Ephraim Hardcastle
PRINCE Charles opted to play second fiddle in the Royal Ascot opening day carriage procession, sitting in the second landau with Camilla. with Prince Philip in retirement, he might have been expected to join his mother and the king and queen of the netherlands in the lead carriage. An indication, perhaps, that the often thin-skinned heir is more at home with his status these days.
AND Charles did impart some Royal Ascot sartorial advice to Mike Tindall, husband of his niece Zara, after spotting him red faced and gently braising in his buttoned-up morning coat. He told Mike to unbutton and breathe as morning coats are always left open to show off the waistcoat.
Two weeks after Margaret Thatcher left downing Street, the Queen made her a member of the order of Merit, something in her personal gift. will Theresa May be similarly honoured? There are currently two vacancies. The odds are against Mrs May. The monarch admired Mrs T’s determination and energy. That’s not the case with the current incumbent.
COUNTRYFILE presenter Anita Rani, 41, pictured, whinges that ‘posh white men’ get the best TV jobs without blowing the bugle for her own stellar career. Since graduating from Leeds, she’s barely had a day away from either the microphone or camera, covering the Cambridges’ wedding, appearing on Strictly, hosting Watchdog and making numerous documentaries with the likes of Dan Snow and Robert Llewellyn. Not bad for a talented Anglo-Indian who could never be mistaken for a posh chap.
HAVE i got news For You warhorse ian Hislop takes exception to the suggestion by Sky’s Adam boulton that boris Johnson’s appearance on the BBC satirical show launched his career, responding: ‘we had on germaine greer... she doesn’t appear to be prime minister. She was on more than him.’
CHERIE Blair’s enthusiasm for an Israel/ Palestine accord prompts her role as executive producer on The Rock Pile, a film about reconciliation through football. Let’s hope that she’s more successful than her husband Tony. He resigned as Middle East peace envoy in 2015 after eight futile years.
WAS Rory Stewart’s removal of his tie during Tuesday’s TV debate an example of what thespians call scene stealing, epitomised by Hollywood king of cool Steve McQueen? in The Magnificent Seven, McQueen famously fiddled with his Stetson, upstaging co-star Yul brynner. Rory, king of Tory cool?
MY colleague Sarah Vine, aka Mrs Michael Gove, tweets: ‘My choice for the next leadership debate would be Andrew Neil over a bit of supper and a couple of glasses of decent plonk. No better way to set the world to rights.’ BBC politics presenter Andrew eagerly responds: ‘I could do that!’