Latest news with #DumfriesHouse
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Beckham scores a winner with the royal circle
David Beckham looks set to be awarded a knighthood in the King's Birthday Honours, but the ex-footballer has already become a very visible part of the royal circle. It can feel sometimes, in football terms, as if Beckham has been man-marking the royals, as he's become an ever-present at royal occasions. The Chelsea Flower Show, a Buckingham Palace state banquet, an Italian dinner at Highgrove, charity events, have all seen the Beckhams in the line-up of guests to meet the royals. Last month, Catherine, the Princess of Wales, wore a dress designed by Victoria Beckham at a British Fashion Council event. There is an independent honours committee that considers who should get awards such as knighthoods, rather than the royals. But if he becomes "Sir David", the ceremony won't be the first time he'll have met the royals. There is already a close relationship. At the recent Chelsea Flower Show, a conversation between the King and Queen and Beckham seemed to hint at birthday gifts being exchanged. "Nice to see you again, glad you got the roses," Queen Camilla seemed to be saying about this flowering relationship. It's not just roses he's cultivating, as David Beckham has some new shared passions with the royals, a long way from his days as a footballer. He swapped "bee-keeping tips" with King Charles at a meeting at his Highgrove Estate in Gloucestershire last year. Beckham set to be awarded knighthood Rugby league anger at no knighthoods in 130 years 'East End boy' Beckham helps with Prince William fundraiser The former England star has become an enthusiastic environmentalist, taking on the role of ambassador for the King's Foundation, which promotes traditional crafts. "Having developed a love for the countryside I'm also on a personal mission to learn more about rural skills which is so central to the foundation's work," said Beckham. He attended an awards ceremony run by the King's Foundation at St James's Palace where he was teased by another guest, Sir Rod Stewart, who told Beckham that his knighthood "was coming soon". That could prove far-sighted of Sir Rod if the current speculation is correct. At the awards event, Beckham showed his versatility, manning an exhibition about bringing together science, technology and nature, including a display of hand knitting using Dumfries House wool. As a footballer he must have rarely played so many different positions. For the royals, Beckham has plenty of authentic star appeal, developing a post-football identity as a celebrity involved in charity projects. His iconic sporting status is strong enough to attract public attention and he's supported many different causes. For an air ambulance fundraiser last year, it was Beckham that Prince William asked to help successfully raise £15m. "I had to hide my excitement a little bit," said Beckham afterwards about being asked to get involved. It was once considered important to keep honours a secret until they were officially announced, but details of this award seems to have emerged early, even though there is no official confirmation from the Cabinet Office, the government department that oversees honours. The news of "Sir David" might raise concerns among other sports, who will be looking out for their own stars in next week's honours. Rugby league authorities and supporters have complained that their sport has never had a single knighthood or damehood in 130 years. There have also been challenges about whether top honours are being given to the most deserving. But in terms of David Beckham's long wait for a knighthood - if they thought it was all over, it is now. Sign up here to get the latest royal stories and analysis every week with our Royal Watch newsletter. Those outside the UK can sign up here.
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Construction worker turned kiltmaker to light up New York City catwalks
A former Ayrshire construction worker who designed the first tartan to journey into the cosmos is preparing to illuminate the catwalks of New York City. Graeme Bone, from Auchinleck, has designed and produced five outfits for the Dressed To Kilt fashion show, a highlight of New York's Tartan Week celebrations next month. Commissioned by Dressed To Kilt organiser Dr Geoffrey Scott Carroll, the designs will grace the runway on stars including Ayrshire singer and 2011 Britain's Got Talent winner, Jai McDowall. Mr Bone said the show could be a 'pivotal' point in a career that has already established him as one of Scotland's foremost tailors of Highland wear. 'Geoffrey had seen my work through online presence and from past articles and said he thought it was fantastic and really cool,' he said. 'That blew me away. It is an astounding chance for me and hopefully it could be a pivotal point in my career. 'The feeling of pride is literally inexplicable and I'm looking forward to representing myself, my brand and The King's Foundation at Tartan Week.' The 39-year-old worked in construction for 11 years before retraining in fashion, initially via a college course and later through courses run by the King's Foundation at Dumfries House. The kiltmaker now receives private commissions from international clients and is known to the King, and in 2022 he designed a tartan that became the first to go into space. However for McDowall the forthcoming show will be a celebration of the pair's home county of Ayrshire. 'I love Scotland and this is a way to connect with my Scottishness,' he said. 'With Graeme's outfits, me with my Tarbolton roots, and the Ayrshire choir Songs For All all taking part, it will be a proper celebration of Ayrshire as well. 'It will be a proud moment when we all step out to strut our stuff.' Mr Bone also reflected on the support he received as he embarked on his career change, giving particular credit to the King, whom he has kept updated as his career has blossomed. 'I find him to be an amazing man – he's so genuinely interested in giving opportunities to people who would otherwise have no access to them,' Mr Bone said. 'I'm so glad I've had the chance to be able to think bigger than myself. Being told by His Majesty that he's proud of me makes me feel like I've come further than my younger self could have ever thought possible. 'Growing up in Auchinleck, Dumfries House was just down the road. We used to fish on the river and pinch apples to make cider from the ancient orchard. 'It felt pretty surreal, years on, to be sat behind a sewing machine chatting to HRH Prince of Wales.' The fashion designer added that studying at Dumfries House equipped him with practical skills, but its 'real value has been in the doors it's opened up for me'. He went on: 'I had the chance to meet so many inspirational people from the fashion industry, which boosted my confidence and helped me focus on what my end goal could be.' Dressed To Kilt was co-founded in 2003 by Dr Carroll and the late Sir Sean Connery, and takes place in The Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York on April 5.
The Independent
30-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Construction worker turned kiltmaker set to light up New York City catwalks
A former Ayrshire construction worker who designed the first tartan to go into space is set to light up the catwalks of New York City. Graeme Bone, from Auchinleck, has designed and produced five outfits for the Dressed To Kilt fashion show, which is part of New York's Tartan Week festivities taking place next month. The designs were commissioned by Dressed To Kilt organiser Dr Geoffrey Scott Carroll, and will be modelled by stars including Ayrshire singer Jai McDowall, winner of Britain's Got Talent in 2011. Mr Bone said the show could be a 'pivotal' point in a career that has already established him as one of Scotland's foremost tailors of Highland wear. 'Geoffrey had seen my work through online presence and from past articles and said he thought it was fantastic and really cool,' he said. 'That blew me away. It is an astounding chance for me and hopefully it could be a pivotal point in my career. 'The feeling of pride is literally inexplicable and I'm looking forward to representing myself, my brand and The King's Foundation at Tartan Week.' The 39-year-old worked in construction for 11 years before retraining in fashion, initially via a college course and later through courses run by the King's Foundation at Dumfries House. The kiltmaker now receives private commissions from international clients and is known to the King, and in 2022 he designed a tartan that became the first to go into space. However for McDowall the forthcoming show will be a celebration of the pair's home county of Ayrshire. 'I love Scotland and this is a way to connect with my Scottishness,' he said. 'With Graeme's outfits, me with my Tarbolton roots, and the Ayrshire choir Songs For All all taking part, it will be a proper celebration of Ayrshire as well. 'It will be a proud moment when we all step out to strut our stuff.' Mr Bone also reflected on the support he received as he embarked on his career change, giving particular credit to the King, whom he has kept updated as his career has blossomed. 'I find him to be an amazing man – he's so genuinely interested in giving opportunities to people who would otherwise have no access to them,' Mr Bone said. 'I'm so glad I've had the chance to be able to think bigger than myself. Being told by His Majesty that he's proud of me makes me feel like I've come further than my younger self could have ever thought possible. 'Growing up in Auchinleck, Dumfries House was just down the road. We used to fish on the river and pinch apples to make cider from the ancient orchard. 'It felt pretty surreal, years on, to be sat behind a sewing machine chatting to HRH Prince of Wales.' The fashion designer added that studying at Dumfries House equipped him with practical skills, but its 'real value has been in the doors it's opened up for me'. He went on: 'I had the chance to meet so many inspirational people from the fashion industry, which boosted my confidence and helped me focus on what my end goal could be.' Dressed To Kilt was co-founded in 2003 by Dr Carroll and the late Sir Sean Connery, and takes place in The Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York on April 5.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Construction worker turned kiltmaker set to light up New York City catwalks
A former Ayrshire construction worker who designed the first tartan to go into space is set to light up the catwalks of New York City. Graeme Bone, from Auchinleck, has designed and produced five outfits for the Dressed To Kilt fashion show, which is part of New York's Tartan Week festivities taking place next month. The designs were commissioned by Dressed To Kilt organiser Dr Geoffrey Scott Carroll, and will be modelled by stars including Ayrshire singer Jai McDowall, winner of Britain's Got Talent in 2011. Mr Bone said the show could be a 'pivotal' point in a career that has already established him as one of Scotland's foremost tailors of Highland wear. 'Geoffrey had seen my work through online presence and from past articles and said he thought it was fantastic and really cool,' he said. 'That blew me away. It is an astounding chance for me and hopefully it could be a pivotal point in my career. 'The feeling of pride is literally inexplicable and I'm looking forward to representing myself, my brand and The King's Foundation at Tartan Week.' The 39-year-old worked in construction for 11 years before retraining in fashion, initially via a college course and later through courses run by the King's Foundation at Dumfries House. The kiltmaker now receives private commissions from international clients and is known to the King, and in 2022 he designed a tartan that became the first to go into space. However for McDowall the forthcoming show will be a celebration of the pair's home county of Ayrshire. 'I love Scotland and this is a way to connect with my Scottishness,' he said. 'With Graeme's outfits, me with my Tarbolton roots, and the Ayrshire choir Songs For All all taking part, it will be a proper celebration of Ayrshire as well. 'It will be a proud moment when we all step out to strut our stuff.' Mr Bone also reflected on the support he received as he embarked on his career change, giving particular credit to the King, whom he has kept updated as his career has blossomed. 'I find him to be an amazing man – he's so genuinely interested in giving opportunities to people who would otherwise have no access to them,' Mr Bone said. 'I'm so glad I've had the chance to be able to think bigger than myself. Being told by His Majesty that he's proud of me makes me feel like I've come further than my younger self could have ever thought possible. 'Growing up in Auchinleck, Dumfries House was just down the road. We used to fish on the river and pinch apples to make cider from the ancient orchard. 'It felt pretty surreal, years on, to be sat behind a sewing machine chatting to HRH Prince of Wales.' The fashion designer added that studying at Dumfries House equipped him with practical skills, but its 'real value has been in the doors it's opened up for me'. He went on: 'I had the chance to meet so many inspirational people from the fashion industry, which boosted my confidence and helped me focus on what my end goal could be.' Dressed To Kilt was co-founded in 2003 by Dr Carroll and the late Sir Sean Connery, and takes place in The Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York on April 5.
Telegraph
05-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
King learned how to grow veg from me, says Raymond Blanc
Cementing their partnership, Blanc's Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons will now work with the King's Foundation, offering training and development opportunities for students and staff at Dumfries House in Ayrshire and Highgrove Gardens, Glos. The King's charity, which promotes slow food and fashion, offers courses and educational programmes on a vast range of heritage crafts and skills, from embroidery and woodwork to hedge-laying. Blanc hailed the King for his role in helping to change society's attitudes towards sustainability. 'Way back in the 1970s, he had to fight, which was not easy because there were so many detractors,' he said. 'I think now it's wonderful to see really, that the King's views are now totally accepted and very much part of this new world order, where we are doing something about it.' He said that modern consumers now cared much more about buying luxury goods that would last. 'Excellence in the past was all about the outside – gold painted while inside was toxic,' he said. 'The way excellence is working today – whether it is textiles, whether it is cars – is creating things which are recyclable. 'We have a modern guest who is much more responsible, much more knowledgeable, who wants a different form of excellence. 'We don't want that gold-plated luxury. We want to know what's inside… when you buy a car, you will ask different questions than yesterday. 'And the King has been very much instrumental in this change.' 'Brother in arms' To mark his role as an ambassador, Blanc created a three-course lunch at Highgrove on Wednesday for the annual Winter Warmers event, an initiative designed to tackle social isolation. Speaking at Highgrove, Blanc said he considered the King a 'brother in arms'. 'I am very happy and honoured as a Frenchman, a French republican, to be an ambassador, to serve the cause,' he said of his new role at the foundation. 'We want to create lots of engagement between our gardens, an exchange of skills. I certainly would love to consider doing a garden cookery school.' He paid tribute to his mother and father, who instilled in him a culture of growing food and not wasting anything. On the King's visit to Le Manoir, he added: 'He spent three hours in the pelting rain asking endless questions and I felt he was a brother in arms.' Blanc is the 10th ambassador to join the foundation, with one or two more due to be announced later this year, as the charity marks its 35th anniversary. 'Incredible opportunities' A spokesman said they were aiming for broad appeal. 'It is part of an effort to deepen the impact of the foundation's work, and ensure a wider audience is aware of the incredible opportunities we can offer to our students in particular,' they said. 'We are keen to have committed people on board who share our vision of a world where people, places and the planet can live in harmony, who are passionate about nature, and who can inspire our students and staff.' Blanc joins a new cohort of high-profile new signings at the foundation, among them, David Beckham, Sienna Miller, Rod Stewart and his wife Penny Lancaster. The charity said it was keen to work alongside those who were 'genuinely interested' in its work and could get deeply and actively involved. Beckham is focused on young people and beekeeping, while Miller is interested in textiles and Lancaster, a volunteer special constable, is interested in building communities.
