King Charles and Queen Camilla decided to take a short break after their coronation. It was indeed well deserved, but now the two have returned to their royal duties. The couple has already made their first engagements since the coronation, and before long they will embark on a journey across the world to visit the Commonwealth and other countries.
Queen Camilla has always been a big fan of books. On Monday, she visited the Reading Room Literary Festival. But royal fans were left divided as Camilla walked into the Hampton Court Palace grounds, and all because of her outfit.
The coronation preparations, and of course, the weekend itself, with the ceremony, mingling with hundreds of officials, royals, and dignitaries, and the grand finale, and the coronation concert at Windsor, left King Charles and Queen Camilla very tired indeed. Suffice it to say they had earned some well-deserved time off.
King Charles & Queen Camilla are back to work after post-coronation break
While the historic event was huge for King Charles, it certainly appears that it took its toll on him. After all the prep and stress – undertaken while Charles still performed his duties to the crown – the monarch required a break.
According to royal expert and author Katie Nicholl, the hectic schedule left King Charles “exhausted.”
“I spoke to someone close to the king this morning. I said, ‘How is he feeling because he did a pre-party, pre-concert party, and then after-party and did that skit for American Idol, you know, brilliant.’ The source said, ‘exhausted but knackered,’” Katie Nicholl shared with GB News.
She added: “I’m not surprised, they need a good rest now because it has been a pretty epic weekend for them. Saturday was the day that he’s waited his entire life for, you imagine the emotional energy that goes into a day like that, but I think overall it has been a great success.”
Charles and Camilla traveled to Sandringham shortly after the festivities ended, missing the Royal Windsor Horse Show. The event was cherished by Charles’s mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Aside from last year, when she fell sick, the late monarch never missed the Horse Show.
The fact that King Charles decided to retreat to Sandringham instead of attending the Royal Windsor Horse Show marked the “post-coronation regime change,” royal expert Ephraim Hardcastle wrote in the Daily Mail.
Charles and Camilla stayed at Sandringham House, their private Norfolk residence, for an entire week after their coronation.
Expected to embark on a long royal tour
Yet though they might have taken some time off, Charles and Camilla’s royal household has already begun scheduling plenty of future events, including visits all over the UK. In the fall, the king and queen are set to revisit France, a trip initially planned for March but canceled due to the many protests in the country.
Next year will mean a demanding schedule for Charles and Camilla, as well as Prince William and Kate Middleton. The king and queen have reportedly planned to go on the largest-ever official royal tour across Britain, the Commonwealth, and other nations worldwide, “extending a hand of friendship and support” from the Firm.
The recently crowned King Charles and Queen Camilla will visit the US, Australia, New Zealand, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, among other countries.
Moreover, a long journey to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa – about 10,000 miles away – is expected to take place in 2024.
William and Kate, meanwhile, will step up to help Charles with royal trips and engagements as the new era of royal life begins. It will be crucial for the monarchy to keep up the great work of the late-Queen Elizabeth to show unity and prove that the monarchy is still valuable.
On May 17, King Charles and Queen Camilla carried out their first joint engagement since they were crowned. The couple met with traders, schoolchildren, and performers at the Covent Garden to celebrate the 390th anniversary of St Paul’s Church, also known as the Actors’ Church. It was also where the late Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee National Service of Thanksgiving was held in June last year as a part of the vast Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Many are already arguing that King Charles has done a great job as king after taking over from his late mother.
King Charles & Queen Camilla – body language has changed, according to expert
By all accounts, Charles has been approachable in a different way, unafraid to tell jokes when meeting members of the public. In Covent Garden, it was no different when he met tourists from Singapore and Canada on his way to the garden’s Apple Market.
“I’m sorry we got in your way,” King Charles joked.
King Charles and Queen Camilla of course have a long and very unique history. The two famously engaged in an affair while they were still married to their respective partners. But despite several scandals, including Tampongate, the two made it through, and even though Queen Elizabeth disliked her initially, Queen Camilla got the late monarch’s blessing later in life.
A new documentary on Channel 5, Charles & Camilla: Against All Odds, has closely examined the king and queen’s love story. The media tormented them, but the two showed their relationship was – and still is – incredibly strong. Body language expert Judi James spoke to the Express, revealing how it has progressed through a very special way; non-verbal communication.
“[Charles and Camilla’s body language] always compares to an iceberg, with very little emotion being shown in public but with some occasional glimpses of the powerful relationship that lies beneath,” James told the news outlet, adding that the “biggest clue” to their dynamic comes from the early shot where the two posed under a tree.
In the past, several of King Charles’ dates had appeared self-conscious. However, according to James, Camilla in that specific picture was described as “facing Charles front-on in what might look like a romantic pose but which also registers signals of challenge from Camilla who, with her hands stuffed casually in her pockets, looks totally unfazed by Charles’s royal status.”
Moreover, the body language expert claims that Camilla’s “direct stare, her lack of a compliant, flattering smile and the way it is Charles looking rather awkward and besotted under her gaze” all suggest that she was confident and very comfortable around then-Prince Charles.
“Subtle signals of affection and devotion”
But while Camilla was confident around Charles, aspects of her body language quickly changed when they became more official.
The “sense of challenge and defiance vanished,” and Camilla became more “compliant-looking,” taking “his lead and shadowing him in public.”
She offered him rewarding pats on the hand after finishing an appearance, Judi James explained.
“In many ways, she was just there, beside or behind him, for a long time before the subtle signals of affection, devotion and even a shared sense of fun began to slowly leak out,” the body expert told Express.
Judi James concluded: “We are now being shown shared glances and the softening of the facial features that hint at the level of emotion that might underlie Charles and Camilla’s public behaviors. Perhaps the most telling of all their poses as a couple now is the more informal photos they often use for their greetings cards.”
Camilla’s journey towards becoming Queen Camilla has undoubtedly been extraordinary. It’s been an unquestionably long and arduous process, but Camilla finally seems to have earned the public’s love.
Queen Camilla has a passion for gardening and books
As for Camilla’s interests, they include gardening, especially at Highgrove House. It’s owned by Camilla and her husband – and has a massive garden.
“I love gardening. It’s therapeutic”, Camilla told Countrylife. “You can go, and garden, and you just become completely involved in what you’re doing and what you’re planting. [You can] do a bit of weeding, and you can be very creative; it’s just one of the most relaxing things anyone can do. Go into the garden; get on with it.”
Camilla has always been a fan of reading, too. In 2021, Camilla announced her new literacy initiative called The Reading Room, a hub for literary communities worldwide to celebrate literature in all its forms.
Just weeks after announcing her new literacy initiative called the Reading Room, Camilla has unveiled four books chosen by the royal herself.
“Inspired by the success of Her Royal Highness’s reading lists shared during the pandemic in 2020, the Reading Room channel offers new seasons of book recommendations, as well as exclusive insight from the authors themselves, in a community space for book lovers of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds,” The Reading Room is described as on the Palace website.
“If you learn to read, however difficult your life is at the time, you can pick up a book and you can escape. You can laugh, you can cry, it just takes you out of the real world and it gives you a different dimension to life,” Camilla told the Mirror.
Queen Camilla’s latest jumpsuit outfit has royal fans divided
“When we go away, the nicest thing is that we actually sit and read our books in different corners of the same room,” she added. “It’s very relaxing because you know you don’t have to make conversation. You just sit and be together.”
On Monday, Camilla visited the inaugural Queen’s Reading Room Literary Festival at Hampton Court Palace. The queen’s presence might not have been the biggest surprise, but what she was wearing divided royal fans on social media.
Queen Camilla wore a blue jumpsuit designed by Anna Valentine, featuring satin cuffs at the bottom. She wore the same beautiful jumpsuit at the coronation concert.
Fans quickly took to social media to have their say about the queen’s outfit.
“The Queen should wear more jumpsuits,” one user wrote on Twitter, as reported by Express.
“The Queen is wonderful normal and down-to-earth. I’ve never seen her wearing a jumpsuit,” another added.
A third wrote: “Love the cheek kisses for everyone! She also looks fabulous.”
Jumpsuits have been worn by many royals
Jumpsuits aren’t new among royals, as the likes of Meghan Markle, Zara Tindall, and others have worn them in the past. As with all things fashion-related, though, not everyone has the same opinion about Queen Camilla’s jumpsuit.
“A big no from me. Not sure if it is because they are both wearing the same color, but the width of those trousers legs just doesn’t do it for me,” one Instagram user wrote.
Another royal fan added: “Love the color but… Yikes. Not with black clumpy shoes anyway.”
A third person didn’t seem to have any problem with the jumpsuit but with the color.
“Does she wear any other color ever? Would love to see her in emerald,” the royal fan wrote, as quoted by Express.
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