Queen Elizabeth II dies — follow the latest news as the world mourns
King Charles III reportedly started his working day when he was Prince Charles with a breakfast of fruit salad, seeds and tea that lasted him until 5pm.
His former press secretary, Julian Payne, has given a fascinating insight into the king's daily routine.
During the king's six decades as Prince of Wales, Mr Payne said his day at Clarence House was planned with precision by the hour — with no lunch taken.
Rumours that the king had a long line of boiled eggs to choose from every morning were false, Mr Payne said. Instead, he began his day by listening to the BBC radio news followed by a breakfast “of seasonal fruit salad and seeds with tea”, Mr Payne wrote in the Sunday Times.
Intriguingly, he also revealed that the king has a pair of shoes made from Russian reindeer leather “salvaged from a 200-year-old shipwreck in Plymouth Sound”.
Office work began with 45-minute charity or constitutional meetings — although that will dramatically change now he is monarch. As Prince of Wales, he insisted on thorough briefings. “He would invite the best brains and the most experienced people in to listen to their ideas and advice,” Mr Payne wrote.
No longer will he write the “spider memos” — a leaked selection of which were published in 2015 — in which he put across views gathered from his interactions with the public and sent them to senior government members. Instead, he will have direct access to the prime minister with weekly audiences lasting up to an hour. These are a vital moment in the politician’s life, in which they can talk in confidence and without judgement.
Those who tried to dazzle the king with intellect or social station had little effect, Mr Payne said. “He doesn’t draw a distinction between the well-heeled and those who have the toughest of lives. He’s interested in people, not position," he said.
That egalitarian approach was captured when they visited the set of the James Bond film No Time To Die. Instead of going straight to the film's protagonist Daniel Craig, the Prince of Wales at the time “kept stopping to speak to the set designers, the security guards and just about everyone else. Each person — star or not — was treated with exactly the same courtesy”.
Mr Payne described the king as having “an incredibly sharp memory” that required staff to take “copious notes” to avoid missing a minor detail which he would later bring up.
At 1pm, the king would take a break but would not have lunch. Instead, King Charles, who does not like being inside for too long, would go for a walk, either in the gardens of Buckingham Palace or in the acres surrounding Highgrove or Balmoral. This was always “at a pace that people half his age struggle to match”.
His work continued until his first real pause in the day at 5pm, when he had a cup of tea with his wife, Queen Consort Camilla, and enjoy "sandwiches and a piece of fruit cake”. The king shared his late mother’s thrift by putting leftovers in a Tupperware box.
More engagements would continue until dinner “at 8.30pm sharp”, before the king would return to his desk at 10pm and usually work until midnight.
At times, he went straight from an evening engagement on to a plane, once travelling to America for the four-hour funeral of former US president George HW Bush.
The king is supported by a dedicated team who have been with him for decades and are “some of the most loyal, kind and funny people,” Mr Payne said.
UAE tour of the Netherlands
UAE squad: Rohan Mustafa (captain), Shaiman Anwar, Ghulam Shabber, Mohammed Qasim, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Chirag Suri, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Mohammed Naveed, Amjad Javed, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Fixtures: Monday, first 50-over match; Wednesday, second 50-over match; Thursday, third 50-over match
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Top 10 most polluted cities
- Bhiwadi, India
- Ghaziabad, India
- Hotan, China
- Delhi, India
- Jaunpur, India
- Faisalabad, Pakistan
- Noida, India
- Bahawalpur, Pakistan
- Peshawar, Pakistan
- Bagpat, India
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
About Housecall
Date started: July 2020
Founders: Omar and Humaid Alzaabi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech
# of staff: 10
Funding to date: Self-funded
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
The five pillars of Islam
Jordan cabinet changes
In
- Raed Mozafar Abu Al Saoud, Minister of Water and Irrigation
- Dr Bassam Samir Al Talhouni, Minister of Justice
- Majd Mohamed Shoueikeh, State Minister of Development of Foundation Performance
- Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research
- Falah Abdalla Al Ammoush, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Basma Moussa Ishakat, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Ghazi Monawar Al Zein, Minister of Health
- Ibrahim Sobhi Alshahahede, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Environment
- Dr Mohamed Suleiman Aburamman, Minister of Culture and Minister of Youth
Out
- Dr Adel Issa Al Tawissi, Minister of High Education and Scientific Research
- Hala Noaman “Basiso Lattouf”, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Mahmud Yassin Al Sheyab, Minister of Health
- Yahya Moussa Kasbi, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Nayef Hamidi Al Fayez, Minister of Environment
- Majd Mohamed Shoueika, Minister of Public Sector Development
- Khalid Moussa Al Huneifat, Minister of Agriculture
- Dr Awad Abu Jarad Al Mushakiba, Minister of Justice
- Mounir Moussa Ouwais, Minister of Water and Agriculture
- Dr Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education
- Mokarram Mustafa Al Kaysi, Minister of Youth
- Basma Mohamed Al Nousour, Minister of Culture
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Day 2, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Pakistan’s effort in the field had hints of shambles about it. The wheels were officially off when Wahab Riaz lost his run up and aborted the delivery four times in a row. He re-measured his run, jogged in for two practice goes. Then, when he was finally ready to go, he bailed out again. It was a total cringefest.
Stat of the day – 139.5 Yasir Shah has bowled 139.5 overs in three innings so far in this Test series. Judged by his returns, the workload has not withered him. He has 14 wickets so far, and became history’s first spinner to take five-wickets in an innings in five consecutive Tests. Not bad for someone whose fitness was in question before the series.
The verdict Stranger things have happened, but it is going to take something extraordinary for Pakistan to keep their undefeated record in Test series in the UAE in tact from this position. At least Shan Masood and Sami Aslam have made a positive start to the salvage effort.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Brief scoreline:
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