Princess Madeleine borrows a page (or two) from Will and Kate's photo album

EXHIBIT NUMBER 1: The tight hug pose with Chris-Madeleine, left, and Will-Kate. (Kungahuset.se/Getty Images)

Hey, it worked for Will and Kate ... why not some Swedish royals as well?

Princess Madeleine, obviously taking a page from the British royal engagement book, released her official engagement photos this week with her betrothed, Chris O'Neil. There is no mistaking that haven't-we-seen-this-before feeling.

The Daily Mail was quick to pick up on the similarities, running the opposing photos with a headline: "A right royal rip off?"

The Prince William-Kate Middleton engagement photos were taken in late 2010 by Mario Testino. Princess Madeleine, 30, and O'Neill, 38, had their official photos taken by Patrick Demarchelier of France.

The poses are almost identical, right down to the placement of hands and style of dress. Kate and Madeleine could even pass as sisters. (Not so much for Chris and Will -- one of them has quite a full head of hair.)

The Swedish engagement was announced last week, with Queen Silva describing O'Neill as "every mother-in-law's dream."

O'Neil and Madeleine have been dating since January 2011. They met in New York, where O'Neill is a partner at Noster Capital and where Madeleine had been living after calling off her engagement to Swedish lawyer Jonas Bergstrom in April 2010. At the time, the rumours swirled that Bergstrom had cheated on his royal bride-to-be.

Then, along came O'Neill, whom Madeleine met through mutual friends in the Big Apple.

Madeleine is the youngest daughter of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silva, and fourth in line for the throne. In New York, she had been working for World Childhood Foundation.

It's expected O'Neill and the princess will be married sometime next year in Stockholm.

EXHIBIT NUMBER 2: In a Palace room, semi-formal, affectionate touching. Both couples seem to take direction very well. (Kungahuset.se/Getty Images)

That's Dr. Prince Philip, please

The Duke of Edinburgh went into the history books once again this week, becoming, at age 91, the oldest British royal to be given an honourary doctorate.

At Plymouth University, he was awarded a degree in marine science at a private ceremony and couldn't resist making a crack:

"I'm delighted to have this. It's now quite a long time since I started my university career. But, unlike most people, I started at the wrong end.

"I became Chancellor of the University of Wales in 1947 and been going downhill ever since."

Queen Elizabeth receives applause following the playing of the national anthem prior to meeting members of the cast and crew as the Queen and Prince Philip attend a Gala Jubilee celebration at the Royal Opera House in London on Oct. 30. The monarch is wearing a metallic silver dress by Angela Kelly. (AFP/Getty Images)

 

'Go Granny!': Inside Queen Elizabeth's secret Bond video

A performer playing Queen Elizabeth  parachutes from a helicopter during the opening ceremony of the London Olympic Games. The parachutist, Gary Connery, landed safely outside Olympic Stadium, just moments before the real Queen  opened the Games. (Reuters)

We always suspected that the Queen was good at keeping secrets.

As if more proof was needed, the chairman of the 2012 London Olympics, Lord Seb Coe, has revealed the  secrets that were kept as he assembled the pieces resulting in the Queen's star turn in the James Bond video that highlighted the opening ceremony of the Games.

According to Coe, only an handful of people were aware of the Queen's involvement -- including Prime Minister David Cameron -- and even the senior members of the Royal Family were kept in the dark.

"So when the sequence began, with the corgis racing up what were obviously very familiar stairs, Prince Charles looked at me and began laughing rather nervously, wondering where on earth this was going," Coe wrote in his autobiography "Running My Life," which is being excerpted it the Times of London.

"And when the film cut to the shot of the Royal back, he had exactly the same reaction as everyone else, which was to assume that it was the lady who does the impersonations. But the moment she turned around and everyone realized 'My God! It really is the Queen!' he began roaring with laughter. As for his sons (William and Harry), they were beside themselves."

The young princes were sitting behind Coe in the Royal Box, watching in amazement as their grandmother walked with 007 (Daniel Craig) down the Palace corridor. The sequence ends in a helicopter taking off and finally with the Queen (actually, her double), parachuting over the stadium.

"As she started her descent two voices shouted out in unison behind me, ‘go, Granny!’," wrote Coe. "While I knew we had a winner, I have to admit that I was taken aback by the level of approval it did achieve.”

The idea for the video originally came from director Danny Boyle, who brought it to Coe. He knew the Queen's deputy private secretary and eventually PM Cameron was brought into the circle. He brought up the idea with the Queen during one of his weekly meetings with the monarch.

It was on March 27, four months before the Games, that the video was shot, directed by Boyle and in plenty of secrecy, despite having 130 people involved in the shoot.

Coe admitted the whole operation had a bit of surrealism about it, and he was filled with some apprehension right up to the moment of watching the 'Queen' fall from the sky in a peach-coloured dress.

"Oh my God!," Coe recollected. "What have we sanctioned here!"

(Check out a double-sided version of the video here:)

 

Police set to arrest 'topless Kate' photographer

Catherine, Duchess  of Cambridge and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge looked none too pleased on the day a French magazine published pictures of Kate topless. The couple was in Kuala Lumpur on Day 4 of their tour of Asia and the South Pacific. (Getty Images)

The mystery of the topless Kate photos is moving one step closer to resolution.

French police now know the identity of the photographer who took the snaps that shook the royal world in September and are, according to reports, on the verge of arresting him/her.

"The photographer is expected to be held for questioning imminently," a source told the Mirror in London.

The pictures were taken from hundreds of metres away on a road outside the Chateau D'Autet, where Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge were sunbathing while on vacation.

As many as 200 photos were taken. Closer magazine in Paris was the first to publish pictures, followed by publications in Italy, Ireland, Sweden and Denmark.

Under strict French privacy laws, the photographer could be fined up to $57,000 and be jailed for a year.

Will and Kate are taking an aggressive stand on this "grotesque" breach of their privacy, determined to draw the line in the sand for paparazzi and bring this one particular photographer to justice. They already succeeded in preventing Closer from publishing any more pictures and the ones in the magazine's possession were turned over to the Palace.

The royals were especially furious because the publication came just at the height of their tour of Asia and the South Pacific.

The scene of the crime was the Chateau d'Autet in Provence. The photographer was stationed

 

Pippa Middleton has a new man in her life

We know this much about Pippa Middleton ... she likes money.

Who doesn't, right? Except Pippa has all the necessary attributes to attract it -- and the men who have it.

Her latest beau certainly fills the requirement and has sent tongues wagging onthe internet. According to the UK's Mirror, she's been dating James Matthews, a 37-year-old investment banker and the brother of Spencer, who stars in a British reality series, "Made in Chelsea."

The paper quotes a friend as saying the couple has gone from "strength to strength" inthe last few weeks. The pair have been seen dining as several fashionable eateries, including Hakkasan restaurant in Mayfair, where they were "openly flirting with one another."

“Pippa was all smiles and kept ­giggling," said one observer. "They stayed for nearly three hours and didn’t seem to want the meal to end.”

Matthews heads up Eden Rock ­Capital Management group, ­founded in 2001. He comes from a wealthy family, which created the Eden Rock Hotel in St. Barths in the Caribbean. (Right: James, top left, brother Spencer and parents David and Jane)

Pippa is no stranger to the world of banking, having had a long relationship with Alex Loudon. They split last year and since then Pippa followers have been guessing on the Mr. Right possibles for 29-year-old party planner and sister to Kate, Duchess of Cambridge.

For a time, many thought it would be George Percy, a former classmate at Edinburgh U. and the incredibly rich son of the Duke of Northumberland. But that talk has fizzled and since then she has been seen with a parade of socialite bachelors, none of whom seemed more than party mates.

This time, the whispers are louder that Pippa may have finally attached herself to someone with potential.

“Pippa is quite taken with James," one friend tells the paper. "She wants to take things slowly at first, but she is ready for a full-time man in her life again.”

Now that Pippa has launched her first book, "Celebrate," she is undoubtedly ready to dip into her bucket list of other things to do wih her life. The question for suitors is, are they willing to step into that harsh paprazzi spotlight?

Pippa given the royal security treatment for book launch

Pippa Middleton poses for the media as she arrives at a bookshop to promote her new book "Celebrate" on Thursday. (AP Photo)

Pippa Middleton has been dubbed "Her Royal Hotness," but certainly nobody thinks that nickname actually makes her royal. Or do they?

You have to wonder after a report in the Daily Mail that two officers from the royal protection branch of Scotland Yard did security sweeps of the London bookstore before the Duchess of Cambridge's younger sister had her much publicized book launch this week.

Royal protection is already a touchy subject in Britain, where more than a $150 million a year is spent on protecting about 20 members of the Royal Family. Scotland Yard is under pressure to cut its budget and devoting 400 officers to royal protection strikes many as extravagant.

The Middleton family is clearly outside the royal circle in terms of security perks. Scotland Yard has said so time and time again. When, as reported, two officers in plainclothes showed up a day before the book launch and again an hour before Pippa arrived, the optics don't look good.

It might have been that Prince William and Kate would show up in support of Pippa, but it was pretty clear that was never going to be the case. As much as she might have wanted to, Kate is well aware that she cannot appear to be endorsing her sister's profit-making venture. She and William were supposedly at their home in Wales at the same time Pippa was getting "Celebrate" off the ground.

There's no doubt the Middleton family, and especially Pippa, has had cause to worry about their security since the royal wedding. Penguin, Pippa's publisher, realized this too, and hired security services for her at the launch.

But why the extra royal touch?

The former head of Royalty Protection, Dai Davies, told the Mail that it was "extremely unusual" for Pippa to get royal help unless there was threat, or there was chance Duchess Kate would change her mind and show up.

"However, it does set a worrying precedent," he said. "And you have to ask where it all stops."

 

 

Pippa does a wardrobe workout as she launches 'Celebrate'

Pippa Middleton poses for photographers to promote her first book, "Celebrate," in London on Thursday. (Reuters)

Pippa Middleton may not prove to be the world's greatest book seller, but you've got to give her credit for her quick-change artistry.

The party-planning sister of Kate, Duchess of Cambridge wore no less than four different outfits on Thursday in a whirlwind display of public posing for the launch of her party-planning book "Celebrate."

She started the day in a multi-coloured outfit at Foyles book store, then she changed into an plum-coloured outfit from Roksanda Ilincic.

A dress filled with sparkles was next, from the British label LBD, as she helped kids put together Halloween goodies and crafty stuff, then into a sleeveless Stella McCartney number (right).

So, she has the designer-swapping down pat. Sister Kate would be impressed. But is the book any good?

While some have given the 29-year-old Pippa a "good effort" type of rating, it is unlikely to make a Pulitzer impact -- and some have called it an all-to-obvious attempt to cash in on royal relatives. The Star's Amy Pataki did not give Pippa high marks in her review of the 417-page book, calling it "simplistic and lacklustre."

Right now, it doesn't seem to matter how much merit people give the book. Pippa's name alone is driving sales in the opening week. It is No. 67 on the Amazon.uk site and has been riding the top 100 even before it goes into wide circulation.

Mind you, the book is being heavily discounted. The $40 cover price has been knocked down to $25 both in the UK and Canada. Even Party Pieces, the Middleton family's party business, is offering the book at a discount ($32) though they are also making an $8 donation to charity for each book sold.

The trick now is for Pippa to stay visible enough through the early Christmas shopping period to make this book pay off and justify the $600,000-plus advance payment. There is already talk that she is in talks to prepare a second book (wedding planning?).

In terms of marketing, Pippa still has a ways to go, since she is deliberately steering away from full-on interview situations. The children's Halloween party as a backdrop to one of her stops on Thursday was nice, but it didn't go off without a hitch.

The Telegraph reports that one little girl told Pippa: "I hate princesses."

Pippa quickly recovered with a hearty laugh and a retort: "Better not talk about that one!"

Pippa Middleton looks like she enjoyed -- for once anyway -- posing for photographers on Thursday. (Reuters)

Pippa Middleton holds all the right props as she celebrates "Celebrate." (Reuters)

 

 

 

Prince Charles given a early taste of royal tour

Maori dancers perform the traditional haka for Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall at St James's Palace on Wednesday. (AFP/Getty Images)

Apparently, the folks on the other side of the world couldn't wait for Prince Charles and Camilla to visit them next month, so they sent a delegation to drop in on him in London's St. James's Palace.

A crowd of about 200, dominated by natives of Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand, gave the king-to-be and his wife a taste of what to expect during their tour Nov. 3-16.

The trip is part of Charles' commitment to Diamond Jubilee tours during this 60th year of the Queen's reign. He was last in Australia and New Zealand in 2005 and visited Papua New Guinea in 1984.

During the preview at the Palace, Charles and Camilla were entertained by dancers performing the traditional Maori haka of New Zealand and by Australian-born pop singer Kylie Minogue. Charles picked up the cues right away, already being well versed in the traditional Maori greeting (right, with Bruce Simpson of the Ngati Ranana London Maori Club).

One of the special treats for J.R.R. Tolkien fan Charles during this tour will be visiting with Peter Jackson, director of "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. The prince will be touring the workshops in New Zealand where Jackson has done the special effects for his next Tolkien project, "The Hobbit."

New Zealand is also where Charles will be spending his 64th birthday on Nov. 14, the same day that a partial solar eclipse will cast its shadow. Sixty-four Kiwis who are also celebrating their birthday are invited to a party in his honour.

The tour starts in Papua New Guinea on Nov. 3, heads to Australia for Nov. 5-10 and winds up in New Zealand for six days. It will be Camilla's first visit to that part of the world.

Prince Charles throws an Australian rules football to an assistant after being presented with it by former Australian rules footballer Tony Woods at St James's Palace. (AFP/Getty Images)

A traditional Papua New Guinean drummer performs for Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall during a reception for prominent Papua New Guineans, Australians and New Zealanders living in the UK. (Getty Images)

Maori dancers perform the traditional haka for Prince Charles and Camilla at St. James's Palace. (AP Photo)

Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue meets Prince Charles and Camilla after performed a few songs during a reception for prominent Papua New Guineans, Australians and New Zealanders living in the UK. (AFP/Getty Images)

 

Duchess Kate has golden touch with Olympians at Palace

The Duchess of Cambridge chats it up with the British women's hockey team during a reception for Team GB Olympic and Paralympic medallists at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday evening. (AFP/Getty Images)

To the victors go the royals.

The British Olympic team, fresh off their highly successfully 65-medal Olympics, earned a trip to Buckingham Palace on Tuesday for an official ‘thank-you’ reception with both politicians and royals.

As usual, it was Kate, Duchess of Cambridge who earned top-of-the-podium points with both the athletes and the stylists. Wearing a black floral Alice by Temperley Esmeralda dress ($300 on sale) with black suede Jimmy Choo Cosmic pumps ($700), Kate stood out from athletic crowd in their official formal wear, which included a special inside pocket just for their medals.

This was not, however, a Kate-only show. The Queen and Prince Philip started the show by welcoming Prime Minister David Cameron (left, with sports minister Hugh Robertson) and other dignataries, including Games CEO Sebastian Coe. Kate joined the party, along with Princess Anne and her daughter Zara Phillips (also an Olympic equestrian), Prince Edward and his wife Sophie, Prince Andrew and his daughter Beatrice.

The gathering was accompanied by the news from the sports minister that the cost of the Games will actually come in about $600 million under the budget of $14.6 billion.

"It was an amazing summer and I think people will cherish those memories, you know, almost more then the 1966 World Cup," PM Cameron said before the Palace reception.

"I think people will look back and just think, ‘what an incredible summer -- success after success, medal after medal and the whole country putting on its very best face for the world. What matters now is that we maximize the momentum and the legacy following the Olympics and Paralympics."

The Royal Family played their part, with Kate joining Princes William and Harry as official team ambassadors, one or the other of them appearing almost daily at events through the Games. There was, of course, also the Queen, making her now famous appearance as a Bond girl in the opening ceremony. And just to show they can be competitive on the field as well, Zara Phillips helped the British equestrian team win a silver medal.

Kate talks to, from left, Carl Hester, Charlotte Dujardin and Scott Brash during a reception for Team GB medallists at Buckingham Palace. (AFP/Getty Images)

Queen Elizabeth meets Eleanor Simmonds, a Paralympic swimmer, during the reception for Team GB medallists. (AFP/Getty Images)

The duchess meets Heather Stanning, centre, and Helen Glover during a reception for Team GB medallists. (AFP/Getty Images)

The Duchess of Cambridge smiles as she talks to Olympic and Paralympic athletes during the reception for Team GB medallists. (Reuters/Getty Images)

 

Queen Elizabeth meets rowers during a reception for Team GB medallists at Buckingham Palace. The Queen's own starring role at the Games came in the opening ceremony when she performed in a James Bond video. (AFP/Getty Image)

MEANWHILE, SPEAKING OF JAMES BOND ...

Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall meet actors Daniel Craig and Judi Dench as they arrive for the royal world premiere of the new 007 film "Skyfall" at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Tuesday night. Proceeds from the premiere are being donated to charities connected to Britain's intelligence services. (Reuters)

Prince Friso's friend cleared in avalanche tragedy

The Netherlands' Prince Friso is seen here with his wife Princess Mabel and their daughters Luana and Zaria in the Austrian skiing resort of Lech in 2011. He suffered massive brain damage after being buried by an avalanche in February and there's little hope he'll regain consciousness. (AP)

The tragic tale of Dutch Prince Johan Friso, buried in an avalanche last Feb. 17, was brought back into the news this week when the friend he was skiing with was cleared of negligent assault.

The Austrian hotel owner was skiing with the prince at the resort of Lech when the pair took off away from the marked ski run, despite avalanche warnings.

They were overtaken by the snow slide and Friso was buried under a 30x40-metre snow mass for 15 to 20 minutes. The hotelier survived thanks to an avalanche airbag that inflates to keep the skier from being buried. The Austrian Times reported the Prince was not wearing one.

Rescuers estimate Prince Friso's heart had been stopped for about 20 minutes by the time they revived him, leaving him with extensive brain damage. The 44-year-old father of two remains in a coma at London's Wellington Hospital. It was reported last month that he briefly awakened and smiled at his wife, Princess Mabel, then slipped back into the coma.

Prosecutor Heinz Rusch cleared the prince's friend of any wrongdoing in the ski accident, saying there was no evidence he had enticed Friso to ski the dangerous route.

"The 42-year-old Austrian and also the Prince were experienced skiers and both would have known that travelling in areas which were below regions of heavy snow and off piste had a risk of avalanche and of being buried," Rusch said.

Doctors have offered little hope that Prince Friso's condition will improve.

Prince Friso gave up his right to the Dutch throne when he married Mabel Wisse Smit in 2004, though the couple kept their royal titles. They have two daughters, Luana and Zaria.

The prince has a degree in mechanical engineering and had been working in London for URENCO, a uranium enrichment company, as chief financial officer.

The mayor of Lech, Ludwig Muxel, said that despite the accident, the resort town's long association with the Dutch royal family remains strong.

"I would say it is even stronger now," he told the Austrian Times.

Duchess Kate's body given the thumbs-up from Cheryl Cole

Kate Middleton and singer Cheryl Cole share plenty in common, including a fondness for royals. (Getty Images)

Singer Cheryl Cole is a royal wannabe. Sometimes, Prince Charles must wish he wasn't royal at all.

Which brings us to a couple of items in the royal war chest today.

First, attention is directed to Cole, as she very much likes it to be. The opinionated pop singer is an unabashed royal fan and has met many members of the family, including Prince Charles, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge.

She has a particular fondness for Kate and was taken aback by the scandal that erupted when topless photos of the holidaying duchess and Prince William where published last month.

"Disgusting," the 29-year-old has told the Times in London. "They were having a private moment and it was absolutely invaded."

Not content to end the thought there, Cole continued: "She does have a great pair of boobs, though, right?"

It was undoubtedly a rhetorical question.

Cole's admiration extends beyond the physical. She described meeting Kate at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee concert as "amazing."

"She's so ordinary. I mean, obviously, she isn't because she's a princess, but she's easy to get along with."

The admiration appears mutual. In her recently-released book, "My Story," Cole breaks with royal protocol to describe a conversation she had with William and Kate at the Jubilee concert. In it, Kate 'fessed up to dressing up as Cole for her bachelorette party and performing Cole's 2009 hit "Fight for This Love."

“I could just imagine her and it was so surreal," Cole wrote.

Cole is likewise smitten with Prince Harry, whom she has met and, she admits, even dreamed about. His naked weekend in Vegas a few months ago did not escape her attention.

“Well, I mean, it’s not the smartest thing in his position,” she said. “But didn’t (his mother Princess) Diana always want them to have normal lives? And you do not get more normal than that. Do you? Taking off your clothes in Vegas.”

PRINCE CHARLES' CLUB CASTING FOR TROUBLE

Prince Charles (seen here with the aformentioned Cheryl Cole) is caught in the net of a fly fishermen brouhaha.

The operative word here is 'men.' The 120-year-old Flyfishers' Club in London has enjoyed the patronage of Charles since 1984, but that partnership is being tested with the latest missive from the gentlemen's club.

Thanks to Britian's Equality Act of 2010 to break down barriers to women, the club struck a committee  to figure out how to deal with this fly in the ointment, so to speak. Women had previously been allowed to participate in some club functions, but not others, such as club dinners.

Not content to open the door all the way, the club has decided that in order to comply with the law, they will take up an "all-male guest policy at all times," said the Daily Mail.

The paper quotes club president Anthony Edwards in a letter to members: "It is with great regret that, now that the committee is fully appraised of the law, we can no longer invite ladies to certain club events."

Fiona Armstrong, author and  TV journalist, has written books on fly-fishing and for the club's magazine. She is calling on the club to "be more flexible."

"What are the men worried about ... do they think we're going to catch bigger fish?" asked Armstrong, who has been rebuffed in her own attempts to join the club.

Prince Charles lends his name to more than 400 clubs and causes, as patron or president. They cover everything from from The King James Bible Trust to The Lleyn Sheep Society, many of them a direct result of his passion for conservation.

Charles hasn't yet stepped into this fly-fishing mess, but chances are he will find this bait tough to ignore.