Nicholl: Duchess Kate had a wakeup call about Meghans charisma in 2018
Katie Nicholl’s latest book, The New Royals, has been excerpted in Vanity Fair and the Daily Mail extensively. I’ve covered some of it, especially the old stories with new Nicholl/Kensington Palace twists. The New Royals seems very light on fresh tea – there’s a lot of rehashing of old grudges, and it seems that at no point does Nicholl actually use the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Oprah interview as a first-hand account of their actual experiences. Instead, Nicholl uses palace sources to keensplain everything that went wrong behind the scenes. Anyway, Entertainment Tonight had additional highlights from the book:
Charles hated Diana’s stardom: “Her star immediately eclipsed her husband’s, causing early fractures in their relationship. The diligent, sensitive, and status-conscious Charles found it hard to understand. He could not see that in the new media age, being a royal-born prince and future king was a lesser currency than his wife’s megawatt beauty and disposition.”
Charles was also jealous of the attention Kate received: After Diana’s death and with William’s introduction of Kate into the world, Charles once again had to compete for the media’s attention when it came to coverage of his engagements because all eyes were on what Kate wore – leading to apparent clashes with William. “In the past, father and son hadn’t always seen eye to eye. There was a well-documented clash of opinions in 2013 over the palace’s priceless collection of ivory, for one,” Nicholl writes. “And Charles was sometimes irritated that Kate’s frocks got more media attention than his good works. He also had been hurt by not seeing as much of his Cambridge grandchildren as he might have liked.”
William & Kate’s reaction to Meghan’s appearance at the Royal Foundation event in February 2018: “It was, according to one aide, the moment William and Kate, who was heavily pregnant, realized they needed to up their game. The Cambridges had already signaled their intention to be more than ‘ornamental royals’ and had, along with Harry, made a huge success of their mental health campaign Heads Together. But Meghan was the breakout star of the foursome. She was polished, passionate, and funny, using all her TV-honed skills to present her case. That was a wake-up moment for William and Kate when they realized that Meghan was very impressive, very confident, and very capable, according to a source.”
Prince Philip asked Charles to take care of QEII: According to the book, while they did not sleep in the same bed, the Queen had undoubted love for her husband. He clearly felt the same and made it evident to his son. Prior to his death, and as his health began to deteriorate more, the royal had a final request for his son which Nicholl writes were, “Look after the Queen” and “Keep the family together.” “According to a family friend: ‘Philip slept a lot but [Elizabeth] made sure he was comfortable. She read to him, played him music, and they reminisced, going through family albums together. Charles got time with his father as well and Philip told him, ‘Whatever you do, promise me you will take care of your mother.’ Charles was very emotional.”
That last part about Philip asking Charles to “take care” of the Queen… in less than a year after Philip’s passing, Charles was so reckless with masking and Covid protocols that QEII got a bad case of Covid. Charles was also out of the country when QEII was secretly hospitalized a year ago. Besides, I’m pretty sure that Philip would have asked Anne to take care of the Queen rather than Charles. But whatever.
As for what Nicholl writes about that Royal Foundation meeting, the birth of the so-called “Fab Four,” it’s funny to think that William and Kate were seething with jealousy from that point on. But really, it started way before that. Kate was literally doing crisis meetings with her mother the second Meghan and Harry became engaged. I still remember the Middletons’ hatchet job on Meghan around Pippa’s 2017 wedding too. Weird that Nicholl seems to forget all about that!
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173969, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge attend the first annual Royal Foundation Forum held at Aviva in London. London, United Kingdom – Wednesday February 28, 2018. Photograph: Ã?© Avalon.red, PacificCoastNews. Los Angeles Office (PCN): +1 310.822.0419 UK Office (Avalon): +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 sales@pacificcoastnews.com FEE MUST BE AGREED PRIOR TO USAGE,Image: 534296456, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS, DIRECT SALES ONLY UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE IN CAPTION – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Avalon.red – sales@avalon.red London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles: +1 (310) 822 0419 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251 Madrid: +34 91 533 4289, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red, PacificCoastNews / Avalon 
Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales attends the World Premiere of No Time To Die on Tuesday 28 September 2021 at Royal Albert Hall, London. .,Image: 635007663, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: World Rights – Julie Edwards/Avalon.Red, Model Release: no, Credit line: Julie Edwards / Avalon 
LONDON, ENGLAND – JUNE 03: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall depart the National Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral on June 03, 2022 in London, England. The Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II is being celebrated from June 2 to June 5, 2022, in the UK and Commonwealth to mark the 70th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952.,Image: 696661979, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Dan Kitwood / Avalon
Loughborough, UNITED KINGDOM – Britain’s Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and his wife Britain’s Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge talk with his father Britain’s Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and his wife Britain’s Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall during their visit to the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre (DMRC) in Loughborough, central England. The DMRC currently provides services to a small group of veterans in the form of the Complex Prosthetic Assessment Clinic (CPAC), which is a joint MOD and NHS England commissioned outpatient clinic. Pictured: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, Prince Charles, BACKGRID USA 11 FEBRUARY 2020 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication* 
Westminster, UNITED KINGDOM – The British Royal family King Charles III, Prince Harry, Prince William, Meghan Markle, Princess Catherine and Queen Camilla arrive with Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin at Westminster Abbey. Pictured: Meghan Markle, Princess Catherine BACKGRID USA 14 SEPTEMBER 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication* 
(Strictly for editorial use only and available until December 12th 2018) In this handout image provided by Clarence House, HRH Prince Charles Prince of Wales poses for an official portrait to mark his 70th Birthday in the gardens of Clarence House, with Their Royal Highnesses Camilla Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Willliam Duke of Cambridge, Catherine Duchess of Cambridge, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis, Prince Harry Duke of Sussex and Meghan Duchess of Sussex, on September 5, 2018 in London, England.
09-03-2020 Commonwealth Day Celebrations Westminster Abbey 2020 
Ceremonial Procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown placed on top, is carried on a horse-drawn gun carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, during the ceremonial procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday Featuring: Prince William, Catherine Princess of Wales, Prince Harry, Meghan Duchess of Sussex Where: London, Britain, United Kingdom When: 14 Sep 2022 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages.com/Cover Images **North America Rights Only** 
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 28: Meghan Markle, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge attend the first annual Royal Foundation Forum held at Aviva on February 28, 2018 in London, England. Under the theme ‘Making a Difference Together’, the event will showcase the programmes run or initiated by The Royal Foundation.
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 28: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge attend the first annual Royal Foundation Forum held at Aviva on February 28, 2018 in London, England. Under the theme ‘Making a Difference Together’, the event will showcase the programmes run or initiated by The Royal Foundation. 
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