Balmoral Castle Throws Open its Doors to Public for First Time

Balmoral will be on show as part of a private tour at the castle, the first time since it was completed in 1855. Pic: PA via Sky News
Balmoral will be on show as part of a private tour at the castle, the first time since it was completed in 1855. Pic: PA via Sky News
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Balmoral Castle Throws Open its Doors to Public for First Time

Balmoral will be on show as part of a private tour at the castle, the first time since it was completed in 1855. Pic: PA via Sky News
Balmoral will be on show as part of a private tour at the castle, the first time since it was completed in 1855. Pic: PA via Sky News

Balmoral Castle, Scottish retreat of the Royal Family since the 1850s, is being opened up to the public for the first time in its history, Sky News reported.

From Monday, visitors can take a guided tour of a number of the Aberdeenshire castle's entrance hall, red corridor, main and family dining rooms, page's lobby, library and drawing room.

"The public who managed to get a ticket will come away [having seen] the Royal Family's holiday home. That's exactly what it is, it feels very homely," said James Hamilton Goddard, visitor enterprise manager for the Balmoral Estate.

The King is the latest in a long line of monarchs to add their own stamp to Balmoral since Queen Victoria and Prince Albert had the castle built in the 1850s.

"It's a magnificent place, I think the King wants people to see [it]," said Mr Hamilton Goddard.



UK's Oldest Man, WWII Veteran, Donald Rose, Dies at 110

WW2 veteran Donald Rose, 110, poses for a photo at the National Memorial Arboretum, ahead of a memorial event hosted by the Royal British Legion to mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, England, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Jacob King/PA via AP, File)
WW2 veteran Donald Rose, 110, poses for a photo at the National Memorial Arboretum, ahead of a memorial event hosted by the Royal British Legion to mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, England, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Jacob King/PA via AP, File)
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UK's Oldest Man, WWII Veteran, Donald Rose, Dies at 110

WW2 veteran Donald Rose, 110, poses for a photo at the National Memorial Arboretum, ahead of a memorial event hosted by the Royal British Legion to mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, England, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Jacob King/PA via AP, File)
WW2 veteran Donald Rose, 110, poses for a photo at the National Memorial Arboretum, ahead of a memorial event hosted by the Royal British Legion to mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, England, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Jacob King/PA via AP, File)

Britain’s oldest World War II veteran, Donald Rose, has died at the age of 110.

Rose participated in the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944, and was part of the division that liberated the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in northern Germany.

In a statement Friday, the leader of the Erewash Borough Council in the north of England, James Dawson, announced Rose's death, calling him a “war hero.”

“Erewash was privileged to count him as a resident," he added, The AP news reported.

In May, Rose joined 45 other veterans as guests of honor at a tea party celebration hosted by the Royal British Legion at the National Memorial Arboretum, to mark 80 years since Victory in Europe Day.

Rose, who was born on Christmas Eve in 1914 following the outbreak of hostilities in World War I, said at the event that he did not celebrate VE Day at the time.

“When I heard that the armistice had been signed 80 years ago, I was in Germany at Belsen and, like most active soldiers, I didn’t get to celebrate at that time," he said. “We just did what we thought was right and it was a relief when it was over.”

Originally from the village of Westcott, southwest of London, Rose joined the army aged 23 and served in North Africa, Italy and France, according to the Royal British Legion. He received a number of medals and was awarded France’s highest honor, the Legion d’Honneur.

Rose is also believed to have been the UK’s oldest man.