EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: King Charles has reportedly already written his Christmas Day message without calling on advisers
With his Christmas Day message in the bag, King Charles, according to my source, wrote the script himself without calling on advisors.
This follows last year’s inaugural address to the nation, when officials were only allowed to make minor changes to match archive footage inserted by the producers.
The king has learned that he speaks best when he does so as spontaneously as possible, a talent he learned relatively late in life.
At the Diamond Jubilee concert on The Mall in 2012, Charles decided his formal notes wouldn’t work and rewrote his speech while sitting in the royal box.
He even incited the crowd to chant Prince Philip’s name loudly so he could hear it in the hospital where he was recovering after getting soaked at the river parade. It almost moved the queen to tears.
This follows last year’s inaugural address to the nation (pictured above), when officials were only allowed to make minor changes to match archive footage inserted by the producers.
It was at the Diamond Jubilee concert on The Mall in 2012 (pictured above at the end of the concert) that Charles decided his formal notes wouldn’t work and rewrote his speech while sitting in the royal box.
William traveled to Kuwait to express his condolences on the death of the emir who was succeeded by his 83-year-old brother, Prince Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
The accession of a new octogenarian could come as a relief to King Charles, who met the new emir at Buck House in October.
At 75, King Charles is now relatively young among the world’s monarchs, with at least nine (depending on how you count them) older than him, including the Queen of Denmark, 83, and the King of Norway, 86, and Saudi Arabia , 87.
The new oldest heir to the throne in the world is the Danish Crown Prince Frederik, a young man of 55 years old.
Caroline Aherne, remembered as a prankster by Royle Family co-writer Craig Cash, and once found fellow comedy screenwriter Henry Normal asleep on a train to London.
“Someone had a copy of Loaded, so she opened it to a photo of a scantily clad woman, took a pair of panties out of her bag and put them on Henry’s head,” Craig recalls.
‘Then she had the guard wake him up and warn him. She would do anything for a laugh.”
Caroline Aherne (pictured in 2001) remembered as a prankster by Craig Cash, co-writer of the Royle Family, once found fellow comedy screenwriter Henry Normal asleep on a train to London
Houman Barekat compares current British stage performances of Macbeth by Ralph Fiennes and David Tennant: ‘Fiennes and Tennant are both exceptional talents, but very different in physical stature and attitude.
‘Just a few months ago, Fiennes delivered a compelling turn as England football coach in Dear England at the National Theater in London.’
Um, wouldn’t that be Ralph’s younger actor brother Joseph Fiennes? On me ‘ead Barekat!
Jacob Rees-Mogg was one of the politicians with a show on GB News who failed to make it to the channel’s Christmas party near London Bridge at Redwood House, but lo and behold, Liz Truss turned up.
Is she an echo of Yosser’s mantra from the 1980s TV show The Boys from the Blackstuff: ‘I can do that. Gizza job!’
Glazed Tory MP Michael Fabricant takes aim at Michael O’Leary’s budget airline and complains: ‘Ryanair, oh boy… I’m sticking with British Airways. But honestly, Ryanair, so rude!’
Did Michael have to pay to put his wig box in the upstairs cupboard?