We never thought we’d see the day Prince Charles became a reality star – but here we are.
The 73-year-old royal is set to make a cameo appearance on ITV’s Keeping Up With The Aristocrats, not to be confused with Keeping Up With the Kardashians – although we’d love to see it – which will air on Monday 31 January.
The MailOnline revealed the Prince of Wales’ latest venture, and shared images of him on set filming in Harrogate, alongside Lord Gerald Fitzalan Howard.
In the segment Charles, which was filmed at The Great Yorkshire Show in July 2021, Charles opted for his go-to sand suit, which he paired with a multi-coloured tie and tortoise-shell sunglasses, which are another favourite accessory of the royal.
The publication has revealed part of the conversation between the pair, which centred around the breed of cows and farming.
In the exchange between Charles and Gerald, 59, Queen Elizabeth II’s son probed about the livestock, and Gerald’s farming plans.
Prince William and Harry’s father asked: “Are you trying to buy?, to which Gerald replied: “I am sir, I am. Course I am.”
He quizzes: “Shorthorn. Are you a Shorthorn man?”
An uncertain Gerald replied: “I’m trying to be a Longhorn man. I’m Shorthorn, Longhorn, not quite sure.”
Invested in all the details, Charles probed a little more, and questioned: “They are a wonderful cow. Where are you going to put them?”
To which the 17th Duke of Norfolk’s son reassured Charles of his grand plans, and that the animals, which are said to fetch up to £1,000 each, would be safe. He said: “We live quite near here. A place called Carlton Towers and we’re trying to build up a herd.”
Content with his answers, Duchess Camilla’s husband gave his royal seal of approval. “Well done. But they’re wonderful because they just get on with it on their own”, he said.
Gerald and his wife Lady Emma were taken aback by the conversation, but were pleased to get the go ahead from the heir to the British throne.
Gerald said: “Good royal approval… This is good”, while Emma gushed: “Well that was unexpected. Wow. What were the chances of that happening? He recognised you look like a toff. Guy is in the summer. Linen suit. Absolutely love it. That has literally made my day.”
While The Duchess of Cornwall attended the event with her spouse, she won’t be appearing in the episode next week.
Valentine’s Day is only a couple of weeks away, and by now you might be wondering how to celebrate. Forced romance can put pressure on even the most relaxed of couples, but that doesn’t mean you have to leave your Valentine’s Day plans to another night of Netflix and chilling. Whether you’re into the whole song-and-dance of the holiday or not, we’ve got lots of cool (and not cringe) date ideas to do with your significant other, or your significant friends.
We’ve made sure to include something for everyone. From film buffs to budding chefs and those just wanting to relax, you’ll love what we’ve got on offer. If you’re not sure about what to buy for your other half, we’ve also rounded up the best Valentine’s Day gifts for her and the best Valentine’s gifts for boyfriends.
If you do decide to do something special, don’t forget to check out our Valentine’s Day outfit ideas and the best lingerie for Valentine’s Day and beyond. We’ve got outfits for every occasion, so that you can feel your best no matter what you get up to. Without further ado, check out our guide to the best Valentine’s Day ideas…
Valentine’s Day ideas 2022:
Movie Night at The Cinema at Selfridges Gift Experience, £500 | Selfridges
If you and your partner love a night at the cinema, go all out with this epic gift experience. It includes a private film screening in the VIP room at The Cinema at Selfridges, a bottle of Selfridges Selection Champagne, popcorn and snacks.
Weekday Sunrise Virgin Hot Air Balloon Flight for Two, £260 | Virgin Experience Days
If you and your loved one are seeking adventure, take to the skies with this 60 minute morning hot air balloon flight. You can even land in style with a glass of prosecco and a certificate signed by your pilot.
Two Night Break at W London Away Spa, from £555 | Spabreaks
If you are looking for the ultimate relaxing break to unwind with your partner, look no further than the Away Spa at the W London Hotel. Their two night stay offer includes bed and breakfast and a 50 minute massage per person. Dreamy.
Traditional Afternoon Tea for Two at The Harrods Tea Rooms, was £118 now £99 | Buyagift
Who doesn’t love afternoon tea? Harrods are offering afternoon tea for two, which includes a selection of finger sandwiches, pastries, freshly baked scones and savoury treats, along with a refreshing pot of their world-famous tea.
Get Kosy at Kimpton, from £409 | Kimpton Fitzroy London
Kimpton Fitzroy London has launched the ultimate luxury Valentine’s Day getaway. Guests can enjoy an overnight stay in one of the hotel’s rooms, where a bottle of Champagne and a surprise sweet treat will be waiting. You will also receive £100 of credit to spend in the Galvin Bar & Grill, plus breakfast. Need we say more?
Half Day Cookery Class for Two at the Gordon Ramsay Academy, £190 | Virgin Experience Days
For those with (or without) culinary skills, why not take a cooking class at none other than the Gordon Ramsay Academy? There is a choice of three-hour class themes, from desserts and doughnuts, sushi-making or perfect hand-shaped pasta.
‘With Love from Tom Kerridge’ Dining at Home Box, £185 | Tom Kerridge
If you’d prefer to celebrate the day from the comfort of your own home, why not treat yourselves to a meal to remember? This Valentine’s Day at home box includes three courses and extras, all prepared by the team of chefs at Lush by Tom Kerridge.
Afternoon Tea with Champagne for Four in The Domes at London Secret Garden Kensington, was £180 now £120 | Red Letter Days
If you are heading out to celebrate with another couple, this experience for four is bound to go down a treat. Tuck into an array of sweet and savoury nibbles in your own private dome, topped off with a glass of champagne.
From business to psychology to the creative industries, solicitors can move in all kinds of new career directions
Thoughtful female lawyer with document looking away at law office
If you’re feeling stuck in your current profession, it can be hard to imagine that things could be different. But whatever age you are, it’s never too late to have a career change. Nowadays, plenty of people switch professions in their thirties and even forties.
Of course, some professions open more doors than others, and — if you’re a solicitor looking for a career change — the good news is that law is certainly one of them. If you scan the bios of MPs, tech and business leaders, many of them started life as lawyers.
“Solicitors are held to the highest standards in their work and – though sometimes things do go wrong – the profession is perceived as highly trustworthy and reliable and you’d value that in any workplace,”says I. Stephanie Boyce, President of the Law Society of England.
While your strong worth ethic could impress employers in any field, there are certain paths that ex-lawyers are particularly suited to. “Solicitors have valuable applicable skills in business,” says Stephanie. “Not only do they advise businesses on the law, but they often work at companies in-house, or run businesses themselves if they are in practice”.
The Law Society President also highlights the analytical skills that you develop as a lawyer — ideal for a career in computing, accountancy or finance. Solicitors are highly skilled at “looking at complex information and being able to understand and apply it to different situations quickly,” she says. “They also often have to explain highly technical issues to lay people, and so it’s really important to ditch the jargon and speak plain English.”
The communication skills you develop as a lawyer make you a great fit for more creative professions, too. Take psychotherapist Pip Richardson, for example, who has had not one career change since working as a lawyer, but two. As soon as she qualified, Pip, now 41 and based in Surrey, had a feeling that law wasn’t what she wanted to do forever. After seven years of working as a solicitor, first in dispute resolution and later at a music company, she started exploring her interests through part-time courses.
“Marketing really appealed to me,” said Pip. “It was always the storytelling that I really liked about law. Particularly when you’re working on the opposition’s case, you have to build a story and find evidence to support it. Brand identity and communications is all about the story.”
Pip ended up working in marketing at a property development company for eight years, before switching things up again to become a psychotherapist. “My work has come back to storytelling again, as therapy asks, what stories do we tell ourselves, our family and the world?” she says.
Pip is currently working as a counsellor and will qualify as a psychotherapist later this year. Alongside private counselling, she helps businesses improve their wellbeing through her companyThe Circle Line.
“Working in dispute resolution meant I had to work with witnesses and listen to their stories as evidence when building a wider case,” says Pip. “There’s a lot of that in psychology, where you’re having to relate to somebody through empathic listening and asking the right questions in the right way. And, again like in law, you then have to apply your expertise and understanding to form the bigger picture.”
Meanwhile, Eleanor Howie, 34 from Norfolk, has swapped healthcare law for lingerie design. “If you’d spoken to me 10 years ago, my plan would have very much been to go up through the ranks in a law firm, become an Associate Solicitor and then become a partner — that’s what I really wanted,” she says. “But I found that changed over time.”
Eleanor wanted to do something more creative and where her time was less regimented. She became inspired by a problem she’d had since before she’d even started her training contract. At 24, she’d had a preventative double mastectomy after finding out she was carrying a hereditary gene that increased her risk of breast cancer.
“I’ve struggled to find nice lingerie for people like me,” says Eleanor. “The more research I did, the more I realised that it wasn’t just me who was looking for beautiful post-surgery bras”.
Making the leap into designing lingerie and running her business, Valiant Lingerie, was made easier by the fact that Eleanor had developed strong research skills as a lawyer. She started out by digging deep into market research and speaking to potential customers to find out exactly what they needed. She then used the insights she discovered to inform and shape her creative approach.
Though she didn’t realise it at the time, Eleanor found that law had prepared her for a variety of different kinds of roles. “When you’re a lawyer, you don’t necessarily think of yourself as being good at marketing, or understanding it,” says Eleanor. “But actually, it’s something that you do all the time, whether it’s through writing case studies for your firm or building your social media presence.And as you’re working to progress different cases, you’re essentially a project manager. You become very good at managing your own time, as you have to constantly record it and manage your own diary.”
With multiple options for a career change, perhaps the best place to start is by asking what it is you want to do. After all, it worked for Pip and Eleanor. “You might get stuck in a rut in law, because of fear, or the fact it’s good money and quite a rigid hierarchy,” says Pip. “But you can do a million other things.” So rest assured, if you’re a lawyer and thinking of having a career change, you could be closer to finding that new, dream job than you might think.
Princess Charlene is one of the most talked-about women in the world, and from her marriage to Prince Albert of Monaco to her days as an Olympic swimmer, she never fails to get the world talking.
It is a health issue that has made her headlines this past year however with Princess Charlene suffering a ‘medical emergency’, something that grounded her in South Africa for six months.
After her condition was announced as ‘stable’, Princess Charlene returned home, but within days she was admitted to a treatment facility.
People reported that Princess Charlene ‘is receiving treatment in a facility outside of Monaco’, with Prince Albert explaining that his wife is suffering with ‘profound exhaustion, both emotional and physical.’
‘[Her return] went pretty well in the first few hours, and then it became pretty evident that she was unwell,’ Prince Albert explained. ‘She was clearly exhausted, physically and emotionally. She was overwhelmed and couldn’t face official duties, life in general or even family life.
The palace has since remained relatively silent on Princess Charlene’s health, but released a statement just this week to give an important update.
As the Monaco royal family celebrated Saint Devote Day, the palace updated the public on why Princess Charlene would not be able to attend, explaining that while she is making progress, her recovery will require more time.
‘The convalescence of H.S.H Princess Charlene is currently continuing in a satisfying and very encouraging way’, the Palace explained, adding that it ‘will [still] take several weeks’ and that she ‘unfortunately will not be able to attend the festivities of the Sainte Devote this year.’
‘With her husband H.S.H. Prince Albert II, she shares her heart with all Monegasques and residents on the occasion of these celebrations,’ the Palace explained. ‘As soon as her health will allow, it will be with joy that the Princess will once again share moments of conviviality with them.”
The statement continued: ‘During this period, the Royal Couple requests that their private life and that of their children continue to be respected.’
Our thoughts are with Princess Charlene as she recovers.
Say hello to our brand new series ‘what to buy this week’ where I’ll be sharing the key fashion and beauty buys that both me and the Marie Claire Editors have been shopping, sharing and speaking about incessantly. Expect an edit of the items we really love each week from cult and up and coming designers to the high street. With a vintage gem or three from our Vintage Edit for good measure.
What to buy? Is a question I’m always asked by friends, colleagues and clients. As a celebrity stylist and fashion editor, I’m constantly searching and scanning the most coveted stores both online and in-person. So you can rest assured that I won’t miss a thing. Whether it’s a piece that’s having a moment on Instagram or, really needs to. Expect to find it here.
This article is created in partnership with Aspinal of London, Missoma, The Outnet, Hunkemoller, MATCHESFASHION, Browns Oliver Bonas and Free People.
With seasonal staples and styles that’ll get your heart racing. There will also be a focus on mindful consumption so you can shop with safe knowledge these pieces will look just as good in a year or two’s time, from cosy coats to flouncy summer dresses and everything in between.
Now the world’s opening up more and more we’re able to fully embrace the colour, optimism and eclecticism that we’ve been craving for the past 18 months. Joyful clothing is an antidote to the comfort of casual clothing we’ve wrapped ourselves in for the past year. A vibrant return to brunches with the girls, dinner dates and even in-person meetings.
Our panel of yoga experts are back to share their top tips for nailing postures in your first practice
Ever worked through a Youtube yoga class with one eye on the screen because you’ve never heard of a pose or felt daunted by fast-paced flows because you don’t know the sequence? We don’t blame you – it’s not often you’re given a rundown of the different yoga poses for beginners.
You don’t have to master all 84 asanas to be at the top of your yoga game. But, if you want to make the most out of your practice (on one of our picks of thebest yoga mats, naturally), it can help to have a basic knowledge of how your body is moving in class. Nahid de Belgeonnem, somatic yoga teacher and founder ofThe Human Methodsays, “Having an understanding of how poses are meant to feel and where your body is meant to be in space will help you to have a much more fulfilling practice that makes you feel good.”
That’s what yoga is all about – helping your mind, body and soul to feel great. It combinesmindful movementandbreathwork training, which not only helps to build strength, flexibility, and balance but works to increase clarity and mindfulness (you can learn more about that in ouryoga for beginners guide).
One thing to remember is that yoga is still a physical activity, so getting the moves right will prevent injury and help you to practice safely.
“My top tip for beginners is to do a live class,” says Katarina Rayburn, who has been teaching yoga classes and hosting retreats for five years. She continues: “Whether you are live streaming from home or can get to a studio, if you are not 100% sure of alignments a teacher can tell you where you’re going wrong straight away.”
To make sure you enter your yoga studio or virtual class armed with the fundamentals, we’ve put together a list of the best yoga poses for beginners…
Yoga poses for beginners: 7 to master pre-your first class
1. Child Pose – Balasana
A trusty pose that you always come back to in alltypes of yoga, child’s pose is a good one to have up your sleeve when you need a rest in class. This ‘physical timeout’ often starts a flow and helps you to get into the yoga zone.
“You form this restorative shape by sitting on your heels and relaxing your arms and head down on the floor in front of you,” explainsLaura Pearce, founder ofYoga Collective LondonandKin Yoga Mats. “It has an amazing spinal decompression effect and feels lovely through the lower back – a great one if you sit at a desk all day,” she says.
2. Corpse Pose – Savasana
You’ll probably be confused when everyone around you drops onto their mats if you’ve never been to a yoga class before. This is Savasana. Although it might look like you’re going for a nap, it requires you to focus. Like a warm-down after a session of cardio, it allows for all of the stretching and strengthening that you’ve just worked on to settle.
The main aim is to reach complete relaxation and, as yoga teachers often say, “sink into your mat.” Find a comfortable neutral position and stretch through your spine, releasing your shoulder blades so that they sit flat on the ground. You should also breathe deeply to make sure your chest is open – you’ll be meditating in minutes.
3. Mountain pose – Tadasana
Like Savasana, this pose is all about grounding your practice and revelling in the atmosphere of your class. The only difference is, you’re stood up.
Shruti Srivastava, founder ofYoga Mapp, goes into all of the details: “To really reap all the benefits ofTadasana, stand with your feet touching, toes and heels together. Lift and extend all your toes, then one by one place them all back down on the mat. Lift your kneecaps and rotate both thighs inwards, engaging your leg muscles and abdomen. Roll the shoulders back and down and imagine someone is pulling up your head with a piece of string.”
4. Cobra Pose – Bhujangasana
This posture is great for if you are new to back bends. A skill that will help you when it comes to more tricky poses like dancer’s (we’ll get there) and bow. Being able to do cobra properly will also make some of your pilates postures easier (we have unpicked all of youryoga vs pilatesquestions, here).
First, lie on your stomach with your hands underneath your shoulders and elbows close to your sides. Inhale as you lift your chest from the mat and slowly lift your collarbones, bringing your head up last. Look in the mirror, the pose gets its name for a reason.
As we get on to more of the tricky poses, Angie Tiwari (@tiwariyoga) wants you to remember: “You don’t have to go to the top yoga studio in the city to learn the best poses. You can go to your local gym or do it at home, that’s better than not doing yoga at all.”
“One of my favourite shapes is dancer’s pose. It feels so good for my body because it opens the front of the chest and hips and it’s a bit of a challenge,” saysFelicity Wood(@felicitywoodyoga) about the first standing pose of this guide.
Natarajasanarelies on good balance and a strong backbend so it’s one that you might feel comfortable with a little further on in your yoga journey (you could make it one of yourgoals for 2022). You start by shifting your weight onto one foot. Then bend this leg to give you the balance to raise the other leg up with your hand. As you lift your leg up higher bring your torso forward to open up the hips and chest.
When she is teaching yoga poses for beginners, Woods’ top tip is, “Try to press down evenly through the foot and focus your attention on your gaze, looking at one spot on the wall or floor in front of you. Then, focus on maintaining a steady even breath, this will all help with balance.”
You need to have a strong mountain pose in your repertoire to do this pose correctly. First, stand at the front of your mat and take a big step back as if you’re about to lunge. Keep your front leg bent and back leg straight whilst keeping your torso parallel to your mat. Point your front foot forward and lift both of your arms, keep them strong. Et voila!
Although it might look easy, lots of people find it hard to perfect this pose. That’s why it is so important to remember you’re always learning.Katarina Rayburnsays: “If you are worried about a pose and you don’t think that it feels right go and speak to the teacher. When you are doing warrior II ask them: ‘Are my hips supposed to be externally rotating?’, ‘Are my knees supposed to be over my ankle?’” – the answer to both of these questions is a resounding ‘yes’.
7. Downward Facing Dog Pose – Adho Mukha Svanasana
If there is one pose that everyone’s heard of but can’t quite get it’s the downward-facing dog. It’s an important part of yoga poses for beginners because it stretches your spine, legs, and upper body.
Start in the middle of your mat in a neutral all-fours position, making sure everything is aligned. Tuck your toes under and exhale as you engage your stomach and bring your belly button back to your spine. Press through your hands and lift your hips until you are in the classic ‘V’ shape.
Bend and straighten your legs until you are comfy and it doesn’t matter if your heels aren’t touching the floor. As Puravi Joshi, founder of Mysa Londonsays:
“Your yoga mat is your island. What you are doing on your mat is completely different to what someone might be doing on theirs.”
Princess Charlene is one of the most talked-about women in the world, and from her marriage to Prince Albert of Monaco to her days as an Olympic swimmer, she never fails to get the world talking.
It is a health issue that has made her headlines this past year however with Princess Charlene suffering a ‘medical emergency’, something that grounded her in South Africa for six months.
After her condition was announced as ‘stable’, Princess Charlene returned home, but within days she was admitted to a treatment facility.
People reported that Princess Charlene ‘is receiving treatment in a facility outside of Monaco’, with Prince Albert explaining that his wife is suffering with ‘profound exhaustion, both emotional and physical.’
‘[Her return] went pretty well in the first few hours, and then it became pretty evident that she was unwell,’ Prince Albert explained. ‘She was clearly exhausted, physically and emotionally. She was overwhelmed and couldn’t face official duties, life in general or even family life.’
A source spoke out recently however to clear up some confusion, emphasising that Princess Charlene was seriously ill with a physical condition rather than mentally ill, as she is seemingly being presented.
Speaking to Page Six, a ‘friend’ of the royal reported: ‘It is unfair that she is being portrayed as having some kind of mental or emotional issue. We don’t know why the palace is downplaying that she almost died in South Africa.’
The source continued: ‘She has not been able to eat solid food in over six months because of all the surgeries she has since gone through. She has only been able to take in liquids through a straw, so she lost nearly half her body weight.’
This comes after Prince Albert released more information about Princess Charlene and how long she will be expected to spend in the treatment facility.
‘We’ll visit her there,’ he explained of himself and their two children, Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella. ‘I can’t give you any kind of time frame on that. Not in the next few days, certainly but whenever we get the medical go-ahead.’
He continued to People: ‘You know these kind of treatments, these rest periods, are usually several weeks. I cannot give you any set period at this time, we will see.’
Our thoughts are with Princess Charlene as she recovers.
Anyone else still taking their Zoom calls from bed? We may have been working from home for a while now, but for some reason we are yet to invest in a functional WFH setup. Whether the desk we wanted was sold out, way over our budget or was going to take an eternity to arrive, it never seemed like the right time to invest.
Thankfully, Aldi has just released the most stylish new homeware, and it’s got us in the mood to transform our workspace once and for all. There is no better way to beat the January blues than giving your home a new lease of life, and a better WFH setup might just be the motivation you need to tackle that overflowing inbox of emails. Plus, we can totally see these pieces being all over our Instagram.
Here at Marie Claire, we are all about creating a relaxing home environment, so why not also check out our guides to the best luxury candles, the best reed diffusers and even the best silk pillowcases? Staying at home has never looked so appealing…
Contemporary Wooden Console Table, £79.99 | Aldi
This wooden console table is great for storage, and could even double up as a desk. It has a wooden finish with grey legs and three spacious drawers.
Metal Frame Olive Arm Chair, £129.99 | Aldi
How chic is this olive arm chair? It has brushed gold legs, velvet effect fabric and a back cushion for extra comfort.
Kirkton House Gold Grid Mirror, £49.99 | Aldi
We’ve seen this style of mirror all over our Instagram feeds, and it’s not hard to see why. The industrial style will add a modern touch to any home.
Pink Shell Accent Chair, £109.99 | Aldi
We have been on the hunt for the perfect pink chair for what feels like forever, and it looks like we’ve finally found it. The shell design and sturdy gold legs will look so luxurious in the corner of your office.
Black Wooden Tripod Floor Lamp, £49.99 | Aldi
Brighten up a dark corner with this stylish floor lamp. It has an on/off foot switch on the cable for convenience, and even comes with a bulb.
Kirkton House Navy Chaise Lounge, £149.99 | Aldi
Relax and unwind after a hard day’s work on this statement chaise lounge. The navy colour will add depth to any room.
The pair soon learned they had more in common than their choice of cereal
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Kate Middleton and Prince William’s relationship is often described as a fairytale romance, and it’s easy to see why. The couple famously met at the University of St Andrew’s, before getting married in 2011 and going on to have their three adorable children, Charlotte, George and Louis.
A royal expert revealed more about how they met. Writing for Vanity Fair, Katie Nicholls explained that the pair were both residents at St Salvator’s, one of St Andrew’s 11 halls of residence. Kate often went for a run in the mornings, and would arrive at the dining hall for a late breakfast.
Every morning William and his friends sat at the same table, and he quickly clocked Kate. After a few weeks, he plucked up the courage to invite her to sit with them.
Despite the fact a fry up was always on the menu at St Salvator’s, both William and Kate resisted temptation. “Health-conscious like his father, William would choose muesli and fruit, as did Kate,” wrote Royal Expert Katie Nicholls in Vanity Fair.
Getting to know each other over this wholesome breakfast choice, the couple discovered how much they had in common.
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“Kate was a country girl who loved playing sports and was a keen swimmer, like William,” wrote Katie. “She was also a good skier and, just like William, had enjoyed a gap year traveling around the world before going to St Andrews.”
Kate and William originally took the same course at St Andrew’s, History of Art, before William changed to Geography. Katie explained: “If William had a scheduling conflict, Kate would take notes for him, and at the end of the day they would catch up over a drink in the common room, where the floor-to-ceiling Georgian windows looked onto the tidy gardens.”
