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King Charles III to be coronated in 2023 – but Brits might not get a bank holiday

The King will be coronated alongside his wife and the Queen Consort, Camilla.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 12th October 2022

Buckingham Palace has confirmed that the coronation of King Charles III is to officially be held on 6 May 2023.

The King will be coronated alongside his wife and the Queen Consort, Camilla, in a religious ceremony held at Westminster Abbey in London – which is the same place his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II‘s coronation was held in 1953, and her State Funeral back in September.

The ceremony will be conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.

Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation on 2 June 1953 was a three-hour long ceremony that saw a congregation of 8,000 dignitaries gather at Westminster Abbey for an event that was broadcast live on television across the globe, and went on to attract record-breaking audience viewing figures.

Thousands also lined the streets for a glimpse of the Queen in the gold state coach, which has been used for coronations since George IV.

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But it’s said that King Charles III has opted for a more “simmered down” coronation ceremony.

Buckingham Palace said coronation ceremony would “reflect the monarch’s role today”, adding in a statement that it will “look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.”

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The Palace also confirmed that more details about the ceremony are to be announced “in due course”, but the question on everyone’s lips – will we get a bank holiday?

The short, but inconvenient answer, is that we do not know at this moment in time.

It has not yet been confirmed by the Palace as to whether there will be a bank holiday to mark the day of the coronation, just as there was for the Queen’s State Funeral, but many royal experts are predicting that the fact the coronation day falls on a weekend might suggest it is unlikely.

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What we do know at this moment in time is that, during the coronation ceremony, Charles will be anointed with holy oil, and then blessed and consecrated by the archbishop, before he is then crowned with St Edward’s Crown.

Camilla will also be anointed and crowned during the ceremony.

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King Charles III acceded to the throne on 8 September 2022.

On the day of his coronation, King Charles III will be 74 years old – which makes him the oldest person to be crowned monarch in British history.

Featured Image – Royal Family

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Prince Andrew set to lose titles and leave Royal Lodge residence

Danny Jones Danny Jones Prince Andrew stripped of all royal titles

Prince Andrew is officially set to lose his royal titles and vacate his current residence, as per a direct communication from Buckingham Palace.

Most crucially, the statement makes a rather notable acknowledgement of the abuse claims still looming over the 65-year-old.

The decision was shared by the Royal Family and the likes of the BBC on Thursday evening, 30 October, with confirmation that the King’s brother will no longer be known as a prince, nor will he live at the Royal Lodge in Berkshire.

With countless people reacting online, this public address is a watershed moment for the monarchy.

The official update on behalf of King Charles III reads as follows: “His Majesty has today initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew.

Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. His lease on Royal Lodge has, to date, provided him with legal protection to continue in residence.

“Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease, and he will move to alternative private accommodation. These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.

“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.”

You can find out more about the formal process now said to be underway in more detail down below.

As yet, there has been no official response from Andrew Windsor or his representative regarding the breaking news.

Elsewhere, it is said that his daughters, Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice, will retain their own royal titles, as they are still the daughters of the son of a Sovereign (in accordance with King George V’s Letters Patent of 1917).

As for the now former Duke of York, the King’s younger brother and third child of the late Queen Elizabeth II, he is now preparing to relocate and settle into the royal estate at Sandringham.

This move is being privately paid for by the King, according to reports.

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Featured Images — Chatham House (via Flickr)

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Salford Red Devils supporters meet winding-up adjournment with a petition of their own

Danny Jones Danny Jones Salford Red Devils fans start petition to get rid of owners

Large numbers of Salford Red Devils supporters are currently rallying behind the push to remove their current ownership group, meeting yet another delay to the winding-up petition with a petition of their own: one that would see the owners kicked out of the club, full stop.

Shared online yesterday, the ‘Salford Red Devils Fans Against Jacobsen Venture Group’ (JVG) petition has amassed more than 1,000 signatures and is rapidly gaining traction.

This latest protest comes after a third adjournment of their wind-up process, giving the local rugby league side a little more time to find the funds they owe in unpaid debts and taxes – money that JVG have claimed is set to arrive imminently as of an update earlier this week.

But these supposed assurances all sound far too familiar and are clearly no longer enough for most fans. They no longer care about future investment from those currently behind the scenes: they just want them gone for good.

For context, in addition to more than £700,000 in outstanding fees owed to HMRC, the 152-year-old sporting organisation is also estimated to owe in excess of £5m to various other creditors.

While the consortium led by Swiss businessman Dario Berta (who technically ‘completed’ a takeover of the already financially struggling club back in February) insisted that the bulk of that amount was already hanging over the club before they took control, they have yet to inject long-promised funds.

As a result, after a third stay of execution earlier this week – but one that has done little more than prolong this long-drawn-out uncertainty – most fans have simply had enough.

Following up with a lengthy open letter on Wednesday evening, 29 October, the increasingly militant fan group known as The 1873 said of the potential new funding, “Let us be absolutely clear, we have heard all of this before.”

Even poking holes in the board’s own statement, noting that it suggests that “funding has been formally secured” before noting that it has not yet officially arrived.

“This kind of vague language”, they say, “is exactly what supporters have been subjected to for months: a cycle of empty promises and missed deadlines.

Helping spearhead the ‘JVG Out’ petition, leading member Nick Holt went on to tell BBC Sport Manchester that the patience and blind faith have simply run out.

The 1873 went on to write: “Back in September, the same individuals told the courts that funding would arrive ‘within 10 days’. It never did. In August, at the meeting with The 1873, they claimed money would be in place by the end of that month. It wasn’t.

“Every single time, the same promise and every single time, the same failure to deliver. False hope and no real investment. It is vital [that] supporters understand what is actually being proposed. The owners are not clearing the club’s debts, including the millions they have personally run up.

“Instead, they intend to roll all debts into one high-interest loan, a move that only deepens the long-term financial hole. How do they plan to service such a loan? Next season, the club’s central distribution is set to drop from around £1.3 million to less than £100,000.”

Noting that the recent IMG grading drop and subsequent relegation from the Betfred Super League will mean a significant drop in revenues across the board, they have quite rightly asked where the higher-ups expect to find the funds to make their already heavily overdue repayments.

“Season ticket sales are expected to collapse under the current ownership”, they continue, “and major commercial sponsors will not associate with this regime.

“To claim that this ‘funding’ secures the future of a 152-year-old club is not just misleading, it is an insult to every supporter who has kept this club alive through generations.”

Salford Red Devils have been dropped from the Super League
A petition like this and further demonstrations were guaranteed from the moment Salford Red Devils were relegated.

The impassioned response from the group signs off by adding: “The ownership’s reference to a so-called ‘strategic plan’ for a return to Super League in 2027 is beyond belief. Where is this plan? Why has it not been shared with supporters?

“At this moment, there is no head coach for 2026, no contracted players, and no football department infrastructure. To talk about a Super League return within two years is pure fantasy […] The reality is simple: This ownership group has repeatedly failed to deliver on its promises.

“It has mismanaged and misled, time and again. Every new statement only confirms how detached they are from the damage they continue to cause.”

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Most drastically, they insist that supporters will no longer “be fooled” nor continue to recognise the current ‘stewards’ failing to live up to that title by giving their own time and money to the regime, urging fellow fans to refrain from renewing season tickets, purchasing any merchandise, or attending games.

It’s a bold stance, to be sure, but it’s clear that those most fiercely loyal of supporters are looking to wrestle back control however they can; if you’re one of them, you can sign the petition HERE.

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Featured Images — The 1873 Group (supplied)

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