• Rod Stewart told King Charles “you put that little rat bag in his place” at a London gala Monday night
• The comment came at The King’s Trust 50th Anniversary Celebration at Royal Albert Hall
• Stewart, 81, was referencing Charles’ recent four-day state visit to the US, including a historic address to Congress
• Charles appeared to laugh off the remark as Ronnie Wood grinned alongside them
• Stewart and Trump were once friendly neighbors in Florida before their falling out last year

Rod Stewart has never been one to hold back — and Monday night at Royal Albert Hall was no exception. At The King’s Trust 50th Anniversary Celebration in London, the rock legend pulled King Charles aside on the receiving line and offered some very enthusiastic, very on-brand congratulations for his recent US state visit.

“May I say, well done in the Americas,” Stewart, 81, told the monarch. “You were superb. Absolutely superb. You put that little rat bag in his place.”

The remark — widely understood as a reference to President Donald Trump — was caught on video and shared by the Daily Mail’s Rebecca English. Charles, who by royal tradition is expected to remain politically neutral, didn’t visibly respond to the dig itself, but those nearby appeared to laugh. Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood was standing right there, grinning.

Stewart apparently kept going, adding: “Exactly, that’s it — it went right over his head, right over his head.” He then turned to Queen Camilla and said: “I was just congratulating your husband on his wonderful performance in the Americas, so great, so brave, so proud.”

https://x.com/RE_DailyMail/status/2053919996594864302?s=20

What Charles Actually Did in America

The praise, however colorfully delivered, wasn’t without basis. Charles and Camilla’s four-day US trip was widely regarded as a diplomatic high-wire act — and by most accounts, the King stuck the landing.

He made history with an address to a joint session of Congress, following in the footsteps of his late mother Queen Elizabeth, who did the same in 1991. He leaned into the humor of the moment — “King George never set foot in America and, please rest assured, I am not here as part of some cunning rearguard action!” — but also delivered some pointed substance, calling on America to continue defending Ukraine and stressing the importance of NATO, positions that have been notably at odds with the current White House.

“The challenges we face are too great for any one nation to bear alone,” Charles told Congress. “But in this unpredictable environment, our alliance cannot rest on past achievements, or assume that foundational principles simply endure.”

He described the present moment as “more volatile and more dangerous” than when his mother visited — and his visit came just days after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, which he acknowledged from the podium.

At the state dinner hosted by the Trumps, Charles got off another memorable line: “If it wasn’t for us, you’d be speaking French!” Trump, for his part, told reporters afterward that the King “made a great speech” and that he was “very jealous.”

Washington-based royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith told People: “Politicians of every stripe saw King Charles in a new and more favorable light.”

Rod and Trump: It’s Complicated

Stewart’s swipe at Trump landed with a little extra context for anyone who knows their backstory. The two were once friendly — neighbors in Florida, even — but that relationship cooled significantly. In an interview with Radio Times last year, Stewart said he no longer considered Trump a friend, pointing to the administration’s arms sales to Israel amid the Gaza conflict.

“How’s that war ever gonna stop?” Stewart said at the time. He went further: “He’s always been a bit of a man’s man. I liked him for that. But he didn’t, as far as I’m concerned, treat women very well. But since he became President, he became another guy. Somebody I didn’t know.”

Monday night’s red carpet moment was just the latest proof that the old friendship is firmly in the rearview.

A Big Night for The King’s Trust

The gala itself was a celebration of 50 years of the King’s Trust, the youth charity Charles founded in 1976 that has helped more than 1.3 million young people across the UK. The evening at Royal Albert Hall featured performances from Rita Ora, Anne-Marie, Craig David, Skye Newman, and Jools Holland, with hosts Ant and Dec welcoming the royals on the red carpet. Benedict Cumberbatch, Idris Elba, George Clooney, and Amal Clooney were also among the guests.

The night had genuinely moving moments too — award winner Sahara gave an emotional speech thanking the trust for helping her after she had attempted to take her own life.

Charles closed out the evening with a joke at Ant and Dec’s expense: “I’ve always wondered whether someone would put Ant and Dec back in their box” — as the duo vacated the royal box and the King and Queen took the stage in their place.

Stewart’s rat bag comment will almost certainly be the clip that travels furthest. But then again, that’s usually how it goes when Rod Stewart gets a microphone — or a receiving line.

The post Rod Stewart Tells King Charles: ‘You Put That Little Rat Bag in His Place’ appeared first on Cream.

• King Charles reportedly used his solo U.S. trip to meet Donald Trump as a deliberate show of authority over Prince William.
• A source claims Charles finds William’s eagerness to take power “offensive” and wants his son to “bide his time.”
• William is said to be furious over what he sees as a broken promise — that some power would be handed to him.
• The Prince of Wales is also reportedly blocking Prince Andrew from getting a private audience with the King.
• Charles, 77, is battling cancer but has shown no signs of stepping back from his royal duties.

King Charles III is not going anywhere — and he wants Prince William to know it.

The 77-year-old monarch, who is continuing his duties despite an ongoing cancer battle, reportedly made a pointed statement last month when he traveled to the United States to meet with President Donald Trump — without his eldest son by his side. According to insiders, that trip wasn’t just diplomacy. It was a message.

“Charles has made it clear he’s still very much the top dog, and that William needs to know his place,” a source told In Touch Weekly.

The same insider says Charles views any perceived impatience from his son as not just premature — but disrespectful. Having spent decades waiting in the wings himself before Queen Elizabeth II’s death in September 2022 finally brought him to the throne, Charles apparently expects William, 43, to demonstrate the same kind of restraint.

“His message for William is that he needs to bide his time and show patience and respect instead of chomping at the bit to unseat him,” the source added.

A Promise William Feels Was Broken

What’s making this particularly raw for the Prince of Wales, according to sources, is the sense that he was led to believe things would be different by now.

“He was promised that some power would be ceded to him,” an insider said. “Instead, his father is clearly on this mission to stamp his authority on the monarchy.”

That gap between expectation and reality is reportedly fueling real tension. The situation is said to be “not going over well” with William, who is described as “stomping his feet over what he sees as a bait-and-switch” situation. And the frustration isn’t just about timing — it’s about direction.

“It really hits a nerve because he doesn’t approve of the way his father is handling things,” the source said. “That’s ultimately at the core of William’s anger.”

One flashpoint: Charles’s reported leniency toward his disgraced brother, Prince Andrew. William has made no secret of his feelings that Andrew — who stepped back from royal duties following his association with Jeffrey Epstein — should not be welcomed back into the fold. And when Andrew reportedly began pushing for a private meeting with the King, William moved to block it.

William Draws a Hard Line on Andrew

According to reporting from Rob Shuter’s Naughty But Nice Substack, the Prince of Wales is actively working to prevent his uncle from getting that audience — and he’s not being subtle about it.

“William controls the room — and Andrew isn’t getting in without answers. William has drawn a hard line. No transparency, no meeting. It’s that simple,” a source told the outlet.

The sticking point, per insiders, is that Andrew has refused to explain what the meeting would even be about. “He won’t brief aides, he won’t loop in family — he’ll only speak directly to the King,” a source said. William, apparently, isn’t having it. “There’s no path back with William in charge. He’s not negotiating — he’s enforcing.”

It’s a striking dynamic — the heir apparent wielding real influence over palace access, even as the King himself reportedly finds his son’s broader ambitions offensive. Charles allegedly bristles at the idea that William is so visibly, eagerly waiting for the crown to change hands.

For now, the King’s position appears firm. He’s still working, still traveling, still very much in charge. And if his solo trip to Washington was meant to underscore that point, it seems to have landed exactly as intended.

The post Charles vs. William: The Royal Power Struggle Heating Up appeared first on Cream.

• Royal author Christopher Andersen claims Kate Middleton told Prince William she was “done” with Harry after his May 2025 BBC interview
• Harry said he didn’t know “how much longer my father has” — a comment that left Kate “more disappointed than angry”
• Kate’s own cancer battle made the remark especially personal, having bonded closely with King Charles over their shared diagnoses
• William was reportedly “apoplectic with rage,” and for the first time, Kate fully sided with her husband against his brother
• Andersen’s new book Kate! The Courage, Grace, and Power of the Woman Who Will Be Queen is out May 5

For years, Kate Middleton was the one person in the royal family quietly trying to hold things together. The steady presence. The peacemaker. The one who, even as the rift between Prince William and Prince Harry deepened into something that looked increasingly permanent, kept working to bridge it. That, according to royal author Christopher Andersen, is what makes the moment she finally walked away so significant.

And it came down to six words from Harry: “I don’t know how much longer my father has.”

The remark, made during a bombshell BBC interview in May 2025, was Harry speaking openly about King Charles’s ongoing cancer battle — the diagnosis that had been made public in February 2024 following a prostate procedure. In context, it read as concern from an estranged son. But inside Kensington Palace, it landed very differently.

“The damage was done: seeds of doubt concerning the King’s chances for a full recovery had been sown,” Andersen writes in an excerpt from his upcoming book, Kate! The Courage, Grace, and Power of the Woman Who Will Be Queen, obtained exclusively by Us Weekly. The book publishes Tuesday, May 5.

Why This Hit Kate Differently Than Anything Before

Kate, 44, has heard plenty from Harry over the years. The memoir Spare. The interviews. The slow, grinding accumulation of grievances aired publicly. She absorbed it all and kept going, kept trying. But this was different — and the reason is personal in a way that goes beyond palace politics.

Kate was diagnosed with cancer in March 2024, just weeks after Charles went public with his own diagnosis. The two went through treatment in parallel, and by most accounts, that shared experience forged a genuine closeness between them. In January 2025, Kate announced her cancer was in remission.

Andersen, speaking exclusively to Us Weekly, explained exactly why Harry’s words cut through in a way that previous controversies hadn’t. “I think Kate’s relationship with her father-in-law over their shared cancer battles really has made her much more sensitive to King Charles’s feelings,” he said. “She knows better than anyone that having someone publicly imply you may be at death’s door is horribly demoralizing.”

He added: “I’m sure Kate must have felt stung by that comment as well, since she is in a situation very similar to the king’s.”

That’s the thing about this moment that separates it from all the others. It wasn’t just a slight against the institution or a dig at William. It touched something Kate understood viscerally — the particular cruelty of having your mortality made into a public talking point while you’re still fighting.

The Peacemaker Hands Over the Hammer

A Sandringham staffer, quoted in Andersen’s book, put it plainly: “Princess Catherine is ‘the sweetest, most loving person you could ever know,’ but like everyone else, she has her limits.”

She’d reached them.

William’s reaction to the interview was immediate and explosive. Andersen writes that the Prince of Wales, “who had already slammed the door shut on his brother over what Harry wrote in Spare, was, in the words of a courtier, ‘apoplectic’ with rage.” The physical altercations Harry described in that 2023 memoir, the years of public grievances, the steady erosion of trust — William had already made his decision. Harry’s BBC interview was the confirmation, not the cause.

For Kate, it was both. “Now it was time to nail the door shut once and for all,” Andersen writes, “and for the first time Kate, who had worked harder than anyone to mend the rift between the brothers, willingly handed her husband a hammer.”

According to the book, Kate “promised” William that she “was done” with the Duke of Sussex. No ambiguity. No more attempts at diplomacy. Done.

Andersen told Us Weekly he doesn’t see Harry and Kate “having any sort of relationship” going forward. “At least not for the foreseeable future,” he said.

Where Things Stand Now

Harry and Meghan Markle have been living in Montecito, California since stepping back from royal duties in January 2020. Their children, Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 4, have grown up largely removed from the family their father was born into. Harry has said publicly that he wants to reconcile with his father and brother — but reconciliation requires something to work with on both sides.

The portrait Andersen paints is of a door that isn’t just closed, but locked — and the person who spent years propping it open has finally stepped away from it entirely.

“She has her limits.” Apparently, this was it.

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