Prince William and Kate Middleton continue to do good.
The royal couple will visit the offices of Child Bereavement UK at the Clare Charity Centre in Saunderton, Buckinghamshire on March 19, St. James’s Palace has announced.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will meet staff from the charity’s bereavement services as well as its training and fundraising teams.
The parents-to-be will then be introduced to bereaved families involved in the charity’s services.
The charity supports families and educates professionals when a baby or child of any age dies or is dying, or when a child is facing bereavement.
Prince William is a patron of the charity.
Category: News
Chi, the Italian gossip magazine that incurred the wrath of the royal family last September when it printed topless photos of a sunbathing Kate Middleton, is at it again — this time publishing the first photos to show the Duchess’ growing baby bump.
The photos were captured by a paparazzo during Kate and Will’s recent sojourn to the holiday island of Mustique.
The Sunday People was first to report the news of the photos’ existence, noting that it turned down an offer to view them “and, like the rest of the British media, will not publish them.”
One photo revealed ahead of the magazine’s Wednesday release date shows a bikini-clad Kate walking on the beach with her husband, an oh-so-slight bump mostly obscured by shadows.
Despite the comparatively benign nature of the photos, they were still intrusive enough to warrant a strongly worded statement from St James’s Palace.
“We are disappointed that photographs of the Duke and Duchess on a private holiday look likely to be published overseas,” a royal spokeswoman said. “This is a clear breach of the couple’s right to privacy.”
It was unclear, however, if the royal family planned to take legal action as they had following last year’s topless shots.
The Duchess, who is said to be due in July, is expected to make her second official public appearance since December’s pregnancy announcement on February 19th. It was speculated that she would use the opportunity to show off her baby bump for the first time.
Here’s some food for thought: Is Kate Middleton a powerful woman?
No, according to BBC Radio’s 4’s first-ever Woman’s Hour top 100 list, which named the 100 most powerful women in the U.K. and noticeably passed over the Duchess of Cambridge, calling her “influential” but not “powerful.”
Surprisingly enough, Kate’s grandmother-in-law Queen Elizabeth took the top slot, followed by the U.K.’s Home Secretary Teresa May. Angela Ahrendts, the CEO of Burberry, Victoria Beckham, Adele, Stella McCartney and J.K. Rowling also nabbed spots in the top 100.
The list was compiled by a judging panel that included journalist Eve Pollard, conservative MP Priti Patel, Labour politician and peer Oona King (who recently competed on the British reality show Dancing on Ice) and crime novelist Val McDermid.
Speaking about the top 100 list, Pollard confessed the panel was aware of the controversy the mama-to-be’s omission would certainly cause:
“Inevitably not everyone will agree with our 100,” she admitted. “There are some omissions. For example, we had long debates about the Duchess of Cambridge.”
“Is she influential? Hugely. Is she powerful? Not yet,” the former newspaper editor added.
“Most women on our list have power because they have reached a place where they have control—of policy, of direction, of influence, of staff,” she explained. “The panel also included some women who have soft power—the ability to transform the way we think about ourselves.”
The Duchess of Cambridge is due to give birth in July and could resume her royal duties as early as next month after recovering from her pregnancy sickness, aides said Monday.
The Duchess, 31, had a 12-week scan earlier this month showing that her unborn baby is in good health, prompting St. James’s Palace to announce the expected birth month.
It means that the Duchess was only about six weeks pregnant when she and the Duke were forced to disclose that she was pregnant during her hospital stay at the start of December. She is now thought to be 13 to 14 weeks into her pregnancy.
The Duchess was suffering from a severe form of pregnancy sickness called hyperemesis gravidarum, but has made such a good recovery that she is expected to resume a near-normal official workload from next month.
One insider said: “Although the nature of the Duchess’s condition is that it can come back, she is much better and, health permitting, she will be back doing public engagements in the next couple of months.”
Although the Duchess made a brief appearance at the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year awards before Christmas, she has not carried out a full day of engagements since her pregnancy was announced, and has stayed in the South East, close to her family, rather than spending time with the Duke at their remote farmhouse on Anglesey.
Bookmakers installed July 17, the Duchess of Cornwall’s birthday, as the favourite date for the baby to be born. But those who bet on twins have already lost their stake after the Palace confirmed that the Duchess was carrying only one baby.
A July birth is likely to provide a welcome boost to the economy, because it means that Britain’s favourite “brand” with foreigners, the Royal family, will feature prominently in news coverage as the tourist season gets into full swing.
Mark Di-Toro, of Visit Britain, said: “The challenge for 2013 is to maintain the momentum created last year by the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, and this will certainly help. The monarchy and Royal palaces are very much a part of the cultural heritage side of the tourism industry, which brings in pounds 4.5 billion every year and is the biggest sector within our tourist industry.
“So to have a royal baby arriving in the summer will be an opportunity to encourage people to visit places associated with the Duke and Duchess.”
Royal aides said the Duchess was expected to return to Anglesey in the next few weeks, but she is not expected to travel abroad either before or immediately after the birth.
The British hospital treating the former Kate Middleton admitted Wednesday it was victimized by a prank call in which information on her condition was given out to a woman impersonating Queen Elizabeth II.
King Edward VII’s hospital in London acknowledged that an Australian radio station made a hoax call to the hospital in the early hours Tuesday — and the hospital fell for it.
The 30-year-old Duchess of Cambridge is pregnant and is being treated at the hospital for severe morning sickness.
A woman using the often-mimicked voice of the monarch asked after the duchess’ health — and was told that Kate “hasn’t had any retching with me and she’s been sleeping on and off.”
“She’s sleeping at the moment and she has had an uneventful night. She’s been given some fluids. She’s stable at the moment,” the kindly nurse informed the supposed queen and Prince Charles on the station’s recording. A dog yaps in the background while the “queen” and her son talk about traveling to the hospital to check in on the patient.“I would suggest that any time after 9 o’clock will be suitable to visit,” the nurse said. “We’ll be getting her freshened up.”
The hospital says the call had been transferred to a ward and the conversation was held with one of its nursing staff. Its telephone protocols are being reviewed, the hospital said in a statement.
The Australian station 2DayFM has placed the recording of the conversation on its website.
The duchess is spending her third day in the hospital while being treated for acute morning sickness.
Prince William visited his wife at the hospital for several hours on Tuesday, while media from around the world camped outside, seeking news on the royal pregnancy. Officials from St. James’s Palace have said the duchess was not yet 12 weeks pregnant.
Hundreds of well-wishers lined the streets around the Guildhall to greet the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are spending the day celebrating the city’s famous university, and some of its charities, schools and hardworking volunteers.
The royal couple arrived by train and were slowly driven through the city so the crowds could catch a glimpse of them.
Cambridge has been awaiting the royal visit since the Queen bestowed the dukedom on her grandson just a few hours before he married the then Kate Middleton on April 29 last year.
Princess Catherine was sporting her new hairstyle – layered long dark locks with a parted fringe – first seen in London last night when she opened a new exhibition at the Natural History Museum.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have launched legal action against the French magazine Closer over its publication of topless pictures of the duchess, Clarence House has said.
The celebrity gossip magazine printed pictures of the duchess taken during the couple’s private holiday in France.
A royal spokesman said the legal proceedings had been launched in France and were for breach of privacy.
Closer’s editor said the couple were “visible from the street”.
“These photos are not in the least shocking. They show a young woman sunbathing topless, like the millions of women you see on beaches,” said Laurence Pieau.
She described the reaction as “a little disproportionate”.
A spokesman for the couple, who are on a tour of South East Asia and the South Pacific to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, strongly condemned publication of the pictures.
The duke and duchess, who were staying at the French chateau of the Queen’s nephew, Lord Linley, “have been hugely saddened to learn that a French publication and a photographer have invaded their privacy in such a grotesque and totally unjustifiable manner”, said the spokesman for Clarence House, the Prince of Wales’s office.
The spokesman said the incident was “reminiscent of the worst excesses of the press and paparazzi during the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, and all the more upsetting to the duke and duchess for being so”.
One royal official said the couple could not have chosen a more secluded spot in France for their private holiday.
The magazine’s website says the pictures are of the couple “like you have never seen them before. Gone are the fixed smiles and the demure dresses. On holiday Kate forgets everything.”
A royal spokesman said: “St James’s Palace confirms that legal proceedings for breach of privacy have been commenced today in France by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge against the publishers of Closer Magazine France.”
The BBC’s Peter Hunt said it was thought to be only the second time a royal had sued over such an issue.
She has chosen the project as the subject of her first public speech abroad in an attempt to draw attention to the importance of the hospice movement in countries where it is still in its infancy.
To date, the Duchess has taken on patronages of only four charities, including East Anglia Children’s Hospices (EACH), for whom she opened a centre in Ipswich earlier this year, making her first major speech on home soil.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will arrive in Singapore tomorrow at the start of a nine-day tour of Commonwealth nations in the Far East as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, their second official trip as a couple following their hugely successful visit to Canada and the US last year.
The Duchess’s decision to make her maiden speeches both at home and abroad in hospices is a strong indicator that the movement is the cause that she feels most passionately about as she carves out her own public role.
Her private secretary, Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton said: “The Duchess wanted to establish contacts between her charities here and charities overseas, and she hopes that a legacy of this visit will be to get a dialogue going between EACH and Hospis Malaysia.”
LONDON (AP) — Prince William’s office says the former Kate Middleton will make her first speech abroad during their tour of southeast Asia and the South Pacific next month.
The speech will take place before patients of a Malaysian hospice. St. James’s Palace said Thursday that the tour is meant to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, marking her 60 years on the throne.
The royal couple, now known as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, will get involved in sporting activities, wear traditional dress, travel by canoe and receive traditional welcomes.
The couple will have an orchid named after them in Singapore and see another named after Princess Diana, Prince William’s mother.
The 15th anniversary of Diana’s death is Friday.
Like most of London, Prince Harry, Kate and William are excited for the 2012 Olympic Games. And they’re going to be there in person to catch the action.
Prince Harry, 27, will be attending beach volleyball events, the palace confirmed Monday.
“To see Horse Guards Parade turned into a beach is going to be amazing,” Harry told the BBC in April. “When you see something like this, the scale that it’s going to be on and the amount of people coming from all across the world, it’s going to be an exciting time.”
Harry, William, 30, and Kate, 30, are scheduled to attend several Olympic events in support of Britain.
Kate, who played field hockey during her school days, will attend hockey, sailing and tennis events. She’ll later join William to cheer on the competitors at East London’s Olympic Park.
All three will be on hand when cousin Zara Phillips competes with Britain’s equestrian squad in Greenwich.
Between them, the trio will attend more than 25 events. When they’re not cheering for their native Britain, William, Kate and Harry will be visiting athletes from around the world staying at the Olympic Village.
The young royals will kick off the games at Buckingham Palace on Thursday when they welcome the torch on its way to the stadium. They’ll then join Queen Elizabeth in hosting a celebration for visiting heads of state on Friday and then attend the glamorous Opening Ceremony.
