Tea, Titles & Tiaras: Peter Phillips weds, Frogmore gets a cleanse and a princess flies home to her mother

Tea, Titles & Tiaras with Emily Darlow

Happy wedding week, royal watchers. This Saturday, the House of Windsor finally gets a proper celebration. There’s nothing I love more than a royal wedding to kick off the English Summer. Boil the kettle because things are about to get juicy.

The Royal Wedding of the Year

This Saturday, 6 June, Princess Anne’s only son Peter Phillips, 48, will marry Harriet Sperling, 45, at All Saints Church in Kemble, near Cirencester.

If you are expecting a grand Windsor spectacle, think again. This is Anne’s side of the family. The celebration will be understated, traditional and centred on family.

The church is a short drive from Gatcombe Park, Princess Anne’s 730-acre estate where Peter grew up and where the reception will be held. The location is also close to where Harriet was raised, giving the day personal significance for both bride and groom.

Harriet, born Harriet Eleanor Sanders in Gloucestershire in 1980, is an NHS paediatric nurse specialist and mother to teenage daughter Georgina. She and Peter reportedly met in 2024 through their daughters and went public with their relationship later that year.

Since then, Harriet has made a series of successful appearances alongside Peter at events including Royal Ascot, Cheltenham Festival and the royal family’s Easter service at Windsor. She has quickly become a comfortable and popular addition to the wider royal circle.

The couple faced one small hurdle before reaching the altar. As both have been married previously, they required special permission from the Church of England to marry in a church. Permission was granted, allowing the ceremony to proceed as planned.

One detail that has delighted royal watchers is the choice of wedding planner. Peter and Harriet have hired Peregrine Armstrong Jones of Bentley’s Entertainments. He has organised numerous royal celebrations over the years, including Peter’s first wedding to Autumn Kelly in 2008.

Speaking of Autumn, she is reportedly expected to attend. Peter and Autumn divorced in 2021 but have maintained a strong co-parenting relationship while raising daughters Savannah, 14, and Isla, 13. Both girls are expected to play a role in the ceremony, alongside Harriet’s daughter Georgina.

The guest list reflects the couple’s close family ties. King Charles and Queen Camilla are expected to attend, along with the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children. Princess Anne will host the reception at Gatcombe Park, while Zara and Mike Tindall are also expected to be among the guests.

Notably absent will be Prince Harry. According to friends of the groom, the cousins have simply drifted apart over the years. Also missing from the guest list are Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, with reports suggesting the couple wished to avoid unnecessary distractions.

It promises to be a very modern royal wedding. Two blended families, three daughters, an ex-wife in attendance and a celebration rooted firmly in family rather than spectacle. Very much the Anne way.

The Frogmore Exorcism

Sometimes royal stories require no embellishment.

Frogmore Cottage, the Windsor property gifted to Harry and Meghan by Queen Elizabeth following their 2018 wedding, has sat empty since June 2023 after King Charles asked the Sussexes to vacate the property.

This week, reports emerged that plans are underway to reverse many of the renovations carried out during the couple’s brief time there and restore the building to its original layout.

The Sussexes famously renovated the property at a reported cost of £2.4 million, adding features including a yoga studio and redesigned interiors. Harry later repaid the full amount after stepping back from royal duties.

According to reports, the Crown Estate now intends to divide the cottage back into two separate homes.

One source summed up the situation rather bluntly, telling The Sun that perhaps removing all traces of Harry and Meghan might finally encourage someone from the royal household to move in.

Royal commentator Kinsey Schofield offered the quote of the week.

“I like to imagine there’s someone walking through Frogmore Cottage right now burning sage and opening every window. The Royal Family isn’t just renovating Frogmore Cottage. They’re spiritually cleansing it.”

Whether you see it as practical property management or powerful symbolism, there is no escaping the significance. A home created for the Sussexes’ future is now being returned to its past.

The King’s Courage

A gentler story this week came from London, where King Charles visited the Macmillan Cancer Centre at University College Hospital.

Since announcing his cancer diagnosis in February 2024, Charles has increasingly used his own experience to raise awareness and support others facing treatment. This visit felt particularly personal.

The King spent time speaking with patients and staff, listening to their experiences and sharing reflections from his own journey.

Following the visit, Charles said his treatment had given him “a profound appreciation for those facing similar challenges” and praised the resilience shown by cancer patients and their families.

Earlier this year, palace sources confirmed his treatment had moved into a precautionary phase, with the most intensive stage now behind him. While his schedule continues to be managed carefully, the King has steadily returned to public duties.

There was something powerful about seeing him in that setting. Not as monarch, but as someone sharing an experience familiar to millions of families around the world.

Edward and Sophie Charm Lisbon

Meanwhile in Portugal, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh enjoyed one of the most charming royal engagements of the week.

Edward and Sophie visited Lisbon to mark the 650th anniversary of Anglo Portuguese relations, one of the world’s oldest diplomatic alliances.

The standout moment came when the couple travelled through the city’s historic Alfama district aboard one of Lisbon’s famous vintage trams. Crowds lined the streets as they waved from the carriage, creating some of the most memorable royal photographs of recent months.

During the visit they met Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, attended a state dinner and carried out a series of engagements across the city.

Sophie visited a women’s shelter in the Mouraria district, while Edward visited the Lisbon British Cemetery in his role as patron of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Edward and Sophie rarely generate the headlines of their more famous relatives, but they continue to undertake a remarkable number of engagements each year.

Their visit to Portugal was another reminder of why they remain among the monarchy’s most respected working royals.

A Daughter Comes Home

Finally, a story that has touched royal watchers across Europe.

Crown Princess Mette Marit of Norway, 52, has been living with chronic pulmonary fibrosis since 2018. The condition causes irreversible scarring of the lungs and has progressively affected her health.

In December 2025, doctors confirmed a significant deterioration in her condition and began assessing her suitability for a lung transplant. She has not carried out a public engagement since January and recently appeared with oxygen support during Norway’s Constitution Day celebrations.

This week, Crown Prince Haakon confirmed that their daughter, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, will return home from Australia to be with her mother.

The 22-year-old princess is currently studying international relations and political economy at the University of Sydney, where she has been living on campus.

Speaking about his daughter, Haakon said simply: “She plans to come home soon. It has to do with the family situation. She wants to be with her mother.”

He added that Ingrid Alexandra hopes to return to her studies later, although no timeframe has been confirmed.

The situation comes during a particularly difficult period for the Norwegian royal family. Queen Sonja, 88, was hospitalised last week, while King Harald, 89, has faced several health challenges in recent years.

For Australians, there is something especially poignant about this story. Ingrid Alexandra has been living an ordinary university life in Sydney, building friendships and pursuing her education far from home. Now, like so many daughters before her, she is packing her bags and returning to be with her family during a difficult time.

Mette Marit has often spoken about focusing on what remains possible rather than dwelling on limitations. It is an outlook that has earned her enormous admiration throughout Norway and beyond.

A royal wedding, a cottage being restored to its past, a King finding purpose through adversity, two royals charming Lisbon and a young woman returning home to her mother. The Crown continues to reflect the full spectrum of human experience.

Until next week, keep the tea hot, the tiaras polished and your thoughts with the Norwegian royal family.