Happy Anniversary to Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall!
(Head over to Royalty with Ella Kay to read more!)
Prince William and longtime love Kate Middleton spent a low-key Valentine’s Day in Berkshire, where the two popped in to a pub for a romantic bite to eat.
The two were photographed walking in to The Pot Kiln in Frilsham, Berkshire, accompanied by an older man, likely William’s protection officer. The pub is located only minutes from Bucklebury, the small Berkshire village where the Middleton family lives.
The Pot Kiln was refurbished by Mike Robinson and was the filming location for the cooking series Heavens Kitchen. The pub’s website touts, “If you are searching for Heaven on Earth, look no further than this beautiful corner of rural England and in the midst of this country setting is the kind of English country pub of which dreams are made.”
See more photos of William and Kate on Valentine’s Day at Zimbio.
Looks like the most eligible single girl in the British royal family may be off the dating market: the Daily Mail’s Richard Kay reports this week that Princess Eugenie has a new boyfriend.
The lad in question is 24-year-old Otto Brockway, a polo player, filmmaker, and nephew of Virgin entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson. Kay writes, “The pair are said to have met at the Sussex Polo Club through a group of party-loving pals that revolves around the wealthy Pearson family – owners of the 17,000-acre Cowdray Park.”
The royals are no strangers to the Branson family. Princess Eugenie’s older sister, Princess Beatrice, has been dating one of Sir Richard’s employees, Dave Clark, for some time now. Sir Richard’s daughter, Holly, is also one of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s pals. Holly was once even pipped as a possible future bride for William.
It seems that more than just proximity and polo has drawn Eugenie and Otto together, however. Kay’s unnamed source notes, “Eugenie and Otto get on fabulously. He is good fun - a real party animal, rather like Eugenie herself.”
Read more from Richard Kay at the Mail Online.
The Mandrake column in the Telegraph this past weekend claims that an engagement announcement from Prince William and Kate Middleton is looking more likely, based on some reports from Kate’s hometown of Bucklebury, Berkshire.
Richard Eden writes, “It can be disclosed that William’s prospective father-in-law, Michael Middleton, is considering taking a step back from running his successful family business. Friends in the Berkshire village of Bucklebury have interpreted this as a signal that the former airline pilot wants to concentrate on preparations for a Royal wedding later this year.”
Michael and Carole Middleton, Kate’s parents, run Party Pieces, a successful mail-order party supply business. Kate also works for the family firm.
Eden also quotes two unnamed Middleton family friends, one of whom thinks that “an engagement announcement is imminent” and another who believes that William and Kate are as good as engaged already, with only the date of the nuptials still to be decided.
(I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’ve decided to do just what William told all of us to on his trip Down Under — “wait and see.”)
Princess Beatrice and boyfriend Dave Clark were out on the town in London on Tuesday evening, but they weren’t just having dinner for two or partying until all hours — instead, they were supporting quite a good cause by helping to raise money for the relief effort in Haiti.
Daily Mail reporter Georgina Littlejohn writes, “Beatrice attended the event, which was held to raise money for the victims of the earthquake that devastated the Caribbean country two weeks ago, with boyfriend Dave Clark and nightclub promoter Guy Pelly. She was all smiles as she mingled with guests, possibly taking a few notes on organising a huge event, having been entrusted with arranging her father, Prince Andrew’s 50th birthday celebrations.”
The fundraising event, which was organized by Zafar Rushdie, the son of Sir Salman Rushdie, was held at Circus in Covent Garden. Musicians and celebrities were among the other guests, including television presenter Zoe Salmon — who showed up wearing the same dress as Beatrice. Lucky for them, the dresses were in two very different colors, with Zoe in hot pink and Beatrice in traditional black.
Read more from Littlejohn at Mail Online … or head over to the Red Cross to find out how you too can help the people of Haiti.
