With the coronavirus pandemic putting paid to any plans for an extravagant family party, Prince Philip will celebrate his 99th birthday today with a modest lunch with the Queen at Windsor where the couple have been self-isolating. So with the bunting still stowed away and a shortage of popping champagne corks, here Mark Mason pays … Read more
Scientists have identified the chemical compound causing the hull of the Mary Rose, Henry VIII’s famous warship, to degrade — offering hope for its preservation. The Mary Rose was salvaged in 1982, following some four centuries on the seabed of the Solent where she sank on July 19, 1545 in a battle against the French … Read more
While Prince Charles spoke out this week about how he’s missing hugging his grandchildren, his wife is mourning one of her best friends. Mary Christie, chatelaine of Glyndebourne whose husband Sir George ran the country opera house, died of cancer on Thursday aged 83. And the Duchess of Cornwall, who is at Birkhall in Scotland with … Read more
A farmer who started hiring out her goats for Zoom meeting calls as a joke to try and cheer people up amid the coronavirus pandemic has revealed how vicars book ‘Mary’ out for virtual church every Sunday. Speaking to presenters Ruth and Eamonn Holmes on This Morning, Dot, from Lancashire, explained how people from across … Read more
Mystery woman in Royal Collection portrait is finally identified after 300 years as Mary Boleyn, who was Henry VIII’s mistress before her sister Anne married the womanizing king The sitter for Portrait of a Woman has been identified after hundreds of years It has been reunited with an original set of 14 paintings owned by … Read more
King Henry VIII’s Mary Rose gets a £25,000 cash injection from Historic England to stop the iconic warship from falling into disrepair as income from visitors dries up during lockdown Money will allow employees to continue maintaining systems protecting ship CEO of Mary Rose Trust warned it may not survive ‘this financial year’ It has … Read more
Soldiers on the Mary Rose warship in the 16th century wore chainmail made of high-quality brass, it has been revealed. Analysis of the links discovered the armour was made of a surprisingly modern alloy of 73 per cent copper and 27 per cent zinc. The revelation comes from an international team of researchers who continue … Read more