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Pippa And Literary Agent Part

Pippa Middleton has parted company with her literary agent following the lacklustre reception to her first book.

Some mean British newspapers are rushing to declare that Pippa has been dropped, but the Royalist hears from publishing sources that is over-simplifying it. In fact, its more to do with there being no new Pippa book sale on the cards.

Her agent David Godwin told the Mail's Richard Kay: “I am very sorry it has happened, but yes, it is true: I no longer represent Pippa and I wish her every good luck.”

From April, Pippa will pen a column called Pippa’s Friday Night Feasts for British supermarket Waitrose's  magazine.

Former director of English National Ballet admits asking dancer if it was 'the right time', denies making demands.

A former director of the English National Ballet and confidant of Diana, Princess of Wales, has admitted that he asked a pregnant ballerina to consider having an abortion.

Daria Klimentova, 41, who remains principal dancer at the company, says in her new autobiography that when she told Derek Deane about her pregnancy he asked her: “Are you going to keep it?"

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Daria Klimentova (top) and Zdenek Konvalina of the English national Ballet perform Apollo as part of Beyond Ballet Russes (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)

She says that Mr Deane, the former director of the English National Ballet - a notoriously demanding choreographer who was a friend of both Diana, Princess of Wales, and Princess Margaret - made it clear her pregnancy was 'an inconvenience'.

Royal Car Charged

Man Charges Charles's Car

Drama!

A 47-year-old man has been arrested for breach of the peace after running at Prince Charles's car ahead of the Archbishop's enthronement today.

The dramatic scenes unfolded as the heir to the throne arrived at the installation of the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Justin Welby.

The alarming incident recalled scenes in November 2012 when Charles and Camilla had white paint thrown over their official car by protestors.

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Charles and Camilla after today's service (Bethany Clarke / Getty Images)

HRH honours

William Made Aide-de-Camp by Granny

Personal vote of confidence in her grandson

Prince William has received another public vote of confidence from his grandmother and has been made a Personal Aide-de-Camp to The Queen.

The Duke of Cambridge's honorary appointment was detailed in the Court Circular and The Duke wore the insignia of the position for the first time at the St Patrick's Day parade for the 1st Battalion Irish Guards at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, Hampshire, where Kate got her high heels stuck in a grating and expressed a preference for a male son.

The honour goes back to Queen Victoria, who was the first to institute the appointment of a small group of personal Aides-de-Camp (ADC) positions, with one of the earliest holders being Prince Louis of Battenberg.

Charles is also a Personal Aide-de-Camp to the monarch, and the Duke of Edinburgh was made Personal Aide-de-Camp by The Queen's father, King George VI.

Outing also sends message that Queen is fully recovered from bug

Thr Royalist was always taught to stand up and offer one's seat to a pregnant lady when on public transport, but there's a problem.

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WPA Pool

How do you tell if the woman in question is pregnant, or just fat?

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Britain's Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, arrives at Baker Street underground station in London for a visit to mark the 150th anniversary of the London Underground, on March 20, 2013. (Neil P. Mockford/FilmMagic, via Getty)

Fit For A Princess

Diana’s Dresses Make $1.2 Million in London Auction

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The Princess of Wales dancing with John Travolta at the White House. (Tim Graham Picture Library / Getty Images)

The star lot was the Edelstein gown Diana wore when she danced with Travolta at the White House.

The dress worn by Diana, Princess of Wales, when she danced with John Travolta at a White House state dinner was sold at auction for $360,000 last night to an anonymous bidder, who said he wanted to surprise his wife with a special gift. The stunning off-the-shoulder, midnight blue velvet gown, designed by Victor Edelstein, was worn by Diana as she was spun around the White House dance floor by Travolta during a visit to the U.S. in 1985.

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Catherine Walker Burgundy sheath worn for a state visit to Korea in 1992: sold for $75,000. (Simon Burchell)

The resulting image is one of the most celebrated pictures of the glamorous and vivacious Diana at the peak of her fame.

The Edelstein gown was the star lot in a sale of 10 of Diana’s dresses at vintage fashion auctioneers Kerry Taylor Auctions in London, which raised more than $1.2 million last night, reflecting the extraordinary renewed interest in the British royal family since the marriage of William and Kate.

Bump Watch

Kate Middleton Baby Bump Special!

Duchess of Cambridge

Will Oliver/Barcroft Media/Landov

Kate showed off her growing baby bump on a public engagement today

Hard to believe she is almost six months pregnant, isn't it?

But the world got its first proper view of Kate's baby bump today when she wore a short cream jacket by British label Goat as she and William made a public appearance at a charity which supports bereaved children.

For once, Kate did without the long coats she has worn of late to hide her pregnancy, happy to show off her growing baby bump.

William's mother Diana supported the charity, Child Bereavement UK, and founder Julia Samuel said today: "I am so grateful for William's support and proud of him for speaking so openly about the effect that losing his mother has had on him. It sounds so trite to say, but I know Diana would have been so proud of him too."

Best Dressed

VIDEO: Diana's Dresses Auction

Collection of ten gowns could make up to $1m at auction

Ten dresses belonging to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, including a gown designed by Victor Edelstein which she famously wore while dancing with actor John Travolta, are to be auctioned in London later today.

They could make as much as $1m.

Mostly evening wear worn by Diana for official engagements between 1985 and 1997,the dresses are all made by British designers; long-term Diana favourite Catherine Walker has six dresses, and Bruce Oldfield and Zandra Rhodes also feature. The gowns were previously part of a private collection.

Royal Rugby Fan

William Attends Rugby Dinner

Rugby fan William attended a gala dinner for Irish rugby star Brian O'Driscoll last night

Now, if Prince Harry was there it really could have been a night to remember.

Prince William last night attended a special dinner for Irish rugby international Brian O’Driscoll, who was forced to miss the Royal wedding because it clashed with a crucial match against french team Toulouse.

Bono and his wife Ali Hewson were also guests at the dinner in the Grosvenor House Hotel in London which was attended by about 800 people.

Comedian Patrick Kielty acted as MC for the “strictly private” dinner. The cheapest tickets cost €680, the middle category went for €1,000 each, while the price of the so-called “black” tickets – “the ones close to Brian”,  one source told the Irish Times, was “not disclosed”.

Black Sheep

Kate's Naughty Uncle Gary Speaks!

Gary Goldsmith speaks out in forthright Hello Mag interview

Kate Middleton’s naughty uncle, Gary Goldsmith, has cashed in on his relationship with the young Royals with a tell-all interview in Hello! Magazine.

Mr Goldsmith, who famously owned a villa in Ibiza called Casa Bang Bang and was filmed snorting cocaine there and offering to set up deals in a News of the World sting four years ago, said he would play a role in the upbringing of Kate’s baby, claimed credit for getting Wiliam and Kate back together when they broke up and said that William was taught to mix by a mate of his on his DJ decks in Spain.

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Gary Goldsmith arrives to attend the Royal Wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton at Westminster Abbey on April 29, 2011 (Danny Martindale / Fim Magic / Getty Images)

He also contrasted Kate and Pippa’s characters in the interview, saying that while Kate has always had to work hard to achieve results, everything ‘came easily’ to Pippa.

Post-mortem into death of Dominic Elliot expected tomorrow

Tragedy has struck the British art world after a 23-year-old assistant to the celebrated artist David Hockney, a personal favourite of the Queen, died after being taken to hospital from the artist's home in Yorkshire, England in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Police are saying that the death of Dominic Elliott, 23, is currently “unexplained”, but they are awaiting the results of an autopsy tomorrow which could shed more light on the circumstances surrounding the young man's death. Violence has been ruled out.

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Queen Elizabeth presents British artist David Hockney with the Order of Merit at Buckingham Palace in London, on May 22, 2012 (Steve Parsons / AFP / Getty Images)

Mr Elliott is a local man who was recruited by the 75-year-old artist to help with a series of works based around the seaside town of Scarborough, where Hockney has been based for much of each year since returning from Los Angeles in the late 1970s where he created his celebrated seies of swimming pool pictures. He also helped with setting up equipment and exhibitions.

Guessing Game

Kate Wants A Boy, William Wants a Girl!

Kate tells soldiers she is hoping for a boy but that Wills wants a daughter

Kate Middleton effortlessly quashed rumours that she is having a girl today when she told soldiers who she was meeting that while she would like a son,  her husband William is hoping their first born is a girl.

Her remarks will go down well in the palace where many are hopeful the new royal child will be male, despite a recent change in the law to enable a daughter to one day inherit the crown.

Britain's Kate Duchess of Cambridge Stumbles

Britain's Kate Duchess of Cambridge holds onto her husband Prince William, left, as she bends down to pull the heel of her shoe out of a drainage grill it got stuck in, as she presents the traditional sprigs of shamrocks to members of the 1st Battalion Irish Guards at the St Patrick’s Day Parade at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, England, Sunday, March 17, 2013. (Matt Dunham/AP)

Kate’s revealing comments came at the St Patrick’s Day Parade this morning at the Aldershot military base in England, home to the Irish Guards. William is a Colonel in the Regiment.

As 600 new claims emerge, Hasnat Khan now believes his phone was hacked during relationship

Diana's boyfriend Hasnat Khan, the heart surgeon with whom she had a discreet two year relationship which ended just months before her tragic death, has revealed that he believes voicemails left on his phone were hacked as far back as 1996.

The news comes as the phone-hacking scandal took a fresh twist today with claims that there may be an additional 600 victims of the practice at the shuttered News of the World. The new names were handed over by a suspect turned "supergrass".

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David Levenson / Getty Images

The revelation about Hasnat Khan comes from friends of the surgeon whom the Princess referred to as Mr Wonderful, speaking to The Daily Telegraph today.

Gold Cup Kate

Kate on Gold Cup Day!

Kate looks fit and well as she hits the races

Yesterday her sister was at the races, but today Kate herself arrived at Cheltenham for one of the biggest days in the National Hunt (jump race) calendar: the Gold Cup.

Kate, who arrived with William in a chauffeur-driven Range Rover, wore a massive pink coat from Lock & Co, making sure that her baby bump was well-masked.

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Danny Martindale / Getty Images

Kate's presence at Cheltenham is just the latest sign that she has well and truly recovered from the acute variety of morning sickness which hospitalised her last year.

Language Lessons

Prince Charles Learning Arabic To "Read The Koran"

But Charles says Arabic goes "in one ear and out the other"

Prince Charles is learning Arabic in order to be able to read the Koran, it has emerged, but he is having a tough time mastering the foreign language.

When Qatar's energy minister inquired if Charles spoke any Arabic at an event yesterday, Charles replied, "I tried to learn it once but I gave up. It goes in one ear and out the other," he answered.

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Chris Jackson

However, a report in the Telegraph citing confidential sources said that Charles had indeed been taking Arabic lessons over the past six months, and he was mortivated in part by a wish to be able to read the Koran in its original form.

About the Author

Author headshot

Tom Sykes

THE ROYALIST, updated several times daily, reports on all aspects of the British Royal Family. With breaking news and the latest gossip, great pictures and informed commentary, the Royalist is essential eyeballing for fans of the world’s most famous family.

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