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Coronation Gown Spotlights Queen Camilla's Style

Queen Consort Camilla will come under scrutiny for what she wears at her husband King Charles III's coronation. ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP/File
Queen Consort Camilla will come under scrutiny for what she wears at her husband King Charles III's coronation. ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP/File
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Coronation Gown Spotlights Queen Camilla's Style

Queen Consort Camilla will come under scrutiny for what she wears at her husband King Charles III's coronation. ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP/File
Queen Consort Camilla will come under scrutiny for what she wears at her husband King Charles III's coronation. ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP/File

In just a few days' time, the eyes of Britain and millions more around the world will be on Camilla as she is crowned queen alongside her husband, King Charles III.

"It'll be the dress that will be the most talked about, it will be analyzed in every detail," said Caroline Young, a writer specializing in fashion.

While the design of Camilla's gown is being kept under wraps, the 75-year-old queen consort commissioned British couturier Bruce Oldfield, who boasts a long list of high-profile clients, including Charles's ex-wife Princess Diana, AFP said.

According to fashion expert and royals' commentator Miranda Holder, the coronation gown is going to "define" Camilla.

"It's going to go down in history," she added.

Britain last held a coronation in 1953. Charles's mother Queen Elizabeth II wore an intricately embroidered white satin gown on the day.

But Camilla is likely to opt for something less luxurious with the new king keen to slim down the ceremony as the country grapples with a cost of living crisis.

When the royal procession arrives at Westminster Abbey on Saturday, the queen will be cloaked in a crimson velvet "Robe of State", originally made for Elizabeth 70 years ago.

'Working with Diana'

Camilla will be crowned with Elizabeth's grandmother Queen Mary's Crown, which she wore at the coronation of her husband King George V in 1911.

In honor of Camilla's late mother-in-law, the crown will be reset with several diamonds from her personal jewelry collection.

According to British media, Oldfield, 72, has designed Camilla's gown but Buckingham Palace was keeping tight-lipped when contacted by AFP.

Oldfield designed dozens of evening gowns -- several of them iconic -- for Diana before her death in a Paris car crash in 1997.

"He was developing his own style and aesthetic while he was working with Diana," Holder, the royal fashion commentator, said.

But after Diana's formal separation from Charles in 1992, she distanced herself from royal life and the designer.

Oldfield had since become one of Camilla's favorite fashion creators, as well as a long-time acquaintance.

He designed the elegant black evening gown Camilla wore on the royal couple's state visit to Germany in March.

Glamour v confidence

"I gave Diana her glamor and Camilla her confidence," Oldfield was quoted as saying in 2014.

While the outfits of heir to the throne Prince William's wife Kate are some of the most scrutinized on the planet, Camilla's style has often left commentators indifferent.

"I don't think people kind of go, 'wow, look at what she's wearing!' But I think she knows perfectly what is the right fit for the right occasion," Young said.

According to Holder, Camilla likes pastel colors but also "flamboyant" jewelry.

"She is very earthy and natural in her spare time. She was in her 60s when she married prince Charles. It was a little bit of an advantage," Holder added.

She said Camilla was not under the same "scrutiny" as Kate or Meghan, whose husband is Charles's younger son Harry.

As for the design of the coronation gown, it's a guessing game for now.

Holder predicts Camilla will be wearing blue or a "pastel color". But definitely not black.

'Fantastic fashion'

"Black is a no-no. It's for evening, red carpet," Holder said.

The fashion expert also expects "much symbolism" that will reflect the Commonwealth nations and the countries making up the United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Young says that Camilla will not want her outfit to be "too showy".

"She's got a difficult job because she's been criticized for years and years as being the other woman," Young said.

"So she has a reputation at stake as well," she added.

The start of the king's reign also comes as many Britons struggle with stubbornly high double-digit inflation.

"So there can be the worry that it might be criticized for being too ostentatious, too expensive. All that will be in her mind," Young said.

But Holder hopes that cutting costs in other areas of the coronation will allow "to splash out on a bit of fantastic fashion".

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Varieties

River Seine Reopens to Public Swimming for 1st Time in a Century

A view of one of the three Seine swimming pools, Thursday, July 3, 2025 which will open during the 'Paris Plages' event from July 5 to Aug. 31 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
A view of one of the three Seine swimming pools, Thursday, July 3, 2025 which will open during the 'Paris Plages' event from July 5 to Aug. 31 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
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River Seine Reopens to Public Swimming for 1st Time in a Century

A view of one of the three Seine swimming pools, Thursday, July 3, 2025 which will open during the 'Paris Plages' event from July 5 to Aug. 31 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
A view of one of the three Seine swimming pools, Thursday, July 3, 2025 which will open during the 'Paris Plages' event from July 5 to Aug. 31 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

For the first time in over a century, Parisians and tourists will be able to take a refreshing dip in the River Seine. The long-polluted waterway is finally opening up as a summertime swim spot following a 1.4 billion euro ($1.5 billion) cleanup project that made it suitable for Olympic competitions last year.

Three new swimming sites on the Paris riverbank will open on Saturday — one close to Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral, another near the Eiffel Tower and a third in eastern Paris.

Swimming in the Seine has been illegal since 1923, with a few exceptions, due to pollution and risks posed by river navigation. Taking a dip outside bathing areas is still banned for safety reasons.

The Seine was one of the stars of the Paris Olympics in 2024, whether as the scene of the ambitious opening ceremony or the triathlon and marathon swimming competitions. That didn't go without challenging hurdles such as rainfall increasing levels of bacteria, which postponed some competitions.

This city's authorities have given the green light for the public opening, with water quality results consistently in line with European regulations.

Making splashes in Paris city center “It’s a symbolic moment when we get our river back,” said sports coach and influencer Lucile Woodward, who will participate in the first amateur open water competition in the Seine on Sunday.

Woodward, who enjoyed a dip alongside Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo just before the start of the Olympic Games, is confident things will go well.

“We're going to enjoy swimming in it, being there and setting an example," she said. "Once people will see that in the end there are hundreds of people who have fun and enjoy it, everyone will want to go!”

“For families, going to take a dip with the kids, making little splashes in Paris, it’s extraordinary,” Woodward added.

Olympic athletes competing in the river was a spectacular reward for the cost of the cleanup effort.

In the run-up to the Games, authorities opened new disinfection units and created a huge storage basin meant to prevent as much bacteria-laden wastewater as possible from spilling directly into the Seine when it rains.

Houseboats that previously emptied their sewage directly into the river were required to hook up to municipal sewer systems. Some homes upstream from Paris also saw their wastewater connected to treatment plants instead of the rainwater system flowing directly into the river.

Green flag for swimming Paris Deputy Mayor Pierre Rabadan said water is tested daily to confirm it's safe to swim. As on French beaches, different colored flags will inform visitors whether or not they can go in.

“Green means the water quality is good. Red means that it's not good or that there's too much current,” he said.

Tests have been in line with European regulations since the beginning of June, with only two exceptions due to rain and boat-related pollution, Rabadan said.

“I can’t make a bet on the numbers of days when we’ll have to close this summer, but water quality seems better than last year,” he added. “We’re in a natural environment ... so weather condition variations necessarily have an impact."

Last year, several athletes became ill after competing in the triathlon and open water races during the Olympics, though in most cases it was not clear if the river was to blame for their sickness.

World Aquatics stressed the conditions met the sport’s accepted thresholds.

“The legacy of these efforts is already evident, with the Seine now open for public swimming — a positive example of how sports can drive long-term community benefits,” the organization said in a statement to The Associated Press.

Skepticism remains about water quality Dan Angelescu, founder and CEO of Fluidion, a Paris and Los Angeles-based water monitoring tech company, has routinely and independently tested bacterial levels in the Seine for several years. Despite being in line with current regulations, the official water testing methodology has limitations and undercounts the bacteria, he said.

“What we see is that the water quality in the Seine is highly variable,” Angelescu said. “There are only a few days in a swimming season where I would say water quality is acceptable for swimming.”

“All we can say is that we can raise a hand and say look: the science today does not support the current assessment of water safety used in the rivers around Paris, and we think that there is major risk that is not being captured at all,” he said.

Some Parisians also have shown skepticism toward the idea of swimming in the Seine. The feeling is often reinforced by the water's murky color, floating litter and multiple tourist boats in some places.

Enys Mahdjoub, a real estate agent, said he would not be afraid of swimming, but rather "a bit disgusted. It’s more the worry of getting dirty than anything else at the moment.”

A dream come true Until the end of August, swimming sites will be open for free at scheduled times to anyone with a minimum age of 10 or 14 years, depending on the location. Lifeguards will keep a watchful eye on those first dips.

“It’s an opportunity, a dream come true," said Clea Montanari, a project manager in Paris. "It’d be a dream if the Seine becomes drinkable, that would be the ultimate goal, right? But already swimming in it is really good.”