It’s still so bizarre to me to see the entire British press – tabloid and mainstream – all kowtow to Prince William and his legal threats about his (alleged) affair with Rose Hanbury, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley. The Cholmondeleys are the Cambridges’ Norfolk neighbors, and it was almost two full years ago when we first heard the whispers about William and Rose. William threatened every UK media outlet with legal action and the whispers were tamped down. I also believe William had to give the press something else to write about, so he handed his brother and sister-in-law to them. Anyway, it sort of worked. The only outlets still referencing William and Rose’s affair are American and French outlets. Meanwhile, whenever the UK press writes anything about Rose, they call her “Kate Middleton’s friend.” Yikes!
Kate Middleton’s friend Rose Hanbury has gone all frugal as she looks to do up her 18th century Grade I listed home on the cheap. The wife of David Cholmondeley, 58, who is the 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, took to Instagram to ask for help to find some new rugs.
The couple – who are worth an estimated £75million and have three children – live at the grand Houghton Hall, set in 1,000 acres close to The Queen’s Sandringham estate. But 36-year-old Rose – a member of the Duchess of Cambridge’s well-born group of friends dubbed the Turnip Toffs – said she isn’t looking to spend much money on them.
She posted on Instagram: ‘Help! I’m desperately looking for some nice rugs for bedrooms like the one in this room, or any other suitable styles. Does anyone have any tips on where to buy these (that aren’t too expensive!) Thank you.’
A source said: ‘It seems odd she is asking for inexpensive items to furnish her home, considering she lives in a mansion. Surely she can’t have fallen on hard times.’
Some followers poked fun at her and told her to try the likes of TK Maxx, IKEA or Etsy.
Houghton Hall is a stunning Palladian mansion with 106-rooms, built in the 1720s for Britain’s first Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole.
The Marchioness of Cholmondeley’s chintzy bathroom decorated with de Gournay wallpaper appeared in House and Garden magazine in February.
Kate and Prince William visited the house, just three miles away from Anmer Hall, in June 2016 to attend a charity gala to support East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices. Rose and David attended the Cambridges’ wedding in 2011 and their twin boys Alexander and Oliver were playmates of Prince George.
First of all, the substance of the story is so stupid – Houghton Hall has like a bajillion rooms, of course not EVERY room is going to be decorated with priceless antiques. Trying to “shame” Rose for looking for affordable, non-antique rugs for some of the bedrooms makes zero sense to this gauche American. And what’s so wrong about rugs from IKEA or Etsy? Damn. As for the references to Kate and William… part of me wonders if the Daily Mail is tugging on the Cambridges’ leash, you know? Just a reminder: we’ll still mention Rose in association with you two lazy ass Keens. Interesting.
Also, after all of that rose bush trimming drama, I started following the Houghton Hall Instagram – which I believe Rose mostly runs by herself – and the estate really is incredibly cool. But yeah, there’s no reason why she shouldn’t put inexpensive rugs in some of the bedrooms.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, IG.
Ruggable is the way to go. You’re welcome, Rose.
Ha, was definitely coming in to suggest Ruggable! That’s what we bought for our guest room/home office.
Literally just came here to say that. Plus, the Star Wars collection. The kids will love it.
Ooh, I’d never heard of Ruggable before but just did a quick google search. Thanks for the tip!
We have an incontinent senior female dog, and Ruggable is next on my list for our living room rug. I’m glad to hear you recommending it!
I have multiple dogs as well as dust allergies. Ruggable rugs are the only ones I will ever have in my house again.
I ordered a ruggable a week ago and patiently waiting for it. Exciting! I ordered the world map.
Andrea, I have the world map Ruggable. Hopefully you love yours as much as I love mine!
Are ruggables soft though? My little dudes love to roll around on our carpets. Meaning I keep them clean but they need to be soft and plush.
the Houghton Hall IG is very well done, IMO – and I do think its mostly Rose, because people will comment and say “looks great Rose” or something and the response seems to be from her. Also sometimes there are pictures of the kids and I don’t think the Cholmondeley’s would allow that if it wasn’t directly from them.
Rose Hanbury’s personal IG was private and then she made it public for like two days, but completely wiped it clean, and I don’t know if its private or public at this point.
I definitely think this is trolling the Cambridges. I think the press is doing this just enough to sort of tug the Cambridge’s leash. There is no need for this nothing-burger of a story to be covered in the Mail except to put the Cambridges in the same story as Rose Hanbury again.
Rose’s personal IG is public and has 8 pictures or so. I don’t think she ever wiped it clean as she’s got pics from 2017 or something. Idk about making it private for a bit.
Maybe she just never really used it? It was definitely private and then she made it public…..a year ago maybe? Time has no meaning anymore lol.
I followed her when the scandal was still in the news so around Spring 2019 so if she was private after that I have no idea. If she private before that, again, no idea but I remember stalking her IG for a bit before following and can’t remember it being private haha
I don’t remember her before 2019, lol, but I definitely remember checking at some point and it was private, and then it went public, and then I followed her (because WHY NOT) and then someone told me it went private again, but because I followed her I couldn’t tell.
honestly if I was her I would keep it private, but it seems the Cambridge trolls leave her alone.
➕💯 Kaiser and Becks1. This is the one of the 🐀 Rota subtlety sticking it to William with this super inane article about “Kate’s friend.” PS — I wish her ‘good friend, Kate’ would take a few fashion tips from Rose about how to look like you’re part of the 21st century.
She’s really attractive here – much more so than in the pics posted of her during the supposed affaire
Also the Insta is excellent and her home fab
I think DM is trolling too. They call Rose Kate’s friend, before dropping some shade in the last paragraph which contradicts this. They mention two occasions that they have gotten together both in the distant past. But in case readers might think they don’t visit more regularly because they live too far apart, DM helpfully reminds everyone that they live only 3 miles from each other. Then they wrap it up by saying Rose’s kids WERE (not ARE) frends with George.
Nah. If you’re worth $75 Million (or fraction of that), maybe don’t go online and ask for cheap-ish rug suggestions.
Where did you get that figure?
Many owners or caretakers of these estates are on record saying you’re cash poor with these properties. The constant upkeep is extremely costly. HH using the art installations to help with that immense cost.
Well I don’t know about rugs, but I do know of a great local doormat.
Ooh! I know it’s only monday but COTW!🤣
Agree!
Haha OMG 😂
well played
Dying!
Boom.
Bravo.
You win the comment of the day. Heck you win the internet too.
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 Oh my G** that’s hysterical, Florence. Definitely COTW. Thanks for the laugh, as an American, I needed that today with the continuing antics of Trump the Traitor.
Nailed it @Florence!
Bravo, @Florence! HILARIOUS!
😂😂😂
Rose seems unpleasant, but Houghton Hall is lovely.
Hi: curious why you say she seems unpleasant. Was it something you picked up from the IG account?
If she is behind the Insta account (and I think she is) then I agree that she seems unpleasant in the sense that the #hot wheels post and some other posts on the Houghton Hall Insta account are clear humblebrags. Like “oh look a portrait of David’s great great grandmother who served the prime minister in this room.” It’s clearly trying to effortlessly advertise the koolaid that the rocksavages are some divine family who deserve reverence. Barf.
It’s a very specific attempt to cultivate a persona that can’t be bothered to care, and yet simply breathes luxury and lineage and privilege – they can’t help it! And to be earnest and compassionate, like the Sussexes, was no doubt mocked by people exactly like her and her friends.
Yeah, but doesn’t Houghton Hall make money by running tours of the estate or something? It’s sort of her job as “lady of the house” to pimp it out and make it interesting enough to want to visit. I personally think she seems pretty cool. She’s definitely more interesting than her neighbor down the road.
@L84Tea – exactly. the account is meant to promote Houghton Hall, to get people to want to visit there (and pay the entrance fees over other country estates that are open to the public) – so she’s going to emphasize things like their connection to past prime ministers or significant artists etc.
Hello Ma Middleton. I’d rather be unpleasant than a doormat.
So… those are your only choices? Unpleasant or doormat?
I’m not a fan of the royals AND I think these aristocrats are just as petty and unpleasant.
The collective opinion on Rose from the Norfolk plebs is that she and her husband are just lovely and do much for the community.
I’d take that with a pinch of salt as Brits especially in that part of the world are bred to worship the aristos. I’m indifferent about her but she does have an easy laid back air about her.
I think Rose looks lovely too, not just her house. She looks natural in her surroundings.
I’ve followed the Houghton Hall account on Insta for a while and love how she gives us a peek into her life. Never for one instant saw anything unpleasant come from her, at all– in fact she is quite gracious. She’s very involved in the art and interiors world and seems like a perfect custodian for such an important, historical place.
I freaking love Houghton Hall and nearly everything Rose has done with it plus I like Rose infinitely more than Buttony McWiglet. Remember when she had to attend that state dinner? Not a whisper and not a scene, she keeps everything confidential. Houghton Hall could not have art exhibitions during the pandemic so she will be glad when the vaccines roll out and she can get back to it. Houghton Hall is grander than a lot of royal residences, money saved on rugs mean she may have more to get a room stenciled or electricity rewired.
I saw her in a TV show doing a tour of Houghton Hall, she seemed quite likeable. My first thought was why in the world would someone with such a nice personality, money, and good looks be interested in boorish and bald, dad dancing William?!
She’s very keen (no pun intended) about running the house herself and keeping it in fashion with it’s historical stature, she’s very hands on with restoring it and its items to their original grandeur as a part of British heritage. But she also was adamant it shouldn’t be a stodgy old monolith so her children play all about and that’s why they open it up so much to the public and she actually plans the public offerings herself too. (For instance allowing the public to lunch on a newly restored grand stone terrace. Offering the chance to come and pick produce in their amazing gardens.)
I remember she was thrilled to find some remnants of the historic antique wallpaper that was a limited print made just for the hall (I want to say in the Victorian era) in one of its attics, there had been photos of it but it was long replaced and forgotten until she stumbled on some remaining old pieces of it hidden in their storage. And she approached the original company to make more of it again for her to use and they asked her to launch it commercially too, which is the wallpaper mentioned above in the article. She was extremely, genuinely excited about this historical wallpaper thing which was so dorky but quite endearing.
All in all she seemed very likeable and someone who would be interesting company. I very easily could see why William would like her, but feel she could do infinitely better than him.
Just infinitely.
The Marquess was also quite a likable character, very charming, humorous. Very dedicated to Houghton Hall and it’s history like his wife too.
I agree, Rose seems really likeable, I’d like to give her the benefit of the doubt about William.
Maybe she just provided cover for an affair with someone else, the way Charles and Camilla’s friends did for them?
Rose is friends with Sarah Vine (who has a niggling doubt about Meghan) and she interned for Michael Gove. She probably is quite unpleasant.
oh dear
that’s terrible
what a bunch
If I’m not mistaken, Houghton Hall is open to public, so it seems reasonable to me that Rose’s living quarters would not furnished with expensive pieces. The antiques and high end pieces would be placed in rooms that are on display.
Plus, her bisexual husband mainly lives in Paris with his male lover in a very expensive property. Vanity Fair did an in-depth expose on him several years ago. Messy and nasty.
The expose was on the Lover not Rocksavage.
@BTB and Lowcountry I need a link please @ messy French lover to make these COVID evenings pass more quickly…. 😂😂😂
I hope you’re not implying that bisexuality is something that others “expose,” because there’s nothing wrong or shameful about being bisexual.
@tcbc I think it has more to do with the character of the lover from what I can see and the links to the whole Betancourt affair.
Looks really messy.
Mignionette, Vanity Fair did a two or three part series on the Betancourt affair. It should still be online and is a riveting read.
Judging from the IG page, rose takes amazing photographs- Kate must hate that heheh
I also started following HH and I’ve got to agree. Rose has very refined taste and instincts and creates an air of cool. I also follow the hashtag and it’s interesting what people post. All sorts of festivals and events. In many ways Rose is actually the elegant modern aristocratic SAHM that Kate wants to be. Agree it’s shocking she would bang ol yuckmouth.
This is definitely a “non-story” but I guess the Fail wanted to write about Rose while linking the Cambridges to it so the writer went through her Instagram to find a story.
Also said post is gone. I don’t know if she deleted it because she was embarrassed or because it made rounds in the Fail
She probably spent most of the budget on that expensive de Gourney wallpaper.
The British Toffs do not spend 20K on new vehicles but they will spend 20K on wallpaper because the wallpaper is expected to be on the wall for at least 100 years especially if on the wall of the family estate.
Well, yeah.
Rose found some old panels of De Gournay in the Houghton attic, untouched and still remarkably vibrant after 230 years. She contacted De Gournay about the discovery and De Gournay decided to reproduce the design in its original format and two new colorways, and then they threw a fabulous party at Houghton to introduce the new papers. Search the web for the story on the party, which sigh, sounded fabulous. Rose’s personal bathroom is papered in one of the new colorways.
That is the kind of party (fundraiser???) I would like to attend.
Me too. Kate didn’t score an invite; just lucky interior designers.
Sounds like a fabulous idea! I bet she got a good price discount on the whole thing since they could monetize it to two new wallpapers.
If these are her photos, she’s definitely a better photographer than her friend, Keen Kate.
The real old money is “frugal”, aka cheap. Nothing to prove. It’s folks like the terribly rich Matthews family and the Middletons who like the expensive stuff.
Not necessarily. They just spend money on different things. They may not buy a flashy new car but will drop $20,000 to wallpaper their freaking bathroom in de Gourney 🙂
Can we have a link to the 20K de Gourney wallpaper?
Baytampabay: Rose H. has pics of it on her Instagram. It was also featured in some magazine. That particular brand is very expensive. I once looked into doing one wall in my dining room but changed my mind very quickly when I found out the price.
@BayTampaBay, the closest I could find was this. You have to scroll way down.
https://cotedetexas.blogspot.com/2019_05_05_archive.html
Thank you for the link @L84Tea! It was a long, but very enjoyable read.
I found this Instagram post. It looks lovely!!! https://www.instagram.com/p/B5F0SV8JtuG/?igshid=avwewt6wuxtm
This is what I was thinking. No need to flaunt and also, kids will mess up a cheap rug as easily as a priceless antique. Why take the risk?
Honest question: do we think Kate even *cares* that Willyboy steps out on her? Or does she just care that he got caught?
I believe there’s an arrangement and getting caught out and embarrassing her is not part of that arrangement
Agreed, it’s the getting caught that’s the problem. Also I wonder if the affair is still ongoing?
I think it’s that it became public and thus embarrassing to her and her public persona. As to the affair, I’m betting it’s been over for some time and William is gardening elsewhere. He doesn’t strike me as loyal to anyone but himself.
Willnot Walmart Keen always seemed to me to be the type of farmer who would be into crop rotation.
I think she cares that it became semi-public and I also think it may embarrass her that its in Norfolk? Like if she is trying so desperately to be the Queen of the Toffs, and then William sleeps with someone who it seems may “actually” be that Queen, then I could see that bothering her. Like she would probably prefer if he slept with anonymous women in London or heck even on ski trips to Switzerland.
I do think the affair is over.
I think it’s getting caught. Just like a lot of other high profile relationships where powerful people spend most of their time apart.
I think it’s also whom he was caught with. Rose is a Marchioness, so at the top of the peerage pile. Also her family on both sides are old money Aristo’s with ‘lineage’ and likely Royal blood way down the line.
She is essentially living the life Pimp Ma Middleton groomed Kate and Pippa for sans all the BRF scrutiny, faff and endless drama.
Worst still Rose likely just ‘get’s it’ as the country ways are part of her blood and ‘breeding’ and that is something that likely makes Kate feel undermined. Not so much the cheating, rather the implication that maybe Bill is interested in someone he can ‘share things with’. Notice how Carole made a huge deal of ensuring that Kate is photographed indulging in country pursuits such as shooting. All part of the she’s worked to fit in image. In reality Bill likely knows that the Midds have played up to him and that can make a man feel a little bit stitched up like a kipper.
In some ways it sounds like Chucky and Diana all over again. Sooner or later the Windsor men hanker for someone who is one of them and “gets them”.
Had Haemophillia not ravaged the RF’s of Europe and contributed to the demise of the Russian RF, all the Royals would have continued to inter-marry and just leave the pleb-commoners out of it.
If the affairs are true, she’s not a good person…but…there’s something really attractive about her. She has that very laid back and effortless charm. I didn’t think much of it until you compare with non aristocrats, Kate is very done up and neat, even Meghan too at times although she incorporates that breezy LA aesthetic at times
I agree–part of what is lovely about her is that easy style, so simple and natural. I do think that confidence comes from a life lived without most of the basic cares that people confront.
She has the easy manner of someone “born to it”. Kate is a try hard of the worst kind the aristos despise. The description of her as never putting a foot wrong is actually not a compliment.
Yes, it’s very easy to be laid-back and effortlessly charming when the whole world (including the future king, apparently) is at your feet. I just looked at her IG. Girl has a greenhouse in her backyard, I’m just glad to have a plant in my dining room.
Well of course there’s that, and I assume she’s a snob (which may or may not be true) but to me she kind of gives off the same vibe as Kristin Scott Thomas in Gosford Park – the lady of the manor, confident in her wealth and position, which ends up making her laid back and comfortable because of that.
Kate, as a counterpoint, does NOT give off the same vibe. Neither do the York sisters.
@Becks1 she kind of gives me that Serena Vanderwoosen – Blake Livelys character in gossip girl. Just effortlessly and annoyingly glam and charming.
I think it’s worth noting the tense in the excerpt. It says Rose is a friend of Kate’s but her boys were playmates of George. Definitely tugging the leash.
Thanks for pointing that out, Steph. Words matter, but so do tenses. “WERE playmates” is telling a story and the “Kate’s friend” is the reporter playing with the Cambridge’s and that church stroll William orchestrated during Kate’s birthday weekend with the Middletons and the Cholmondeleys so pics could be taken that they are all such good friends. I thought at the time that was one nasty present William gave Kate at the time forcing that PR pap walk.
Omg . I came here to say just that, noticed the use of past tense when relating to George and Rose children friendship. I guess it’s hard to have your son play with his dads mistress children and be expected to be unbothered about it while asking them if they want organic homemade jam or organic homemade chutney
This is such a snobbish story. Yes, she’s worth multimillions. You know how rich people stay rich? They don’t buy priceless Persian rugs for rooms that visitors traipse through on tours. They buy inexpensive rugs that can be regularly changed out. Jesus.
Lol. Rich people stay rich by continuing social inequality and their own hoarded assets (sometimes offshore sometimes not as we see with Her Majesty the Queen!)
Rose and her husband are a prime example. As are Will and Kate.
Carpets are not the reason.
We may like Rose because of her role in helping to expose Wandering Willy but she’s no Meghan, lol.
She walked into one of the last banquets next to Sarah Vine who writes horrible and racist things about Meghan.
Rose was an Intern for MP Michael Gore, the husband of Sarah Vine.
BayTampaBay- I am aware of this.
@Maria – Was just making a point for people who do not know how cozy the UK Government, Boris Johnson and the BRF are with the British tabloid media.
BayTampaBay – oh yes! Sorry! I misinterpreted. It’s ridiculous how interconnected it all is!
@Maria – The Daily Mail is not referred to as The Daily Gestapo for nothing! LOL!
Maria, I’m not sure where you got the idea that I like Rose for exposing the Cambridges. I didn’t need her to tell me William had a wandering dong or that Kate was a doormat. I also would never compare her to Meghan. Me saying the rich stay rich because unlike noveau rich people they don’t spend every dime showing they are rich is my opinion. If you don’t like it, you could have skipped right on past this post.
I never said you specifically liked her or compared her to Meghan at all.
But Rose gets a lot of favorable comparisons to Kate here sometimes and the idea that she may have leaked some of this story in the beginning to stick it to Kate gained some traction (whether or not this is the case), so that’s what I was referring to.
Wait why did they refer to her as Kate Middleton? And not the Duchess of Cambridge
It’s not a massive deal. People know “Kate Middleton” over “Duchess of Cambridge”. They also say “Meghan Markle” and “Camilla Parker Bowles”. The exception seems to be “Sophie Wessex” but my guess is because that is catchier than “Sophie Rhys Jones”.
They referred to her as both in the article.
I guess my thought is that wealthy people like that don’t have to be cheap. They can take their dollars and buy the real thing, the thing that’s made to last, that is made by small family companies, the thing that isn’t made of plastics and won’t add ever more micro plastics to the environment. It’s not just a saving money thing, it’s kind of a thumb in the eye of everyone who would like to buy something of quality but cannot. She just wants to slum it to be cute.
I doubt it’s even to be cute. Kate will haggle with antique dealers, admittedly a common practice in some ways, but the force is sort of lost when you can redo a kitchen multiple times at taxpayer expense.
It’s along those lines. When you have enormous dollars to shell out, pay your way. Find your own sources. It’s not like she doesn’t have sources and connections – find your own damn rugs. The rest of us don’t have those kinds of connections. I don’t know why it bothers me so much. (I mean, not so much, I’ll forget about it as soon as I leave this page).
I wonder what’s really going on there and if this is still even a thing.Weird story but she asked the question. I prefer wool to synthetic fibers for rugs but wonder what her idea of inexpensive is. I got a NZ wool rug on Zulily on steep discount. Orig.retail was @$1300 and got it for under $200. Slight irregularities in dye but so soft and have to look really hard to notice it.They host a lot of innovative art exhibits at Houghton Hall. Their recent exhibit of Anish Kapoor’s sculptures was really cool.
I was about to say that Ruggable is her best bet. It’s machine washable too!
I bet that she was saying inexpensive for her standards and hoped that it would be local aristos that would answer instead people trolled her. Oh well.
It’s relative…..her not too expensive and my not too expensive are very different! LOL In the world where rugs can cost the same as vehicles for some, or the cost of an afternoon lunch date, it’s relative.
As I’m reading this an ad for rugs pop up, lol.
Could we finally be at the point where the press will spill all the tea? I doubt it
I think they are ITCHING to spill the tea. But for now they will keep dripping a few drops into the cup to keep the Doolittles on the straight and narrow. This story is more about getting the family to get Meghan to call her attack dog’s (Schilling’s) to heel.
This is what the BRF were always afraid of, as they basically exist at the mercy of the tabloids.
I wonder what Rose sees in PWT, a lazy entitled racist rageaholic with no actual job skills.
I saw the IG of haughton hall… I know truly nothing about was it the affair or not… But, dear God, this mansion is beautiful. It’s such a pity that theseold mansions belong to the circle you’ll never get into.
I still can’t believe the stories about Rose and William are true.
Naw Rose is just the fall guy. More likely she knows who the real woman is. And maybe took her side in the battle of the toffs and hosted them at her house
Rose reminds me of Goop, due to the effortless casual attitude towards wealth by being born into it.
But without oversharing and shilling for a buck (or tens of hundreds of thousands of them).