Crown Secrets: Royal Return Unveiled!

It's been nearly two-and-a-half years since appeared to take its final bow on , closing a season that charted seismic moments for the including the death of , and Camilla's wedding and and 's nascent romance.

Since 2022, when this paper first revealed talks between Netflix and producer Left Bank Pictures over a £500 million run of prequels, fans have been on tenterhooks.

I can now reveal the production company has got the green light to create the new project which will span the period from 's death in 1901 to the wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth in 1947.

A well-placed source tells me: 'Netflix has been locked in negotiations with the company for quite a long time about this spin-off series, but they've recently finally .'

Peter Morgan, the show's creator, who spearheaded the series to become, one of Britain's most decorated TV dramas with 24 awards to its name, is expected to return.

The insider adds: 'Peter had already been putting pen to pad and casting is expected to take place next year.'

By stepping further back in time, the show may sidestep the accuracy rows that eclipsed the later seasons.

This would align with what Morgan has previously said. 'I sort of have in my head a 20-year rule. That is enough time and enough distance to really understand something, to understand its role, to understand its position, to understand its relevance.'

He added: 'Often, things that appear absolutely wildly important today are instantly forgotten, and other things have a habit of sticking around and proving to be historically very relevant and long-lasting.'

Netflix and Left Bank Pictures did not respond to my request for comment.

Cowell's fiancee: My hair loss woe 

Simon Cowell was mocked online over his 'unrecognisable looks' in a Britain's Got Talent video, and now his fiancee, Lauren Silverman, admits her own confidence has taken a hit due to major hair loss. 

'It's been one of my biggest insecurities,' reveals the American socialite, who has a son Eric, 12, with Cowell. 'I wear extensions and I'm so grateful I can because they help me feel like myself but under neath that, it's something I think about far more than I'd like to admit,' writes Lauren, 48, online. 

The former actress says: 'I don't want to feel ashamed of it anymore and neither should you.' 

Is it Harry Potter and the spectre of Sturgeon?

Her world of wizardry Harry Potter books are global bestsellers, propelling her to a fortune of nearly £1billion, much of which she channels into philanthropic causes. 

But JK Rowling may also feel haunted by a fleshy spectre – Nicola Sturgeon. Scotland's former First Minister, who was unable to say whether double rapist Adam Graham – sent to a female prison after self-identifying as 'Isla Bryson' – was a man or a woman, appears to have yet again laid into Rowling, who has been outspoken against transgender rights.

'However rich and however famous some of the people who attack me might be, I'm not going to be silenced,' says Sturgeon, adding that she'll keep 'fighting' for the 'marginalised' community. Might Rowling feel 'marginalised' in SNP-run Scotland? 

Anna Friel may have once been the life and soul of the party alongside Kate Moss but times have She tells me: 'I'm just not comfortable at these things, I'm the kind of girl, I get home and put my pyjamas on.'

Once dubbed the 'most beautiful royal' by Tatler magazine, Lady Amelia Windsor is proving she has creative talents to match her looks. 

While King Charles charms our American cousins, Peter Rosengard has been taking full advantage of his absence. 'You'll never guess what he collects,' the ever playful Rosengard, who founded London's Comedy Store in 1979, tells me.

'He collects lavatories. He has the greatest collection in the world,' he claims at Claridge's. As for the late Queen Elizabeth, adds Rosengard, she'd 'pick up crispy bacon rashers and use them as a fork to scoop up scrambled eggs'. 

Rosengard is set to dish more secrets in his new book out next month – They Only Call Me When They're Dead!.