It may be the smallest official royal palace in the UK but Kew Palace, nestling in the middle of London’s stunning botanical gardens, packs a mighty punch as the real-life stage for Regency romance, madness and Bridgerton betrayal. Kew Palace in the famed botanical Gardens. A place where things go bump in the night. Credit: Getty Images With a history as triumphant and tragic as that of any monarchy worldwide, it’s a building soaked in memories of past lives, which sometimes still leak out from the fabric. “We sometimes hear children running in the corridors even though there’s no-one else here,” says Emma Dearing, the operations manager at Kew Palace. “At other times, there’s the odd smell of tobacco or of a sweet sherberty lemon, possibly from the perfumes the women used to wear. “And I was here in 2022 when the Queen passed away. All the music had been turned off for the mourning period but when we came to check one morning, we could hear music... but the player wasn’t plugged in.” Historic Royal Palaces conservators arrange artefacts and furniture in the Queen’s Boudoir. Credit: Getty Images Kew Palace started out in 1631 as a City of London merchant’s handsome Palladian-style home until it was developed into a royal palace in the 18th Century. Four storeys high, with its exterior painted in a red ochre colour wash, it was used by successive generations of rulers and their families as a weekend country retreat. King George III was no different, taking it as a refuge for himself and his young bride, Queen Charlotte, and, as the years passed, their 15 children. Visits to the palace have surged since Netflix drama Bridgerton became a massive hit around the world. It tells the story of life in that era and how, as George’s demons spiralled him into despair, Charlotte set the social standards and the feckless Prince Regent became ever more powerful. With the show’s fourth season now in production, it seems everyone has been captivated by the story of the royals in one of the most turbulent times in history, and Kew Palace has been the staunch witness to it all. A dust cover is removed from a piano in the Queen’s Drawing Room. Credit: Getty Images If only the walls could talk. But this palace has so much atmosphere, and so many personal objects on display, it’s not too difficult to imagine life as it was in the day. The king’s flute is in the first room. He was a man with a tremendous appetite for all the finer things in life – books, music and art. Charlotte’s harpsichord is also there. The two often played together, while a visiting Mozart famously duetted with her. A 1761 portrait of George’s young bride glows on one wall. It was painted before she arrived from Germany as a 17-year-old, considered young, innocent and unworldly enough to make a suitable match. George’s former tutor and close advisor Lord Bute was charged with finding a perfect match. “She had to be not too clever, not too beautiful, not too political and not too outspoken,” says Dearing. “Several young women missed out for saying or doing the wrong thing. “But Charlotte knew to be careful in front of Lord Bute... and she waited until after the marriage to show her true colours.” She certainly turned out to be wise, with their marriage lasting 57 years until her death. A painting in the Queen’s Bedroom. Credit: Getty Images In another room, there are life-size models of the couple with all of their children – one pregnancy a year still failed to dim Charlotte’s light – while the dining table is laid for dinner that you can imagine being served any moment. Upstairs, the queen’s boudoir is a sumptuous room, with an elaborate plaster ceiling with figures representing each of the five senses. It’s been decorated according to the snatches of the original furnishings that survived, so now has a lively teal wallpaper, gold and black curtains and thick carpets. It’s here that Charlotte and her maids would spend their time sewing and gossiping. There are also the rooms for all the children, with the girls’ rooms the most fascinating. As females, they were allowed to do little, beyond reading, sewing, walking and playing cards. But there’s also an astonishing large dolls’ house on display, with each of the rooms decorated as they are in the real palace with miniature versions of all the furniture. It’s painstaking work, but it makes you appreciate that, in the absence of little else, this is what the life of a female royal would be. There are plenty of memories of even darker days, too, when George first faltered with a mystery illness in 1788. He took sanctuary in Kew Palace at that time, where he was treated with a mix of leeches, cold baths, laxatives and threats, often being contained in a straitjacket and allowed to do nothing for himself. He recovered a year later, but then descended into what was popularly called “madness” again in 1810. Today, it’s thought it could have been the illness porphyria, a metabolic disorder, or he could have been bipolar. It was then that his son, George IV, took power. The palace was then used by the royals as an elaborate weekender in the midst of the fabulous Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, which was set on the path to becoming one of the world’s foremost gardens by Sir Joseph Banks, who bankrolled Captain Cook’s expedition to Australia and then masterminded transportation to the colony. If walls could talk... The King’s Dining Room. Credit: Historic Royal Palaces But the royal home fell out of favour with George IV, back into prominence with William IV, and then, finally, into disuse before Queen Victoria, George III’s granddaughter, opened it to the public. Loading She would have known that Kew Palace’s incredible history, and its amazing location – quite apart from the advent of TV streaming – would continue to attract visitors, as a true jewel of London, forever more. FIVE OTHER ROYAL PALACES OPEN FOR VISITORS The Tower of London The city’s most splendid fortress, royal palace, home of the Crown Jewels and notorious prison that was once jail to the two little princes. Adults £34.80 ($67.20); children up to 15 £17.40 ($33.60) Hampton Court Palace The palace of Tudor King Henry VIII, his six wives and their various children, set in 24 hectares of magnificent gardens. Adults £27.50; children up to 15 £13.60 Kensington Palace The birthplace of Queen Victoria, and the home of young royals, as well as Princess Diana who had her home and office there. Adults £20.00; children up to 16 £10.00 Hillsborough Castle A splendid castle in Northern Ireland, County Down, used by presidents and royals through the ages, with 40 hectares of ornamental lawn. Adults £20.20; children up to 15 £10.10 Banqueting House The site of Charles I’s execution in Whitehall with a magnificent Rubens’ ceiling. Prices will be set in 2025 after a refurbishment. All these palaces are run by the Historic Royal Palaces. See hrp.org.uk THE DETAILS VISIT Access to Kew Palace is included with a Kew Gardens ticket and is open 10am-3.15pm. Last entry 2.30pm. Tickets: peak February 1-October 31 - Weekdays adults £22 (online £20) and children £6 (online £5); Weekends adults £24 (online £22) and children £7 (online £6). Off Peak November 1- January 31. Weekdays adults £14 (online £12) and children £5 (online £4); Weekends adults £16 (online £14) and children £6 (online £5). See kew.org The writer travelled at her own expense. How we travel Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletter Get exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now . Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. License this article Culture holidays London UK Sue Williams is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer, author and journalist who's filed for newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations around the world. Most viewed on Traveller Loading
Supermarket axes popular Christmas crisps leaving shoppers crying for their return
Strictly Come Dancing fans are up in arms, levelling accusations of 'unfair' scoring at the judges. The BBC dance extravaganza returned on Saturday, with six hopeful pairs taking to the floor, all vying for a spot in the following week's show. Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe delivered a sultry Rumba to I'm Here from The Colour Purple, while Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola charmed with a Charleston to Popular from Wicked. Tasha Ghouri and Aljaz Skorjanec brought intensity with an Argentine Tango to Ex-Wives from SIX, and Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell quickstepped their way through You're The Top from Anything Goes. JB Gill and Lauren Oakley waltzed to Let's Go Fly A Kite from Mary Poppins, as Pete Wicks and Jowita Przysta glided through a Waltz to Somewhere from West Side Story. However, the scoring didn't sit well with viewers, who promptly expressed their ire on social media platforms. "Craig doesn't want to overlook JB's thumb but Pete can botch the whole dance and it's fine! #Strictly," one fan fumed on X, while another remarked: "Feel Chris and Dianne are underscored there. Better than his paso doble but 3 marks less." A third chimed in: "Judges undermarking Chris and Dianne again #Strictly," and a fourth lamented: "Should've been 40...again. Always undermarking Sarah! #Strictly." A fifth insisted: "Three judges scoring Pete the same as Craig did for Chris. Score Chris higher." Speculation is rife amongst the viewers that Montell or Chris could be next for the chop, with one fan expressing online: "Chris and Montell undermarked, i wouldn't be surprised if Montell is in the dance off yet again, feel so bad for her, Pete should be voted out now #strictly." Another echoed the sentiment with: "About time for Pete to leave but it will probably be Montell #Strictly." This follows Jamie Borthwick 's unexpected departure from the ballroom floor on EastEnders . His exit left fans heartbroken, and his professional partner Michelle was emotional as she said: "I just want to say it goes without saying Jamie is an amazing dancer, and he's improved so much week by week. He's worked so hard to get to where he is." * Strictly Come Dancing airs Sunday night on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.November 27 - Washington Spirit forward Ouleye Sarr will was placed on the season-ending injury list on Wednesday with a back injury. Sarr suffered the injury in a game against Portland on Sept. 7 and has been rehabbing with the team since. She finishes the season with eight goals and two assists in 19 matches. The France native joined the Spirit during the 2023 season and has 10 goals and four assists with the team. Sarr turned professional in with PSG in 2013 and has nine goals in 28 matches for France. That includes a four-goal performance against Estonia during qualification for last year's Women's World Cup. --Field Level Media Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. , opens new tab
No secrets as Bucs visit Dave Canales, Panthers for NFC South showdownA pregnant Florida woman was stabbed 14 times by an unhinged pizza delivery girl who was upset by a $2 tip on a $33 order. Brianna Alvelo, 22, was booked into the Osceola County Jail, where she now faces multiple , including attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault and home invasion with a firearm, reported. The chilling incident unfolded on Sunday, when deputies found an injured woman lying on the bed of her motel room with stab wounds to the abdomen, chest, arms and legs. The victim was rushed to a local hospital, where she underwent surgery for a ruptured lung. The victim’s boyfriend told police he was at the motel with his girlfriend and her 5-year-old daughter to celebrate his birthday. The couple ordered a from Marcos Pizza Shop in Kissimmee. The order totaled $33.10, according to police documents. “The victim handed Alvelo, who delivered the pizza, $50 in cash and asked for change. Alvelo told the woman she didn’t have any change, so the woman searched her wallet and car for smaller bills,” per WESH. “The victim told deputies she ended up tipping Alvelo $2, and Alvelo walked away rolling her eyes,” according to documents. NEW: Florida pizza delivery worker stabs a pregnant customer 14 times because she was upset about a $2 tip Brianna Alvelo, 22, was upset over a $2 tip after delivering a pizza to the Riviera Motel in Kissimmee and returned with an accomplice The victim was celebrating a... — Unlimited L’s (@unlimited_ls) A short time later, a masked woman — later identified as Alvelo — and her masked male accomplice knocked at the motel room door. “That’s when deputies say a male and female in masks forced their way into the motel room with a gun, told the boyfriend to go into the bathroom, and began rummaging through the victim’s things and breaking the 5-year-old’s Nintendo Switch,” according to WESH. “The victim said she turned away from the masked woman, later identified as Alvelo, to shield her daughter. That’s when the victim felt a hard strike on her back and saw blood. “Documents say the victim tried to get her phone, but Alvelo took it and smashed it,” the outlet reported. The victim said the attack ended when the masked man told Alvelo it was time to go. later identified Alvelo using motel security videos and the pizza delivery vehicle she drove. Alvelo’s male accomplice has not yet been identified, WESH reported. INSANE. Brianna Alvelo, a pizza delivery person, was arrested after she stabbed a pregnant mother 14 times in front of her 5 yo child because she only received a $2 tip. She is currently being held without bond and has been charged with attempted m*urder. — Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) This chilling incident spotlights a number of tragic trends in American culture. The first is an alarming moral decay among the populace, who increasingly exhibit a and a sociopathic entitlement complex. Instead of being grateful for a $2 tip, Alvelo was so enraged that she planned a vicious assault and even recruited a male accomplice to commit the attack. The second disturbing aspect of this incident is how out-of-control our has become. Instead of being grateful for a tip in exchange for providing exceptional service, today’s workers often expect a substantial — whether or not they delivered superior service. Everywhere you go these days, there’s an omnipresent tip jar at cash register counters — even when you pick up an order yourself. Even fast food places and self-checkout lanes often have pre-set high tip suggestions on digital payment systems. Tipping culture in America is getting out of hand. — Historic Vids (@historyinmemes) Many other countries don’t have tipping cultures, yet provide superior service to customers. One notable example is South Korea, where workers typically deliver excellent, polite service — with no expectation of a tip. And if you try to tip them, the workers often decline. The repugnant case of Brianna Alvelo is not an argument against tipping, but a reminder that it needs to be reined in so don’t think stabbing a customer is the appropriate reaction to a six percent tip. We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. .
Nebraska defensive lineman Kai Wallin enters the transfer portalKyrie Irving scored 23 points and the Dallas Mavericks improved to 4-1 this season without superstar Luka Doncic, beating the New York Knicks 129-114 on Wednesday night. Jalen Brunson tied his season high with 37 points for New York in his second game in Dallas against his former team. Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points and 14 rebounds, but OG Anunoby was limited to eight points on 3-of-15 shooting two nights after getting a career-high 40. Doncic missed his fourth consecutive game with a sprained right wrist, and the defending Western Conference champions were without two other starters in Klay Thompson (plantar fascia) and Daniel Gafford (illness). Dallas' Naji Marshall scored 24 points, Spencer Dinwiddie added 21 and P.J. Washington had 19 points and 10 rebounds.