Royal Family

Princess Diana might've gotten the Royal treatment for most of her life, but sometimes ... she wanted to drive like a normal person ... and the car she did that in has fetched a fortune.

The late Princess of Wales was top of mind Saturday over in the UK, where an everyman vehicle that used to belong and be driven by her in the '80s hit the auction block at the Silverstone race circuit -- a ways outside of London -- and sold for a whopping $763,555!

The ride in question was a Ford Escort RS Turbo Series 1 -- and it's in great shape ... no different than when PD herself was cruising around in it between '85 and '88.

Apparently, there was a huge bidding war over this thing -- with high rollers from all over the world participating -- but in the end ... a British person walked away as the victor. Reports say this played out like a sports game, with a massive crowd cheering on the bidders.

The winner's identity is being kept anonymous. Whoever it is, they had at least an extra mil lying around ... because there was no sign they were going to slow down on the price if someone else insisted on going the distance. Silverstone officials had expected it to rake in at least $117,000 ... but no one seems to have expected to go for what it ultimately did.

Meghan Markle is recalling a horrifying incident ... where she learned baby Archie's nursery caught fire while they were away.

The Duchess of Sussex opened up about the incident for the first time on the premiere of her podcast, "Archetypes" -- telling Serena Williams in 2019 that her son was 4 months old when they took him to South Africa.

She says they dropped their son off at a housing unit before going to give a speech nearby ... and when she was done, Meghan learned a fire had broken out in Archie's room.

After racing back, Meghan found Archie unharmed -- his nanny took him out of the room while she went to go get a snack ... after they walked out, a heater in the room caught fire.

Prince Harry's royal jewels must be priceless ... because the auction for the underwear from his strip billiards game in Sin City is already at a quarter million bucks.

The bidding opened Thursday, on the heels of the 10-year anniversary of Harry's wild night in Vegas, with ex-stripper Carrie Royale producing the goods ... the Prince's black undies from his memorable night in a high roller's suite.

It only took a few minutes for the bidding to skyrocket ... a $10,000 opening bid rose to $16k before a strip club owner from San Diego placed a call-in bid of $250k. That's not a typo ... it went from $16k to $250k!

Video from the live auction shows Carrie, dressed in a black cocktail dress, and some other exotic dancers going crazy when the big bid came through.

The $250k bidder, Dino, says he plans to create a shrine to Harry's undies if he ends up winning the auction. Carrie believes the winning bid could reach as high as $1 million, and online bidding remains open until Sept. 30 or when the auction reaches $1 mil, whichever comes first.

The live portion of the auction went down at Larry Flynt's Hustler Club, where Carrie claims Prince Harry dropped by during his wild time in Vegas.

Remember ... Harry stripped down to his birthday suit playing billiards in a Vegas suite back in August 2012, and Carrie claims she snatched the discarded undies.

Meghan Markle is celebrating her 41st birthday ... and some of the royals are, at least publicly, setting aside their very deep differences to wish her well.

Prince William and Kate Middleton marked their sister-in-law's big day on social media by posting a photo of Meghan dressed in all white with the caption ... "Wishing a happy birthday to The Duchess of Sussex!"

Not exactly warm and fuzzy, but kind of a big deal when you consider the beef between Meghan, Prince Harry and the rest of the royal family. As you know, tensions have been high for some years now ... especially since Meghan and Harry resigned as senior royals in 2020.

Anyway, there's clearly a royal plan afoot to at least make it seem they're all making nice -- in addition to William and Kate's message ... Prince Charles and Camilla also posted, "Happy birthday to The Duchess of Sussex!"

The Meghan pic they posted was from the Queen's Platinum Jubilee this year, the last time they all saw her in person.

You'll recall, Meghan and Prince Harry attended the Jubilee in the U.K. back in June, and, there was a clear divide -- physically and otherwise -- between them and some of the royal fam.

Prince Harry lumped the recent Roe v. Wade decision in with other international issues, saying they were all hurting democracy, but Meghan's calling BS -- Meghan McCain, that is.

The Duke of Sussex delivered a speech to the U.N. this week -- in observance of Nelson Mandela Day -- and one of the things he said was the reversal of a federal right to an abortion was among the many things he considers a threat to freedom.

The others ... COVID, the war in Ukraine, disinformation and climate change -- all of which he said were among the top perils facing the world. But, McCain thinks he's misinformed.

In a piece written for Daily Mail, she slams the ex-Royal for what she considers virtue signaling -- especially on the Supreme Court's Roe decision ... which she says isn't a threat to democracy, but more so an exercise in it since it gives the power over that issue back to the states.

McCain, who is undoubtedly conservative, argues Harry is ignorant because he isn't an American citizen -- but likes to play one on TV now that he lives here with his wife Meghan Markle. She cites other times where he's admitted ignorance to the First Amendment.

The whole op-ed goes on to call Harry "woke," rhetorically asking if America isn't good enough for him ... why is he even here? She also cites his and MM's accusation of racism within the Royal family to make her point.

Indeed, it's a Harry-bashing think piece ... and in the end, McCain asks this of the Duke: "Maybe he needs reminding that he is a guest here and not a guest who has been universally embraced by the American public."

She adds ... "So here goes: This is not your home country. In fact, my country went to war against yours so that we'd never have to be subject to a royal lecture ever again."

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's rift with the Royal Family is so much deeper than anyone imagined -- at least according to a new tell-all book, which has the alleged tea.

Famed author Tom Bower -- known for his biographies about the Royals, most of which are not sanctioned by the subjects -- has a forthcoming project hitting shelves called "Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors" ... and, boy, does he get into it.

Per Bower ... there were subtle shots taken between both parties behind closed doors and several dust-ups these past handful of years ... which seems to have stemmed from Meghan's Vanity Fair cover in 2017, the first time she publicly acknowledged the relationship.

It was a relatively small part of the article, with Meghan saying ... "We're a couple, we're in love," and going on to say they'd eventually come forward and tell their story in full. But, of course, VF's headline was all about their relationship -- "She's Just Wild About Harry!"

Apparently, according to Bower, the Royals were pissed -- because they'd specifically instructed Meghan NOT to talk about Harry. At the time, they'd been seen together publicly, but neither had spoken to the press. Meghan, in turn, reportedly got up in arms with her PR agency ... telling them to demand VF pull the quote and change their angle. Vanity refused.

That doesn't seem to have left a great impression with Buckingham Palace -- as we know, tensions only grew as time went on ... reaching a boiling point with the Oprah interview.

The aftermath of that sit-down proved to be devastating, so says Bower -- evidenced in Queen Elizabeth II allegedly saying something to the effect of ... "Thank goodness Meghan is not coming," when Prince Philip died a month after the interview aired. MM was pregnant again at the time ... and only Harry went to the funeral, but even he was said to have been antsy while there.

Of course, when Lilibet was actually born ... there were reports that Meghan and Harry sprung the name (Liz's actual nickname) on the Queen -- which Bower also apparently confirms in his book.

Finally, there's the drama that was quite obvious at the Queen's Platinum Jubilee earlier this year -- when Harry and Meghan were more than arm's length from the rest of the family pretty much throughout their entire time there ... especially for the coveted balcony seating.

As it turns out, according to Bower, MM and PH were dead set on getting a spot next to the Queen -- this, Bower claims, in return for what they thought they were owed for bringing the kids out there in the first place -- but Prince Charles shut it down ... and the Queen quietly cosigned by not granting their wishes. As you know, Harry and Meghan left soon afterward.

There's also the issue of Prince Harry's interview with Hoda Kotb, where he kinda dissed his brother and dad -- while making it seem like he and nana were perhaps even closer than she was with any of her other children/grandkids. The Royals resented this too, Bower claims.

Prince Harry claims he was not aware that some folks in the Royal Household had a hand in ending his police protection during a recent trip to the U.K. ... and he's pissed about it.

The Duke of Sussex and his team fired back at royal officials in a hearing Thursday ... saying he should've been aware that some of the Queen's aides were involved in the decision given the fact there were tensions between him and some royal officials.

In case you didn't know -- Prince Harry, who now lives in California, is suing for taking away his personal security during visits to the U.K. He claims it's not safe for him, Meghan Markle, or their two children to return to Britain because it's too dangerous without security help.

His lawyer, Shaheed Fatima, says ... "there were significant tensions between the claimant [Prince Harry] and certain people."

It's a special day for Prince William, and his father -- first in line to the throne -- is leading the charge to honor his oldest son, and future King of England, on hitting the ol' 4-0.

Prince Charles did that typical parent thing ... busting out old pics of himself with Will, from his birth, his adolescence and right up to current day -- and he wrote, "Wishing The Duke of Cambridge a very happy 40th birthday!"

Of course, the current monarch, Queen Elizabeth, also had some words and pics for her grandson ... but it might be the most royally royal birthday message ever.

The pics posted to Her Majesty's Family account are accompanied by said caption ... "Prince William Arthur Philip Louis is the elder son of The Prince of Wales and Diana, Princess of Wales. He was born at 9.03pm on 21 June 1982, at St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, London."

Ya gotta read it with a British accent.

The IG post included more infant pics and moments the Queen and William have shared together.

Worth noting ... William's bro, Prince Harry, hasn't posted any birthday wishes yet. It's still early on the West Coast, but it'll be interesting to see if he does mention the milestone amid their rift.

Apparently, Prince William and Kate Middleton will reportedly celebrate "in style" with a joint 40th Bday party at Windsor Castle.

Her birthday was back in January but the celebrations were reportedly nixed due to COVID-19.

Interestingly, the Duke's birthday will not be marked this year by the flying of the Union Jack over government buildings. That honor is now reserved for the Queen and Prince Charles' birthdays.

Claims that Meghan Markle bullied her staff as a Royal have been investigated and did, indeed, spur HR changes -- but we'll never know exactly why ... so say Palace insiders.

The Sunday Times of London published a major story this weekend ... claiming they'd been told by sources with direct knowledge that the investigation launched last March into allegations that MM was a terror with her Kensington Palace workers has wrapped.

Not only is done -- with Queen Elizabeth II privately funding it herself via an outside law firm, per the Times -- but it seems something came out of it ... namely, institutional improvements to the monarchy's policies and procedures over this stuff going forward.

So, what's the tea??? Apparently, nobody is ever going to know ... because the findings are said to be getting "buried" by Buckingham Palace, which doesn't plan to release 'em.

According to the Times, citing sources, the reason for keeping this in-house is to avoid further tensions between Meghan and Harry and the rest of the Royal family ... which has left some who participated in the probe frustrated, as they seem to have wanted this out.

Now, some Meghan fans believe something more sinister is afoot here. They say the Royals were so quick to leak news of the investigation at the time (right before the Oprah interview, no less), but now that they supposedly have the goods ... they get camera shy?

Meghan is trending right now, as is the hashtag #RoyalFamilyLied. Fact is, some just don't buy what's being peddled -- because if there was a smoking gun against Meghan ... they believe the Royals/BP would leak it with haste to cover their asses/vindicate themselves.

Camilla Parker Bowles is on her way to becoming Queen Consort -- and now, a new milestone ... landing the cover of Vogue, where she's opening up about, well, everything.

The Duchess of Cornwall sat down for a profile piece with British Vogue for its July issue -- the first time she's ever been featured on the magazine as the centerpiece ... and the interview didn't disappoint, especially on the subject of her husband, Prince Charles.

The story touches on Camilla's engagements and the constant work she does/orgs she's involved with -- and she says she won't stop even after PC becomes King. Other cool takeaways ... CPB plays Wordle with her grandkids, and is apparently quite good!

Now, when it comes to her hubby -- and the years of scandal/gossip surrounding her romance with him in the '90s, when Princess Diana was still alive -- the Duchess says ... "It’s not easy. I was scrutinized for such a long time that you just have to find a way to live with it. Nobody likes to be looked at all the time and, you know, criticized." She adds, "But I think in the end, I sort of rise above it and get on with it. You’ve got to get on with life."

Camilla also addressed how she and the Prince of Wales maintain their relationship nowadays, especially since they seem to be busier than ever ... she says they make do.

HRH explains, "[W]e do always try to have a point in the day when we meet,” she says of her routine with The Prince of Wales. “Sometimes it’s like ships passing in the night, but we always sit down together and have a cup of tea and discuss the day. We have a moment."

She goes on to describe how, at times, she and Charles will just sit quietly and read their own respective books in different corners of the same room -- and takes pleasure in that.

Not much else was discussed about their affair in the '90s, but as the author notes ... Camilla has garnered a great deal of goodwill among the general public over the years, and is now seen as a legitimate would-be Queen ... that is, only when QE2 eventually passes.

Prince William may be thousands of miles away from the United States, but his empathy for one of the victims of January 6th knows no borders.

Turns out the 2nd in line for the throne sent a heartfelt letter to the girlfriend of Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick, who died from injuries he suffered trying to protect the U.S. Capitol.

Sandra Garza received the letter recently, which read in part, "Please forgive me if I am intruding but I wanted to write and let you know how sorry I am about the death of your partner, Brian" adding ... "Having recently watched documentary footage of the harrowing events that took place at the Capitol building I wanted to acknowledge the patriotism and selflessness of Brian."

The letter went on to praise Brian for his patriotism in protecting the Capitol, saying he hopes Sandra can "take some comfort from knowing that it is thanks to law enforcement officers like Brian that the situation did not escalate further and democracy was upheld."

Sandra told CNN she received zip former President Donald Trump, blasting him ... "Trump does not give two craps about law enforcement or Brian."

Brian was one of the 5 Capitol officers to die as a result of the insurrection. Brian died the following day after suffering multiple strokes.

It didn't take long for Prince Harry to get back on the polo field after his trip to the U.K., but things didn't go so smoothly ... cuz he ended up on the ground.

The Duke of Sussex competed in a match at Santa Barbara Polo and Racquet Club over the weekend while friends Katharine McPhee and David Foster looked on. PH took a tumble at one point, but apparently, it wasn't so bad, as he chatted up David and Katharine on the sideline just minutes later.

As you know, Harry's trip to the polo field comes shortly after he, Meghan Markle and their children flew to Britain for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. Meghan and Harry ended up leaving before the final Jubilee events, but the family divide was pretty evident the whole time.

It's reported Prince William and Kate didn't attend a first birthday party for Harry and Meghan's daughter, Lilibet. Queen Elizabeth got some facetime with her great-granddaughter for the first time, but didn't allow photos of the meeting.

Queen Elizabeth met her great-granddaughter for the first time over the weekend, but don't expect to see QE on any pages of Lilibet's baby book ... because she reportedly banned photos from being taken of the introduction.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's daughter, Lilibet, celebrated her first birthday -- which so happened to fall on the same weekend as the Queen's Platinum Jubilee -- but The Sun reports the Queen denied Harry and Meghan a photographer to capture the moment.

The report states Harry and Meghan were informed the intro would only be a private family meeting -- and there was a worry if photos were taken, they'd be passed around in America.

There was certainly a lot of tension between Harry and his family through the weekend as evidenced early on -- the photo above shows Prince William and Harry on opposite sides of the church during the National Service of Thanksgiving.

Harry and Meghan didn't stick around for the celebration's closing, either ... the Sussexes and their 2 children flew private from London to Cali. Of course, if they stayed, it's unlikely they'd have been allowed to stand beside the Queen when she appeared Sunday on her Buckingham Palace balcony.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's daughter is ringing in her first year with a very eventful week ... and now we're getting a look at exactly how Lilibet got her party on in the UK!

Harry and Meghan invited close family and friends to a casual, but intimate, backyard picnic in Windsor to celebrate Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor's very first birthday ... which was Saturday, June 4, smack in the middle of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

This is our first close-up look at the baby, and these shots -- captured by photographer Misan Harriman -- show she was all smiles for the festivities.

Prince Harry and Meghan were amazed to learn people around the world made donations amounting to more than $100K to the World Central Kitchen in Lilibet's honor.

As we've reported, Lilibet met her great-grandma, Queen Elizabeth, for the first time ever during the Jubilee celebrations. Of course, the intro came amid high tensions between Prince Harry, Meghan and their estranged royal family.

Now we know why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were so conspicuously missing from the end of the Queen's Jubilee celebrations -- they were at 30,000 feet several hours beforehand.

Harry looked pensive and exhausted in Santa Barbara Sunday morning after the Sussexes and their 2 children flew private from London -- passing on the final Jubilee events, including the People's Pageant, and a surprise appearance by Queen Elizabeth herself.

QE2 kept it brief, but she did come out on her Buckingham Palace balcony to do some royal waving to her subjects gathered for the pageant. It was her first public appearance since the Jubilee began on Thursday, because she'd been feeling under the weather. Once again, she was joined by Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate and their 3 kids.

Even if Meghan and Harry had stayed for the finale, it's doubtful they'd have been on the balcony. They'd been banished to a separate room for the Jubilee kickoff, and they sat as far as possible from Kate and William during a church service.

Their early retreat back to their home in Montecito is just one more confirmation of what's painfully obvious -- the U.K. trip was for the Queen's sake, and NOT because things are any better between Harry and his brother and his father. The 3 of them were never photographed together all weekend.

Prince Louis might be fifth in line to the throne, but he's already a king of one thing -- expressive faces in public that the world loves to see ... just like these.

Louis had a front-row seat at the Platinum Jubilee Pageant Sunday, where he was seated next to his mom, Kate Middleton, and his siblings. It seems the 4-year-old got a little bored and/or distracted during the parade though ... evident in his many looks.

Take a gander for yourself ... the kid appeared to be a bit of a handful for his mum, teasing her with a classic thumb-to-nose taunt -- this as she appeared to try and get him to behave.

It was all in good fun -- and made for great shots. At one point, he was standing up, at another he was turned around and talking to another child behind him, Mia Tindall ... even getting handsy at times (playfully, of course). Her dad told him ... I'm watching you, kiddo!

He even told his mom to zip it when she was trying to get him to settle down ... putting his hand over her mouth. Yeah, this is the definition of a little rascal -- on the biggest of stages.

While all of these faces might've been hilarious to see, none perhaps stack up to his now-viral screaming pic with his ears covered ... all while standing next to his grandma, the Queen. Apparently, he wasn't digging the loud noise from the fly-over at Buckingham Palace.