It’s been another busy year for the royal family, with the usual pomp, circumstance and scandal rocking the headlines.
Last year saw the release of scathing books as well as the coronation of a new king
Here are all the big stories from the world's most famous family in 2023.
Prince Harry’s memoir
2023 kicked off with a bang upon the release of Prince Harry’s book Spare in January.
The memoir covered the Duke of Sussex’s life, his upbringing as the Queen’s grandson, his mother's death and his relationship with the media.
He described tense moments with his family when deciding to leave his royal duties, including a physical altercation with his brother William.
His book slammed the way tabloids like The Sun and Daily Mail and called New Zealand-born journalist Daniel Wootton a “sad little man”.
It also covered some of the more strange aspects of his life – like the time he nearly got frostbite on his penis and when he hallucinated that Friends star Courtney Cox’s rubbish bin was talking to him during a drugs trip.
He also landed in hot water with some of his stories about his time in Afghanistan — claiming he killed 25 Taliban fighters during his two tours.
King Charles III’s coronation
In May, all eyes were fixed on Westminster Abbey when King Charles and Queen Camilla were officially crowned in a ceremony that didn’t disappoint.
The centuries-old tradition played out for the first time on colour TV, with the UK’s famous pomp and circumstance on full display.
Alongside some of the more famous traditions, like the anointment in holy oil, the king made a few changes to the ceremony.
These included involving faith leaders from all the main religions in the UK.
MP Penny Mordaunt was praised for her arm strength after holding a sword for the entire ceremony — thanks to some help from painkillers and pushups.
It ended with a spectacular concert featuring Lionel Ritchie and Katy Perry.
And you can’t forget Prince Louis’ usual adorably cheeky antics.
Prince Harry goes to court
Alongside his book, Harry spent a lot of time in UK courtrooms as he sued members of the tabloid press — accusing them of phone hacking to get stories on his family - as well taking on the UK government over his security, and a libel case.
His phone hacking complaint is part of a wider legal action against the group of newspapers, which involves Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror, and Sunday People.
The case remains ongoing into 2024.
Royal racism scandal
The royal family and British press were thrown into scandal in December after the release of Writer Omid Scobie’s book Endgame.
The book outlines two royal family members who had commented about the possible skin colour of Harry and Meghan’s son Archie before his birth.
While the English version of the book didn't name any specific family members, the Dutch text did — which led to UK TV personality Piers Morgan saying them on air.
The naming was blamed on a “translation error” — and the scandal continues.
The royal family and New Zealand
As a member of the Commonwealth, the royal family has plenty of interactions with Aotearoa — and 2023 was no different.
In February, the Princess Royal, Anne, visited New Zealand to celebrate 100 years of signallers within the defence force. During her visit, she was spotted roasting coffee beans — to help fundraise for the Cyclone Gabrielle recovery efforts.
That same month, the King visited Kiwi soldiers training members of the Ukrainian defence force, sharing a hongi with one.
The King was on a visit to a training site where he met Ukrainian soldiers. (Source: 1News)
He met with former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and the Maori King at the coronation.
All Blacks legend Richie McCaw had a central role in the coronation — setting Twitter (now X) alight when he was spotted on TV.
In November, Prince Edward visited New Zealand to see young people completing their Duke of Edinburgh awards.
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