Disgraced duke's figure moved in Madrid wax museum

2011-12-19T11:00:16Z

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's royal family has lost one of its members, at least in Madrid's Wax Museum.

The museum has moved the figure of the Duke of Palma, who is married to King Juan Carlos's younger ...

Spanish king forced son-in-law to quit job in 2006

2011-12-18T16:30:24Z

King Juan Carlos told his son-in-law in 2006 to cut ties with a company now mired in corruption allegations, an official at Spain's royal palace said Sunday.

Authorities are probing the activities of a non-profit company run by Inaki Urdangarin between 2004 and 2006.

"(The king) ordered him to stand down from his activities and he sold his shares," said the official, ...

Chinese football clubs snap up Okada, Tigana next

2011-12-15T05:30:22Z

The Chinese spending spree which has already lured Nicolas Anelka snapped up ex-Japan football coach Takeshi Okada on Thursday, with French handler Jean Tigana expected to follow within days.

Hangzhou Britain's royal family will tour the globe next year to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee marking 60 years on the throne, Buckingham Palace announced on Wednesday.

Prince William and his wife Catherine will travel to the Asi...

Spain royals to reveal budget after corruption case

2011-12-12T08:00:27Z

MADRID (Reuters) - The Spanish royal family will disclose details of its annual spending budget for the first time, a spokesman said Monday, following a corruption probe linked to the king's son-in-law.

Inaki Urdangarin, the husband of King Juan Carlos and Queen

Canada readies for queen's diamond jubilee

2011-12-06T21:30:26Z

Canada announced Tuesday CAN$7.5 million (US$7.36 million) for grassroots celebrations across the country for Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee next year.

"The only other time Canada celebrated the diamond jubilee of a reigning sovereign was for Queen Victoria in 1897," said Heritage Ministe...

Albanian crown prince Leka dies aged 72

2011-11-30T12:30:35Z

Albania's pretender to the throne, crown prince Leka Zogu, the son of self-proclaimed king Zog I, died Wednesday in a Tirana hospital aged 72, a spokeswoman for the royal family told AFP.

He was admitted to hospital last week in a very serious condition with heart and lung trouble and fell into a coma shortly after, doctor Mentor Petrela said.

Albania declared a day of mourning on Saturd...

Anti-royal graffiti on walls of eastern Saudi

2011-11-25T17:30:30Z

Slogans against the royal family have been daubed on walls in the Shiite heartland of eastern Saudi Arabia, the scene of deadly clashes with security forces, an AFP photographer said Friday.

The Al-Saud ruling family must be "held responsible for the blood of the martyrs", "Down with Mohammed bin Fahd" bin Abdul Aziz, the governor of the kingdom's Eastern Provinc...

Saturday performance of ÔO' a royal treat

2011-11-23T02:31:01Z

You really never know when, where or how you'll encounter a newsmaker in Las Vegas. Example: A week ago Saturday, I was in the men's room at MGM Grand Garden Arena during the Manny Pacquiao-Juan ...

Swaziland king's 12th wife 'kicked out of palace'

2011-11-20T09:30:19Z

Swaziland's king Mswati III's 12th wife, who was last year caught in bed with the justice minister, said on Sunday she has been kicked out of the palace after pepper-spraying a security guard.

Nothando Dube, also known by the royal name inkhosikati LaDube, was ordered to "immediately leave the palace' by royal governor Timothy Mthethwa and other members of the royal family, according to reports.

LaDub...

William's Falklands deployment 'provocative'

2011-11-11T14:30:44Z

Argentina complained Friday that Prince William's six-week mission as a rescue pilot in the Falkland Islands, the object of a 1982 British-Argentine war, is "a provocative act."

William, second in the royal line of succession, is due to be deployed in the disputed archipelago, known as the Mal...

Singapore tycoon, Malaysian royalty in major venture

2011-11-10T18:30:50Z

A Singaporean billionaire on Thursday signed a deal with a Malaysian royal family to develop prime waterfront property in southern Malaysia's Johor state, a company statement said.

Peter Lim, who made his fortune in stockbroking and commodities, teamed up with the Johor royal family to develop a medical hub and marina city comprising hotels, apartments and entertainment facilities...

Prince Charles meets Tanzanian president

2011-11-07T15:30:22Z

Britain's Prince Charles on Monday toured Tanzania on the second day of a visit to the east African nation, including holding talks with President Jakaya Kikwete.

The prince, accompanied by his wife, the Australia took centre stage for Queen Elizabeth II Thursday on the Perth leg of her successful 10-day antipodean tour, with kangaroo stew and Aussie Rules football on the agenda.

The monarch, 85, has been greeted by adoring crowds in Canberra, Melb...

Victoria's secret: Late queen's bloomers bust record

2011-11-03T09:00:23Z

EDINBURGH (Reuters) - Queen Victoria's underwear sold for record prices, but a four-poster bed in which actress Elizabeth Taylor celebrated her eighth honeymoon failed to set bidders at an Edinburgh a...

Rain fails to deter crowds for queen in Australia

2011-10-25T06:30:29Z

Hundreds of Australians braved the rain for a glimpse of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II Tuesday as she visited the national war memorial in tribute to fallen soldiers and met with veterans.

A crowd of about 1,000 people turned out in dreary weather to see the 85-year-old monarch, cheering loudly as she stepped from her car wearing a cappuccino-coloured coat ...

Princess Anne in visit to Sierra Leone

2011-10-24T15:30:31Z

Sierra Leone's President Ernest Koroma on Monday welcomed Princess Anne of the United Kingdom, who is on a three-day visit to the west African nation with her husband.

At a ceremony at State House, Koroma recalled "the close link between Britain and Sierra Leone", adding the former colonial power had re...

Man charged with exposing himself as Queen tours

2011-10-24T11:30:19Z

A young Australian man has been charged with exposing himself and being a public nuisance as Britain's Queen Elizabeth II passed by, police said Monday.

Tens of thousands of people turned out to see the visiting monarch as she toured the Queensland capital, her first visit since the state was...

Queen met by cheering church crowds in Canberra

2011-10-22T19:30:19Z

Hundreds of well-wishers hailed Britain's Queen Elizabeth II at a historic Canberra church on Sunday where she attended an intimate service ahead of a lunch with famous Australians.

Decked out in their Sunday best and brandishing flags and flowers, an enthusiastic crowd cheered and clapped as the monarch arri...

Queen arrives in Australia for 10-day tour

2011-10-19T10:30:36Z

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II was greeted by hundreds of flag-waving schoolchildren and a 21-gun salute as she began her 16th and possibly last visit to her realm Down Under on Wednesday.

The queen, who will open a Commonwealth leaders meeting in Perth later this month, touched down at 0640 GMT in Queen Elizabeth II was greeted by hundreds of flag-waving schoolchildren and a 21-gun salute as she began her 16th and possibly last visit to her realm Down Under on Wednesday.

The queen, who will open a Commonwealth leaders meeting in Perth later this month, touched down at 0640 GMT in Canberra, where she and husband Britain's Queen Elizabeth II arrives in Australia on Wednesday for her 16th visit to the former penal colony on what will perhaps be the 85-year-old monarch's last tour Down Under.

The queen, who will open a Commonwealth leaders meeting in Perth, is due to touch down at 0700 GMT in

Nostalgia at Queen's 'farewell' Australia tour

2011-10-17T15:30:39Z

Australians prepare to welcome Britain's Queen Elizabeth II for her 16th tour Down Under this week, with the possibility of it being her last sparking renewed interest in the 85-year-old monarch.

Despite Australia's reputation as an egalitarian, irreverent and youthful nation, and its fitful starts towards ...

Repatriation town receives royal honour

2011-10-16T16:30:26Z

Wootton Bassett, the town which became a focal point for honouring soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, was Sunday officially renamed with the prefix "Royal" in recognition of its efforts.

Thousands lined the streets of the town in Wiltshire

Bhutan's Dragon King crowns a bride

2011-10-13T03:30:16Z

Bhutan's hugely popular king married a 21-year-old student on Thursday in a colourful ceremony showcasing the rich Buddhist culture of one of the world's most remote and insular countries.

Amid clouds of incense and chanting monks, the 31-year-old King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck crowned his queen at the end of a series of rituals in the 17th-century fortified monastery chosen for the occasion.

After a brief purifi...

Royal wedding dress delivers bumper year for palace

2011-10-04T20:30:27Z

The dress worn by the former Kate Middleton when she married Prince William fueled a surge in regal tourism with 600,000 flocking to see the gown on display at Buckingham Palace, it emerged Tuesday.

Hordes of enthusiasts queued for hours to see the Australia welcomed next month's visit by Queen Elizabeth II to an area affected by this year's huge floods, with Queensland Premier Anna Bligh saying it will boost those hit by the disaster.

The October 19-29 tour by the Queen and her husband Prince Philip...

Bhutan gets royal wedding fever

2011-09-07T02:31:53Z

The royal dress weavers are at work and excitement is building in Bhutan ahead of next month's royal wedding that will see the young king of the Himalayan nation wed in a fairy-tale ceremony.

The Oxford-educated mountain-biking fanatic Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, 31, who was crowned in 2008 at the start of democracy in the Buddhist-majority country, is set to marry student Jetsun Pema,...

British ex-PM Blair releases memoirs in Chinese

2011-08-30T13:31:15Z

Former British prime minister Tony Blair on Tuesday launched the Chinese edition of "A Journey", the memoirs in which he recounts his decade in power, state media reported.

During the launch party, Blair praised the "unprecedented progress" achieved by China over the past thirty years, the official Xinhua ne...

Denmark's Princess Marie pregnant

2011-08-24T11:30:22Z

Danish Prince Joachim and his French-born wife, Princess Marie, are expecting their second child, the royal court announced on Wednesday.

"Their royal highnesses Prince Joachim and Princess Marie have the pleasure of announcing that Princess Marie is pregnant," the royal court said in a statement.

"The birth is expected to take place at the national Rigshospitalet hospital at the end of January 2012," it added.

The child will be the couple's second, following two-year-o...

Norway marks attacks with remembrance ceremony

2011-08-21T04:00:03Z

OSLO (Reuters) - Norway holds a national ceremony of remembrance on Sunday for the 77 victims of the worst attacks on the country since World War Two, as it tries to move forward and return to something like normality.

Anti-immigration zealot Anders Behring Breivik has admitted to last month's bo...

Prince William and Catherine visit riot-hit Birmingham

2011-08-19T14:00:30Z

Britain's Prince William and his wife Catherine on Friday visited the Birmingham neighbourhood where three men were killed during the riots which rocked England last week.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met the parents of the three me...

India temple treasure brings riches, challenges

2011-08-18T23:30:08Z

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India (Reuters) - A stream of bare-chested religious devotees step gingerly through metal detectors at the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple in southern India as armed commandos with AK-47s guard perhaps one of the world's greatest treasures to surface in recent ...

Swedish heir to throne expecting first child

2011-08-17T08:30:15Z

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Crown Princess Victoria, the heir to the Swedish throne, is expecting her first child, the royal court said on Wednesday.

"The birth is expected to take place in March 2012," the Swedish court said in a press release.

The court gave no further information.

Victoria and her husband Prince Daniel, a former gym ...

Norway's A-ha reunites to hail victims of July 22 attacks

2011-08-10T14:30:43Z

Norwegian pop group A-ha said Wednesday it would reunite to perform on August 21, a national day of mourning for the 77 people killed in last month's twin attacks in Oslo and on the nearby island of Utoeya.

"On 22 July, we, like everyone else in Norway and the rest of the world, were shaken to the soul by these actions of cruelty and violent prov...

UK store plans cut-price Pippa Middleton dress

2011-08-04T15:30:34Z

A copy of Pippa Middleton's bridesmaid dress at her sister Kate's wedding to Prince William is to go on sale in Britain, at about a 100th of the cost of the original, a store said Thursday.

Middleton, 27, almost stole the show on her elder sister's big day in April, wowing a global tel...

Police arrest "key figure" in News Corp hacking probe

2011-08-02T06:30:11Z

LONDON (Reuters) - British police arrested a former senior figure at Rupert Murdoch's News International group on Tuesday as part of their probe into phone hacking at the News of the World tabloid, media reports said.

Police said a 71-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of corruption and conspiring to intercept ...

Tech firm says News International deleted emails

2011-08-01T10:00:08Z

LONDON (Reuters) - A technology firm has told British legislators it was aware of the deletion of hundreds of thousands of emails at the request of News Corp unit News International between April 2010 and last month, parliamentarian Keith Vaz said on Monday.

The revelation came in a letter by the firm, HCL, to the

UK queen's granddaughter Zara weds in Scotland

2011-07-30T09:30:12Z

EDINBURGH (Reuters) - Queen Elizabeth's granddaughter Zara Phillips married fellow athlete Mike Tindall on Saturday in a private ...

Crowds gather for Britain's second royal wedding

2011-07-30T08:30:12Z

The second British royal wedding of the year takes place on Saturday, as Queen Elizabeth II's eldest granddaughter Zara Phillips and England rugby star Mike Tindall tie the knot in Edinburgh.

But the marriage...

Yacht party on eve of second royal wedding

2011-07-29T21:30:15Z

Queen Elizabeth II's eldest granddaughter Zara Phillips and her fiance Mike Tindall threw a party on a yacht Friday on the eve of their wedding, with Prince William and wife Catherine among the guests.

Phillips and

Yacht party on eve of Britain's second royal wedding

2011-07-29T21:30:13Z

Phillips and

Prince Harry set to become comic book hero

2011-07-28T16:30:08Z

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Britain's Prince Harry can add comic book character to his list of accolades as a new comic based on his life is set to be released in August, publisher Monaco's Prince Albert II and his new wife filed a suit Monday against a French magazine they claim spread false rumours of discord ahead of their wedding this month, their lawyer said.

Summons were filed against L'Express magazine at a court in Nanterre, west of Paris, for invasion ...

Queen spooked by Catherine's wedding dress display

2011-07-22T14:30:53Z

Queen Elizabeth II has reportedly described as "creepy" a new exhibition featuring the wedding dress worn by the former Kate Middleton when she married Prince William in April.

The Alexander McQueen dress

Monaco royals to sue over break-up rumours: premier

2011-07-22T14:30:38Z

Monaco's government head Michel Roger railed Friday against "false" rumours of discord between Prince Albert II and his wife, and said the couple will sue a French magazine for spreading them.

"It is very distressing," Roger, whose official title is minister of state, told journalists of the gossip th...

Prince Andrew step down as trade envoy

2011-07-21T21:30:06Z

Prince Andrew is to step down as Britain's roving trade ambassador, Buckingham Palace said, four months after his links to a sex offender prompted calls for him to quit.

The 51-year-old Duke of York is to leave his unpaid job as the government's special representative for international trade and inves...

Catherine's wedding dress goes on display in London

2011-07-21T20:30:25Z

It was the best kept secret of the royal wedding, but now the Alexander McQueen dress worn by the former Kate Middleton when she married Prince William is being put on public display for all to admire.

Catherine's ivory and white satin-gazar dress, designed by Sarah Burton

Britain Tuition Tangle

2011-01-04T08:04:09Z

FILE - This is a Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010 file photo of Britain's Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as they react as their car is attacked by angry protesters in London. British police released a video Tuesday Jan. 4, 2011 of ...

Britain Royal Christmas

2010-12-25T08:01:28Z

A young boy runs past Sophie, countess of Wessex, right, to give Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, left, a flower as she leaves after attending the British royal family's traditional Christmas Day church service in Sandringham, England, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Matt Du...

Britain Commemorative Coin

2010-12-23T19:01:33Z

This undated combination photo released Thursday Dec. 23, 2010 by the Royal Mint shows both sides of a commemorative £5 Alderney coin to mark Prince William and Kate Middleton's engagement. Britain's Prince William, grandson to Queen Elizabeth II, is set to marry Kate Middleton in April 2...

Japan Emperor Birthday

2010-12-22T20:31:49Z

In this photo taken on Monday, Nov. 29, 2010 and released by the Imperial Household Agency of Japan, Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko admire autumn leaves during their stroll at Fukiage Garden in the Imperial Palace...

Britain Zara Phillips

2010-12-21T14:31:35Z

Zara Phillips, right, and her fiance Mike Tindall, after announcing their engagement, In Gloucestershire, England, Tuesday Dec. 21, 2010. Prince William and

Royal Family Information