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At 11am, we will pause.
To remember.
To honour.
To never forget.
We will remember them.
#RemembranceSunday
ALT A line graphic of poppies with the flower coloured in red. Above to the left is the UK Government logo.
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Everyone is fighting for a piece of this city, and I totally get why. Have a good weekend Johannesburg. What will be will be. 🌅🇿🇦
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Perhaps we can say that the ‘new’ South Africa has finally matured into just South Africa. A country where democracy is no longer defined by its past alone, but increasingly by the choices, expectations and aspirations of its people.
There is something incredibly beautiful about the will of the people, the very nature of democracy and the freedom to choose who we want to represent us. It is something we should never take for granted and something worth celebrating.
There is something quite profound about that. And I think it will be fascinating to see what comes next. The future is ours to shape.
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South Africa, thank you for voting! 💙🇿🇦
Thank you to everyone who showed up, made their voices heard and took part in shaping the future of your town or city.
Your participation matters!
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Slavery was an evil in which people from every continent and region participated. We should be honest about the whole history, not select the parts that are politically convenient today, especially given Britain's leading role in ending the transatlantic slave trade.
If Caribbean countries are asking Britain for a formal apology for Britain’s role in the transatlantic slave trade, will they also be asking the same of the descendants of African kingdoms, rulers and merchants who captured, sold and profited from the trade?
On demands for reparations, whether through cash or debt relief, we have been down this track before. Twenty-five years ago, Jubilee 2000, Drop the Debt and Make Poverty History argued that cancelling the debts of poorer countries would give them a fresh start. More than $100 billion of debt was eventually written off, but many of those countries have since built up even bigger debts. Labour are already spending too much on Britain's welfare state, now is not the time for Andy Burnham to be providing global welfare.
There is no reason British taxpayers today should be held financially responsible for things that happened generations before any of us were born. And I have even less patience for political elites in commonwealth countries who don’t know how to make their own citizens prosperous now looking for another opportunity to blame Britain.
As Prime Minister, Andy Burnham should be Britain’s greatest defender. Instead, he is writing articles saying we need to confront our history (as if we haven't done enough of that) and considering another formal historical apology. Tony Blair already expressed Britain’s deep sorrow and regret for our role in the slave trade nearly twenty years ago. There is no need to do so again.
This is all another navel-gazing distraction. The Commonwealth should be looking forward, not endlessly backwards. That means economic partnerships to make us all richer and deeper military and security cooperation against common threats. If every Commonwealth summit becomes an exercise in presenting Britain with demands for cash then we need to start asking if it is worth the effort.
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SIR PATRICK STEWART (1940-2026)
Before everything else, Patrick was defined by being born and bred in Yorkshire, the proud county in the north of England which he loved to the end. You could hear it in his accented voice and in the stern honesty with which he told you what he thought and felt. Yorkshiremen have no truck with half-truths or avoidance of big issues. He wore his heart on his sleeve, which made him a man to rely on, to admire and in my case, love.
We first met as ambitious young actors with the Royal Shakespeare Company half a century ago but we weren’t in the same productions. My first strong memory was a few years later, meeting him in the street in central London when he told me about an offer to take over a leading part in 'Star Trek'. “But Patrick think of your stage career in the UK. Do you really want to risk—getting lost in Hollywood for years and years?”. Well, he took the risk and thank goodness for us all that he did for not just his devoted Trekkies but film and theatre audiences, who marvelled at his using international celebrity to star in a string of cinema successes ('X-Men' of course) and in great classical plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, Arthur Miller, Peter Shaffer, Pinter and Beckett at Stratford-upon-Avon, in London’s West End and on Broadway.
America was his adopted home, where he met his adored Sunny who has cared for him through sickness and health, through thick and thin. But he never forsook his origins: and the proudest achievement of the most respected and beloved actor of his generation on either side of the Atlantic, was his appointment as Chancellor of Huddersfield University in Yorkshire.
His farewell performance in 'Avengers: Doomsday' is yet to be seen.
Ian McKellen 29 October 2026
Photo: University of Huddersfield
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The Norwegian Royal Court has announced the death of Her Highness Princess Astrid of Norway at the age of 94
The late Princess assumed the role of the First Lady of Norway from 1954 to 1968
Astrid of Norway
1932-2026
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🇳🇴 The Royal Court of Norway has announced the death of Her Highness Princess Astrid, Mrs Ferner.
The late Princess died earlier today at the age of 94. King Haakon has ordered flags to be flown at half-mast from the Royal Palace Balcony today & on the day of the Funeral.
Princess Astrid born in 1932 & was the daughter of the late King Olav V & Crown Princess Märtha. The late Princess was an elder sister to King Harald V. Following the death of her mother, Crown Princess Märtha, in 1954, a 22-year-old Princess Astrid assumed the role of Norway’s First Lady. She continued representing King Olav & the Royal Family in that role until 1968.
Princess Astrid married Mr Johan Ferner (1927-2015) in January 1961 at Asker Church. The couple had five children together.
The late Princess held a passion for sporting as well as animal welfare. She was rarely seen without her dog, in more recent years a beloved rescue Chihuahua-mix named Wilma.
« If a dog is not thriving in its current home, it is a privilege to offer it a better life, » Princess Astrid said in an interview marking her 93rd Birthday.
Princess Astrid suffered various health issues over the years including mobility issues & pneumonia.
The late Princess’s brother, King Harald V, died in August 2026. She was present at the State Funeral & Interment of the late King Harald. She was the last surviving sibling of three.
Further announcements will be made by the Royal Court in due course.
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Princesse Anne received a World Horse Welfare pin badge as she attended the Defender Burghley Horse Trials at Burghley House, today! 🐎🥰♥️
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🇬🇧 🇳🇴 A Message from King Charles III following the death of King Harald V:
« It is with the most profound sadness that my wife and I have learned of the death of my dear cousin, King Harald V of Norway.
For thirty-five years, King Harald served his people with unwavering dedication, guiding Norway through times of great change with warmth and humility.
As Norway mourns the loss of so towering a figure, my whole family join in remembering a much-loved kinsman and friend whose kindness, compassion and deep sense of duty echoed from across the sea and across the decades.
The United Kingdom and Norway share particularly close historical and family ties, with Britain one of the first countries to recognise Norwegian independence and establish diplomatic relations in 1905.
These special bonds were even further strengthened during the dreadful trials of the Second World War and help to bind our two countries together.
The Queen and I extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to Queen Sonja and all her family, as Britain shares in Norway’s grief at this time of such heartbreaking loss. »
Charles R.
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The new King of Norway, Haakon VIII.
The reign of King Haakon VIII began at dawn today, August 28, on the death of his father, King Harald V.
The first portrait of the new king shows grief etched on his face. He kept vigil with his father through the night as Harald V slipped away.
King Haakon VIII has taken the motto Alt for Norge, All for Norway.
