Royal Wedding

Britain has come under criticism for inviting the king of Bahrain, whose Gulf state has been engaged in a brutal crackdown on political dissent, to a lunch Friday celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. The lunch in Windsor Castle was the largest gathering of foreign royals in Britain since Queen Elizabeth II's grandson, Prince William, was married to Kate Middleton last year. Then, as now, the decision to extend an invitation to members of the Bahraini royal family has angered whose who are upset by the deadly violence deployed against demonstrators since protests erupted in the...

LONDON - Britain has come under criticism for inviting the king of Bahrain, whose Gulf state has been engaged in a brutal crackdown on political dissent, to a lunch Friday celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. The lunch in Windsor Castle was the largest gathering of foreign royals in Britain since Queen Elizabeth II's grandson, Prince William, was married to Kate Middleton last year. Then, as now, the decision to extend an invitation to members of the Bahraini royal family has angered those who are upset by the violence deployed against demonstrators since protests erupted in...

The most charming aspect of phoning up internationally celebrated milliner Philip Treacy is that he's ready to chat, and it's not just business. He's like that favorite eccentric uncle who always has a good story to tell. Even better, his stories are about celebrities and the conversation stretches to nearly an hour. This is exactly what happened recently when Treacy — best known these days for designing 36 of the hats worn at last year's royal wedding (including the infamous Princess Beatrice topper — got on the phone from his London studio to talk about a hat he made specifically for the...

The most charming aspect of phoning up internationally celebrated milliner Philip Treacy is that he's ready to chat, and it's not just business. He's like that favorite eccentric uncle who always has a good story to tell. Even better, his stories are about celebrities and the conversation stretches to nearly an hour. This is exactly what happened recently when Treacy — best known these days for designing 36 of the hats worn at last year's royal wedding (including the infamous Princess Beatrice topper — got on the phone from his London studio to talk about a hat he made specifically for the...

LONDON -- The wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, beset by problems since it was first announced, has been postponed a day to avoid conflicting with the funeral of Pope John Paul II. The wedding, which had been scheduled for Friday in Windsor, west of London, will be held Saturday, Buckingham Palace announced yesterday after the Vatican set the pope's funeral for Friday. Charles will represent Queen Elizabeth II at the funeral, the palace said. Paddy Harverson, the official spokesman for the prince's Clarence House office, said Charles felt that switching the date was...

From wedding bells to jingle bells: Prince Charles has picked a photo from his son's wedding for his official Christmas card this year. Palace officials on Friday released an image of the card, which pictures Charles standing next to his wife, Camilla, while he holds up his wife's then 3-year-old granddaughter — and royal wedding bridesmaid — Eliza Lopes. The image was captured when the group stood on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to greet the thousands of well-wishers on hand to celebrate the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton on April 29. The...

LONDON — Don’t give the queen a friendly hug and don’t tweet from the church. That’s just the start of the advice being offered to those attending Britain’s April 29 royal wedding. St. James’s Palace says the guest list is an eclectic mix of European royalty, military personnel, charity workers, diplomats, and friends of Prince William and fiancee Kate Middleton. Some invitees will have been born into families that teach children to curtsey as soon as they can walk, but others may need a bit of help navigating the etiquette and protocol that such an important day demands.

LONDON — Palace officials will offer live streaming of the April 29 royal wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton on the royal channel on YouTube. The four-hour live Internet coverage will include the ceremony at Westminster Abbey, the procession to Buckingham Palace, and the newlyweds’ appearance on the palace balcony for an expected first public kiss. William’s press office will also provide a live blog providing commentary and historical information as well as additional footage.

NEW YORK — Television viewers will be able to see hours on hours of programming tied to this spring’s royal wedding before Prince William and Kate Middleton even approach Westminster Abbey for their big day. A Lifetime movie, a show that brings wedding fanatics from the United States over to London, and a TLC special on hoarders of royal memorabilia are all in the works. These run-up shows are in addition to the anticipated exhaustive coverage of the April 29 wedding itself by news programs.

LONDON — Pomp and circumstance — what “Britain does best’’ — will rule the day when Prince William and Kate Middleton get married April 29 at Westminster Abbey. The young couple yesterday rejected the notion that austere times will force them to pare down the royal festivities. The church itself is free, at least. William and Kate ended days of suspense by choosing the abbey, a grand venue where members of the House of Windsor have been crowned, married, mourned, and buried.

Absolutely Fabulous Sunday, 10 p.m., Logo and BBC America Sozzled and snarky pals Patsy and Edina are back in this, the first of three 20th-anniversary specials of the classic British sitcom. While life has progressed around them - with topical nods to smartphones and the royal wedding - everything else is pretty much status quo for the daffy duo and their coterie of kooks including Bubble (Jane Horrocks, pictured) and Saffy. The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret 10:30 p.m., IFC Jonesing for "Mad Men"?

No Oscar gown, meteoric career crash, or red carpet catastrophe could compare to the fashion story of the year. In fact, there was so much puffery and excitement surrounding the royal wedding that it could easily be mistaken for the fashion fable of the decade. A princess-in-the-making, a wedding dress, a fetching sister with a Dickensian name, and a squid hat enraptured the planet - at least for a day. But while the freshly minted Duchess of Cambridge and her Alexander McQueen gown had the masses flapping their Union Jacks, 2011 produced other gasp-worthy style moments.

From wedding bells to jingle bells: Prince Charles has picked a photo from his son's wedding for his official Christmas card this year. Palace officials on Friday released an image of the card, which pictures Charles standing next to his wife, Camilla, while he holds up his wife's then 3-year-old granddaughter — and royal wedding bridesmaid — Eliza Lopes. The image was captured when the group stood on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to greet the thousands of well-wishers on hand to celebrate the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton on...

Children composed poems of joy, flight attendants and bank clerks practiced celebratory dances and the airwaves were flooded with wedding fever as the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan prepared for the marriage of its beloved fifth Dragon King. The ceremony Thursday, while far less star-studded than the year's other royal wedding — of William and Kate — will be no less elaborate in its uniquely Bhutanese way. "It's the biggest occasion I'll ever see in my life," said Tshewang Rinzin, 27, a loan officer.

TELEVISION THE HOUR (2011) At last, something to fill the "Mad Men" void - although there's really only a fleeting similarity between "Mad Men" and this BBC miniseries set against the backdrop of a '50s TV newsmagazine. "Good Night, and Good Luck" comes to mind just as readily in watching the series' human-scale rendering of broadcast pioneers - in this case, BBC staffers determined to expose the story behind the Suez Crisis. And there are definitely echoes of "Broadcast News" in the interplay between attitudinally smart newshound Ben Whishaw ("I'm Not There")

 "By seeing London, I have seen as much of life as the world can show," said famed 18th-century English author Samuel Johnson. Little did he know how much more life there would be in London three centuries later. Now is the time to go, before the crowds arrive in summer 2012 for the Olympic Games and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, feting Elizabeth for her 60-year reign. Flights from Logan to Heathrow on British Airways (http://www.british-airways.com) start at $500 and take around 6½ hours.

Children composed poems of joy, flight attendants and bank clerks practiced celebratory dances and the airwaves were flooded with wedding fever as the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan prepared for the marriage of its beloved fifth Dragon King. The ceremony Thursday, while far less star-studded than the year's other royal wedding — of William and Kate — will be no less elaborate in its uniquely Bhutanese way. "It's the biggest occasion I'll ever see in my life," said Tshewang Rinzin, 27, a loan officer.

NORTHAMPTON, England — Surrounded by boxes in a rickety old warehouse above the family shop, Joe Church hurries to wrap plates adorned with the faces of Prince William and his bride, Kate Middleton, for a customer in Australia. The 152-year-old memorabilia business has plenty of reason to celebrate the upcoming royal nuptials. “It’s good for the royal couple, it’s good for everyone in the UK, and it’s certainly good for business,’’ beams Joe Church’s father, Stephen Church.