For many of us, going to work on your birthday is the last thing you want to do. But taking the day off, putting your feet up and raising a glass or two is not something that comes easily to the King, who turned 77 on Friday.

Instead, the workaholic monarch treats his birthday as an ordinary working day. On Friday, he travelled to South Wales with his wife to undertake three engagements between them. Despite the miserable weather thanks to Storm Claudia, Charles smiled and laughed throughout his appointments, which included a visit to Cyfarthfa Castle where he was joined by Gavin & Stacey star Ruth Jones and TikTok star Lewis Leigh.

Ever since his cancer diagnosis at the start of last year, the King has been absolutely determined to plough on with his duties. And though he continues to receive regular treatment, royal sources insist his focus remains on his work. This weekend, Charles will no doubt be reflecting on the lows and highs of the past year.

He may be concerned that the scandals of his younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and the ongoing family feud with his son, Prince Harry, have overshadowed his personal successes. But that’s far from the case.

Though Andrew has dominated media coverage in recent weeks, having been stripped of his princely title and forced to
move out of the Windsor estate, there have been several notable triumphs for the King. From his deft handling of US President Donald Trump, to helping forge closer links between the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church, Charles has proven he’s the master of soft diplomacy.

While many thought his reign might merely be a bridge between the historic legacy of Queen Elizabeth II and the relatable royal, Prince William, they’ve been proven wrong by the brilliance of the King’s statesmanship. Many leaders have tried and failed to woo the controversial US President but the King won him onside and was credited with smoothing relations between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

And he’s been able to shore up the UK’s relationship with Canada and jetted across the world to deliver a landmark speech in a whirlwind 20-hour visit.

In a world with its fair share of doom and gloom – amid budget uncertainty, global conflicts and the rise of extremism – let’s not forget the positive role of the Royal Family – a unifying institution that works hard to support thousands of organisations and charities every day.

He may be just shy of becoming a teenager, but Prince George is taking a more active role in royal life.

Last weekend he made his debut at one of the most important royal events of the year, the Remembrance Festival at the Royal Albert Hall.

As his father, the Prince of Wales, was making his way back from Brazil on commercial flights, the heir to the heir joined his mother and grandfather in the front row for the poignant performance.

It’s not the first time young George has proven he’s a king in training. In May, he joined his parents at a special tea party for veterans on the 80th anniversary of VE Day. What the engagements show is that William and Catherine are preparing him for the future.

By carefully crafting royal appearances of this magnitude without the companionship of his siblings, the couple are slowly exposing him to a life of royal duties.

Where Harry and Meghan are concerned, controversy is never far behind them. And last week, a bizarre episode erupted over some pictures of the couple at a glitzy Hollywood birthday party for American socialite Kris Jenner.

The duke and duchess were snapped as they arrived holding hands at the celebrity bash, and subsequent pictures of them partying the night away were shared on social media – but were promptly taken down. It transpired Harry and Meghan had demanded the pictures of them shared on Kris and Kim Kardashian’s Instagrams were deleted.

But the reason behind this remains unclear. Sussex sources initially claimed it was because the duo had checked
“no” on a photo consent form, but the Kardashian clan have since said that no such forms ever existed. The whole saga is bizarre, especially as Meghan regularly posts images of her and the family on her own Instagram account.

Perhaps they were attempting to regain control of the narrative, after the pair’s attendance at an LA party was contrasted with those of the working royals who were observing solemn Remembrance events in the UK.

Whatever the reason, it’s another PR nightmare for a couple desperate to rehabilitate their image and prove they’re part of the Hollywood elite. Upsetting one of the powerful families in showbusiness is hardly the way to go either.

For years the media have referred to our future Queen as “Kate” or “Kate Middleton” but that’s not a moniker used by the royals, her family or her close friends. So from now on, you won’t see me or the team writing about Kate – it’s Catherine.

Meanwhile, the BBC came under fire on Tuesday when their reporter repeatedly used the senior royal’s maiden name when commenting on her attendance at an Armistice Day service. Another blunder in a pretty disastrous week for the national broadcaster.