Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, placed her hands on the grave of Diana, Princess of Wales, and asked for guidance, new details from Prince Harry's new book Spare show.
In the memoir, he also makes a series of accusations and revelations about his brother and sister-in-law, Prince William and Kate, the current Prince and Princess of Wales, exposing how their relationship deteriorated.
Spare is being published near the third anniversary of Prince Harry and Meghan announcing their planned retreat from royal life — January 8, 2020 — but also coincides with the Princess of Wales's birthday on January 9.
Prince Harry wrote about how he had left his wife alone at Diana’s grave during a visit to her family’s Althorp estate.
“When I returned, she was on her knees with her eyes closed and her palms flat against the stone,” Prince Harry wrote.
He added that she told him she had asked Diana for “clarity and guidance”.
Prince Harry said in Spare that he and the Duchess of Sussex had rowed out to his mother’s final resting place on an island on the Althorp estate in 2017.
Spare is dedicated to Diana — who died in a car crash in Paris when Prince Harry was 12 — his wife and children Archie and Lili.
In clips of an interview promoting his book with Good Morning America, Prince Harry said Diana would have been “sad” about her sons’ fractured relationship.
“I have felt the presence of my mum more so in the last two years than I have in the last 30,” he said.
In Spare, Prince Harry refers to his mother as “mummy” and said his father, now King Charles III, did not hug him when he sat on his bed and told him Diana had died.
The book also includes several stories involving the current Princess of Wales and clashes between the brothers.
Prince Harry claimed that it was the Prince and Princess of Wales who encouraged him to wear a Nazi uniform to a fancy dress party in 2005.
“I phoned Willy and Kate, asked what they thought. Nazi uniform, they said,” he wrote. “They both howled. Worse than Willy's leotard outfit! Way more ridiculous! Which, again, was the point.”
Meghan also upset Kate by saying she must have “baby brain” during a phone call in the run-up to the royal wedding in 2018.
During a reconciliatory tea, Prince William, then the Duke of Cambridge, “pointed a finger” at the Duchess of Sussex, saying: “Well, it's rude, Meghan. These things are not done here,” to which she said: “If you don't mind, keep your finger out of my face.”
After that, there was a clash over lip gloss.
Prince Harry recalls an “awkward moment” when his wife asked Kate to borrow some lip gloss before their Royal Foundation Forum appearance in 2018.
“Kate, taken aback, went into her handbag and reluctantly pulled out a small tube,” Prince Harry writes. “Meg squeezed some on to her finger and applied it to her lips. Kate grimaced.”
The duke wrote that the four “should've been able to laugh” about the moment but the press “sensed” it was “something bigger” and so Kate was “on edge” that she was now “going to be compared to, and forced to compete with, Meg”.
The prince has admitted that he and Meghan were offended when the Prince and Princess of Wales switched place cards and changed seats at their wedding.
He added that Kate also made Meghan cry over a bridesmaids' dress fitting for Princess Charlotte.
Prince Harry wrote that the Princess of Wales had texted his wife the week of the wedding about a “problem” with Princess Charlotte's dress.
Kate said the princess's dress was “too big, long and baggy” and that the child “burst into tears when she tried it on”.
He wrote that the dresses, made by Givenchy, had been hand-sewed based solely on measurements so it made sense that they would need some tweaks.
But Kate reportedly said that the dress needed to be remade from scratch.
Prince Harry wrote that he later found Meghan in tears “on the floor” over the disagreement but the next day Kate apologised, bringing over flowers and a card.
Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace have declined to comment.
Who are the Soroptimists?
The first Soroptimists club was founded in Oakland, California in 1921. The name comes from the Latin word soror which means sister, combined with optima, meaning the best.
The organisation said its name is best interpreted as ‘the best for women’.
Since then the group has grown exponentially around the world and is officially affiliated with the United Nations. The organisation also counts Queen Mathilde of Belgium among its ranks.
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BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
Villains
Queens of the Stone Age
Matador
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
UK's plans to cut net migration
Under the UK government’s proposals, migrants will have to spend 10 years in the UK before being able to apply for citizenship.
Skilled worker visas will require a university degree, and there will be tighter restrictions on recruitment for jobs with skills shortages.
But what are described as "high-contributing" individuals such as doctors and nurses could be fast-tracked through the system.
Language requirements will be increased for all immigration routes to ensure a higher level of English.
Rules will also be laid out for adult dependants, meaning they will have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the language.
The plans also call for stricter tests for colleges and universities offering places to foreign students and a reduction in the time graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.
Global institutions: BlackRock and KKR
US-based BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with $5.98 trillion of assets under management as of the end of last year. The New York firm run by Larry Fink provides investment management services to institutional clients and retail investors including governments, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, banks and charitable foundations around the world, through a variety of investment vehicles.
KKR & Co, or Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, is a global private equity and investment firm with around $195 billion of assets as of the end of last year. The New York-based firm, founded by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, invests in multiple alternative asset classes through direct or fund-to-fund investments with a particular focus on infrastructure, technology, healthcare, real estate and energy.
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Leap of Faith
Michael J Mazarr
Public Affairs
Dh67
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
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Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.