A new exhibition showcasing over 100 years of royal portrait photography has opened today (17 May) in London.

Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography is located at the King’s Gallery in Buckingham Palace and features some of the earliest known pictures of the royal family, including previously unseen portraits.

It also includes photographs from the first-ever portrait photographer to be given a royal warrant, Hugo Burnand, who has been capturing the current monarchy at milestone occasions for over two decades.

He told The Independent: “I always want people when they’re looking at the subjects in my photographs to feel that they could be in conversation with that person.”

Among those in receipt of the honour, which acts as an official seal of approval, are London department store Fortnum & Mason, sparkling wine producer Shane Connolly, and the florist who was responsible for the designs at last year’s coronation.

The chief executive of Fortnum & Mason, Tom Athron, said the company was “honoured” by the Queen’s decision.

“We are particularly thrilled to have received these grants because of what we believe the warrants stand for,” he said.

“To receive a royal warrant in 2024 requires a rigorous focus on acting for a sustainable future, supporting the country’s rural and farming communities and protecting the arts and heritage crafts.”

Warrants can last up to five years and within this time companies are permitted to trade using the coat of arms of the royal they are associated with.

The alleged comments come as the King attended five engagements within the space of just 48 hours – the most recent of which was a visit to the Royal Opera House last night.

The Queen Consort was in Rye yesterday for an event celebrating the area’s literary achievements.

King Charles was in high spirits at last night’s Royal Opera House engagement and even took to the stage at the end of the special gala performance.

This was in tribute to the venue’s outgoing music director, Sir Antonio Pappano, who was delighted by the Monarch’s kind words.

“He was just so generous in his praise, and genuinely so, and that means everything, he loves music,” he said.

This marked the Monarch’s fifth engagement in just two days following his return to work at the end of April.

He was allowed to continue with his public-facing duties after medics declared that he had made sufficient progress in his ongoing cancer treatment.

Last night’s performance was in tribute to the venue’s outgoing music director, Sir Antonio Pappano.

When I started campaigning for animal rights as a teenager in the 1980s, I was really inspired by an iconic poster created by anti-fur campaigners. Alongside an image of a smartly dressed woman holding a bloody fur coat was a corker of a slogan: “It takes up to 40 dumb animals to make a fur coat. But only one to wear it.”

If you’d told me back then that we’d still be discussing the issue four decades on, I wouldn’t have believed you. Surely this vain cruelty would have been eradicated long before 2024?

The oldest-surviving colour photographic print of a royal family member and an image marking Princess Kate’s 40th birthday are among those set to be displayed in the new exhibition.

Due to open at Buckingham Palace on Friday, Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography at the King’s Gallery will also contain works by the likes of Dorothy Wilding, Cecil Beaton, Annie Leibovitz, David Bailey, Andy Warhol and Rankin.

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Buckingham Palace made the revelation in a letter to Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), where it was said that the Queen, 76, “will not procure any new fur garments”.

“This comes with the Queen’s warmest wishes,” the palace added.

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Prince Harry’s bombshell memoir ‘Spare’ has been beaten in every category it was nominated for at the British Book Awards.

A puzzle book, children’s writer, comedian, and a former MP were among the winners that claimed victory over the duke at Monday night’s awards.

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The presenter and former host of Capital Radio’s Breakfast Show has become known as a vocal advocate for men’s mental health in recent years, fronting awareness campaigns and documentaries.

His 2021 film Our Silent Emergency, which explores the urgent issue of young men’s mental health and the prevalence of male suicide, was met with acclaim and is now shown to children in schools.

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