With both King Charles and his daughter-in-law, Catherine, undergoing treatment for cancer, it has been the most worrying year for the health of the Royal Family.
Now, His Majesty will have the chance to say a thank-you in person to his Royal Medical Household team as I hear that they are to stay at Balmoral, where the King and Queen Camilla are in official residence.
The team are visiting the Aberdeenshire retreat for a meeting to discuss all health matters relating to the Royal Family. ‘It’s an important get-together,’ a medical source tells me.
The Royal Medical Household is made up of the key physicians entrusted to care for the Royal Family. They are professionals at the top of their fields who also usually work across the NHS and privately. Unlike other departments in the Royal Household, the Medical Household is not listed on the royal website and details of it are not outlined publicly.
In June, the King personally honoured his top medical team amid his treatment for an unnamed form of cancer.
Dr Michael Dixon, head of the Royal Medical Household, and Charles’s GP Dr Fiona Butler – known as the Apothecary to the King – were recognised for their personal service.
In June, the King personally honoured his top medical team amid his treatment for an unnamed form of cancer
His Majesty will have the chance to say a thank-you in person to his Royal Medical Household team as I hear that they are to stay at Balmoral, where the King and Queen Camilla are in official residence
Dr Dixon was made a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) and Dr Butler is now a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO).
Awards of the Royal Victorian Order are in the King’s gift and are bestowed independently of Downing Street to those who have served the monarch or the Royal Family in a personal way.
Dr Dixon’s appointment as head of the Royal Medical Household following Charles’s accession drew criticism due to his outspoken support for alternative therapies.
Also honoured as an LVO was Michael Dooley for his role as the Queen’s physician.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman declines to comment.
However, a royal source insists that the meeting is an annual event not related to the cancer treatment of the King or the Princess of Wales.
Lady Gabriella shows her sunnier side after terrible family tragedy
Good to see Lady Gabriella Windsor smiling again.
The 43-year-old daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent wore a royal blue outfit and a beaming smile as she did some shopping in the King’s Road, Chelsea.
The 43-year-old daughter Lady Gabriella Windsor wore a royal blue outfit and a beaming smile as she did some shopping in the King’s Road, Chelsea
Ella, as she’s known to pals, lost her husband, the financier Thomas Kingston, in tragic circumstances in February. Handsome and popular Tom, 45, died from what was described as a traumatic head wound
Ella, as she’s known to pals, lost her husband, the financier Thomas Kingston, in tragic circumstances in February. Handsome and popular Tom, 45, died from what was described as a traumatic head wound. A gun was found near his body at his parents’ Cotswolds home.
Since then, Ella has been slowly returning to public life, attending the King’s Birthday Parade in June and the opening day of Royal Ascot, where she was, touchingly, invited by King Charles to join the traditional procession from Windsor Castle.
Now Liam can really go off the deep end
Liam Gallagher has been given the go-ahead by planners to splash out on his very own Oasis at his £4million home – a heated outdoor swimming pool.
But the irascible rock singer has scrapped plans for a new front garden ‘Wonderwall’ and entrance gates at his mock Tudor pad in North London, after objections from conservationists. An existing sunken patio will be extended to give him and his girlfriend, Debbie Gwyther, more room for pool parties as part of a Ground Force-style makeover.
Liam Gallagher has been given the go-ahead by planners to splash out on his very own Oasis at his £4million home – a heated outdoor swimming pool
The £4million, five-bedroom, Arts and Crafts-style house already boasts a grand entrance hall, reception room, TV and family room, library, study and summerhouse.
Officials at Haringey Council have now granted Liam, 51, planning permission to build a new 23x11ft pool.
They said: ‘The proposed works as amended are considered acceptable in respect of the character and appearance of this property and surrounding area.’
Proud single mum Ellen blasts ‘mad’ taboo
We’re no longer in the 1950s, but having a baby can still damage a career, according to Gucci model Ellen Francis Gibbons.
She was warned by industry insiders that she should play down the fact that she has a three-year-old daughter, Clementine, with Samantha Cameron’s half-brother, Robert Sheffield. Ellen (right with Clemintine) and Old Harrovian Sheffield, 39, split last year.
We’re no longer in the 1950s, but having a baby can still damage a career, according to Gucci model Ellen Francis Gibbons
‘In this day and age, it’s mad that solo parenting a toddler is still a taboo subject, having at times been advised to play down having a child in case it’s off-putting to casting directors, producers and men in general,’ she says. ‘However, I believe it is a journey to be proud of.’
The smart set’s talking about… ‘Hottest royal’ Alexander marching off to Sandhurst
Prince George will not be expected to serve in the military before becoming King, breaking centuries of tradition, the Mail on Sunday reported last year.
One young royal is, though, keen to sign up.
I can disclose that Alexander Ogilvy, who’s been described as ‘the hottest British royal you’ve never heard of’, joins the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst this weekend.
Alex, 27, is a grandson of Princess Alexandra, first cousin and bridesmaid of Queen Elizabeth. His sister, Flora Vesterberg, has spoken of her pride that he’s joined the Forces. ‘We’re full of admiration for you,’ she writes online.
Alexander Ogilvy has a double major in Computer Science and Economics from the Ivy League Brown University in the US, where he went out with Michaela Kennedy-Cuomo (pictured left). Her mother, Kerry, is the daughter of assassinated Robert F. Kennedy
‘Forever thoughtful and inspiring.’
Head boy at the £43,500-per-year Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh, Alex was an academic high-flyer who achieved A*s and As in his exams.
He has a double major in Computer Science and Economics from the Ivy League Brown University in the US, where he went out with Michaela Kennedy-Cuomo. Her mother, Kerry, is the daughter of assassinated Robert F. Kennedy.
Until now, he worked in New York at tech firm Prove. Once asked by an interviewer which three words best described him, he joked: ‘Fraudulent, insecure, man.’
Rippon yarns… Angela spins some discs with DJ actor Idris
Angela Rippon, who turns 80 next month, impressed Strictly Come Dancing viewers with her dancing, but now she’s had the opportunity to show off her skills as a DJ alongside Idris Elba.
The former newsreader held a party at The Roof Gardens in Kensington, West London, this week to mark her 58 years in television. During the celebrations, she was surprised to discover that the London-born actor was in the next room DJing for a client.
‘After I’d had my dinner, we had a disco, and Idris was DJing,’ Rippon tells me. ‘We had a bit of a dance and a bit of a laugh, which was super.’
She adds: ‘What I’ve discovered is that disc jockeys don’t have to do anything these days, they just have to push the right button to get the next. It’s not like when I was doing BBC Radio 2 programmes.’
Angela Rippon, who turns 80 next month, impressed Strictly Come Dancing viewers with her dancing, but now she’s had the opportunity to show off her skills as a DJ alongside Idris Elba
Vanity Fair’s former editor Graydon Carter has hit out at Sir Keir Starmer’s plans to outlaw outdoor smoking. Carter’s digital newsletter, Air Mail, hosted a From Italy With Love party to kick off New York Fashion Week with the actors Isabella Rossellini, Christine Baranski and Morgan Spector. Guests at Manhattan’s Academy Mansion were given Italian-themed matchbooks and ashtrays.
‘I think it’s a terrible idea,’ Carter fumes of the Prime Minister’s pub garden proposal. ‘Brits like to drink alcohol and smoke. If they can’t do that inside, they’ll do it outside. This idea would stop people from having fun.’
(Very) modern manners
Cold Feet star Fay Ripley used to be invited to the swankiest showbusiness parties.
Nowadays, she accompanies her daughter, 21-year-old Parker Lapaine. ‘The roles have slightly changed,’ admits Fay, 58, who joined Parker at the launch party for a Punjabi restaurant, Ambassadors Clubhouse, in London. ‘I used to take her to events, now I’m her ‘plus-one’.’
Cold Feet star Fay Ripley (right) used to be invited to the swankiest showbusiness parties. Nowadays, she accompanies her daughter, 21-year-old Parker Lapaine (left)
But can Fay keep up with Parker, who stars in Game Of Thrones prequel House Of The Dragon? ‘I thought I was going for a quiet drink, but I feel like it’s New Year’s Eve and I’ve just landed at the biggest party I’ve ever been to,’ she wails.
Has Tamzin pulled the plug on toyboy Tom?
Is all going swimmingly for Tamzin Outhwaite and her toyboy?
I ask only because the New Tricks star has been talking about a ‘rebirth’ in her life and not needing ‘commitment’. Tamzin, 54, has been going out with fitness instructor Tom Child, 34, for six years, but hasn’t mentioned him on Instagram since last November.
Speaking about her newly single character, Sylvie, in Channel 5 comic drama The Wives, she says: ‘I love the freedom that Sylvie has, and that’s something that comes with age – knowing yourself, being a free spirit and not needing the commitment of another human being.’
Tamzin Outhwaite as been going out with fitness instructor Tom Child (right), 34, for six years, but hasn’t mentioned him on Instagram since last November
The actress, who divorced cheating Lucifer star Tom Ellis, 45, in 2014, met Child at a yoga class. She said: ‘People think I’m having a midlife crisis, but not all men want a younger woman.’
Referring to their ages, she said she would understand if he wanted to leave her one day to have children.
