I go back and forth on whether I believe the Countess of Wessex is actively participating in the narrative of “Sophie will take the place of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.” Before now, I’ve mostly considered those stories – and there have been a lot of them – simple filler pieces by the British press, because the media fully understands how boring and lazy the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are. William and Kate are not going to ride in and suddenly be exciting, newsworthy and hardworking. So Sophie is “the one” who will bring excitement or interest or something. As I said, I wasn’t sure if that was coming from Team Wessex. But given this sugary write-up in People Magazine, methinks the Wessexes ARE in on it.
It’s time for Sophie Wessex to shine! Having notched up more than two decades in the royal family, and with 80 charities and causes to her name, the royal mom of two is not new to the very public role that comes with marrying one of Queen Elizabeth’s children. But since the departure of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry from their royal roles, Sophie, 55, has been become more front and center. With a combination of volunteering behind-the-scenes and taking her place alongside Kate Middleton, Sophie has been garnering praise for her quiet discretion and dependability.
The Countess of Wessex, who is married to the Queen’s youngest son, Prince Edward, has proved to be “a royal key worker,” says Joe Little, managing editor of Majesty. “She is making a difference in a very understated, very ‘Sophie’ way.”
She has been helping weekly with a group of caterers and party planners to organize meals for National Health Service (NHS) workers. “There’s no fanfare. These are private visits done in her own private time,” Peregrine Armstrong-Jones, of Bentley’s Entertainment, tells PEOPLE in the current issue. “When she leaves our kitchens, she generally then goes on to do more projects in different hospitals.”
“She was brought up by her parents and there was going to be no free ride in her family,” a friend says. “She wasn’t born to be the eldest daughter of a duke and duchess and find a marvelous marriage and polish her tiaras.”
Sophie and Edward, who are parent to Lady Louise Windsor, 16, and James, Viscount Severn, 12, are regulars at the car pickup line and scout group meetings. Sophie is also a favorite of her mother-in-law, the Queen, who regularly asks her to join her for church at Sandringham and invites Sophie’s father Christopher (her mother Mary died in 2005) to Balmoral Castle in the summer. “They are very close,” a royal source tells PEOPLE. Sophie “is very family orientated, and the Queen appreciates that.”
She has used her position to champion women and girls around the world, including joining the U.K. government-backed campaign against sexual violence used in war, recently traveling to South Sudan. And she has taken the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust’s campaign against avoidable blindness around the Commonwealth. It is on those foreign trips, a former staffer tells PEOPLE, that Sophie is often able to show what she can do. “She has a simple connection with people when she meets patients and families,” says the former staffer. “I think of it as scattering magic dust.”
Yeah, someone went from Zero to Keen over the course of about three months? That’s what I’ll call my royal scandal book too – From Zero To Keen. So yes, now I know. I’m sorry for doubting Sophie’s intentions. She clearly wants to be “the replacement” for the glamorous Meghan and Harry. That’s why she’s been giving interviews and being seen more than ever. We’re witnessing a palace-authorized push for Sophie. And that says a lot too – the palace knows they lost some bright stars with H&M. And they also know that the Queen is a petty a–hole who can’t stand it when anyone is more interesting than her. So bland, blonde Sophie gets pushed to the front.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.
Didn’t Sophie try to be the next Diana? And then she sort of fell on her face with the whole Sheikh thing? Maybe she thought that the whole Sheikh thing stopped her and not the fact that the palace doesn’t want “superstars”. They wants their royals (especially the non-heirs) to be unglamourous and quiet.
So good luck I guess
She didn’t TRY, the press made her out to be. The only thing she had in common with Diana was her hair color.
Sophie has paid her penance and has been absolved of her bankrupting, bad mouthing, opportunistic beading ways by her allies (including FFK and wife) in the royal family. Unfortunately she does not appeal to anyone as many are very indifferent to her. We have seen this embiggening campaign before. Try as they might none of the females in that family have any star quality.
Plus she’s been in the family for 20 years. If people wanted to care about her or thought she was “all that”, they would have.
Sophie’s problem is that she is not glamours and is not any peasant’s first choice Royal but she is hard working in that she will do anything QEII request her to do.
I still can’t believe all the shady things she’s done. Just imagine if it had been Meghan.
People magazine changed recently and is pro-Cambridge. Their recent Sussex stories are sourced straight from the British tabloids or recaps of legit articles from more reputable publications. People no longer has any insider info on Meghan or Harry so they’re pushing all these Palace endorsed stories.
They’ve been pro Cambridge. The only tome they were okay with the Sussexes is when Meghan friends talked to them, but that was a different write.
Simon Perry (writer of this article) is always pro Camb/royals spin promoter.
Yes, they’ve always been pro-Cambridge to the point that Kate was frequently referred to as “Princess Kate” in their coverage where Meghan never was. Somewhere along the way, they figured out how bad it looked to call one duchess “Princess Kate” and the other one “Meghan Markle” so they reverted back to calling Kate by her maiden name.
But the “Princess Kate” tag lives on in the People magazine website.
https://people.com/tag/princess-kate/
The longtime editor in chief retired last year in March. The new/current one is British and there’s been a distinct change in tone of royal coverage since then.
@Beach Dreams, I’ve had a long standing subscription to People magazine and have definitely noticed a shift in their coverage of the BRF but I wasn’t aware that there’s a new editor in chief, which explains a lot. All this being said, once my current subscription expires I won’t be renewing it.
Americans don’t care about Sophie. Most of us wouldn’t even know who the hell she is. I had know idea who she was until I started reading this site. The palace should be pushing these stories in the British press not in the US.
Kate is currently losing the battle of the duchesses with Meghan (and so now she doesn’t want to be used as a stick to beat Meghan with. Lol) so Sophie is being put forward as a way to continue giving the BRF good press.
Same. Still don’t, really.
The problem is that the “Palaces” get over 10,000 request a year for a Royal to appear at some event which cam be anything from a primary school graduation commencement to handing out prizes at the local village fete. Appearance at these types of events is how the Royals make contact with the peasants. Other than Anne and Charles, few Royals seems to want to do this type of work. If the Royals cease to perform these “bread & butter” engagements the peasants will not be happy. The Kents & Gloucesters are basically retired except for specific patronages so that leaves only Sophie and Edward until the Cambridge kids complete their education. Charles seems to be against the York Princesses undertaking any official Royal Work, therefore there is a shortage of boots on the ground for calls to action involving non-glamours Royal appearances.
If the Cambridge kids follow their parents examples of becoming working royals in their late 20s/early/mid 30s (depending on when you believe the Cambridges became working royals) then the kids might not be working royals for another 20-30 years.
And even then there’s no guarantee that they’ll do the “bread and butter” engagements
This^^. Plus the monarchy has had a … bumpy year so far. They need to somehow keep convincing people they are needed and relevant.
Which means that as soon as it is safe, the Royals need to start showing up at the local charity cricket match and nodding while they make small talk over locally baked cake & tea.
Sophie does a great deal of that kind of work, actually. And she does a great deal of the international work (she and Edward are often the ones who go to other royal weddings and such, for example.)
Meghan had only been in the family for 2 years so I don’t understand why there is such a push to replace her in terms of workload.
There was always going to be a shortage of “boots on the ground” as Charles slimmed down the working royals. I think what will happen, if people are unhappy with it, is the funding may change.
Exactly! Who wants to pay for the luxury lived in by the BRF if a minor Royal cannot be dispatched to hand out the diplomas at the local school?
Kathy Keen and Normal Bill have never stepped up to take their share of the bread and butter appearances.
And, @Dee, they were never going to. People forget that the Cambridges made much of operating very differently from senior Royals past. They were going to have a more centralized foundation, have a few fundraisers per year and not participate in numerous bread-and-butter events. They made this very clear around the time of their wedding.
@Mary – Bill & Cathy planned on Harry and his future wife doing all the work they did not want to do.
While all the special initiatives such as Heads Together or focusing on children, veterans, etc are wonderful and much needed, they only involve select groups of British citizens not the man/woman on the street. Country fairs, livestock shows, flower shows, factory openings, etc are important events for all royals to attend because it gives the “ordinary” person a moment to feel a part of the monarchy, to get a sprinkling of magic, royal dust. By not participating in these types of events, the Cambridges are doing themselves and the general public a huge disservice.
@Harla – You expressed my thoughts exactly.
I guess Charles is desperate he never took to Edward. I remember the incandescent with rage stories Re: Charles being angry at Edward.
This pro Sophie push is……weird. Like, she’s been in the royal family for 20 years and now we’re going to make her front and center? Wouldn’t the time for that have been 10- 15 years ago when William was in college and then the RAF and wasn’t married yet, and Harry was serving in Afghanistan?
Again, like that podcast host said – Sophie is a Ford fiesta compared to Meghan’s Lamborghini.
And anyway, what makes royals interesting isn’t their work – if that was true, we’d have nonstop coverage of Anne. What makes royals interesting is glamour, a touch of scandal or negative press (see: how quick the coverage of the Cambridges changed once the BM realized how boring it was to embiggen them all the time without being able to tear down Meghan too) and finally, charisma/charm/personality.
No one who wanted to meet Meghan is going to be as excited over meeting Sophie.
@Becks1 – What it really gets down to is: Who is going to fill the boots previously worn by the Sussexes? Will it be Sophie?
I don’t think so. She’s pretty busy as it is. She’s no Anne or Charles, but her numbers are always consistently higher than Kate’s and I think even William’s, which is ridiculous.
I think the truth is that no one is going to fill the Sussex boots.
Sophie has always been in the 300 range, which she managed to do while raising young kids. Edward tends to be closer to 400. William hasn’t even gotten close to matching her, which is pathetic, especially after he quit his excuse of a part time job.
What stuck with me was noting that Sophie has been there 2 decades and has 80 charities. Kate has been there a decade as of next year and has under 20. Is she going get another 60 charities in short order?
And just having to promote Sophie to Americans basically confirms that Kate isn’t enough. It just seems desperate on many levels.
True. I didn’t know of Sophie or Edward’s existence until Meghan and Harry got engaged and I started paying attention more closely.
I’m not sure if Sophie is being positioned here as a replacement to H&M… I’m reading this quick, unsubtle push as something bigger – she’s set to replace one of the two main C-titled duchesses! (Tinfoil hat on, obviously) Which one? And why, health issues for Camilla (I hope not, honestly) or post- quarantine-divorce for Kate? What are you betting on?
I don’t think anybody else in the BRF is going to divorce. Charles and Camilla would be idiots to divorce after everything that’s happened and William and Kate have more to lose by divorcing than staying together.
The press already tried to make Sophie “pop” after the Charles/Diana divorce. They’re just trying to repeat the story 20 years later.
How do you mean?
@Esme – Camilla could be ill? I could buy that she has a slow progressing but debilitating disease such as arthritis or Lupus. Not saying she has such a disease but it could be possible and the reason for the Sophie push of late.
@Baytampabay, I don’t know, obviously, but this RF backed push seems a bit too much to be only about H&M, who are quietly doing their own thing in the US, after all. I don’t feel like this is the usual “much ado about Meghan”, it feels a little too desperate. As others have written above, the RF already tried to make Sophie happen, back then, and she didn’t happen. She’s not happening.
But it’s clear that they need someone steady and dependable in the public eye for “something”. And they’re not trotting out the actual future Queen. And the article makes little mention of Kate. Sooooo… I don’t know.
@Esme & BayTampaBay: Camilla has pretty serious osteoporosis and has worked with the OP society for a long time. Her mother had it and died a painful death. Travelling has become increasingly difficult for her as I believe she suffers from serious vertigo if she has to fly – she generally needs a couple of days to recover. Kate is in no way capable of handling the level of work that Sophie does so who knows what the future will bring. Maybe the BRF will capitulate and ask Meghan and Harry to come back and let them do their own thing, but who would go back into that nest of vipers? They can embiggen Kate as much as they want but she just doesn’t have the brains, focus or desire to do much more than the basics. Ditto William.
Let’s stop infantilising a 38 year old woman. Kate is capable of doing 300 basic bread and butter engagements a year, she just doesn’t want to.
I think Camilla is locked in for life; if they were to divorce, there’d be a fresh round of scathing backlash from the press and the public. I also think it’s unlikely for the Duke and Duchess of Dolittle, but my motto for their possibility of a split is ‘never say never’. People never thought Charles and Diana would divorce either…
I feel like there should be more swipes (subtle of course) at H&M for this to be a “we’re not missing their star power at all!!!” PR move. But this just seems like an over the top puff piece for a royal member who is routinely ignored by the public. There’s been a PR campaign geared towards Sophie for a while now…I find it a bit weird with how excessive it seems.
Charles spent a lot of money with the “great love story” spin, he would look foolish if he divorced her. And a second divorce would jeopardize his position as heir IMO. They may live separate lives (she retreats to Raymill) now and keep up appearances. She does the minimum of work. I think Kate and William divorce would have better odds–though right now WIlliam is keeping the great husband and dad spin.. Especially if William wants to marry another woman and takes Charles spin of being “pressured” to “settle” for Kate.
The divorce theories around Will and Kate seem rather ridiculous to me.
William is not a romantic and he wouldn’t want the scrutiny of a divorce, co-parenting with his ex-wife, and focus on his new relationship. William stands to gain nothing from a divorce. Maybe when the kids are grown but right now it seems like a lot of inconvenience with no gain.
@Hope – I think the only reason there would be a divorce would be if William had someone else he would want to marry. There’s no way Kate is walking away.
There will be a divorce if William wants one, as Becks1 writes. Either he finds someone else he wants to marry or he gets frustrated by Kate’s poor job performance. He can barely retrain himself now from rolling his eyes whenever she speaks in public.
Not to mention that’s Will’s entire PR identity seems to be built around the ‘SOOOO much better a husband, father, and general MAN in every way than CHARLES ever was’ line, which a divorce would absolutely shatter.
I mean, some of Will and Kate’s engagement announcement photos were literally a re-staging of Charles and Diana’s, but instead of Diana in tan and Charles in blue it’s both Will and Kate in tan, because the public need it visually hammered home with matching clothes that Will and Kate are ‘sooo in tune with each other’ and ‘THESE ones really ARE the fairytale!’.
It is too late in the game to keep pretending they’re ‘normal’ and blissfully happy. His complete overreaction to the Rose news getting out made it a lasting story. If he wants out, he gets out claiming everybody’s mental health is better if they divorce and co-parent.
@Becks1. I think that if William ever wants to marry someone else, it won’t be until the children are adults and he is entitled enough to want her to wait. Though we would then have two Princesses of Wales so that would be a problem.
Charles and Diana only divorced because of the Andrew Morton book. She was a liability to the other royals. Kate kept quiet and smiled and was given a family honor. She’ll never make it easy for William to leave and good for her.
But because of the Rose story, if William ever leaves it won’t be until it is mostly forgotten. William’s image is everything to him.
Maybe William will get divorced and claim that as a single dad, he can’t possibly work more. Good way to avoid stepping up when he becomes PoW.
@hope – you bring up an interesting point re: princess of wales. But remember that’s not automatic. William will automatically become Duke of Cornwall upon the queen’s death, but not Prince of wales. Charles will have to confer? invest? (not sure of correct term lol) that on/to him – so it will be interesting to see how long he waits to do so.
I agree with you that Kate kept smiled and was rewarded and that she wont make it easy for Will to leave her. But that’s why keeping an eye on the PR is so interesting. There’s been a slight shift in coverage of the Cambridges – Kate in particular – and that might mean nothing, or it may mean “something.”
I saw some people on Twitter claim that Sophie was the one who nicknamed Meghan “the degree wife”. I couldn’t find a reputable source for it, but I’ve been suspicious of her ever since.
I wouldn’t be surprised. Personally I think Andrew’s a likely candidate for making that remark. For some reason I feel like one of the male senior royals said it; probably him or Will (that’s exactly the type of snide comment that I could see Will making too, judging by the tone-deaf/unpleasant “jokes” he likes to make in public).
I’ve always thought the Queen appreciated her so much because she married Edward. 25 years ago he was down as a perennial batchelor.
She seems to get on with Keen as well. But they can only write so much about Keen so Sophie is next.
Also I’m sure some of this is about money. Showing the W’s value so Charles will keep footing the bill.
I think you’re right. Let’s face it, William and Kate don’t have to work if they don’t want to (and they don’t). Because William will be king no matter what. That’s how monarchies work. But the others . . . they can be cut off whenever Charles wants to. Sophie saw a void when H and M left, and made her move.
I’m sure it is. They need to be in the ‘slimmed down’ monarchy. Someone has to pay upkeep for the 50 room, 52 acre mansion they live in and all those Swiss ski holidays.
An insider once told me that the Queen loves Kate, but who really knows…..
Why is Edward continuously left out of the conversation???? Especially since the RF needs a replacement for both H&M? If Sophie didn’t pop after Diana, she isn’t gonna pop after Meghan, 20 years after marrying in. I’d be annoyed if I were the tabloids. This is a watered down version, much less interesting version of their previous cash cow. Are they gonna throw Sophie to the wolves when she inevitably outworks W&K? No one will care. The RF is gonna have to come up with something better than this.
Edward is even more bland and boring than William. He goes on overseas tours fairly frequently and gets zero headlines. The press are now being encouraged to point the spotlight on Sophie to help the couple shine more as a replacement couple. But it is never going to work. As a couple Harry and Meghan have the same mega star couple as Diana and Charles in the early days, and their star quality with never be dimmed.
The PR push around Sophie is way too heavy handed. It’s definitely weird but then again, the palace’s “logic” in handling public relations is already odd.
Focusing on Sophie takes the spot light off the Meghan stuff (I think they need a break from being slammed) without wasting more time on the Cambridges, so I’m all for it.
Sophie is not bland.
Hahaha @Missy, great joke!
She’s bland on the “celebrity scale,” for sure, and we live in a celebrity-obsessed culture.
why is it so important for them to get American coverage? W&K I understand because future and stuff, and the interest is definitely already there for Kate and the kids. But no way people in the US will care about Sophie bc there’s not a single reason for us to.
Nobody cares
Exactly~ and how that must burn.
Sophie was always thirsty for attention. The tabloids are just now paying her mind; and, make no mistake, Sophie is loving it. In that picture she is just soooo excited to be on a joint engagement with the Cambridges, slobbering all over each other to show that, yes, they are a close supportive family (no matter what the Sussexes say). Sophie also wasn’t really into women’s rights issues until Meghan came along.
Bland Sophie was not threatened by bland Kate. She still was the Queen’s favorite and most that paid attention respected her engagement numbers. Hard-working, charismatic Meghan? The Meghan that actually brings in money for her charities? Now, she had to go.
She is thirsty for money for the upkeep of their stately home, and she will take on anything the palace offers them. She has been trying to push herself forward for years and curry favour with future King William. Who can blame her, it’s survival.
Is it just me, or is this some total eclipse-level shade thrown at Princess Beatrice? Or who would it be?
“She wasn’t born to be the eldest daughter of a duke and duchess and find a marvelous marriage and polish her tiaras.”
You are not wrong about it being shade, I am just not sure who. Her own daughter will be the eldest daughter of a Duke when Edward gets Philip’s title.
I think there is definite shade being thrown at Meghan, bringing up Sophie’s father and how the Queen likes how family-oriented Sophie is.
That is definite shade and I guess it has to be aimed at Beatrice, who hasn’t really done anything of note. “eldest daughter of a duke” is very specific, and it would be weird to call someone that if there is only one daughter. Like I would never refer to Princess Charlotte as the “eldest daughter” because she’s the only one. so I think its about Beatrice.
I doubt the article was throwing shade a Beatrice as it is almost impossible for the York Princesses to perform any type of official Royal work do to the behavior of Pedo Prince Andy.
I don’t think the dig is about royal duties, it’s about working in general. It’s implying Beatrice is a pampered and spoiled girl who was expected to make a nice marriage and that’s it
It’s just so weirdly specific, like if they said “wasn’t born to be a princess” then I wouldn’t think twice about it.
Curiouser and curiouser…….! Sophie is such a brown noser that she would not diss Beatrice unless the Queen was OK with it. So, it is either not a reference to Beatrice or the Yorks have really fallen out of favor. But because, as you said, the reference is soooo specific…..
It is like the comments made by the Queen’s part-planning cousin three days before the Sussexes’ wedding. She outright trashed the planned reception meal and service.
I knew then that the Queen was a b*tch gunning for Meghan because there was no way her otherwise (and usually) discrete cousin (who plans all the Queen’s shindigs) would have said anything negative about the wedding plans without the Queen’s approval.
Also Angela Kelly. Staff members for the Queen, Charles and William have all behaved inappropriately. It’s so obvious in hindsight they were all just smiling for the cameras and they dropped her by the time the Hub cookbook came out.
💯
This article is written so badly, it was actually like hearing nails down a blackboard for my brain…
“She was brought up by her parents and there was going to be no free ride in her family,”
Yes… most people are brought up by their parents. Is this supposed to be something extraordinary or a virtue. And ‘no free rides’? She gets millions in public funding and lives free in a bloody palace!
…a friend says. “She wasn’t born to be the eldest daughter of a duke and duchess and find a marvelous marriage and polish her tiaras.” This sentence literally makes no sense and makes my head hurt!
I think they’re trying to contrast her to a certain Hollywood glitzy social climber who social climbed her way out of the royal family and back home.
I don’t think this is any of Sophie’s doing. She’s got it great at the moment, with all the privilege and privacy. Stepping into the limelight would be terrible for her. This seems more like a Palace push. But why? Is the Cryer of Tights not enough?
The “Cryer of Tights” is not interested in doing anything except polishing tiaras.
Your last paragraph is why I think this PR push is so weird. Maybe she would like a little bit more of a spotlight, but I think she seems to like her current life well enough, she gets all the perks and a lot less scrutiny and pressure. So I don’t really think this is all coming from Sophie. so why is it coming from the palace?
It makes me think of what @Em said up above about this being a push to replace a duchess, and it makes me wonder if a Cambridge divorce IS on the horizon. Sophie is being positioned to replace Kate as the younger (relatively) female face of the royal family.
I dunno. It’s just starting to feel weird.
The article certainly smacks of Kate “not being enough”.
With the spotlight, comes scrutiny. Are they willing for her husband or her marriage to be scrutinised? All people need to do is google “Sophie tapes.”
The impression of Kate “not being enough” has been evident for some time. E.g. In 2018 Kate and Sophie co-hosted the Commonwealth Fashion Exchange Reception at Buckingham Palace and it was clear from the videos that Kate needed Sophie’s support. There are only short videos available now but a much longer news report was published at the time showing the arrivals of principal guests , the formal greetings and Kate and Sophie being shown the exhibits and chatting. Sophie is clearly at ease in the role and able to chat in a natural way when being filmed. Kate could not have hosted this event on her own.
Sophie carries out most of her uk engagements and several overseas visits, on her own. She returned from a 3 day visit to Sudan just before the start of the lockdown. Kate has made just two solo foreign trips, a one-day visit to the Netherlands in 2016 and a day trip to Luxembourg in 2018.
When Meghan came on the scene and was every bit as capable as Sophie it highlighted Kate’s shortcomings. This was evident in the “Fab Four” interview about their joint foundation when Meghan simply shone. In addition to being relaxed and confident on stage she is strikingly pretty and looks younger than Kate who is the same age. I think from then on the Palace plan was to sideline the Sussexes.
Catherine Quinn’s reported opinion was that Kate was not capable of improving and this is why she left. There does seem to be something amiss.
Kate is capable of improving though. If you look at that video she made about kindness, she is far more natural and relaxed than she has ever been. But if you look at that other video when she was called out about not visiting for 8 years and she glossed past it, she’s really shameless. She really doesn’t care about how people see her because she just focuses on the photos and the DM stories.
Bitch won’t happen. Take a seat.
LOL!!!
Can I second that LOL!!?
lol still pushing this uncharismatic women😂no wonder they are still begging harry(and only him) to return. The wessexs barely make news so they cant be used as scapegoats to cover for keenbridges. We’ll see what changes once they’re back doing public engagements.
Why does People mag give this grifter family so much PR?
This woman has been in the family for how many years? The royals and BM all of a sudden want everyone to believe she is the savior of the family. What about the dolittles? Is everyone in that family except Harry and Meghan just that boring or useless that they have to keep spinning this PR every other week?
The Royal family is down a few females lately. The Queen won’t be showing her face due to the corona, Meghan skedaddled out of the country, the Duchess of York is a no go, and then there’s Kate, who is probably campaigning really hard for baby #4 so she can stay shut up at home longer. Then they remembered Sophie and figured they had nothing to lose by pushing her forward.
We’ll see if Sophie starts dropping some pounds, going a little blonder, and contouring like a Kardashian to add a little glam to the fam. #MakeSophieHappen2020 might be a real thing at BP.
@Harper, go back four or five years and that DID happen. In fact there’s a long, glowing, Fail article about her fitness regime, weight loss, new fashion sense, they talked makeup, the lighter blonde hair… Even talked about her teeth (comparing them to Kate’s ‘Hollywood’ veneers). It was kinda horrific
The moment Sussexit was announced, this Sophie push started. At first, it was all conjectures and shades aimed at the Sussexes. ” Oh, now that they left, somebody needs to pick up the work…”
The thing is, if Kate and Will would work, nobody would need to do a lot more. So, the spin made no sense and could not be sustained for even half a year- hence the Tatler article was so damaging, as it exposed not only the fact the Cambridges were the laughing stock of the aristocratic world, but also their (low) numbers.
Now, with an interview, and a profile, we can clearly say this Sophie push has the blessing of the RF. After her initial faux pas, Sophie has been exactly what the Queen likes: dull, hard working, bland, very white….she would never do anything without having Petty betty approval seal all over it.
and what Sophie is, Catherine is not. I do believe Charles still holds hope he can count on Harry and Meghan at some point, but this smells Queen approved to me. She is a an old lady yes, but just yesterday they were speaking of her observing the Cambridges…
I think she is beyond observing the Cambridges. The Cambridges have been observed for so long already. It is an investment that has barely given any returns and the most you can say about them is that they are not Andy level of disgusting…
So, yes, I can see this is RF clearly stating “Catherine is only good for breeding purposes…Willie can beraly crack a joke…we need someone to cut ribbons, smile and wave and carry the Queen´s purse when attending service.”
make no mistake- This is RF finally giving up on Catherine doing more than the bare mininum.
Sophie needed to get over her vanity and go up a size or two on that dress.
I have her body type–I gain weight in my arms and thighs first. So I have trouble wearing short-sleeved dresses, unless the sleeves are flowy. I think that dress fits her well, it’s just that she doesn’t have the perfectly slender arms most of us would love to have. Going up a size wouldn’t have changed that.
The DDOW it was reported last month by Royal Gertz Twitter they haven’t don’t any charity fundraisers in 3 years. They made 150,000.00. Their unable to support their charities. I’ve searched all other media outlets; couldn’t find any other reports. I truly believe this monarchy has always done some horrible things. The worst is yet to came. The queen has stepped down. Trust me Andrews a nightmare the queen is no saint!
The worst yet to come may involve the Middletons. An investigation into their finances is long overdue. Questions raised in 2010 https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/royal-wedding/8147929/Royal-Wedding-Middletons-money-how-was-it-made.html have not been addressed. There is open speculation about money laundering for Carol’s drug-dealing brother. Since the wedding there have been legal changes allowing police to investigate ‘unexplained wealth’ and to confiscate property under an ‘Unexplained Wealth Order’. Buying property in London for cash is one of the red flags. The Middletons have recently sold the London flat they bought for cash in 2002 for £780,000. It sold for £1.88million in September 2019. The flat was bought mainly for Kate and Pippa to pursue their social life among the titled and wealthy.
I just realized that Sophie end Edward were allowed to keep their office outside London. Is there a push behind the scenes to move all offices to London?
If Sophie was going to ‘happen’ she would have ‘happened’ 20 years ago. I always liked her, but she’s recently been showing her thirst especially after that CW ceremony. I wouldn’t be surprised if bill and Karen put her on a retainer to be team Cambridge. Same with Zara. Having more family members on their side, make harry and Meghan look more disliked. No one does anything in that family unless they get something back. Or maybe the Keenbridges were behind this piece as a way of keeping Sophie sweet. The devil tempts after all.
Money talks, all the minor royals need cash to maintain appearances.