A Message to the Royals Extra Community with Much Gratitude

With the British royal family taking their summer holiday, it seemed like a good time to take mine. Over the next month, I’ll be staying in a tiny community on the Rhode Island seacoast with my three adult children and six grandchildren, the youngest celebrating his first birthday in early August. They are traveling from their homes in England, California, and Connecticut—all distant from where I live in Washington, DC. This is the one time of the year when we can be together as a family for an extended time, and when I can experience the daily joys and responsibilities of being a grandmother. My husband and I have been coming to this tranquil place for 43 years, so you can imagine how many memories it holds for us.

Last summer during our family reunion I also intended to take a break, but news in Britain prompted me to publish five Royals Extras. I begin this summer’s break with the same restful intentions, but with an eye across the Atlantic in case there are developments that send me back to my keyboard.

When I resume in earnest, I’ll continue to bring you unique stories and fresh insights, which has been the mission of Royals Extra since its launch in March 2023. I am so grateful to the Royals Extra community, which now numbers more than 22,700 subscribers. As you know from previous posts, Royals Extra has become full-time work for me, so I especially appreciate those of you who are paying subscribers. If you have a subscription renewal approaching, I hope you will sign up for another year. And I hope equally that those of you who read a portion of Royals Extra for free will step up to a paid subscription.

You will notice at the bottom of my posts the words “Human Authored.” I cannot emphasize enough how important it is for me to guarantee to you that everything you have read and will continue to read on Royals Extra is the result of my own thinking and writing and incorporates exclusive interviews and original research.

I consider AI as a tool to double-check facts and nothing more. (Ironically enough, I sometimes need to correct mistakes by wayward bots.) As machine learning threatens to engulf the written word as we have known it, my resolve to preserve the human integrity of writing grows stronger by the day.

Enjoy the rest of the summer. I look forward to connecting with you again when Royals Extra returns to its regular schedule.

My very best,

Sally Bedell Smith

For those of you who are new to Royals Extra or may have missed some of my posts, below are links to ten of the most popular pieces over the past eight months. They all contain paywalls, but they allow new paying subscribers a seven-day free trial that includes access to my archive of 187 Royals Extra posts.

Part I: Lady Pamela Hicks: The Death of An Outspoken Royal Grande Dame (June 6, 2026)

Part II: Lady Pamela Hicks: The Death of An Outspoken Royal Grande Dame (June 13, 2026)

Part I: Inside the Blockbuster Exhibition of Queen Elizabeth II’s Fashion Collection (May 31, 2026)

Part II: Inside the Blockbuster Exhibition of Queen Elizabeth II’s Fashion Collection (June 1, 2026)

The Star Turns of King Charles III and Queen Camilla During Their Visit to America (May 1, 2026)

The Prince Philip We Didn’t Know (March 29, 2026)

Andrew: The Latest in a Line of Royal Rogues (February 23, 2026)

The Inimitable Nicky Haslam (January 2, 2026)

Part I: The Private World of Lady Annabel Goldsmith (November 8, 2025)

Part II: The Private World of Lady Annabel Goldsmith (November 15, 2025)