Actor Treat Williams, who portrayed the recurring role of Lenny Ross on Blue Bloods, died in a tragic motorcycle crash which took place on June 12.
According to the police, he was taken by helicopter to the Albany Medical Center in New York, but later passed away. The accident took place after a 2008 Honda SUV crashed into the actor, reportedly because the driver of the vehicle didn’t see Williams as he was turning left into a parking lot.
“He was killed this afternoon. He was making a left or a right [and] a car cut him off,” Barry McPherson, Williams’ agent of 15 years, said in a statement to People. “I’m just devastated. He was the nicest guy. He was so talented.”
McPherson continued: “He was an actor’s actor. Filmmakers loved him. He’s been the heart of Hollywood since the late 1970s. He was really proud of his performance this year. He’s been so happy with the work that I got him. He’s had a balanced career.”
His co-workers paid their tribute and expressed their sadness over Williams’ sudden passing.
Williams appeared in a total of six episodes of Blue Bloods throughout the years where he played alongside Tom Selleck, who was his very close friend in real life, and Bridget Moynahan.
“It has been said that we are all just passing time and occupy our chair very briefly,” Selleck shared. “My friend Treat was aptly named and occupied his chair so well. I will miss him, but I will not forget him. Well done, my friend.”
Moynahan described her late colleague as an “absolute pleasure” and a “role model off screen. His love and devotion to his family was one for all to admire. We lost a good one, folks. RIP Treat.”
Throughout the years, Williams played in a number of films and series, including the cinematic adaptation of the Broadway hit Hair, Prince of the City, Smooth Talk, Mulholland Falls, and 127 Hours. He also appeared White Collar and Chicago Fire.
May he rest in peace.
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Geri Jewell has paved the way for people with disabilities who dreamed of pursuing careers in Hollywood when she landed the role of Geri Tyler in The Facts of Life. She played a recurring side role of someone who had cerebral palsy, just like Jewell had in real life.
When her mother was still pregnant with Jewell, she was involved in a car accident which resulted with Jewell being born three months prematurely. Shortly after, she was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. However, despite the diagnosis and the struggles, this woman never let anything stand on her way of achieving her dream.
Even as a young child, she was encouraged to do everything on her own. Her parents would tape a spoon on her hand in order to teach her how to eat by herself, and they would sandbag her arm to help with the shaking.
Cast members from the television series ‘The Facts of Life” / Getty Images
In the sole interview her mother Olga gave during her daughter’s acting career, she said, ”It was very devastating. I knew a lot about cerebral palsy, so I knew what I was in for.” But she never stopped finding ways to ease her daughter’s life as much as she could.
Speaking of her parents, Jewell said in 1984, ”They thought if I didn’t learn to fight when I was young I wouldn’t when I was older.”
American actress and comedian Geri Jewell, January 1981 / Getty Images
In her autobiography, she talked about her fight and what it was all about.
”Your mind knows what your body is supposed to be doing, but the brain’s message aren’t getting through…. By learning the way your muscles would work if half your brains weren’t on vacation, we can minimize the visible aspects of our disability.”
Jewell, who was doing stand-up comedy, got her role in The Facts of Life when she was approached by showrunner Norman Lear before the show was on television. “I got a standing ovation, and I ran into Norman in the elevator. He said, ‘You’ll be hearing from me really soon, kid.’ Three months later, he called me with the ‘Cousin Geri’ episode [in season two],” Jewell explained.
After appearing in twelve episodes over four years, she got fired in 1984.
”I was broke. My manager got arrested for embezzlement and securities fraud. My life was in shambles, and I had to go on every major talk show, promoting a book that had little to do with what my life was really about. It was perpetuating the myth that I had succeeded, overcome cerebral palsy and blah blah blah. It was a hypocrisy to the truth of my life as I lived it,” she told Ability Magazine.
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Following the show, she landed other roles, including 21 Jump Street and The Young and the Restless. In the series Deadwood, she played a role of a woman with cerebral palsy.
Today, Jewell is a motivational speaker and an advocate for people with disabilities.
Geri Jewell is seen on January 19, 2023 in Los Angeles, California / PhoMax/GC Images
”What’s different today is that I’m centered, not emotionally all over the place, and that allows me to relax more. But in the’80s, when I was struggling with my sexuality, had a crooked manager who stole all my money, a show that didn’t renew my contract and a book out that I hated, I couldn’t handle it. It amazes me that I even lived through those years. I’m lucky I’m still alive,” she says.
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Born in Rome, Italy, on September 25, 1925, actress Silvana Pampanini conquered the world. However, despite the infatuation every big American studio had for her, she declined every offer which came from the States.
Even as a child, Pampanini, who was the niece of famed soprano Rosetta Pampanini, showed immense talent in acting and singing. At the time, she was encouraged by her aunt to pursue a career as an opera singer,
she went on to study at the famous and historical music high school Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia which dates back to the 16th century.
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“I am very attached to the memory of my parents. An amazing dad and a beautiful mom, I’ve never been as beautiful as my mom; dad had green eyes, and mom blue eyes like a piece of sky,” Pampanini recalled.
“My parents would have liked me to continue my opera career, especially my aunt Rosetta Pampanini, a very famous opera singer at the time, who was actually a cousin of my father’s.”
She added: “I had four octaves and could go from Carmen to the “Caro nome” of Rigoletto with the high E-flat. I also studied dance at the Rome Opera, I danced en pointe.”
Marcello Salustri/Mondadori via Getty Images
Pampanini first came to international recognition after winning the contest Miss Italia. She was signed to compete by one of her teachers without her knowledge. She came second, but the public was so outraged at the organizers that they crowned both Pampanini and the other girl Miss Italia.
It wasn’t long before Pampanini appeared in a number of magazines that dubbed her an Italian sex symbol. Her physical appearance enchanted many. Her large bright eyes, jet-black hair, long legs, and charisma made many fall for her.
She herself was aware of her beauty and she once said, “I believe I am a rare beauty; there are no other brunettes like me except for Ava Gardner.” This wasn’t away from the truth.
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At the start of her acting career, this diva grew to prominence almost overnight, working with directors such as Luigi Comencini and Giuseppe De Santis. She soon became the highest-paid actress in Italy and appeared in several Hollywood movies. In 1954, the New York Mirror wrote of her as of the Italian Marilyn Monroe.
Her Hollywood career could be one of the most successful there are, but there was something that stood on her way, her poor English. Pampanini was ashamed of the way she spoke English. “My English, eet is terrible. Poor me,” she once said. As a result, she decided to return to her homeland where she continued acting and became a famous presenter.
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Over the years, there were plenty of rumors surrounding the men she dated, although she never married and didn’t have any children. Reportedly, she flirted with William Holden and Orson Welles, and some sources claim she even had a romantic connection to Cuban leader Fidel Castro and Egypt’s King Farouk I.
During the 1950s, she was romantically involved with Greek movie producer Ergas Morris who allegedly bought her very expensive presents, among which a $50,000 diamond necklace. When they called it quits, he sued her in an attempt to get the money he spent on presents back. She on the other hand claimed he only gifted her normal presents, nothing out of the ordinary. “I could call it blackmail,” she said of his claims. “There are the unpleasantries which, I think, sooner or later, happen to almost all people who have achieved a certain popularity.”
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Silvana Pampanini, the great diva, died in 2016 after spending her final months in a hospital following a complex abdominal operation she was trying to recover from.
“[I’m most proud of] my entire career,” she once said. “Because alone, without producer husbands and screenwriter or director lovers, I conquered the world, shooting in France, America, Spain, Mexico. Well, this is my greatest pride: I don’t have to thank anyone.”
Two months prior to her passing, all of her belongings, including her precious dresses, were auctioned.
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Her private life was a mysterious one, and she will always be considered an icon.
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Sydne Rome was considered the golden girl from the American Midwest, who started her career in Europe and enchanted millions. Unfortunately, she eventually decided to leave Hollywood behind after an accident left her scarred for life.
Rome first showed interest in acting while at high school. None of her parents, not even a member of her family, was in the acting business, but she somehow fell for it.
“There was nothing in the family that should have given me my craze for acting,” she told the Daily News in 1974. “My father had a plastic company, and my mother is just ‘mom.’ I have two sisters and two brothers, all younger.”
Rome had other plans for the future, but the thought of becoming an actress was there and she decided to listen to her heart so she moved to Pennsylvania, and the famous Carnegie Tech School of Acting at Pittsburgh University.
“I planned to enter Northwestern University after finishing high school. But there, I was told that if I were seriously interested in acting, I should study at Tech. So I did, and I’m glad I did,” she told The Pittsburgh Press.
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At university, she was coached by the likes of voice actress Edith Skinner and Bern Stearn, which led to roles in several stage productions, including Tania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Nina in Anton Chekhov’s The Sea Gull.
However, once she graduated from the university, Rome had a hard time finding her way to the place where dreams come true, Hollywood. She was rejected for the role in the film Candy so after another year with the Pasadena Playhouse she decided to try her luck in Europe.
Speaking of that chapter of her life, Rome told the Daily News, “I had a terrible time in Rome with young Italian directors who wanted me to play in the nude. I didn’t want to do it. Now my view is different. Playing in the nude has become part of our trade. Provided it is really called for in the script and doesn’t involve brutal love scenes, it’s OK by me.”
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In 1972, she had her big breakthrough which dubbed her “the up-and-coming Jean Harlow or Raquel Welch, the ticking Sex Bomb of the nineteen-eighties,” the film What? directed by Roman Polanski.
“[Brigitte] is wonderful, exciting, very open, terribly available. She is everyman’s dream. Perhaps at first look, I seem less available. But I think audiences will take a second look and think differently. And I am a better actress than Bardot,” Rome once said of people comparing her to Bardot.
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As the 70s were coming to an end, Rome starred in David Hemmings’s film Just a Gigolo alongside David Bowie, with whom she allegedly had an affair, according to the media.
“We were friends. When I was going to Berlin to have the first [script] readings, I was told that they hadn’t found the leading man. He [Bowie] had an interest in that period of Germany, between the two world wars, so I thought maybe David would like to do this part. I called him and asked if I could send him the script. We did so and he accepted,” she told NME in 2021.
“I met him because he called me to accompany him to Paris to see the premiere of his film, and I accepted [the offer for Just a Gigolo] immediately,” Rome. “We were together for a year. He was so much fun and appetizing.”
15th February 1979: British rock singer David Bowie with American-born actress Sydne Rome. (Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images)
At the beginning of the 80s, Rome returned to Italy and started making music, releasing several albums.
At one point in her life, she felt devastated because her career in the States never really flourished the way she imagined it.
“I’m well-known worldwide except America,” she said. “I love creative work, but I hate the business side of my ‘career.’ An actress can get to feel she’s just a business asset – that no one cares about her, but only what she represents in terms of a deal.”
“Being in films can be terrible for a woman – no, it’s not just having passes made, I can take care of that,” Sydne continued. “But it’s the years you have to slog before anyone realky respects you at all. Actresses are not supposed to have any brains.”
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She concluded: “Maybe that’s why so many actors and actresses feel insecure.– the woman more than the men. I have several actress friends, and we cry on each others’ shoulders. Actually, actors make friends easily, because they don’t really belong to any particular class – they’re not aristocrats, or middle-class, or lower-class. They can fit in anywhere.”
Following her divorce from her first husband Emillio Lari, Rome tied the knot with doctor Roberto Bernabei. The two adopted two twin sisters together, Vanessa and Jesse.
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In 2009, Rome and one of her daughters got involved in a car accident after she ended up veering off the road and hitting a tree. The airbag blew up her face and left a lot of damage.
“I went to the hospital and they stitched up my skin,” Rome said, adding that the doctors didn’t realize that her facial muscles had taken a hit because of the accident. “That part of my face after a while became paralyzed, and so 10 years ago I had physical therapy and today I’m a little bit better.”
Despite the injuries that left her face scattered, she continued appearing in many productions, mainly in Italy. Among the rest, she’d been starring in the Italian television series Don Matteo, appearing in 53 episodes between 2021 and 2022.
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It’s amazing how sometimes the deepest and most profound words of wisdom about life come from those who have spent so little time on Earth but went through so much.
Garrett, a 5-year-old boy had to say something about the important things we sometimes fail to cherish before he lost his battle to the terminal disease that made him endure many painful treatments.
It is devastating to see a child going through so much without being able to help them. The only thing Garrett’s parents, Ryan and Emilie Matthias, could do was to never leave their boy’s side, trying their best to make his last days as more bearable as possible. However, what they’ll remember him for is his amazing personality and his sense of humor he didn’t let go of even during the toughest of times.
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The news of their son being terminal crushed these parents. They felt they had to tell him what was going on with him from the start and had a few conversations about death with little Garrett. They wanted to make sure he’s not scared.
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This unbelievably brave boy never stopped smiling, and had the power to spread his optimism to everyone around, including his parents, the nurses, and the doctors.
He even wrote his own obituary that touched the hearts of many. This is what this little angel sent from Heaven had to say before he said his final goodbye.
“My name is: Garrett Michael Boofias My birthday is: I am 5 years old My address is: I am a Bulldog! My favorite color is: Blue….and Red and Black and Green My favorite superhero is: Batman…and Thor, Iron Man, the Hulk and Cyborg When I grow up: I’m going to be a professional boxer
“My favorite people are: • Mommy, Daddy, my sister ‘Delcina’ (Delphina), • The grandparents with the new house (Fredric and Cheryl Krueger), • The grandparents with the camper (Daniel and Nita Matthias), • My cousins: Grady, ‘that guy I took down that one time’ (Luke), and London Marie, • My Auntie Janette and Stinky Uncle Andy (Andrew and Janette Krueger), • Those two guys, you know, my uncles (Kristopfer Krueger and James Taylor) • Batman!!
“The things I love the most: Playing with my sister, my blue bunny, thrash metal, Legos, my daycare friends, Batman and when they put me to sleep before they access my port.
“Things I hate: Pants!, dirty stupid cancer, when they access my port, needles, and the monkey nose that smells like cherry farts…I do like the mint monkey nose like at Mayo Radiation and that one guy that helped me build Legos (Randy).”
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“When I die: I am going to be a gorilla and throw poo at Daddy!
“Burned or Buried: I want to be burned (like when Thor’s Mommy died) and made into a tree so I can live in it when I’m a gorilla
“Big or Small Funeral: Funerals are sad: I want 5 bouncy houses (because I’m 5), Batman, and snow cones.
Emilie and Ryan Matthias will honor Garrett’s final wishes by having a Celebration of Life on Saturday, July 14th from 5pm – 11pm at 2377 132nd Ct Van Meter, Iowa.
“Note: Symbolic Asgardian burial ceremony and fireworks will be held just after sunset”
“A private burial of Garrett’s ashes will be held at a later time once his parents figure out how the hell to get his ashes made into a tree and locate a nature preserve, so his tree resides in a protected area.”
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The parents simply knew they had to follow little Garrett’s wishes.
“Donations can be made directly to the family GoFundMe or in Garrett’s honor to a few of the many non-profits that helped Garrett along the way: The Little Al Foundation, The Pink Tractor Foundation, and the University of Iowa Dance Marathon.”
“We are so grateful to the many doctors, nurses, child life specialists, musicians, art therapists, and volunteers that worked tirelessly to cure Garrett of his cancer. The reality for Garrett and so many other children is pediatric cancer is an ugly, nasty beast that leaves a path of destruction. For Garrett and many others before him – cancer kills. Those that are ‘lucky’ enough to survive endure long-term debilitating side effects and the constant fear of relapse. We will fight for a cure until no other kids are robbed of their childhood, no other siblings lose their best friends, and no other parents have to bury their babies.”
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“Garrett endured nine months of hell before he lost his battle with cancer. During that time, he never lost his sense of humor and loved to tease the doctors and nurses. From whoopie cushions and sneaking clothespins on their clothes to ‘hazing’ the interns and new staff doctors, he was forever a prankster. Nothing caught people off guard as his response to ‘see ya later alligator’:
“See ya later, suckas! – The Great Garrett Underpants”
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The grieving parents will have to learn how to live with the loss of their loving boy, but they will always remember him as positive, funny, and amazing young man who made a difference in the life of many.
A young life was cut short in the most horrific manner when 13-year-old Noah Inman collapsed in front of his friends while playing basketball.
The day which was meant to be full of fun ended with a tragedy and left Noah’s parents and family inconsolable.
The moment the young boy fell on the ground, no one was aware what happened. They just saw him experiencing what looked like a seizure, although it was obvious something more serious was going on.
He was quickly rushed to the hospital where he spent seven long days fighting for his life, but there was nothing that could be done.
It was later revealed that Noah was killed by a bullet someone fired at the area where he played with his friends.
Credit / GoFundMe
A tear-jerking update to the GoFundMe page established after the incident read:
“We are saddened to say our sweet Noah passed away this afternoon after fighting his injuries for the last 7 days. He was surrounded by family who love him dearly. He fought hard and we know he is finally at peace. Thank you all for your contributions as they will be used to help his parents pay for medical expenses and memorial services. Please continue to keep Noah and your family in your prayers.“
Hammond Police Department conducted an investigation and it was concluded that the bullet that killed Noah was fired during a celebration. Mayor Tom McDermott Jr. asked the person who fired the bullet to come forward, labeling Noah’s dead as tragic and senseless.
Noah was described as a dedicated young man who loved basketball. His coach, Juan Maldonado, spoke of Noah as of a “dream kid.”
Rest in peace, Noah.
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Whereas some people dream of huge houses and mansions, others find peace in rather small places. I believe that for a place to be called home it doesn’t necessarily be spacious, all it needs is to be cozy and provide comfort and peace.
Harrison Marshall is a 28-year-old man who used to work in the States and Africa before he decided to settle down in his homeland, England. However, it was long after he realized that affording a home in London was something out of his reach as the prices of the properties are extremely high.
After giving it a lot of thought, Marshall found a way to reside at the country’s capital without paying a fortune for it.
He came with the most brilliant idea, and we have to admit it that we love it.
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Being the head of a small architecture company called CAUKIN Studio, Marshall’s work consisted of designing buildings by reducing the environmental impact construction has on the planet, so this wasn’t the first time for him to think out of the box.
What this man did was turn a dumpster, which he found at $62-a-month, into a home. The dumpster is placed in Southwark, London.
If you wonder what’s inside, we’ll be glad to share that with you. The dumpster-turned-home boasts a portable mini fridge, a small sink and a cooktop, and a mezzanine-style bed above built-in storage space for clothes among the rest.
As it doesn’t have space for a shower, Marshall uses his local gym to take showers and he does he laundry at a laundromat.
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Marshall uses the social media to provide inside of his daily living routines with his followers. He paid around $5,000 for his tiny space, which sounds like a great deal having in mind that a one-bed flat on the same road costs $2,100-per-month.
“Building supplies including timber, insulation and fixings [cost] $4,620 (£3,660) [and] interior furnishing, including storage and foam mattress [cost] $380 (£300),” the architect told CNBC.
He continued: “With its ups and downs, I’ve turned my living situation into an art piece.
“It shines light on the absurdity of London’s housing crisis in a way that makes people smile and think.
“[…] I don’t recommend replicating it. Ihope that I can move out soon, but I certainly won’t be swapping it for no savings and a small, damp room.”
If you want to take a closer look of this tiny home go to the video below.
Would you ever consider living in a dumpster yoursef?
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Trooping the Colour, which is a significant event celebrating the public birthday of the reigning monarch of Britain, has been a beloved royal tradition for hundreds of years. This year, on June 17, it will celebrate King Charles, although his actual birthday is on November 14.
This would be the first time that Charles celebrates his birthday twice since this is his first year as the head of the monarchy.
Trooping the Colour typically takes place every year on the second Saturday in June and has its origins on the battlefield.
“In order to ensure that every soldier would be able to recognise their colours, the flag would be marched or ‘trooped’ regularly round the ranks. A regiment’s colours came to have huge significance for serving soldiers, and the gain or loss of colours were seen as decisive moments in battle,” the Royal Museums Greenwich shares on its website.
Samir Hussein – Pool/WireImage
“This military function gained royal significance during the reign of George II, the first monarch to tie his birthday celebrations into the summer ceremony – despite the fact that his actual birthday was in November.
“[King] Edward VII also had a November birthday, and it was during his reign that the summer ‘official’ birthday celebrations were standardized. It was also under [King] Edward VII that the inspection of the troops by the monarch became part of the celebration.”
The event will include over 1,400 soldiers, 400 horses, and 400 musicians who will give King Charles a royal salute.
The tradition is for the monarch to ride in the parade, but since the late Queen was an at advanced age, the last time she participated in the parade honoring her royal birthday was back in 1986. This year, King Charles is reviving that tradition as the Palace confirmed he would be riding on horseback besides being 74.
“His Majesty The King will take the Salute as Colonel in Chief of the seven regiments of the Household Division, at the Birthday Parade on Horse Guards Parade, on Saturday June 17 2023,” the palace wrote in a statement.
“Marking the first time that the reigning Monarch has ridden at Trooping the Colour since 1986, when Queen Elizabeth II last rode, The King will join His Majesty’s Birthday Parade on horseback.”
Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales playing polo, circa 1980. (Photo by Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)
Over the years, King Charles has witnessed his grandfather, King George VI, on horseback and then his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
However, many are worried that this may harm the King’s health as it can negatively impact his back, something he had experienced hard time with due to several accidents he’s been involved in, involving falling off a horse multiple times.
This was something many people learned about from Harry’s all-tell memoir Spare.
In it, the young Prince wrote that his father was once involved in a polo accident after falling off a horse and was in “constant pain.”
The Prince Of Wales Takes Part In A Polo Match, At Guards Polo Club, Windsor, In Aid Of The Prince’S Trust. . (Photo by Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images)
He aggravated his back injury three years later when he fell off a horse at Windsor.
“Prescribed by his physio, these exercises were the only effective remedy for the constant pain in Pa’s neck, and back,” Harry wrote.
Explaining how King Charles hurt his back, the Harry explained: “Old polo injuries, mostly.”
he then added: “As a boy, I’d seen Pa take [a hard] fall, the horse giving way, the ground simultaneously smacking and swallowing him. I remembered thinking: ‘Why’s Pa snoring?’ And then someone yelling: ‘He’s swallowed his tongue!” Harry wrote, “A quick-thinking player jumped from his horse and saved Pa’s life.”
In 1998, then-prince Charles broke a rib while hunting foxes, and in 2001, he allegedly fractured a bone in his shoulder again after being involved in a horse falling accident.
That same year, he fell off a horse again and was forced to spend a night at a hospital.
“He was unconscious for a very brief time, was taken to the local hospital and is now being transferred to Cheltenham General Hospital where he will stay for a precautionary overnight stay,” spokesman Patrick Harrison said at the time.
Daniel Leal – WPA Pool/Getty Images
Back in August 2021, the King himself admitted that he has struggled with back issues during a conversation with Poet laureate Simon Armitage.
“I’d give anything to be more hands-on. But it’s the time that’s always the problem,” King Charles of his love for gardening.
“I love planting trees and plants, but my problem now is my back’s not so good. So I spend my life trying to do it on my knees. Which is all very well but digging on your knees is an interesting business.”
We truly hope King Charles would have a spectacular time during the parade and he won’t experience any inconveniences.
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