Earl and Countess of Wessex Current Events 5: December 2004-March 2005

[kelly9480]

Sophie wore real fur, Zara might be wearing fake fur.

 

[corazon]

Queen out and about after Christmas tumble, from Hello! magazine.

The Queen was accompanied by her daughter-in-law Sophie Wessex when she attended a church service in Sandringham at the weekend. And the 78-year-old, who was also joined by her husband the Duke of Edinburgh, didn't seem to be experiencing any ill-effects from a fall she suffered on Christmas day.

The incident took place during a family dinner when the monarch stood up for a moment and an over-zealous attendant sprang into action. Fraser Marlton-Thomas apparently thought she was going to leave the table, so he quickly pulled her chair back to be of assistance. The 25-year-old was left aghast when his employer promptly went to sit back down and found herself crashing to the floor.

And, according to reports, two of her pet corgis had a close call in the incident. But Her Majesty, who keeps seven of the pedigree breed, was relieved to find her beloved pets likewise escaped unscathed.

"She always feeds her dogs titbits from the table, and they were milling around her feet," revealed a palace source. "A couple of them cushioned her fall and she ended up in a heap."

 

[ap3]

I'm not saying Sophie should dress like Zara. I like Sophie's style, sometimes more than Zara's.

Yes, part of it is the age difference. But when Diana was that age, she wasn't "allowed" to wear things like that by the press even at private functions. Does anyone remember the red leather pants, black leather jacket and red and black striped silk blouse Diana wore privately to a play? Not one of her better outfits, but the press jumped all over the outfit because the pants were leather and therefore perceived as daring.

Yes, I agree one of the factors has to whether the function is private or official. But even at private functions these women are scrutinized and judged for "inappropriate" attire. While Zara wears what she wants with impunity and often with admiration.

The fur is a perfect example. Both were worn at "private" functions. Sophie's hat set off afirestorm and she hasn't worn fur since. Zara is called a trendsetter.

Of course now we can get into a discussion of "private" vs "official" events. Is Ascot, the Christmas church parade, etc "official" or "private"?

 

[Elsie]

The difference is, and I know that I would be shot for saying this, is that Zara is POPULAR.
They thus get away with anything. At the moment the young royals are the popular ones. If Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward did even a quarter of what young royals do today they would have been ripped to pieces. The reason behind this is the way the tabloids spin. At the moment the youth (14-25) run the world. Hence Harry's drrinking, smoking and running around the world is not only acceptable, but applauded. The sad thing is the way people think changes and Harry, Zara and William cannot stay young forever. And what the tabloid build up they can just as easily rip down.
For example: In her day Princess Margaret was the bright light of the London scence. She was the royal rebel of the 1960's and nothing could stop her. She was seen as the ultimate royal women and pin up. She died early, effects from her excessive lifestyle and was seen as a rather pathetic desperate figure.
Another Royal rebel: Marina Ogilvy, daughter of Pirncess Alexandria. Party girl of the 1980's. Madonna of the royals, they called her. Then she fell pregnant and divorced and her life wasn't what the tabloids liked to project.

I'm glad the press don't make a big deal about what Sophie wears and indeed I think that they appreciate the negative press more than the positive. They know the consequences of playing the press. They value thier privacy. They know that even a moment of popularity, is not worth the price in the end.

 

[Claire]

Has anyone brought this month's issue of Majesty Magazine? It has an article about Sophie's 40th Birthday in it.

 

[ap3]

Good points, Elsie. I agree.

I esp like your point that the the younger demographic is very desirable to newspapers and their advertisers. So lots of articles about the latest hot, young thing is good for their subscription numbers.

 

[sara1981]

Has anyone brought this month's issue of Majesty Magazine? It has an article about Sophie's 40th Birthday in it.

i was subcribe of Majesty magazine i think Sophie would be on articles about her 40th birthday but HM Queen will be on cover this month but im wishes she would be on cover but the editors chose it!

Sara Boyce

 

[ap3]

Has anyone found pictures of Sophie at the Angus Ogilvy funeral?

 

[laduchesse]

Has anyone found pictures of Sophie at the Angus Ogilvy funeral?

The Crown Princess Mary Forum had pictures from the funeral, including a picture of Sophie and Edward. Here's the link:

http://crownprincessmary.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=1353

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Sophie looks so elegant.

 

[Claire]

I don't know I like what Sophie was wearing. None of it appeared to match. But a funeral isn't exactly a fashion show so forget what I say.

Source: Van Parys Media

 

[Elspeth]

Another difference between Zara and Sophie, although I don't know that it's one the tabloids really care about, is that Sophie is an HRH who carries our official functions and Zara isn't; Princess Margaret and Princess Anne both made it very clear from early on that their children weren't royal and should be left alone to live private lives. Zara seems to be attracting the press a lot more than Peter or Princesss Margaret's two, but still the press doesn't have the ammunition with her that it does with Sophie of being able to criticise her as part of the royal family doing "royal" sorts of things.

 

[Nichola]

I like the outfit Sophie wore today, the style suits her!

However, I am surprised she wore it, as to my knowledge she has worn it for a memorial service, and for a funeral?

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

She is very lovely.

 

[sara1981]

REMIND!

COUNTESS OF WESSEX will become 40th birthday in weeks her birthday on January 20th i think so! wanted to celebration of her 40th birthday.

Sara Boyce

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Yes,i know that.But i think maybe the Countess will have a private celebration with her family.On 19th January and 20th January,she will have engagement.

 

[sara1981]

Yes,i know that.But i think maybe the Countess will have a private celebration with her family.On 19th January and 20th January,she will have engagement.

right!

she very respective woman! and i think she would attend engagement on her birthday im not sure! wait and see what on!

Sara Boyce

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Today The Earl and Countess of wessex will visit Tsunami Appeal in Hampshire.

 

[Claire]

Here is a news link about Edward and Sophie's visit to the Tsunami Appeal. They helped sort clothing that had been donated from the public.

http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=4000912

www.thisishampshire.net/hampshire/southampton/news/SOTON_NEWS_NEWS3.html

 

[Australian]

What do you think fergie and diana would have or do think about sophie? because she hardly ever gets in trouble and doesnt cause much scandal.

Is it true that Sophie used to be engaged to an Australian when she was in Australia? I remember reading about it

 

[Australian]

Royal fiance doesn't want a title after she weds Prince Edward



[size=+1]Royal fiance doesn't want a title after she weds Prince Edward[/size]

By John Minden
Special to The Star

LONDON - How was it for you?

Did your panting heart miss a beat, did a silly smile flicker on your lips, was there a barely concealed squeal of joy at the news that Sophie Rhys-Jones is to be a princess?

If not, you must be as matter-of-factly modern as Mr. and Mrs. Edward Windsor - as Prince Edward and his bride-to-be would apparently prefer to be styled.

Rhys-Jones does not want to be called princess because of unwelcome comparisons with the late Diana, Princess of Wales, the title will encourage, a newspaper reports today.

``Sophie feels the continued references and pictures comparing her to Diana do nothing at all to further her cause or to help the royal family,'' the Sunday Telegraph quotes an unnamed friend of Rhys-Jones as saying.

Rhys-Jones and Prince Edward, who will be married in the relative privacy of St. George's Chapel, Windsor, may not have a grand state wedding of the old sort, but Mr. and Mrs. W. seem destined to end up as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge; the Queen has already provided Bagshot Park in Surrey, a vast Victorian pile set in 35 hectares of trees, as a home for the upwardly mobile couple.

After more than five years of courtship, some might say about time, too.

Compared with the five months it took Prince Charles to get engaged to Lady Diana Spencer or the seven months that elapsed before Prince Andrew proposed to Sarah Ferguson, it has been a marathon affair.

[font=helvetica,arial]`Sophie feels the continued references and pictures comparing her to Diana do nothing at all to further her cause or to help the royal family.' [/font]- Unnamed friend of Sophie Rhys-Jones
Fame means intrusion, however, and Rhys-Jones had a taste of what is in store from the tabloids when they helpfully produced an impressive list of her former boyfriends, including one who claimed the couple had a one-night stand in a potting shed.



Maybe her profession will equip her with the skills to take the knocks. As a posh public relations person, she is in one of the most fashionable rackets in this country. And like Edward, with his Ardent TV production company, she will not object if clients bask in the royal connection.

Another reason for optimism about the marriage is Rhys-Jones' family background. Unlike the Spencers and the Fergusons (the families from which daughters-in-law Diana and Sarah respectively sprang), we are dealing not with a world of upper-class divorces, traumas and tantrums, but with a secure middle-class home in the Kent commuter village of Brenchley. Rhys-Jones' father, Christopher, sells tires, and her mother, Mary, used to take in typing at about $11 per hour to help pay the school fees they thought would give her a good start in life.

After Dulwich College Prep School, Rhys-Jones attended Kent College for Girls, where she is remembered as a cheery, boisterous sort who became ``a total animal'' anywhere near a field hockey pitch.

Later she attended West Kent College where she was a well-known party girl in most of the village pubs. As a friend of the time said: ``She wasn't permissive, but she was fun-loving. She was a bit pear-shaped and therefore very good at drinking.''

In London she shared a flat with a girlfriend, got a job as a secretary, and then joined the public relations department of Capital Radio. She even met Prince Edward, who was then dating a friend of hers.

In her early twenties, Rhys-Jones left for Switzerland where she helped organize après ski events. She later moved to Australia with a ski instructor from Down Under.

Returning to London, she began to rebuild her career in PR.

She met her prince (again) at a fundraising publicity stunt when she was roped into having her picture taken with Edward. He took her phone number and managed to keep their dates secret for three months before he was rumbled. Newspaper reports then appeared claiming that they were about to marry and that - shock! horror! - Rhys-Jones had spent the night at Buckingham Palace.

The paparazzi descended in force and Edward issued a public plea: ``I am very conscious that other members of my family have been subjected to similar attention and it has not been at all beneficial to their relationships.'' But when they went for their first holiday together at Balmoral - to ``secluded Craigowan Lodge'' - the sound of tabloid slavering rose like a Highland stream in flood.

Apparently ``the bitter wind bent the pines outside their windows,'' but the lodge was equipped with satellite TV and a sauna, and they sometimes stayed in. Eventually a picture was snatched of them kissing, and Edward appealed successfully to the Press Complaints Commission.

The Queen evidently accepted her youngest son's new girlfriend as soon as he introduced her at Sandringham (her parents visited within months). ``You wouldn't notice her in a crowd,'' she was heard telling the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret soon after - meaning that after a couple of exhibitionist daughters-in-law, this one might not seek to up-stage the monarchy. She also noticed that her son had become less brittle and arrogant, and reportedly remarked that Rhys-Jones ``makes Ed happy.''

Although Rhys-Jones kept her west London flat, within weeks of the relationship beginning she was spending as much time at Edward's apartment in Buckingham Palace. Her car was a regular sight leaving the palace in the morning. According to one omniscient royal-watcher, Rhys-Jones did not actually sleep with Edward out of deference to the Queen, and Edward once put his foot in it by tripping over his mother's corgis on a clandestine night-time mission to his lover's room.

The question remains whether the public expects Rhys-Jones to be a sort of Diana Mark II. She certainly has a look of the late Princess of Wales, but her different figure means she has to take greater care with the designer dresses she borrows from willing fashion houses. Like many another strawberry blonde she is in fact a strawberry brunette, but she seems not to have intended to imitate Diana, who apparently disliked her. Diana reportedly once called her ``little Miss Goody Two Shoes'' and asked Fergie: ``Why is she getting such an easy ride? We were thrown to the wolves.''

A rare, unflattering article once quoted an acquaintance as saying that Rhys-Jones ``considers she is the one person who can save the monarchy'' but she was quick to describe the report as ``too preposterous for words.'' [font=arial, helvetica]LONDON SUNDAY TIMES[/font]

 

[Elspeth]

What do you think fergie and diana would have or do think about sophie? because she hardly ever gets in trouble and doesnt cause much scandal.

Well, the press didn't really have any other tempting targets in the royal family in the 1980s, so Diana and Charles came in for most of their attentions. Then when Sarah showed up, it was natural for the press to compare her with Diana and to try to play them off against each other. By the time Sophie showed up, Sarah had left, Diana had virtually been canonised, and the press had William and Harry to torment.

Is it true that Sophie used to be engaged to an Australian when she was in Australia? I remember reading about it

I seem to remember reading about a serious relationship, but I don't know about an engagement. Maybe someone with a better memory will come along and help out.

 

[sara1981]

Royal fiance doesn't want a title after she weds Prince Edward



[size=+1]Royal fiance doesn't want a title after she weds Prince Edward[/size]

By John Minden
Special to The Star

LONDON - How was it for you?

Did your panting heart miss a beat, did a silly smile flicker on your lips, was there a barely concealed squeal of joy at the news that Sophie Rhys-Jones is to be a princess?

If not, you must be as matter-of-factly modern as Mr. and Mrs. Edward Windsor - as Prince Edward and his bride-to-be would apparently prefer to be styled.

Rhys-Jones does not want to be called princess because of unwelcome comparisons with the late Diana, Princess of Wales, the title will encourage, a newspaper reports today.

``Sophie feels the continued references and pictures comparing her to Diana do nothing at all to further her cause or to help the royal family,'' the Sunday Telegraph quotes an unnamed friend of Rhys-Jones as saying.

Rhys-Jones and Prince Edward, who will be married in the relative privacy of St. George's Chapel, Windsor, may not have a grand state wedding of the old sort, but Mr. and Mrs. W. seem destined to end up as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge; the Queen has already provided Bagshot Park in Surrey, a vast Victorian pile set in 35 hectares of trees, as a home for the upwardly mobile couple.

After more than five years of courtship, some might say about time, too.

Compared with the five months it took Prince Charles to get engaged to Lady Diana Spencer or the seven months that elapsed before Prince Andrew proposed to Sarah Ferguson, it has been a marathon affair.

[font=helvetica,arial]`Sophie feels the continued references and pictures comparing her to Diana do nothing at all to further her cause or to help the royal family.' [/font]- Unnamed friend of Sophie Rhys-Jones
Fame means intrusion, however, and Rhys-Jones had a taste of what is in store from the tabloids when they helpfully produced an impressive list of her former boyfriends, including one who claimed the couple had a one-night stand in a potting shed.



Maybe her profession will equip her with the skills to take the knocks. As a posh public relations person, she is in one of the most fashionable rackets in this country. And like Edward, with his Ardent TV production company, she will not object if clients bask in the royal connection.

Another reason for optimism about the marriage is Rhys-Jones' family background. Unlike the Spencers and the Fergusons (the families from which daughters-in-law Diana and Sarah respectively sprang), we are dealing not with a world of upper-class divorces, traumas and tantrums, but with a secure middle-class home in the Kent commuter village of Brenchley. Rhys-Jones' father, Christopher, sells tires, and her mother, Mary, used to take in typing at about $11 per hour to help pay the school fees they thought would give her a good start in life.

After Dulwich College Prep School, Rhys-Jones attended Kent College for Girls, where she is remembered as a cheery, boisterous sort who became ``a total animal'' anywhere near a field hockey pitch.

Later she attended West Kent College where she was a well-known party girl in most of the village pubs. As a friend of the time said: ``She wasn't permissive, but she was fun-loving. She was a bit pear-shaped and therefore very good at drinking.''

In London she shared a flat with a girlfriend, got a job as a secretary, and then joined the public relations department of Capital Radio. She even met Prince Edward, who was then dating a friend of hers.

In her early twenties, Rhys-Jones left for Switzerland where she helped organize après ski events. She later moved to Australia with a ski instructor from Down Under.

Returning to London, she began to rebuild her career in PR.

She met her prince (again) at a fundraising publicity stunt when she was roped into having her picture taken with Edward. He took her phone number and managed to keep their dates secret for three months before he was rumbled. Newspaper reports then appeared claiming that they were about to marry and that - shock! horror! - Rhys-Jones had spent the night at Buckingham Palace.

The paparazzi descended in force and Edward issued a public plea: ``I am very conscious that other members of my family have been subjected to similar attention and it has not been at all beneficial to their relationships.'' But when they went for their first holiday together at Balmoral - to ``secluded Craigowan Lodge'' - the sound of tabloid slavering rose like a Highland stream in flood.

Apparently ``the bitter wind bent the pines outside their windows,'' but the lodge was equipped with satellite TV and a sauna, and they sometimes stayed in. Eventually a picture was snatched of them kissing, and Edward appealed successfully to the Press Complaints Commission.

The Queen evidently accepted her youngest son's new girlfriend as soon as he introduced her at Sandringham (her parents visited within months). ``You wouldn't notice her in a crowd,'' she was heard telling the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret soon after - meaning that after a couple of exhibitionist daughters-in-law, this one might not seek to up-stage the monarchy. She also noticed that her son had become less brittle and arrogant, and reportedly remarked that Rhys-Jones ``makes Ed happy.''

Although Rhys-Jones kept her west London flat, within weeks of the relationship beginning she was spending as much time at Edward's apartment in Buckingham Palace. Her car was a regular sight leaving the palace in the morning. According to one omniscient royal-watcher, Rhys-Jones did not actually sleep with Edward out of deference to the Queen, and Edward once put his foot in it by tripping over his mother's corgis on a clandestine night-time mission to his lover's room.

The question remains whether the public expects Rhys-Jones to be a sort of Diana Mark II. She certainly has a look of the late Princess of Wales, but her different figure means she has to take greater care with the designer dresses she borrows from willing fashion houses. Like many another strawberry blonde she is in fact a strawberry brunette, but she seems not to have intended to imitate Diana, who apparently disliked her. Diana reportedly once called her ``little Miss Goody Two Shoes'' and asked Fergie: ``Why is she getting such an easy ride? We were thrown to the wolves.''

A rare, unflattering article once quoted an acquaintance as saying that Rhys-Jones ``considers she is the one person who can save the monarchy'' but she was quick to describe the report as ``too preposterous for words.'' [font=arial, helvetica]LONDON SUNDAY TIMES[/font]

WOW that really amazing story!

I never knew that Diana recalled Sophie what for!

I understand Sophie been spent night at Buckingham Palace but Sophie cant slept with him because of Queen's rules! i understand her rules.I never knew that Prince Edward have her phone number when both have dating! i read Majesty's magazine of Sophie's 40th birthday they're talking about her life with Prince Edward how met him! since her dating with Prince Edward for 6 years since 1993.

im sure Sophie always obey to Prince Edward and Queen before both got married that good choice!

Sara Boyce

 

[Claire]

I think that in order to attempt to answer that question you have to look at Edward and Sophie. Edward, I think, was deeply affected by the divorces of Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, Prince Charles and Prince Andrew. I think that been a witness to the breakdowns of these marriage and how it was covered in the media. Edward keeps his relationship with everyone closed.
Edward and Sophie met in October 1993. By December friends were already thinking that a wedding was on in July. Edward was however adament that his marriage would not be used as a PR stunt to shadow the divorce of Prince Andrew. He did not and probably still does not want to be a pawn in the spin machinery at Buckingham Palace. It could also be a difference in the way the royal brothers' work. When Charles and Diana became serious, Charles handed her over to his personal secretary and butlers ect. to make her into a princess. Sarah Ferguson, by her own admission, also underwent Princess schooling, but was left with the advice to figure it out herself and follow Diana. Sarah was also left to deal with the civil servant of Buckingham Palace as Andrew went to sea, and thus made an enemy of them. Edward took Sophie under his wing, he introduced her to the family slowly and patiently awat from the press. He made deliberate moves to incorporate Sophie into the way of life, without dropping it suddently on her shoulders. I think the Queen perfered this. She herself had a long engagement and understood Edward's need for Sophie to be certain of the responsiblities of living in the royal family. Even the Rhys-Jones were apparently aware of Edward and Sophie's intentions to do this.
It is my belief that if Princess Diana had not passed away tragically in 1997, Edward and Sophie would have married sooner.

 

[Claire]

Sophie met and love in love with an Australian sky instuctor named Micheal O'Neill. She was so besotted that she followed him to Australia after completed her year as a chalet Manager in Switzerland. After a bit in Australia things fizzed out. Why? The royal commentators have suggested that it was simply a holiday romance that saw its day. Maybe Sophie felt more than Mr. O'Neill, she did follow him back to Oz. I don't think we will ever find out. Either way they parted and Sophie spend the rest of the year in Oz. She worked a bit and than backpacked around Australia a while.
Whereever Micheal O'Neill is today, he must be commended for not having talked to the press.

 

[Elspeth]

Thanks for the information, Claire.

Yes, it's a pleasant change for someone who's been close to one of the young British royals to be discreet about it.

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

18.01.2005 - London - The Countess of Wessex, as Grand President of St. John Ambulance in the Priory of England and the Islands, arrives at the St. John's Ambulance National Headquarters in St. John's Lane, London, where she met the new Prior, Sir Brian Jenkins.
www.nunnsyndication.com

Thanks for these beautiful pics of Countess Sophie.

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Hapy birthday Countess Sophie.Tomorrow will be her 40th birthday.

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

These pics of Countess Sophie on last Friday's visit to Tsunami Appeal.

 

[Australian]

Thanks Claire for the info