Determined to welcome the president of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, and his wife Remi on their country’s first state visit to Britain for 37 years, King Charles made a series of unprecedented changes.
He modified the schedule for the Muslim leader during Ramadan, ditching the usual formal lunch and serving non-alcoholic cocktails, among other changes.
The King has, nevertheless, found himself accused of ‘colonialism’ by one of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s most prominent cheerleaders.
Misan Harriman is a close friend of Harry and Meghan who has taken photographs to mark key events in their lives such as their daughter Princess Lilibet’s christening.
‘It’s so hard for a lot of us Nigerians to really get our heads around this visit in many ways,’ booms Misan, the Nigeria-born son of a billionaire businessman.
‘These state visits are the last vestiges of our shared colonial past. I cannot ignore facts about Britain’s relationship with Nigeria.’
Speaking online in a video recorded in The Mall, as he observes the British and Nigerian flags flying for the state visit, he adds: ‘We need to be honest about what colonialism was, how extractive it was.’ Misan, who was educated at £58,000-per-year Bradfield College, adds: ‘It’s important for us not to keep the imbalance, because of pageantry, and be honest about our collective past, so we can have a future of actual shared progress, humanity and dignity.’
Harry and Meghan were delighted when Queen Elizabeth appointed them as president and vice-president of the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust. However, after they were stripped of these roles when they quit royal duties, they attacked the Commonwealth in their Netflix series, with the voluntary organisation described as ‘Empire 2.0’.
Modelling is one of the few businesses in which women are paid more than men. But there is one exception: David Gandy, who set hearts aflutter when he starred in a Dolce & Gabbana advert wearing nothing but tight white pants. Newly published accounts for Fuimus (London), the private firm into which Gandy, 46, channels his earnings, reveal it made a £1.1million profit last year. It holds £9.2million in riches before bills.
Why Nighy sticks to the script
Playing a comically disreputable rock star in Love Actually wasn’t too much of a stretch for Bill Nighy. The actor, 76, admits he tried to make it as a musician before finding fame on screen.
‘I did attempt to be in the world of rock ‘n’ roll with a band many years ago, in the 70s,’ Bill says. ‘We were called the Love Ponies, which made me laugh, but it didn’t seem to make many other people laugh. I was the singer, and I wrote lyrics. But I found it really difficult.
‘Being an actor is quite difficult, standing up in front of people and being the only person to speak, but standing up in front of people and singing words that you’ve written yourself, I found very, very exposing – and very tricky.
‘I wasn’t ready. I’ve never been ready.’
Cooking a lasagne is all Greek to TV’s Eamonn…
Eamonn Holmes forgave impressionist Jon Culshaw for depicting him on his BBC show eating a sofa and jockey Frankie Dettori, using the catchphrase, ‘I was fierce hungry, so I was.’
The GB News anchor, 66, admits girlfriend Katie Alexander, 43, is the one who satisfies his appetite in real life.
‘I’m not dominant in the kitchen and never have been because I wasn’t taught it at school,’ he tells me at the Young Chef Young Waiter Young Mixologist World Championship, where they were judges.
He laments: ‘I wish someone taught me how to cook. I was taught ancient Greek and Latin and God knows what else, but that doesn’t help me make a lasagne.’
A-list? No, Rebecca wants to be on Tom Cruise’s cake list
Tom Cruise may have a formidable presence on set, but his Mission: Impossible co-star Rebecca Ferguson isn’t afraid to confront him if necessary.
The actress, 42, who is one of the few recipients of his coconut Christmas cake, admits she once squared up to the Hollywood star when she feared he’d axed her from his list.
‘There was a year when I didn’t get the cake,’ she explains. ‘We were on set, and I said, ‘Am I just off the list then? Has something happened?’ And he was, like, ‘I’m sorry?’ I said, ‘Am I off the list?’
‘He called his assistant and went, ‘Can you check? Is Rebecca on the list?’ And then I got it again.’
She adds: ‘He’s an over-feeder. He feeds people.
Mishal and Justin in a cosy chat at Bloomberg
A reunion for former Radio 4 Today presenter Mishal Husain with Justin Webb at a Bloomberg headquarters party set tongues wagging.
Husain, who jumped ship from the Corporation in 2024 to launch her own interview show on the news network, gave her old sparring partner a guided tour of the Bloomberg building at the bash, which was to celebrate the launch of Adrian Wooldridge’s book, Centrists Of The World Unite! The Lost Genius Of Liberalism.
‘They appeared to be in deep conversation,’ one guest tells me.
‘All the talk among other guests was what a tragedy it was that she left Today and how the programme doesn’t have the same presenter partner ships any more.’
Mishal combined her Radio 4 work with news presenting and conducted Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s interview after the couple’s engagement was first announced in 2017.
With fellow Today host Amol Rajan recently announcing that he will be quitting the flagship current affairs programme to launch his own digital venture, the BBC must be hoping Webb isn’t the next Today stalwart to be tempted by Bloomberg’s lavish resources.
My Disclosure yesterday about Queen Camilla’s change to her appearance caused more than raised eyebrows at Buckingham Palace.
I hear that Her Majesty was not amused by her beautician Suzanne Martin’s revelation that she had her eyebrows tattooed, or undergone ‘bespoke Couture Brow treatment’, as she preferred to describe it. ‘Camilla was apparently furious,’ claims a source with perfectly groomed brows. ‘The Palace contacted us to complain.’
Yesterday, Ms Martin removed the post from her Instagram page on which she had gushed: ‘Our beloved Queen Camilla, always a pleasure! Thank you for trusting me.’ Perhaps someone close to the Queen was needled?
