Programming note: We’re leaving early in honor of Juneteenth. We hope everyone has a happy holiday!

Zendaya wore a pretty great McQueen ensemble to the Amsterdam premiere of Spider-Man: Brand New Day this week. [RCFA]
Zohran Mamdani uses Minoxidil? [OMG Blog]
Olivia Rodrigo’s gross confession. [Socialite Life]
All about the bonkers first season of Widow’s Bay. [LaineyGossip]
Wait, this Maggie Rogers story is wild?? [Just Jared]
Review of Maternal Instinct. [Pajiba]
Zendaya also wore a weird Louis Vuitton look. [Go Fug Yourself]
Lacey Chabert’s European adventure starts now. [Seriously OMG]
Bunny XO says she’s still planning to have a baby. [Starcasm]
Sasha Obama is so beautiful! [Hollywood Life]
Tips for a more frugal life. [Buzzfeed]

It was one of the most obvious predictions, but still – as soon as we heard that the Sussex family plans to visit the UK next month, everyone knew that the Prince and Princess of Wales would spend the next four weeks thrashing around and throwing tantrums. Well, here we go. The opening salvo in what will be a month-long hissy fit from Prince William in particular. Incidentally, William’s 44th birthday is on Sunday and I’m sure all of his birthday profiles are going to be about how much he hates the Sussexes and how Harry is already dead to him. Forty-four years old and fueled solely by rage and hate. So, the opening salvo and preview of coming attractions comes via Tom Sykes’ Royalist Substack. Some lowlights from this exclusive: “Raging William Shuns Charles Over Harry and Meghan Invite.”

King Charles is happy about the Sussexes’ visit: The visit is being paid for by King Charles, who I am told is “happy” at the “outcome” which means he will get to meet his grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet, for the first time in several years.

Prince William refused to attend a Trooping lunch: I also exclusively revealed on my podcast with guest Mark Dolan yesterday that William is so appalled by what he sees as his father’s betrayal that he refused to join a customary family lunch after Trooping the Color last weekend, and left the celebrations with his wife, Catherine and his three children immediately after the RAF flypast.

William’s threats: He will boycott “the big house” at Sandringham “for ever” if Harry and Meghan are invited there, as they have been lobbying to be allowed to for several weeks, one source said. And an extraordinary revelation just published in The Sun, that Charles is footing the bill for Harry and Meghan’s security detail during the trip, will infuriate Wiliam, who will see it as irrefutable evidence that his father, who he believes has been weak, has allowed himself to be emotionally blackmailed by Harry and Meghan into greenlighting them a VVIP visit.

The fatted calf: Charles’ friends have defended the king, with one telling me tonight that he was likely inspired by the Bible story of the prodigal son, saying, “It’s a happy outcome for the king. The fatted calf will be slaughtered.”

William is owed respect!! However friends of William said the King should support his heir and that he owes William more respect. The king’s offer to underwrite Harry’s security means that a still unresolved decision from RAVEC about Harry’s security becomes irrelevant—for now. The fact that Charles is paying settles an argument I have been having with the rest of the royal commentariat for the better part of this year. While it is true that the Sussexes have been relentlessly pushing the story, the revelation that Charles’ office has been secretly planning the logisitics and how to pay for the trip shows the true engine of Harry and Meghan’s return to the tent is Charles. It is an astonishing betrayal of his loyal and dutiful heir who has made clear he never wants to see Harry again, believes he should be exiled (as far away as possible) and has told friends he blames the stress of Harry and Meghan’s betrayal for aggravating Catherine’s cancer.

William won’t be lectured by his father: Discussing William’s “frostiness with his pa,” one source told me, “[William] probably feels he is due no lectures from that quarter (Charles) on the subject of duty and personal wishes. [Diana] might just agree.”

Half-in!! The reality of this trip is that Harry and Meghan have won: they simply enacted the half-in, half-out status they wanted all along, and now the King is endorsing them….Charles and Harry are temperamentally alike: impetuous, impatient with the institution, quick to feel wronged.

[From The Royalist Substack]

I believe that William has reacted this way. I’ll buy that William made a point of not attending the Trooping lunch, and that William is fully wailing and threatening his father about “boycotting” Sandringham if the Sussex family spends time there. What’s funny about that in particular is that I think William has had full use of the Sandringham “big house” for years now, since the pandemic. When the family “stays at Norfolk,” I’ve always believed that Kate and the children are at Anmer Hall, where William stays at the big house or… elsewhere. Nevermind that the whole idea behind boycotting Sandringham is shockingly childish, even for William. Like, he would boycott a house where Meghan and Harry stayed for a few days? Really??

I also believe that William sees zero hypocrisy in punching walls and shrieking “respect my authority as heir” to his father. This is, after all, the heir who spent several years briefing the press that his father was close to kicking the royal bucket and that “the Scooter King reign” was almost upon them. Throwing these kinds of tantrums rarely earns the respect of anyone, that’s all I’ll say.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Backgrid.

Thursday was the inauguration of the Barack Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. This is the Obama library, they’re just calling it the “presidential center,” which is fine with me. The whole Obama family came out for it, and Malia continues to steal her dad’s whole face. Genetics are wild! Sasha and Malia turned out so great, Barack and Michelle did an amazing job with them. The Obamas invited their friends to the opening – Bill and Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush and Laura Bush, Joe and Jill Biden, Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff. Nancy Pelosi and Angela Merkel were also invited (Merkel loves Obama). No Trumps allowed.

As I was looking through the photos, I made several weird political observances. While the Obama presidency looks more and more like the last truly great moment in American political history, Dubya’s presidency looks almost modest compared to what Donald Trump is doing. Like, pre-Trump, Bush was easily the worst president since Nixon. Nowadays, Bush has some kind of “at least he wasn’t Trump” glow-up. Bush always loves spending time with Michelle Obama too.

It was nice to have a reminder of the way things used to be.

Hillary Clinton really like the peace prize line pic.twitter.com/m8CZw0C5Ky

— Acyn (@Acyn) June 18, 2026

To George and Laura, Bill and Hillary — we're grateful for your friendship, counsel, and devotion to this country. And to Joe and Jill, thank you for being on this journey with us.

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— Barack Obama (@barackobama.bsky.social) June 18, 2026 at 3:57 PM

Embed from Getty Images

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Photos courtesy of Getty Images.

I love this royal pattern. We’ve seen it a lot in recent years. Step #1: The Windsors do something wildly unpopular, or they get booed or heckled and suddenly look out-of-touch. Step #2: Everyone is reminded of how the left-behinds are a bunch of lazy flops and that becomes the story. Step #3: A few days later, the royal propaganda machine begins reimagining the “unpopular Windsors” incident and tries to force the royal counternarrative that your eyes must have deceived you, the Windsors are perfect in every way. So it is with this year’s Trooping the Colour. Ahead of Trooping, royal reporters were so bored, they wrote stories about whether Prince Harry would come. Then Trooping came and Republic protesters booed and heckled the royals, which was more noticeable because of the sparse crowd. Cameras got footage of the Princess of Wales icily glaring at protesters, her mask completely off. Well, forget all of that. Royal commentators insist that Kate is a rock star and that Charles was very happy with the image he presented of the modern monarchy and it’s pale-and-stale balcony.

By now, they’re pros. Having appeared at Trooping the Colour since they were toddlers, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, 8, looked completely at ease on the Buckingham Palace balcony. Throughout the morning of June 13, they waved to cheering crowds, watched the RAF flypast overhead and chatted with their parents as thousands packed the Mall below.

George — looking increasingly every bit the future king — was spotted pointing out military aircraft to Prince William, 43. He later managed to stifle a sneeze until the final notes of “God Save the King,” sharing a laugh with Kate Middleton, 44, after holding it together. Charlotte, meanwhile, appeared as poised as ever, while Louis seemed determined to savor every moment of the event.

“He was having a blast, like any other 8-year-old, loving the spectacle,” says former palace courtier Ailsa Anderson. “You can see the close bond between the three siblings.”

The appearance capped a day of military pageantry celebrating the monarch’s official birthday. And King Charles, 77, had every reason to feel encouraged as he surveyed the crowds. Still undergoing treatment for cancer, the King has spent much of the past two years navigating health challenges, family fractures and renewed scrutiny of the monarchy. But this year’s parade arrived at one of the most positive moments of his reign.

A week earlier, Charles joined much of the extended family at the wedding of his nephew Peter Phillips, following the King’s successful visit with Queen Camilla, 78, to the U.S. in April, including a well-received address to Congress. Combined with Princess Kate’s ongoing return to public life after her cancer remission announcement in early 2025, and a widely praised trip to Italy in May, the family is riding a wave of momentum unlike any since Charles became King.

Much of that optimism has centered on the Princess of Wales. “Kate is the closest they have to a rockstar member these days, and she’s the one everyone wants to see,” says royals author Catherine Mayer.

And while the royals gathered in London, Prince Harry, 41, was thousands of miles away in Texas attending Game 5 of the NBA Finals—a reminder of how far removed he has become from the royal duties and traditions that once defined his life. His expected return to Britain in July for Invictus Games events will put his relationship with the family back under the spotlight.

Yet the lasting image of the day was not one of absence. As Charles stood alongside his heir and three of his grandchildren, the monarchy’s future was on display for all to see — a powerful portrait of continuity at a moment when the institution appears to have regained its footing.

“It felt like a family affair; the King will have taken absolute joy and pleasure in that,” Anderson says. “They are starting the summer on a high.”

[From People]

The “Kate is the closest they have to a rockstar member these days” thing is so funny when you really think about it. Because it’s actually true – Kate is the “rockstar” of this motley crew. But that’s not a ringing endorsement of her star power, is it? “Oh, they’re more excited about seeing Kate than Camilla or Prince Edward!” Well, yes. That’s the only way Kate can look popular. And I also think Charles looked pretty over it during Trooping too – rather than basking in the affection of a nation, he tried to hustle off that fakakta balcony before he was supposed to.

Kate Middleton looking angry and the kids looking completely uncomfortable and confused, getting booed during trooping the colour. If looks could kill. Princess Kate didn't like that. pic.twitter.com/5Vz1ymbhf6

— Nina (@ShakeLS) June 13, 2026

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

This week, the British media announced that Prince Harry, Meghan and their two children plan to visit the UK next month. Most of the visit is about the Invictus One Year to Go events in Birmingham, but people obviously expect King Charles to at least spend a little bit of time with his grandkids. Throughout all of the discussion, there have been questions about security and whether Harry would bring Meghan and the kids to the UK if he wasn’t completely sure that they could be safe. RAVEC and the Home Office have still not made any kind of ruling on whether the Sussexes would get “automatic” security whenever they’re in the UK. But the Sun has just reported something interesting – Harry has apparently received assurances from his father that the Sussex family will have security, and Charles will pick up whatever extra cost there is.

Harry and Meghan will jet to the UK with their kids after King Charles offered to help cover their security arrangements, it is claimed. The Home Office has still granted taxpayer-funded round-the-clock armed police protection for their trip next month.

A review of the threat level posed to the couple has been ongoing and has not led to a change in security arrangements. But the King is believed to have intervened to offer his own resources so the couple can bring their two children Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, over for their first visit in four years.

Harry, who stepped back from royal duties when he moved to California, lost a legal case against the Home Office last year when it downgraded his security. He later said it was not safe to bring his family to the UK. But this week a “safe return” for a five-day visit was said to now be possible after “changes” to security arrangements.

However, sources said the Government’s Royal and VIP Executive Committee had not upgraded its threat level. A Government spokesman said of its protective security system: “It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on those arrangements, as doing so could compromise their integrity and affect individuals’ security.”

Buckingham Palace and the Sussexes, scheduled to be at Harry’s Invictus Games in Birmingham, declined to comment.

[From The Sun]

First thing: this is all about face-saving for RAVEC and the Home Office, not to mention Buckingham Palace. As I said, Harry has them over a barrel, and they’re terrified about what Harry would do or say if they rejected his family’s security needs outright. This arrangement sounds like a completely typical – meaning “half-assed” – British arrangement to save face at an institutional level while still providing security. Second thing: this arrangement, with the sovereign basically intervening and picking up any additional security costs, is exactly what Queen Elizabeth did for the Sussexes when they visited twice in 2022. That is exactly what Harry had argued in his lawsuits as well, and this has been his position since 2022 – that his father could easily intervene, just as QEII did, to assure the Sussex family’s security. Charles never “intervened” before because he’s a rotten old man who wanted to keep the Sussexes away and/or put them in as much danger as possible.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

Royal Ascot Day 3 (Thursday) brought out the core royals: King Charles, Queen Camilla, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh (Edward & Sophie), Princess Anne, Zara Tindall and… Carole Middleton. Truly, Carole is the next best thing to the Queen Mum – she is the mother of the future queen consort and grandmother to a future king. Plus, the Queen Mum was always gin-pickled too. Interestingly, Carole heard all of our comments about her missing husband, so Michael Middleton was dutifully trotted out for Day 3. He was barely photographed, almost as if he only came out to keep up appearances and then left quickly. I do think it’s interesting that Carole was welcomed two days in a row as well – her daughter wasn’t there, and yet Carole was still rubbing shoulders with Sophie Who and Zara in the royal box. I have to hand it to her, Carole negotiated a great deal for herself in 2024.

I didn’t get a chance to talk about Duchess Sophie at Ascot earlier because there was so much going on, but Sophie bizarrely wore two very dark, funereal looks to Ascot. While the cut and length of these dresses adhere to Ascot’s dress code, she broke the unwritten rule of Ascot style: “don’t look like a goth witch.” Her black dress on Day 2 and her navy dress from Day 3 were both from Suzannah London. Both are just terrible dresses overall as well. Sophie gets it wrong like 90% of the time.

Meanwhile, Day 3 was the first time Zara Tindall and Mike Tindall were invited to ride in the carriage procession. The Tindalls have been there every day, so this was a special treat, I guess. Zara wore another puffy-sleeved Rebecca Vallance bridesmaid’s dress for some reason.

One more fashion note – Camilla wore a custom Fiona Clare, paired with a Dior purse. She also wore diamond earrings (likely from the Royal Collection), a Cartier bracelet and the Courtauld Thomson Scallop-Shell Brooch. Also: Andrew Parker Bowles was there too.

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Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Getty Images.

We’ll have to pace ourselves, because I have a feeling that the next four weeks are going to be full of royalist and deranger shenanigans, all around the Sussex family’s likely trip to the UK in July. Remember how the British and Australian tabloids tried to sabotage Prince Harry & Meghan’s Australian trip? It will be like that, only much, much worse. The only thing that might hinder the sabotage is if King Charles and his courtiers make it known that the Sussexes were invited and that shenanigans will not be tolerated. I will try to track what the most clued-in royal rota reporters are saying fresh from their WhatsApp. While the Mail’s Becky English hasn’t chimed in (curious), the Mail’s Martin Robinson had a big exclusive about how Charles plans to “set aside” time for the entire Sussex family.

King Charles wants reconciliation with Prince Harry and will set aside time for him, Meghan, Archie and Lilibet if they make a rare trip to Britain next month, it was claimed today. The monarch would likely want to keep any reunion private – and meet on a royal property – if the family do all visit the UK together in mid-July.

But Queen Camilla may find an excuse not to be there and there is ‘no way’ the Prince and Princess of Wales will want to be in the same room as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, experts have said.

Palace aides will also be wary that Harry and Meghan could use the trip as another relaunch amid reports they could be accompanied to the UK by a Netflix camera crew.

‘Cynics would say Harry and Meghan feel their star power in the US has diminished and so they need an injection of royal magic,’ royal expert and biographer Phil Dampier said.

But not everyone in Harry’s family will be as keen to see them as King Charles, particularly his wife and eldest son. Phil Dampier said: ‘The King wants a reconciliation with his son and wants to see his grandchildren. I think he will want to avoid a public meeting on this trip as it would turn into a circus, but would meet them privately. But whether Queen Camilla is keen to meet is another matter. It wouldn’t surprise me if she has some family commitment to go to and avoids them. She will feel she was badly treated in Harry’s book Spare.’

He added: ‘There is now no way, however, that Harry will meet up with William and Catherine. He [Harry] has been making it clear in recent months that he wants a reconciliation with his family, but how genuine that is only he knows. Harry’s aim is to get him along to the Invictus Games as guest of honour next year.’

Phil Dampier also believes that the fact all four Sussexes are coming to the UK suggests that Harry has had ‘assurances’ they will get taxpayer-funded armed bodyguards.

‘No one knows what security arrangements have been made for Harry and Meghan’s trip next month, but the fact she is coming with their children indicates they have been given some assurances,’ he said. ‘It may be that security is provided on a case-by-case basis in future. I don’t think taxpayers would want to finance their security full time, so this is a compromise.’

Royal commentator Richard Palmer says the Palace remains worried about Meghan and Harry’s motives for wanting contact with the Royal Family again. Aides are concerned about whether to trust them, given all the secrets they have spilled since Megxit. He said: ‘There remains a fair degree of suspicion within the Royal Household, and there is the fear that they will use any meetings with the monarch to try to boost their commercial brand. But against that, the King wants to have a relationship with his grandchildren. If Archie and Lilibet are coming over, then I think it makes it highly likely that the Sussexes will spend time with the King. There’s a good chance that this could be the start of the family coming to terms with the rift and starting to try to rebuild relationships.’

[From The Daily Mail]

LMAO – “whether Queen Camilla is keen to meet is another matter. It wouldn’t surprise me if she has some family commitment to go to and avoids them.” Don’t threaten the Sussexes with a good time! Charles managed to meet with Harry solo last September too, meaning Camilla was not in the room and she wasn’t able to feed this particular tabloid beast. I hope Charles pulls the same thing this time around, and orders Cam to decamp to Ray Mill or whatever. The next four weeks are going to be full of William and Kate thrashing around, screaming about how they’ll never, ever see Harry, Meghan or the children. Again, no one asked to see W&K. I do think it’s pitiful that William has never met his niece, and he’s probably only met his nephew once or twice when Archie was a baby. But it is what it is – William made his choices, and hey, Camilla got exactly what she wanted. She managed to successfully drive a wedge between Diana’s sons.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Meghan’s Instagram.

So, do I similarly give the current president a pass on algae blooming immediately after his renovations? NO, I do not! Because as per usual, President Dumbf–k’s changes were all surface no substance, enacted brazenly without federal oversight, and undertaken with pernicious, politicized commentary. Trump has constantly framed the latest pool refurbishments as fixing what Obama didn’t do right, so for it all to blow up in Don’s face in such neon fashion is exactly what he deserves. I was all set to write about just how vast this algae bloom is, when lo and behold, another problem emerged: the new blue-hued lining is already peeling. After only two weeks.

Cracks in the system: Some blue material at the bottom of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is peeling off, days after the pool was painted blue and refilled as part of a multi-million dollar renovation ordered by President Donald Trump. On Thursday at the National Mall, CNN observed a flap of blue material that was partially attached to the bottom in one area of the pool and floating toward the top. It is unclear if the material is paint or sealant, and it’s unclear what caused it to come up. The Department of the Interior did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The renovator responds… kind of: Shown pictures and videos of the materials, Eddie Wood, who owns Atlantic Industrial Coatings, the Virginia-based firm hired to renovate the pool, said the images do not provide enough information “to tell exactly what that is.” “There’s several things that we’ve got to address when we come back for maintenance, and anything like that will be addressed, if it’s a problem,” Wood said.

An expert weighs in: Tim Auerhahn, a pool infrastructure expert and the chairman of the Aquatic Council, said it’s difficult to tell from the videos what was causing the “apparent delamination.” “A coating system can fail for several reasons, including substrate preparation, surface contamination, application conditions, adhesion issues, product selection, mechanical damage, environmental exposure, or a combination of factors,” Auerhahn said. The larger question, he added, is whether this represents a localized issue in that part of the pool or a larger, more systemic issue with the coating. “If the coating is losing adhesion in multiple locations, that could indicate a more significant concern,” he said.

The algae of it all: But it didn’t take long for many of the same issues to resurface. Not long after the newly renovated pool was filled with water earlier this month, algae again discolored the water. Earlier this week, in an apparent effort to remediate that discoloration, workers were seen pouring jugs of hydrogen peroxide into the pool and deployed what an Interior spokesperson described as “advanced nanobubbler technology.” As of Thursday afternoon, the pool was still green in large sections, with algae visible.

[From CNN]

What?! The advanced nanobubbler technology didn’t work?? Not the “state of the art ozone nanobubbler filtration” the Department of Interior has been touting?? Surely you jest?!! Ok, I’ve since learned that nanobubble technology is a real thing, but I also can’t be the only one who heard “nanobubbles” and immediately conjured an image of farting in the bathtub. Also, c’mon, it’s just plain funny sounding! “The nanobubbler is malfunctioning!!” (Yes, I am a child. No, I do not apologize for that.) As for the work done by Trump’s handpicked pool guy under a $14 million no-bid contract already falling apart… if you’re surprised, the joke’s on you. There have always been structural issues with the Reflecting Pool; not one of them has ever been that the water wasn’t “American-flag blue” enough. The one thing the pool is accurately reflecting right now is the ineptitude of this administration. If the hydrogen peroxide somehow turns out to be the culprit for the lining falling apart, I call Bingo.

>Give $14M no-bid contract to your friend to paint the pool blue
>Pool turns green anyway because algae grows in warm stagnant water
>Pour hydrogen peroxide into the pool to kill the algae
>The hydrogen peroxide peels off the blue paint https://t.co/QGJoHWioPz

— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) June 18, 2026

Went back to the reflecting pool with a waterproof camera. Here’s what it looks like underwater where a section has peeled up and was removed. pic.twitter.com/jWS9LtGGZE

— Andrew Leyden (@PenguinSix) June 19, 2026

I’m sorry, no. This is not the guy who did the reflecting pool. No. Come on. We’re just putting a hat on a hat here.
www.nytimes.com/2026/06/18/u…

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— Philip Bump (@pbump.com) June 18, 2026 at 9:50 PM

World Cup fever has spread across the US, as Americans embrace our, like, seventh favorite sport. I honestly think Americans are getting a bigger kick out of hosting international visitors than legitimately enjoying the soccer, but we can do both! It definitely looks like plenty of American soccer fans are buying tickets to all of these games. There are shockingly good vibes around the World Cup, so much so that basically everyone (domestic and international) has quietly agreed to ignore Donald Trump. Who can pay attention to Cheeto when the Australians and Germans are having the time of their lives at IHOPs and Walmarts? Well, Prince William is here to remind everyone that he’s a super-sensitive international statesman and a lazy dumbass. The VENN diagram is just a circle – William is too lazy to travel to the US for the World Cup, and he also wants credit for being a wise statesman who refuses to sit for a photo-op with Donald Trump. According to a new report, the only way William (who is president of the Football Association) will turn up for the World Cup is if England makes the final.

Prince William looks set to avoid a potential diplomatic headache by staying away from this summer’s World Cup until at least the final. The i Paper understands the football-loving Prince of Wales is not expected to attend the tournament being played across the United States, Canada and Mexico unless England – or Scotland – make it to the final in New York on 19 July.

Last year, it had been widely reported that William was expected to coincide a trip to cheer on the Three Lions with America’s Independence Day celebrations on 4 July. However, it now appears William will stay at home – as the war between the US and Iran casts a diplomatic shadow over the tournament and revelations have emerged about apparent royal unease over Trump’s actions on the global stage.

Kensington Palace declined to comment but the decision to stay away is in keeping with the pattern of recent international tournaments, where William has seemingly given a wide berth to competitions played against a backdrop of geopolitical sensitivities.

While the Prince, who is also the long-standing president of the Football Association, attended three England games during the Euro 2024 competition in Germany and group-stage games at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups – he did not make the journey to either of the two previous tournaments in Qatar and Russia. In the case of the Qatar tournament held late in 2022, royal aides insisted the no-show was down to William’s busy winter schedule. But both tournaments were overshadowed by human rights concerns, in particular the Russia World Cup which came shortly after Moscow’s agents had deployed a nerve agent in an attempt to murder ex-spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.

Dr Ed Owens, a royal historian and commentator, said: “William is much like his father on this. He recognises that royal soft power is arguably the Windsors’s most uncontested role in modern life and the most important role they can play on behalf of Britain.”

William also did not attend the Women’s World Cup final in Sydney in 2023 – England’s first World Cup final appearance since 1966. Royal sources at the time cited it would have involved flying across the world for a very short period of time.

As recently as six months ago, there was widespread anticipation that Palace planners were seeking to combine a visit to the World Cup by the Prince of Wales with an appearance at 4 July celebrations to commemorate 250 years since independence from Britain. But appetite for such an encounter appears to have shifted.

[From The i Newspaper]

William deserves absolutely no credit for any political sensitivities. He and Kate did several photo-ops with Trump already, despite all of the warnings that the optics would blow up in their faces. Besides which, William’s refusal to visit the US isn’t even about Trump – it’s because he’s lazy, full-stop. It’s because he already did his one big international work trip this year… to Saudi Arabia (speaking of political sensitivities). I also suspect that William doesn’t want to go to the US because he doesn’t want to get booed at yet another American sports event. And I’m sure there’s something to do with Prince Harry as well.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Kensington Palace’s Instagram.

For the past six weeks, the stories about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding have grown more and more unbelievable. As in, I do not believe the stories whatsoever. I never believed that Taylor and Travis had scheduled their wedding for the Fourth of July weekend in New York, at Madison Square Garden. Like, I have questions about Taylor and Travis’s taste level, but I don’t think either of them would actually *want* to have a tacky extravaganza-wedding at MSG. So, I’ve believed that all of these stories amount to deliberate misinformation, to throw off Swifties and tabloids and everyone else. Well, rather suddenly, there are a lot of Taylor-related people hanging out in Rhode Island. You guys… is Taylor getting married on Juneteenth??

There is evidence Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce will not tie the knot at Madison Square Garden in New York, and there is also evidence something wedding-related is going down at Taylor’s massive, seaside Rhode Island mansion.

There was a lot of activity at Taylor’s R.I. place Wednesday night. For starters, a woman who appears to be Taylor’s best friend, Abigail Anderson Berard, was on the balcony with a small child. Abigail has a child who will turn 2 in August.

A TikToker shot video Wednesday of 4 women on a rooftop balcony, 3 of whom were wearing black robes and a 4th — a blonde woman — wearing white.

An eyewitness who lives in the area tells TMZ … the lights in Taylor’s mansion are typically off, yet Wednesday night they were all on — the house was lit up at around 8 PM.

What’s more, there was a massive security presence at the mansion. Our eyewitness says he saw a security detail in the driveway as the gate opened and an SUV with tinted windows left the property. An armed guard stood by the gate until it closed. The eyewitness also says he saw 2 armed guards with “huge binoculars” surveying the beach area.

As for what this might be … well, the MSG celebration is scheduled for July 3rd, although it’s feeling like the wedding might take place before that. So, is this a wedding, a bachelorette party, or something else?

[From TMZ]

LOL… I think the wedding is happening this weekend in Rhode Island, you guys. I think Taylor and Travis are getting married on or around Juneteenth. Incredible. Something else to note is that it looks like Travis had his bachelor party in LA on Wednesday. He was seen going into Bird Streets Club (a members-only club), and Jason Kelce was there too. So were Druski (obvs) and a few of Travis’s football buddies. Is it going down this weekend??

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images, Taylor Swift’s Instagram.

Ines de Ramon accompanied Brad Pitt to Paris two weekends ago. They were pap’d going in and out of restaurants, and they had good seats for the Roland Garros women’s final. Ines played her role well – the doting girlfriend, nuzzling Pitt’s neck and snuggling up against his body for no apparent reason. I’ve never really thought that they have much chemistry together, but Ines has gotten better at performing for photographers and paparazzi. That’s basically all Brad wants – someone emotionally low-maintenance who will remain at his beck-and-call for photo-ops. Well, Us Weekly’s cover story this week is all about Brad and Ines’s love and how at least Brad is in a good place with Ines, even if all of his kids hate his guts. Some highlights:

Why Brad & Ines were in Paris: According to a source, the pair have been in Provence, France, for the past month, and hopped over to the romantic City of Light for the French Open. They later stepped out for dinner at Le Voltaire with Flea and Pitt’s Se7en director David Fincher. “Now they’re back in Provence for a few weeks,” adds the source. Pitt still occasionally resides at Château Miraval, his winery estate in Provence, not far away from longtime pal George Clooney, who moved to the idyllic French town with his family in 2021.

Brad isn’t focusing on his children: “Brad is focusing his energy on the parts of his life that feel good right now,” a source close to Pitt tells Us Weekly. “Ines has been a grounding, positive presence, and she’s brought a sense of stability that he’s really leaned into, especially after an emotional few years.”

Ines is perfect for Brad: “She’s such an uplifting energy [and] consistently looks on the bright side of things and is always up for an adventure,” a source told Us in early 2023. “Brad also appreciates that she’s super laid-back.” A third source says Pitt likes that de Ramon, who graduated from the University of Geneva in Switzerland and previously worked as a VP at trendy jewelry brand Anita Ko, has no interest in the spotlight. “She doesn’t compete with him for fame. She supports him and lets him do his thing, and he feels emotionally safe with her.”

Estrangement from the children: For all the peace de Ramon has brought into his life, Pitt’s relationship with his kids remains a sore spot. During a mother-daughter brunch at Spelman College in April, Zahara gushed about her actress mom, saying she’s “grateful to have had a role model to show me what it looks like to be a decent human being.” A source told Us in September that all the children are currently estranged from Pitt, even Knox and Vivienne, with whom he was once close. “Brad hasn’t been a constant presence in their day-to-day lives, mainly because of everything that happened during his marriage to Angelina and partly because of his work schedule and lifestyle,” says a fourth source. A fifth source notes that Jolie, 51, “hardly worked” during the first few years following the divorce to spend time with her kids.

The kids are dropping “Pitt” from their names: Adds the fourth source: “Angie has never discouraged the kids from having a relationship with Brad. Changing their names was solely their idea, not hers.” The Pitt source tells Us he’s “devastated” by their decision.

Ines doesn’t insert herself into Brad’s many family problems: “She wants Brad to find peace, forgiveness [and to] move on,” an insider told Us in May 2024. Another source told Us in December that Pitt “has done a lot of work on himself,” thanks in part to de Ramon. “She has brought him a lot of healing.” Says the third source: “Ines encourages reconciliation with the kids while keeping healthy boundaries and not inserting herself into the family conflict.”

Marriage isn’t the end goal. “It’s tough to think about that given Brad’s past experience, and Ines isn’t pushing it either,” the third source says. (Last June, an insider stressed that Pitt had “shown his commitment” to de Ramon and that they were “on the same page” when it came to enjoying a relationship “without pressure.”) Still, friends feel confident that Pitt and de Ramon have major staying power. “Ines is the perfect match for Brad,” says the third source. “She’s his trusted confidante, and he’s more emotionally open in this relationship than he’s been in the past. They work well.”

[From Us Weekly]

Yeah, this is mostly just a rehash of stuff we’ve heard many times before – Ines is the ultimate cool girl without any messy wants or needs, she exists to be there for Brad and encourage him to be a better person. She has no concerns about his alcoholism or the fact that all of his children hate him. She doesn’t even think it’s weird that Brad is still obsessed with “punishing” Angelina for leaving him. And of course he’s taking Ines to Chateau Miraval. Just a few months ago, Brad was whining in court about how he can’t even enjoy Miraval since he only owns half of the property! Also: just for a moment, allow yourselves to wonder how this would have played out if the genders were reversed, if all six kids were estranged from Angelina, and Angelina was gallivanting around France with a vacant boy-toy.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images. Cover courtesy of Us Weekly.

What Did This Study Find?
After adjusting for potential confounding factors and aerobic exercise, researchers found that performing 90 to 119 minutes of long-term resistance training per week was associated with:

• 13% lower all-cause mortality (death from any cause)
• 19% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease and events
• 27% lower risk of dying from neurological disease, like dementia

Benefits leveled off after 119 minutes per week, with no additional benefits in these specific cases.

Additionally, doing 7.5 MET-hours of aerobic activity per week was associated with a 26% to 43% lower mortality risk compared with people who got less than 7.5 MET-hours per week. METs are a measure of work performed—7.5 MET-hours per week is equivalent to standard physical activity recommendations—150 to 300 minutes per week of moderate-intensity activity or 75 to 150 minutes per week of vigorous physical activity.

But what showed the greatest benefit for preventing death was combining high levels of resistance training and aerobic exercise. For example, researchers calculated a 45% lower risk of death for those performing 30 to 45 MET-hours per week of aerobic exercise plus 60 to 119 minutes per week of resistance training.

Those who engaged in the highest amounts of aerobic exercise (≥45 MET-hours per week) had a 42% to 47% lower risk of death, regardless of their resistance-training level. For reference, 45 MET-hours per week looks something like walking at a 15-minute-per-mile pace for more than an hour, seven days a week.

Limitations of this study include that most of the participants’ information was self-reported. This leaves lots of room for inaccuracies, forgetfulness and miscalculations, including under- and overreporting of data (such as underreporting alcohol intake and overreporting exercise amounts). This study measured traditional resistance training but did not include other types of strength-training activities, such as calisthenics and Pilates. It also didn’t include the intensity of the resistance-training workouts. Lastly, caution should be used when generalizing these results, as the cohorts were primarily white, middle-aged health care professionals.

How Does This Apply to Real Life?
Current physical activity guidelines recommend getting 150 to 300 minutes per week of moderate-intensity activity or 75 to 150 minutes per week of vigorous-intensity activity, plus at least two days of strength training. The results of this study suggest that meeting the minimum requirements for aerobic activity and strength training may help lower the risk of death from any cause. Specifically, this study found the greatest benefits with about 90 minutes to two hours of strength training per week. And while some guidelines don’t include stretching, many notable organizations, such as the American College of Sports Medicine, also encourage flexibility training (stretching) at least two days per week and, ideally, every day.

If you’re nowhere near meeting these guidelines, that’s OK. Just start where you’re at and slowly increase frequency, intensity and duration over time. Whether you choose to go it alone, hire a personal trainer or work out with a buddy or in a group, the key is consistency, as consistent practice is essential to building long-term habits.

[From Eating Well]

What I find most interesting is that the benefits maxed out at two hours of strength training a week. So many people think they need to go hard to see results, but research keeps showing that’s not the case. It’s a lot easier to make time to exercise when you don’t feel like you have to carve out hours for it. It also makes sense that a healthy combination of cardio and strength training gets the best results. I’m curious to learn how workouts like Pilates and calisthenics, that weren’t included in the study, factor into overall health. It would also be great if there were more diverse studies so we can get a better picture of how exercise affects different demographics.

When I started weight training a few years ago, it was all done at home via Apple Fitness+, YouTube videos, and E2M circuits. Mr. Rosie created a little space for me to work out and my kids gifted me weights for holidays. This cardio gal learned that she really likes living in a strength training world! I love how tingly it makes my muscles feel. I did really well at home for a couple of years, but eventually found myself getting easily distracted. To hold myself accountable, I started taking Core Power Yoga’s Sculpt class twice a week. It incorporates hot yoga, weights, and cardio. I’ve been going since October and have seen noticeable results. It’s a bonus to learn that it could help me live longer.

Photos credit: Anna Shvets, Gustavo Fring, April Laugh and Krishna Agrawal on Pexels