Here are some photos of Day 1 of Royal Ascot, which was Tuesday, June 18th. King Charles and Queen Camilla were in attendance, because Charles is trying to rebrand himself as a late-in-life horse enthusiast. Zara and Mike Tindall were also there, because they turn up to practically every royal event and no one blinks an eye. Prince Eugenie was also there, but she was not included in the “royal procession,” where royals ride along in carriages and wave to the peasants.
Someone who was invited to the royal procession? Lady Gabriella Windsor. She was also invited to Trooping the Colour, but she did not step onto the balcony. So Ascot marks her first real public appearance since her husband’s February death. Gabriella was invited to ride in a carriage with Princess Anne and Peter Phillips. Gabriella looked okay, all things considered. She’s lost a noticeable amount of weight but she made the effort to show up and smile. Hr vibe was “I’m ready to get out of the house for a few hours.”
The Court Jeweller had some interesting details about Camilla and Charles’s Ascot bling. Charles wore an antique tie pin bearing the royal cypher of Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria. Which is just weird, right? Meanwhile, Camilla dusted off her new favorite sapphire piece, the absolutely enormous Prince Albert’s Brooch, an extraordinary diamond-and-sapphire piece given to Queen Victoria by Prince Albert the night before their wedding. Camilla has worn the piece twice before. It was also a favorite of QEII. Camilla also grabbed a pair of QEII’s earrings with sapphires, diamonds, rubies and pearl drops. Camilla’s blue ensemble was done by dressmaker Fiona Clare, in her favorite “zippered housedress” style.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.