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News.com.au
a day ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Kate quietly holds A-list meeting after abruptly pulling out of Royal Ascot
IN LONDON Kate has made a quiet return to work with a very A-list meeting after cancelling her appearance at Royal Ascot. Royal-watchers were left disappointed earlier this week after it emerged that she'd had to cancel her scheduled appearance in the royal carriage procession alongside the King, Queen and Prince William at the iconic raceground, after also missing it last year due to her cancer treatment. Just days later, it's now emerged that Kate, 43, has privately resumed work duties, meeting with philanthropist Melinda Gates, the ex-wife of Microsoft founder and billionaire, Bill Gates, at Windsor Castle. According to the Court Circular, which records royal engagements, she was joined by William for the June 25 meeting. The exact details of their discussion have not been disclosed, but according to Hello magazine, the Prince and Princess of Wales 'represented their Royal Foundation at the meeting, which focuses on areas including the early years and mental health'. Despite being on a positive trajectory since announcing her gradual return to public duties following the completion of her chemotherapy, there were concerns on Wednesday when Kate pulled out of the racing event at the last minute. She had already been listed to travel in the second carriage of the royal procession, alongside her husband. However, a short time later it was confirmed by Kensington Palace that Kate would not be attending, with local media reporting she was 'disappointed' but was having to 'find the right balance as she fully returns to public facing engagements'. Despite pulling out of Ascot, Kate still had plenty of high-profile appearances last week, including Trooping the Colour and the Order of the Garter ceremony. She's not expected to be seen publicly over the next few days, but is likely to turn up at Wimbledon, which kicks off on Monday. It's also understood she'll take part in events associated with the French President and First Lady's state visit to the UK early next month. Back in January, she revealed she was in remission from cancer, which she had first publicly disclosed last March. Last September, she released an emotional video message, featuring personal footage of herself with William and their three children, opening up about the challenges they'd all been privately battling – but also proudly announced she had completed her treatment.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Trump state visit shows the King has won the battle for Canada
The fest, as Donald Trump likes to call it, is coming. The King will host the US president in September for a full state visit after plans were put on fast forward by the Government. The upgraded visit, originally proposed as a semi-private trip to see the King in Scotland, will give team Trump the 'full bells and whistles' treatment and be based at Windsor Castle for the finest soft power the UK can throw at them. It is said to have caused tension between the palace and Government, placing the King in the unenviable position of formally hosting a head of state who has threatened to annex one of his own realms. After reports of the Prime Minister going 'against the wishes of the King', a Downing Street spokesman denied that Sir Keir Starmer had 'overruled' him when negotiating with the White House. Palace sources dismissed the idea that there is tension between the King and Sir Keir, emphasising that the monarch acts on the advice of the Government. 'His Majesty has known president Trump for many years and looks forward to hosting him and the first lady later this year,' a palace aide said. The message? The red carpet will be rolled out as usual. It is no secret though that the US state visit has proven one of the thorniest issues for the King on this year's diplomatic stage. Mr Trump has repeatedly threatened to annex Canada, insisting relentlessly that it should be America's '51st state'. The UK nevertheless invited him to be honoured. In turn, Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, said his countrymen ' weren't impressed ' by the state visit invitation. British diplomats noted that Mr Carney risked breaching the convention that realms tend not to publicly criticise one another. However, the King stepped up. As Canadian sovereign, he was dragged willingly into Canada's plans to show its own power. The King's involvement saw him fly to Ottawa in May for less than 24 hours on Canadian soil to deliver a speech at its parliament, reminding the world it is 'strong and free'. It was rightly interpreted as a public rebuke of Mr Trump's ambitions. One senior palace source said it was intended as 'thought-provoking, not provocative'. The King was, they said, 'leveraging on the long relationships he has built over the years' and using his role 'to the benefit of all the realms and commonwealth nations at a time of great international challenge'. Then, the idea of hosting Mr Trump in September seemed a challenge. However, the storyline has moved on. Some would argue, in fact, that the firming up of plans for the US state visit is a sign that the King has quietly won the battle for Canada. Everyone is aware of the 'diplomatic tightrope' the King has been walking, said one source, but he has done so with 'great skill'. 'I don't think anyone is now in doubt about the King's support and affection for Canada,' they said. When he is photographed shaking hands with Mr Trump, it is believed there will be no hurt feelings from Canadians who have already heard about the King's allegiance in person. Last week, Mr Carney said he no longer believes Mr Trump is interested in a '51st state' plan. Asked by CNN whether the US president is still threatening to annex Canada, he said: 'No, he is not.' 'He admires Canada,' he added. 'I think it's fair to say maybe for a period of time [he] coveted Canada.' The UK Government, which has prioritised trade deals and defence rather than siding with Canada in any war of words, has stuck to the basic party line that Canada is an 'independent, sovereign nation'. It is a matter of some satisfaction in British diplomatic circles that Mr Trump's rhetoric has dialled down drastically. 'We haven't heard much about Canada, have we?' one source asked of the past few weeks. The King's transatlantic show of force, it seems, has worked. Mr Trump has got his way when it comes to the details of the state visit. His team made it clear that the original suggestion of a low-key trip to see the King was not the order of the day. 'The president loves the pomp and ceremony,' said one source familiar with the negotiations. 'He doesn't want a private photograph with the Royal family – he wants a public one.' Mr Trump has described it as a 'fest', denoting the high level of flattery and fun he expects. The manu regia – the formal paperwork cementing the invitation – was signed by the King last week and hand delivered to the White House by representatives from the British Embassy in Washington. The King hopes to return to Canada at some point soon. Before then, he will raise a toast to the US at a state banquet in September with Mr Trump by his side. If the King's inevitable praise for America and Americans can be heard without guests' minds leaping immediately to Canada, the palace can consider it a job well done. It is a strategy not without risk, but high stakes can produce high rewards. It could – and should – be the moment that the idea of America invading its nearest neighbour is finally put to rest.
BBC News
3 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Sir Gareth joins the greats as football's seventh knighted manager
Gareth Southgate added his name to an elite footballing list when the former England manager received his knighthood at Windsor Castle on 54-year-old, who stepped down from the England post after almost eight years following defeat to Spain in the Euro 2024 final, was awarded the honour for services to influence, however, stretched beyond the field of play as he became one of football's most respected is only the seventh football manager to be given the joins the list of knights that also includes:England's World Cup-winning manager Sir Alf RamseyManchester United legends Sir Matt Busby and Sir Alex FergusonEngland, Barcelona, Newcastle and Ipswich great Sir Bobby RobsonLiverpool legend and Premier League-winning manager with Blackburn, Sir Kenny DalglishSir Walter Winterbottom, England's first international manager, who led his country from 1946 to 1962So what are the reflections now on Southgate's England tenure, and why has he been selected for the knighthood honour? You can let us know your thoughts in the comments section. A nearly manager of a nearly team? On the list of football manager knights, only Winterbottom and Southgate have not won a trophy in their managerial fell short of being the winner England and the Football Association wanted as they tried to end a barren sequence for the men's senior team stretching back to the 1966 World Cup along the way, Southgate did much to restore the image of his squad and the lost successive European Championship finals, to Spain in 2024 and to Italy at Wembley in were also beaten in a World Cup semi-final by Croatia in Moscow in 2018, meaning Southgate's reign will ultimately be judged as that of a nearly manager of a nearly may be regarded as a harsh judgement, but reality shows that Southgate could not overcome the obstacles to that elusive England success with a richly talented squad, as well as in circumstances that favoured them, such as against Italy in a home can be built on the finest of margins, and this was Southgate' the wider context, however, that record stands comparison to – and indeed improves upon – that of any of his predecessors following Sir Alf's World Cup knighthood accolade is reward for the exemplary manner in which he served England and the Football Association on so many levels: as a distinguished full international, coach of the under-21s, then as senior team manager when he succeeded Sam Allardyce, who left after one game, in late inherited chaos and almost turned it into measured in honours, Southgate's career may not be able to stand alongside those other names who claimed the game's biggest prizes - as a player he won the League Cup with Aston Villa in 1996 and again when he captained Middlesbrough in 2004 - but his significance and influence in the recent era is unquestionable. 'The perfect ambassador for England' Southgate not only placed England back on what had become unfamiliar territory by leading them to the latter stages of showpiece tournaments, but he also lightened the load of a shirt that was too heavy for so many before he took made players relish playing for England again, making a somewhat unloved national team popular once more, with the peak of that feelgood factor coming between the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the delayed Euro 2020 tournament, which was largely played at established himself as a mature, measured and civilised leader, who had a hinterland that stretched beyond football, proving priceless in moments when diplomacy was meant Southgate was comfortable tacking thorny issues that arose during his tenure, such as racism. He stepped forward on a night of shame in Sofia in October 2019, when a Euro 2020 qualifier against Bulgaria, which England won 6-0, was stopped twice after Tyrone Mings and Raheem Sterling were the targets of racist dealt with a hostile Bulgarian inquisition, making his point forcibly but always with the caution that England had problems of its own in this regard and should never believe it was something that only existed also accepted the LGBTQI+ community would feel "let down" when England backtracked on wearing the 'OneLove' armband at the Qatar World Cup after they were warned captain Harry Kane would receive a yellow card should he do was not just England's manager, he was the perfect ambassador for the FA when the game's waves spread beyond what happened on the pitch. Southgate 'made players and supporters dream again' On the pitch, Southgate's legacy will always be those agonising near misses, with the finger being pointed in his direction for conservative tactics, especially when early leads and domination ended with defeat to Croatia in the World Cup last four, as well as that defeat on penalties to Italy at someone so often portrayed as "too nice" – something mistaken for his basic decency – Southgate showed steel as a player and again as a before he was appointed as the permanent manager, caretaker boss Southgate effectively signalled the end for Wayne Rooney's England career by dropping the captain and record goalscorer for a World Cup qualifier in Slovenia before he was eased time with England ended after the 2022 World Cup, while Jack Grealish was cut from the Euro 2024 relationship with England's supporters fluctuated, from the adulation between 2018 and 2021 to the toxicity of a night at Molineux in June 2022 when the personal abuse was such that it had a profound impact on the Euro 2024 campaign, a somewhat joyless and mediocre affair in which much of the goodwill for Southgate had been diluted, also saw the manager pelted with empty beer cups and jeered by fans after a goalless draw with Slovenia in was poor payback for what Southgate had given those England fans, only adding to the sense that this was an era drawing to a close, and perhaps the manager would not be sorry to see the back of flickered fitfully in Germany, reaching the final which ended in the familiar pain of defeat at Spain deservedly won was a disappointing conclusion, making for a natural end to his time as England manager in which Southgate had made players and supporters dream the short-term disappointment eased, it was right that Southgate should be judged with total respect, and befitting of his reign that he should have his investiture moment.
Sky News
3 days ago
- Sport
- Sky News
Former England boss Gareth Southgate receives knighthood
Former England manager Gareth Southgate has described receiving a knighthood for his services to football as an "amazing honour". Sir Gareth, who led the Three Lions to consecutive European Championship finals in 2020 and 2024 and the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, accepted the gong from the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle on Wednesday. He becomes only the fourth England boss to be knighted, after Sir Walter Winterbottom, Sir Alf Ramsey and Sir Bobby Robson. Asked how it felt to be knighted, Sir Gareth said he was "more emotional than I thought I might be" and the occasion was an "amazing honour". He said managing his country for eight years was "an amazing privilege" but admitted he was "not missing that either". The 54-year-old, who is the only manager of the England men's team to reach two major finals, resigned from the role following a 2-1 Euro final defeat to Spain in July last year. 'We've broken down so many barriers' Reflecting on his spell in charge, Sir Gareth said: "We've broken down so many barriers to winning. "Ultimately, we didn't quite get to where we wanted to, but we're in a great position now to take things forward." Sir Gareth was succeeded as manager by Thomas Tuchel ahead of next year's World Cup, when it will be 60 years since Sir Alf Ramsey's side won the trophy in what is still the England men's team's only major honour. Asked how he assessed the squad's chances heading into the tournament, Sir Gareth said: "What I learned doing the job is it's important that people on the outside respect the space inside, so best that I stay out of the way and let them get on with it." Under Sir Gareth, England ended its 55-year wait for a men's final at Euro 2020, delayed 12 months by COVID, before being agonisingly beaten on penalties by Italy at Wembley. A late defeat to Spain three years later saw the side again miss out on silverware. Sir Gareth, who was recognised for his services to football in the New Year Honours in December, took charge of 102 England matches in total to add to the 57 caps he won for the national team as a player between 1995 and 2004. He also paid tribute to Prince William, who is president of the FA, describing him as a "genuine football fan" and an "amazing supporter" of both England and Aston Villa, who Sir Gareth played for during his 16-year career.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Gareth Southgate reveals Prince William's inspiring dressing-room message to England squad
Gareth Southgate has revealed Prince William gave inspiring dressing-room speeches to his former England squad. The former manager, who led the Three Lions to consecutive European Championship finals in 2020 and 2024 and the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, received a knighthood for his services to football from the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle on Wednesday (25 June). Sir Gareth, who said he was 'more emotional' than he thought he would be receiving the accolade, praised Prince William. He told Sky Sports: 'He is an incredible supporter of England team 'We have shared some amazing moments where he has spoke brilliantly to the team so it was great to see him again.'
