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| Sean Coughlan | Royal Correspondent |
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| Welcome to Royal Watch, which this week brings you sport, real-life crime and creativity. There were royals in the crowd roaring for the England women's football team as they beat Spain in the dramatic final of Euro 2025. A museum robbery last year had an expensive connection with the Royal Collection. And the Princess of Wales showed us what she’d put into her own exhibition. This week, we’re asking for your memories of days out at the royal residences - and you can even share your favourite photos. Email us at royalwatch@bbc.co.uk. | |
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Royal roars for the mighty Lionesses | The lion sculptures outside Buckingham Palace had some company this week, when the triumphant Lionesses came to celebrate their victory in Euro 2025. The England women's football players were cheered by crowds gathered around the Queen Victoria Memorial, in front of the palace gates. |
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 | An estimated 65,000 fans joined the celebrations in London. Credit: Getty | Prince William took his own lion cub, Princess Charlotte, to watch the final in Basel, Switzerland, having previously brought his son George to watch Aston Villa matches. For any family, such sporting days out are a big bonding opportunity. |
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 | William and Charlotte said they "couldn't be prouder" of the Lionesses. Credit: Getty | The public response to the team's win showed how the status of women's football in England has transformed - not least because this team actually win trophies. It's easy to forget that only two years ago Prince William faced criticism for not going to watch the Lionesses in the World Cup final in Australia. It seems now there would be no chance of missing the next tournament if the Lionesses are still roaring into the finals. |
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Royal quiz | Professor Michele Dougherty has become the first woman appointed as the UK's Astronomer Royal, a position that dates back to 1675. What was the job's main purpose back then?
A. To teach the Royal Family how to use astronomical instruments
B. To make astrological predictions for royal events
C. To advise the King on using stars to improve sea navigation
Read further down for the answer. | |
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A theft in France | Tucked away in the annual finances of the Royal Collection Trust was an intriguing reference to an insurance receipt for over £3m ($4m). Behind that rather dry detail in the accounts, published this week, was a dramatic daylight raid in Paris last November, in which thieves used an axe to break into display cases at the Cognacq-Jay Museum. |
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 | The stolen Fabrique Royale snuff box. Credit: Royal Collection Trust | The robbers are believed to have grabbed some small but extremely valuable items, including two 18th Century snuff boxes (once used to hold tobacco) on temporary loan from Britain's Royal Collection. One of the snuff boxes, encrusted with nearly 3,000 diamonds, had been bought in 1932 by Queen Mary, the great-grandmother of King Charles. It once belonged to the Russian royal family, before it was seized by the Soviet authorities in 1917. At the time of the robbery, there were reports of losses of about £863,000 ($1.1m), but it's now clear this was a much more expensive raid. The Royal Collection Trust, a charity that looks after royal artworks, says it will put the insurance money into a designated fund to enhance the rest of the collection. |
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Most popular royal residence | It's tourism season and the Royal Collection Trust's report showed Windsor Castle was the most popular of its royal residences, drawing almost 1.4 million visitors last year. But Buckingham Palace had record numbers for its summer opening, with almost 700,000 visitors having a look around its historic rooms.
The palace has been open to the public for over 30 years now. As well as remaining the symbolic headquarters of the monarchy, it's increasingly becoming a visitor attraction, with more rooms open to the public and for an increasing number of days. The East Wing, with its famous balcony overlooking the crunchy pink gravel in the forecourt, went on public view for the first time last year. |
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 | Inside the Centre Room which leads onto the famous Buckingham Palace balcony. Credit: Peter Smith/Royal Collection Trust | The report also showed the take-up of an offer for £1 tickets for people who receive universal credit or a range of other benefits. About 19,500 of these tickets were sold between January and April 2025 for entry to Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. These visitor numbers still put the royal residences behind the UK's most popular attractions, with the British Museum and Natural History Museum both drawing over six million visitors last year. |
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| Catherine the curator | A different type of royal collection went on show this week at the V&A East Storehouse, a new branch of the Victoria and Albert Museum in east London. The Princess of Wales chose items from the museum's huge archive for her personal mini-exhibition, called Makers and Creators. |
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 | Catherine was recently shown around the storehouse by museum director Tristram Hunt. Credit: Getty | A painting by children's author Beatrix Potter, a medieval church tile, and a handmade quilt were among the items she selected. There was also a ballet costume from the 1960s, a Chinese porcelain vase and a Victorian screen designed by an associate of William Morris. "Objects can tell a story. A collection of objects can create a narrative, both about our past and as inspiration for the future," said the princess, who seemed to enjoy this creative treasure trove when she previously visited the museum in June. |
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| Your Royal watch | Last week we asked which royal traditions you found the most fascinating and why, after my report on the annual royal swan count.
Marija in Lithuania said: "The Queen's, now the King's Christmas message has for years been the most fascinating for me."
Paddy in Australia is a fan of Trooping the Colour, and called it a "spectacular event… worth preserving for a long time." Rebecca from the USA added that "the pageantry blows my American mind."
And Catrina in Canada wrote: "I love to watch the Changing of the Guard. It is a long tradition and should be kept. It is absolutely beautiful."
This week, tell us about a time when you were a royal tourist, whether you visited Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle or any of the other residences. What's your lasting memory of the visit, and do you have a photo to share? Please include your name and the country you're writing from. Send your recollections to royalwatch@bbc.co.uk. | |
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A piece of royal history | Next week will mark 32 years since Queen Elizabeth II first opened Buckingham Palace to the paying public. Tourists were allowed inside while the Queen stayed at her Scottish residence, Balmoral. |
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 | Credit: Getty | There was big demand for the £8 ($10) tickets, with many people arriving early to get their hands on one. One of the initial sightseers told the BBC that he felt "like the first person on the Moon almost." The original plan was to only accept visitors until 1997, to generate income to pay for the restoration of Windsor Castle, which was damaged by fire in 1992. But the palace in central London has opened every summer since then. Additional reporting by Iain McDowell |
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How is Windsor preparing for Trump's visit? | King Charles will host the US president as part of his second state visit. What sort of planning goes into engagements like this? | Find out > |
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| In pictures: Royals attend 142nd flower show | The King and Queen Camilla were among 14,500 visitors who enjoyed the creative displays at the Sandringham Flower Show. | See the photos > |
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| Princess Anne presents King's Award to Hindu group | The award for voluntary service recognises the contribution made by the Wellingborough District Hindu Association. | Learn more > |
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