her determined grandmother was 'not going to be stopped' from going abroad.