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I saw some people posting this Daily Mail headline over the weekend, and it seemed very strange, like the Mail was poking Prince William for some reason. I mean, I think I know the reason(s), but still. The headline: “The secret posh pecking order: Our high society insider reveals the REAL ranking and rivalry of blue bloods, from the top-tier toff every husband wants to bed, to the C-list woman William calls when he wants to blow off steam.” Absolutely fascinating, right? It’s almost as if (once again) they want to yank on William and Kate’s leashes and get them off their asses somehow. The piece was written by Charlotte Griffiths (the same one bitching about how Harry and Meghan call each other “my wife/husband”), and it’s full of all sorts of shady sh-t. First of all, the “top-tier toff every husband wants to bed” is exactly who you think it is: Rose Hanbury. Some highlights:
Proximity to the Windsors determines your A-list status: As a long-time observer of the in-crowd, I can tell you that behind the perfect teeth, and even more perfect manners, these elite circles harbour intense rivalries. The ultimate test of who is ‘in’ is still judged by proximity to the Royal Family. Beyond that, social influence and good old-fashioned money are the things that count.
Top of the A-list: Top of everyone’s dream guest-list is Rose Hanbury, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley (pronounced ‘Chumley’). The 40-year-old entered the A list in 2009 when she married the 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley and became chatelaine of Houghton Hall, a 106-room neo-Palladian pile in Norfolk built for Britain’s first Prime Minister Horace Walpole, bedecked with chinoiserie and hand-printed wallpaper.
Enigmatic & cool Rose Hanbury: Rose has remained top-tier ever since her marriage – and is a source of endless fascination in high society, which is why she gets invited to everything. However, very few ‘stiffy’ invitations – the nickname for those written on card so stiff it can’t be folded – are grand enough for her to accept, so it’s tricky to earn a place on her marble mantlepiece. Part of her allure is that she’s enigmatic and choosy about her friends. Invitations to Houghton are like gold dust. She tends to mix only with a trusted inner circle of fellow Norfolk ‘Turnip Toffs’, the name given to the county’s landowning set.
Absolutely fascinating: At parties, I have noticed that Rose often slinks into the shadows, preferring private chats with girlfriends to dancing on tables. More beguiling in real-life than she is in photographs (she’s not so consistently photogenic as her neighbour the Princess of Wales), most husbands secretly – and not so secretly – fancy Rose. When it comes to royal circles, Rose ticks this box too. Much mischief is spoken of her being the Princess of Wales’s ‘rural rival’ in Norfolk’s social hierarchy but they are close friends. One wouldn’t imagine that the Princess’s sister Pippa would have named her younger daughter ‘Rose’ if there was any tension between the two women.
Prince William’s friendship with a C-lister: If you measure aristocratic clout by your royal friends then Susanna Warren, 36, has certainly earned her place thanks to being the first person Prince William calls when he needs to blow off steam. On those increasingly rare occasions when he decides to go ‘out-out’, it’s velvet-rope queen Susanna, whom William calls ‘Suze’, who can help. She’s events director at Camden’s trendiest members club House of Koko. Despite the insalubrious location, Koko is a hot ticket and William was spotted dad dancing there in 2023 with his best friend Guy Pelly, Susanna’s ex-boyfriend. She may not flaunt her connections but underneath Susanna’s bashful demeanour lies a steely woman with 17 years of loyal service in the inner royal circle.
The thing about William “needing to blow off steam” is so interesting, because there’s a conspiracy of silence about William’s whereabouts and activities on a daily level. Occasionally, over the years, people will get a glimpse of how he parties without Kate, or goes to clubs with his bros or goes to dinner with some mystery woman. And then there’s zero follow-up and the press plays dumb about how the Wales marriage is being held together with a flimsy piece of string. As for the Rose Hanbury stuff… lmao, Pippa naming her daughter “Rose” is cited as the reason why the affair rumors are false. Yeah. Enigmatic, cool, not-so-photogenic Rose who slinks off to corners and gets the attention of all the toff husbands. Sure. Nothing to see here, folks!
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
Rose Hanbury (left) arrives at the State Banquet at Buckingham Palace, London, on day one of US President Donald Trump’s three day state visit to the UK. Picture date: Monday June 3, 2019. .,Image: 531562646, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon
Rose Hanbury (left) arrives at the State Banquet at Buckingham Palace, London, on day one of US President Donald Trump’s three day state visit to the UK. Picture date: Monday June 3, 2019. .,Image: 531562646, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon
Sarah Rose Hanbury and David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, at the Coronation of King Charles III at Westminster Abbey, London, on 06 May 2023.,Image: 774202187, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: James Veysey/Shutterstock / Avalon
Sarah Rose Hanbury and David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, at the Coronation of King Charles III at Westminster Abbey, London, on 06 May 2023.,Image: 774202212, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: James Veysey/Shutterstock / Avalon
Sarah Rose Hanbury and David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, at the Coronation of King Charles III at Westminster Abbey, London, on 06 May 2023.,Image: 774271057, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: James Veysey/Shutterstock / Avalon
KING’S LYNN, ENGLAND – JUNE 22: HRH Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attend a gala dinner in support of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices’ nook appeal at Houghton Hall on June 22, 2016 in King’s Lynn, England.
KING’S LYNN, ENGLAND – JUNE 22: HRH Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge are greeted by Rose Cholmondeley, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley as they attend a gala dinner in support of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices’ nook appeal at Houghton Hall on June 22, 2016 in King’s Lynn, England.
The Prince of Wales during a visit to Centrepoint in Ealing, west London to meet young people being supported by the charity. The centre in Ealing provides 17 beds for young people aged 16 to 25 experiencing homelessness, as well as support services such as employment opportunities and access to education and counselling to help users build an independent future. This year marks the 20th anniversary of William being a patron of Centrepoint, a youth homeless charity
Featuring: William, Prince of Wales
Where: London, United Kingdom
When: 21 Jan 2025
Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages
**NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
The Prince of Wales during a visit to Centrepoint in Ealing, west London to meet young people being supported by the charity. The centre in Ealing provides 17 beds for young people aged 16 to 25 experiencing homelessness, as well as support services such as employment opportunities and access to education and counselling to help users build an independent future. This year marks the 20th anniversary of William being a patron of Centrepoint, a youth homeless charity
Featuring: William, Prince of Wales
Where: London, United Kingdom
When: 21 Jan 2025
Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages
**NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
The Prince of Wales during a visit to Centrepoint in Ealing, west London to meet young people being supported by the charity. The centre in Ealing provides 17 beds for young people aged 16 to 25 experiencing homelessness, as well as support services such as employment opportunities and access to education and counselling to help users build an independent future. This year marks the 20th anniversary of William being a patron of Centrepoint, a youth homeless charity
Featuring: William, Prince of Wales
Where: London, United Kingdom
When: 21 Jan 2025
Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages
**NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
The Prince of Wales during a visit to Centrepoint in Ealing, west London to meet young people being supported by the charity. The centre in Ealing provides 17 beds for young people aged 16 to 25 experiencing homelessness, as well as support services such as employment opportunities and access to education and counselling to help users build an independent future. This year marks the 20th anniversary of William being a patron of Centrepoint, a youth homeless charity
Featuring: William, Prince of Wales
Where: London, United Kingdom
When: 21 Jan 2025
Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages
**NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
The Prince of Wales, known as the Duke of Rothesay when in Scotland, during a visit to East Scryne Farm in Carnoustie, Angus, to attend a roundtable hosted by the Farm Safety Foundation (Yellow Wellies), a charity working throughout the UK to address the attitudes and behaviours to farm safety and poor mental health in the next generation of farmers
Featuring: Prince William, Prince of Wales, Duke Of Rothesay
Where: Carnoustie, United Kingdom
When: 06 Feb 2025
Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages
**NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
