Celebrities including Ant and Dec, Katy Perry, Stephen Fry and Emma Thompson are among a host of stars in attendance at the King’s coronation.
More than 2,000 people were invited to Westminster Abbey, including around 100 heads of state, kings and queens from across the globe and everyday heroes.
Image: Katy Perry
Image: Ant and Dec
Arriving bright and early, actor and comedian Stephen Fry was one of the first famous faces to arrive at the abbey.
I Kissed A Girl singer Katy Perry, who will perform at the coronation concert at Windsor Castle on Sunday, was one of the early US stars to arrive, wearing head-to-toe lilac.
TV royalty Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly were full of smiles as they mingled in the abbey. They are currently presenting I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here, but have been invited in their capacity as goodwill ambassadors for the Princes Trust.
The Geordie duo have hosted the charity’s awards 10 times and are involved in a programme to make the media industry more accessible.
Actress Dame Emma Thompson, who is good friends with the King, arrived with her husband, actor Greg Wise, chatting to other guests as they took their seats.
The Oscar-winning star wore a bold red jacket, along with her damehood medal and insignia.
Image: Dame Emma Thompson and her husband Greg Wise
Image: Singer Lionel Richie
Dame Judi Dench wore a pale lavender ensemble and brimmed hat, Downton Abbey star Dame Maggie Smith wore blue, while Australian singer Nick Cave wore a dark suit and tie.
Andrew Lloyd Webber, best known for hit musicals including The Phantom Of The Opera, Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar, was also there.
Image: Andrew Lloyd Webber, his wife Lady Madeleine, and Labour leader Keir Starmer
Image: Nick Cave and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams
The award-winning composer, who has written the coronation anthem, said writing the music acted as an “antidote” to his loss of his eldest son, Nicholas, in March.
Singer Lionel Richie, who will also perform at Sunday’s coronation concert, told Sky News: “This is not an everyday occurrence. I’m walking into history. This is the greatest show on earth right now. To have an invite to this is everything.”
Richie, 73, wore a top hat to mark the special occasion.
Dame Joanna Lumley, who will be commentating on the historic event for Sky News, said: “I’m so excited… saying God Save the King will be the most exciting bit. Hearing the choir, all the new songs, the old songs, will be ravishing. I’m also looking forward to seeing the Queen’s dress – it’s supposed to be spectacular!”
Other famous guests at the abbey include British Vogue’s editor-in-chief Edward Enninful, former Play School presenter Floella Benjamin, Stereophonics singer Kelly Jones, and director general of the BBC, Tim Davey.
Singer-songwriter Joan Armatrading was in the audience, as was First Lady of the United States Jill Biden, who came with her granddaughter Finnegan Biden.
US President Joe Biden did not attend, with Washington denying his absence was a snub after his four-day trip to Ireland last month.
Image: Vogue’s Edward Enninful walking into the abbey with Katy Perry
Image: First Lady Jill Biden (R) and her granddaughter Finnegan Biden (L)
Spice Girl Melanie Brown was also spotted outside the abbey, chatting to press.
David and Victoria Beckham, Stella McCartney, Rowan Atkinson, Bear Grylls and magician Dynamo were also rumoured to be on the guest list.
The King will be crowned at Westminster Abbey by the Archbishop of Canterbury during a coronation ceremony dating back centuries.
Image: Singer-songwriter Joan Armatrading
Image: Baroness Floella Benjamin (R)
The King’s youngest son, Prince Harry, who stepped back from royal duties in March 2020 and moved to the US with his wife, Meghan, is also expected to attend.
The event is the military’s largest ceremonial operation since Queen Elizabeth II’s 1953 coronation, with 9,000 servicemen and women deployed and 7,000 of these performing ceremonial and supporting roles.
It’s a significantly slimmed-down event compared with the more than 8,000 guests at the Queen’s coronation 70 years ago.
Four people have been charged after £7m of damage was caused to two Voyager aircraft at RAF Brize Norton.
The investigation into the incident early on Friday 20 June was led by counter-terror police.
They have been charged with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK – and conspiracy to commit criminal damage.
Image: Two Voyager aircraft at RAF Brize Norton were damaged. PA file pic
The four charged have been identified as:
• Amy Gardiner-Gibson, 29, of no fixed abode
• Daniel Jeronymides-Norie, 35, from London
• Jony Cink, 24, of no fixed abode
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• Lewie Chiaramello, 22, from London
They will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court later today.
A 41-year-old woman arrested last week on suspicion of assisting an offender has been released on bail until 19 September.
Meanwhile, a 23-year-old man detained on Saturday was released without charge.
Last month’s incident at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire was claimed by the activist group Palestine Action.
Rachel Reeves has not offered her resignation and is “going nowhere”, Downing Street has said, following her tearful appearance in the House of Commons.
A Number 10 spokesperson said the chancellor had the “full backing” of Sir Keir Starmer, despite Ms Reeves looking visibly upset during Prime Minister’s Questions.
A spokesperson for the chancellor later clarified that Ms Reeves had been affected by a “personal matter” and would be working out of Downing Street this afternoon.
UK government bond prices fell by the most since October 2022, and the pound tumbled after Ms Reeves’s Commons appearance, while the yield on the 10-year government bond, or gilt, rose as much as 22 basis points at one point to around 4.68%.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch branded the chancellor the “human shield” for the prime minister’s “incompetence” just hours after he was forced to perform a humiliating U-turn over his controversial welfare bill.
Emotional Reeves a painful watch – and reminder of tough decisions ahead
It is hard to think of a PMQs like it – it was a painful watch.
The prime minister battled on, his tone assured, even if his actual words were not always convincing.
But it was the chancellor next to him that attracted the most attention.
Rachel Reeves looked visibly upset.
It is hard to know for sure right now what was going on behind the scenes, the reasons – predictable or otherwise – why she appeared to be emotional, but it was noticeable and it was difficult to watch.
Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, Ms Badenoch said: “This man has forgotten that his welfare bill was there to plug a black hole created by the chancellor. Instead they’re creating new ones.”
Turning to the chancellor, the Tory leader added: “[She] is pointing at me – she looks absolutely miserable.
“Labour MPs are going on the record saying that the chancellor is toast, and the reality is that she is a human shield for his incompetence. In January, he said that she would be in post until the next election. Will she really?”
Not fully answering the question, the prime minister replied: “[Ms Badenoch] certainly won’t.
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2:58
Welfare vote ‘a blow to the prime minister’
“I have to say, I’m always cheered up when she asks me questions or responds to a statement because she always makes a complete mess of it and shows just how unserious and irrelevant they are.”
Mrs Badenoch interjected: “How awful for the chancellor that he couldn’t confirm that she would stay in place.”
A total of 49 Labour MPs voted against the bill – the largest rebellion in a prime minister’s first year in office since 47 MPs voted against Tony Blair’s Lone Parent benefit in 1997, according to Professor Phil Cowley from Queen Mary University.
After multiple concessions made due to threats of a Labour rebellion, many MPs questioned what they were voting for as the bill had been severely stripped down.
They ended up voting for only one part of the plan: a cut to Universal Credit (UC) sickness benefits for new claimants from £97 a week to £50 from 2026/7.
Ms Badenoch said the climbdown was proof that Sir Keir was “too weak to get anything done”.
Ms Reeves has also borne a lot of the criticism over the handling of the vote, with some MPs believing that her strict approach to fiscal rules has meant she has approached the ballooning welfare bill from the standpoint of trying to make savings, rather than getting people into work.
Experts have now warned that the welfare U-turn, on top of reversing the cut to winter fuel, means that tax rises in the autumn are more likely – with Ms Reeves now needing to find £5bn to make up for the policy U-turns.
Asked by Ms Badenoch whether he could rule out further tax rises – something Labour promised it would not do on working people in its manifesto – Sir Keir said: “She knows that no prime minister or chancellor ever stands at the despatch box and writes budgets in the future.
“But she talks about growth, for 14 years we had stagnation, and that is what caused the problem.”
Prosecutors are considering whether to bring further criminal charges against Lucy Letby over the deaths of babies at two hospitals where she worked
The Crown Prosecution Service said it had received “a full file of evidence from Cheshire Constabulary asking us to consider further allegations in relation to deaths and non-fatal collapses of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital and Liverpool Women’s Hospital”.
“We will now carefully consider the evidence to determine whether any further criminal charges should be brought,” it added.
“As always, we will make that decision independently, based on the evidence and in line with our legal test.”
Letby, 35, was found guilty of murdering seven children and attempting to murder seven more between June 2015 and June 2016 while working in the neonatal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital and is currently serving 15 whole-life orders.
Image: Letby worked at the Countess of Chester Hospital and Liverpool Women’s Hospital
She is understood to have carried out two work placements at Liverpool Women’s Hospital, where she trained as a student, between October and December 2012, and January and February 2015.
Police said in December that Letby was interviewed in prison as part of an investigation into more baby deaths and non-fatal collapses.
A Cheshire Constabulary spokesperson said: “We can confirm that Cheshire Constabulary has submitted a full file of evidence to the CPS for charging advice regarding the ongoing investigation into deaths and non-fatal collapses of babies at the neo-natal units of both the Countess of Chester Hospital and the Liverpool Women’s Hospital as part of Operation Hummingbird.”
Detectives previously said the investigation was looking into the full period of time that Letby worked as a nurse, covering the period from 2012 to 2016 and including a review of 4,000 admissions of babies.
Letby’s lawyer Mark McDonald said: “The evidence of the innocence of Lucy Letby is overwhelming,” adding: “We will cross every bridge when we get to it but if Lucy is charged I know we have a whole army of internationally renowned medical experts who will totally undermine the prosecution’s unfounded allegations.”
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2:09
Three managers at the hospital where Lucy Letby worked have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
Earlier this year, Letby’s lawyers called for the suspension of the inquiry, claiming there was “overwhelming and compelling evidence” that her convictions were unsafe.
Their evidence has been passed to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which investigates potential miscarriages of justice, and Letby’s legal team hopes her case will be referred back to the Court of Appeal.