Royal news live: King, Queen and William host glittering reception at Buckingham Palace but Kate stays away

The King and Queen hosted a glittering diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace, with Camilla stepping out in the late Queen’s aquamarine and diamond tiara.

The Prince of Wales joined the monarch and consort for the grand white-tie affair on Tuesday night, but William was without the Princess of Wales, who is often a regular attendee at such events, at his side.

Kate, who finished her chemotherapy treatment in the summer and is gradually returning to public duties as she recovers from cancer, is focusing on hosting her annual Christmas carol concert in Westminster Abbey in just over two weeks’ time.

Irish star Paul Mescal has said meeting the King at the Gladiator II world premiere was not on his “list of priorities”.

The 28-year-old actor, who portrays a grown-up Lucius in Sir Ridley Scott’s new historical epic, was introduced to Charles at the star-studded event in central London last week.

Speaking to US outlet Variety on the red carpet of the film’s Los Angeles premiere on Monday, Mescal reflected on his experience of meeting the King.

He said: “How wild is it? It’s definitely not something that I thought was in the bingo cards.

“I’m Irish, so it’s not on the list of priorities. But it’s an amazing thing for Ridley because I know how important that is for him.

“So to see his film celebrated in that context was pretty special.”

The Duke of Sussex has taken part in a sketch in which he appears to be given a tattoo by US music star Jelly Roll, as part of the build-up to the Invictus Games in Canada.

In the sketch, filmed at New York tattoo parlour East Side Ink, the country singer and rapper jokes that Harry has agreed to be given his first tattoo.

Jelly Roll – who has been announced as the first headliner at the closing ceremony of the event next year – tells Harry: “Do you know, I could not believe it when they called me and told me Prince Harry wanted to get a tattoo today and he wanted me to give him his first tattoo?”

However, the duke appears to have heard nothing about the deal.

“No, no, no, why are you wearing a glove?” Harry asks.

Jelly Roll replies: “We are giving you a tattoo about the Invictus Games.”

The duke says he wanted to ask Jelly Roll “to do” the games, not to tattoo him. Jelly Roll says he will only play the games if Harry lets him give him his first tattoo.

The duke agrees and asks the music star – known for his own collection of body art – to tattoo his “lower back” or his “arse”. Jelly Roll suggests he tattoos Harry’s neck instead.

“Trust me man, you wouldn’t want nobody else doing this,” he tells the duke.

He then tattoos “I am Jelly Roll” on Harry’s neck, and tells him: “I’ll see you in Vancouver!”

Senior royals have been hosting an annual event for diplomats at Buckingham Palace this evening, with Camilla wearing the late Queen’s aquamarine and diamond tiara for the first time.

Prince William was also in attendance at the white-tie event, however the Princess of Wales was absent as she continues her gradual return to public duties following her chemotherapy treatment.

The Princess Royal has officially opened the £145 million Gull Wing Bridge – the largest rolling bascule bridge in the world.

Anne pressed a button to open the distinctive crossing, which spans Lake Lothing in Lowestoft, Suffolk, triggering the lifting of the hydraulic cylinders to allow the Excelsior, a traditional Lowestoft fishing smack, to pass through.

Her arrival on Tuesday afternoon was delayed by almost an hour due to disruptions caused by bad weather.

The King’s sister, dressed in a red jacket, tartan skirt and knee high boots, donned a beige overcoat and red scarf for her walk across the bridge in the chilly conditions.

During her tour of the long-awaited crossing, she was seen standing and peering up at the bascule span’s huge white posts – which resemble the wings of a gull and inspired local children to come up with its name.

The King and Queen are to host a glittering diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace.

The Prince of Wales will attend the annual white tie and tiara event at the palace on Tuesday evening, but the Princess of Wales, who is often a regular attendee, will not be present.

Each year, hundreds of members of the Diplomatic Corps are welcomed to the palace’s state rooms for the grand affair – the showcase of the diplomatic year in the UK.

In 2023, Kate, in a floor-length pale pink dress by Jenny Packham, wore the Lover’s Knot Tiara, a diamond and pearl-encrusted headpiece made in 1914, which was often worn by Diana, Princess of Wales.

Kate, who finished her chemotherapy treatment in the summer and is gradually returning to public duties as she recovers from cancer, is focusing on hosting her annual Christmas carol concert in Westminster Abbey on December 6.

The Queen last year opted for the late Queen’s favourite Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara.

Camilla, who has just recovered from a nasty chest infection, may not stay for the whole of the event depending on how she is feeling, having returned to shortened engagements this week after her illness.

The diplomatic reception is traditionally held in early December in the run-up to Christmas rather than in November. But the King is hosting an incoming state visit by the Emir of Qatar in the first week of December.

More than 900 people will attend Tuesday’s reception including foreign ambassadors and high commissioners based in the UK, their spouses or partners, and diplomatic staff. The evening usually includes a buffet supper and dancing.

Her diagnosis came in the same year as the King was also diagnosed with cancer. Her husband Prince William has spoken candidly about the royal family’s major health scares, saying 2024 has “probably been the hardest year in my life” and a “dreadful” experience.

My colleague Athena Stavrou writes:

An armed royal protection officer who lied about losing a bullet in the grounds of Buckingham Palace and covered it up for eight days has been sacked.

Stephen Cotgreave, based within the Metropolitan Police’s Royalty and Specialist Protection, was on foot patrol alone in the gardens of Buckingham Palace on the afternoon of December 6 2022 when he accidentally dropped the magazine from his firearm.

He picked up the magazine and placed it back inside the gun but when he returned the firearm to the armoury at the end of his shift an hour later, it was found that one round of ammunition was missing.

The officer, who was 48 at the time, was then asked if he could explain the missing bullet but he insisted he could not and denied dropping the magazine.

The incident, which was captured on CCTV, “should have led to an immediate and full search of the area” and posed a risk to the welfare of the royal household, a misconduct hearing heard on Monday.