Stuck for holiday ideas? What about a break just yards from Queen Camilla’s country house

Maybe you missed an invitation to the coronation, or gave up hope long ago of being asked to a garden party at Buckingham Palace – or being invited there to receive an MBE or some other gong?

But don’t despair: very soon you’ll be able to holiday with Queen Camilla – not quite in an adjoining room, but a few feet from the mansion where she retires to rest from the relentless toll. of life in the public eye.

Because I can reveal that her neighbor, who shares a driveway with Camilla, just got permission to use one of his outbuildings as a vacation home.

This will, I fear, the Queen, who has always regarded the fine, Grade II listed Ray Mill House, which has enviable views of the River Avon in Wiltshire, as a complete retreat.

Indeed, on an earlier occasion, when her neighbor applied for a ‘granny flat’ to be built, she enlisted the help of Charlie Craven, the estate manager of Highgrove, King Charles’ residence in Gloucestershire, in her battle against the proposal.

She has always seen the beautiful, Grade II listed Ray Mill House (pictured), with enviable views of the River Avon in Wiltshire, as a place of complete retreat.=

Writing to the Wiltshire council, Craven said the proposed flat would have ‘an adverse effect on the flow of water from the river during periods of flooding’. He explained that by then he had been “involved with” Camilla’s properties for six years, adding that the river had flooded repeatedly during that time. “Anything that impedes or alters the natural flow of the river to the detriment of other property is clearly unacceptable.”

On that occasion, Craven’s objections served well – only for Camilla’s neighbor to amend his proposals and then get permission for the granny flat.

The prospect of holidaymakers – maybe even Airbnb weekenders – strolling down her driveway or curling up within crown distance of her home, which she bought for £850,000 in 1996 after her divorce from Brigadier General Andrew Parker Bowles, seems likely to be just as good . ‘unacceptable’.

At Ray Mill House, a friend once remarked, Camilla can “sit down with a big G&T, take off her shoes and watch TV.” Maybe Airbnb guests can get up extra to join her on the couch?

In his tribute to Martin Amis, who died last week aged 73, Boris Johnson said: ‘If you want to cheer up, reread the tennis match in Money’.

But the novelist wasn’t always fun to play against. “He could display the McEnroe-esque outburst of bad temper,” says writer Robert Low, a member of the same West London tennis club.

On one occasion, Amis “lost his cool” and “with a furious swing of his racket” knocked one of Low’s balls out of bounds.

“It was irreparable,” says Low. “I was a little pissed he didn’t offer to replace it.”

The smart set talks about… De Niese’s West End defection

Losing your wife to another man – especially if you are many years older than you – can never be a pleasant experience, even if it is only a temporary defection, like that of Gus Christie, husband of soprano Danielle De Niese.

It was in February that I revealed that De Niese, 44, had pulled out of a production of Poulenc’s Dialogue des Carmelites, staged this summer at Glyndebourne, the Sussex opera house founded in 1934 by the Christie family, where Gus performed chairman is .

A spokesman for Glyndebourne only spoke of “a conflicting engagement”, without giving details.

But this week, De Niese starred in a new West End production of Aspects of Love, the hit musical from Andrew Lloyd Webber, 75.

It will not happen again. At least that’s what Gus, 59, claims. ‘Danni will be back in Glyndebourne this season next year,’ he assures me on opening night at London’s Lyric Theatre.

“She’s doing this musical because she’s eager to explore the different opportunities that come her way. You must take them while they are there.’ Stoically said.

This week, De Niese (pictured) starred in a new West End production of Aspects of Love, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical, 75

Ivy Getty’s cool tip for Cannes audiences

Once a parade of chic glamour, this year’s Cannes Film Festival has seen a mind-boggling array of flashy outfits.

Heiress Ivy Getty insists they are not just a transparent call to attention, but an attempt to keep a cool head in the French Riviera.

The great-granddaughter of Jean Paul Getty, the oil magnate who was once the richest man in the world, wore a revealing polka dot dress to the amfAR gala at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc.

“I show everything when I’m in Cannes because it’s very hot outside,” says Getty (above). “I wear custom August Getty Atelier – my cousin’s design. I have a lot of confidence in this design.’

She adds, “I try not to get too nervous beforehand and focus on having fun. If you’re not confident in what you’re wearing, you won’t feel confident for the rest of the night.’

Heiress Ivy Getty insists they are not just a transparent call to attention, but an attempt to keep a cool head in the French Riviera

Rob Brydon seems to have stopped writing comedy scripts. “The writing of Marion & Geoff and Human Remains was done in collaboration with two fantastic talents and also at a time when I was so hungry,” says the comic, 58.

“When we were writing Human Remains, I was desperate to prove myself because I was in my early to mid-thirties.”

Harry’s US ‘council tax’ reaches £116,746

In royal circles, they’ve been nicknamed “the Kardashians” — in homage, it is explained, to their desire to “accept awards for themselves, talk about themselves, make programs about themselves.”

But in fairness, it must be said that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are paying the price for embracing California’s “celebrity lifestyle” — like the property taxes (the US equivalent of council tax) levied on their Montecito mansion.

I can reveal that this year it amounts to a staggering £116,746 – more than 24 times the highest council tax in Britain.

The property, built in a ‘Tuscan style’, has a library, cinema, gym, spa, swimming pool, tennis court, seven bedrooms and 16 bathrooms, although by one story the latter is now a rather intriguing 13-and- a half.

Maybe half is reserved for the bodyguard? Earlier this month, Meghan was seen walking accompanied by Kim Kardashian’s former “muscle” who, like the most robust of American bodyguards, has arguably a price tag of £1,460 a day.

When she married the third of her four husbands, Oasis singer Liam Gallagher, she was one of the most enthusiastic partiers in north London’s hedonistic ‘Primrose Hill set’.

These days, Patsy Kensit is in bed by nine. “I had some late nights in the 1990s, but I’m actually in bed by 9 p.m.,” the actress, 55, tells me.

“I just finished filming Death in Paradise in Guadeloupe. It was a fantastic cast, but they would come back to the hotel room every night and say, ‘Come to the bar, Pats,” and I thought, “I can’t. I have to go to bed at 8 p.m.’ So towards the end they didn’t bother to ask me [any more].’

These days, Patsy Kensit is in bed by nine. “I had some late nights in the 1990s, but I’m actually in bed by 9 p.m.,” the actress, 55, tells me

Never Gonna Give You Up singer Rick Astley limited himself to another tune as he entered this week’s Chelsea Flower Show — an aria that praised his daughter Emilie, who has a garden at the event.

“She did a great job,” says the adoring pop star, 57, explaining that Emilie, 31, is partnered with a friend, the perfectly named Amelia Bouquet.

‘The first garden they designed was for this: Chelsea. I’m such a proud dad,” adds Astley, who insists he won’t try to get involved, explaining, “I love building barns.”

Mastermind presenter Clive Myrie has covered war-torn Ukraine, earthquake-ravaged Nepal, as well as Iraq and Afghanistan for the BBC, but his main concern is his stomach.

“I’m prone to motion sickness, even though I spend my time traveling,” admits 58-year-old Myrie, recalling his childhood visits to relatives in Jamaica. “I was just sick all the time on that flight from the UK to Kingston,” he says.

And then there were trips across the country on bumpy roads to see cousins ​​and other relatives. And I was there throwing up all the time.”