Dear readers and friends,

I am thrilled to announce I am launching ROYALS EXTRA on Substack, with which I will take readers behind the scenes of the British royal family. I’ll expand on my books with little-known vignettes, excerpts from unpublished interviews, previously untold stories, and character sketches of influential people in the orbit of the royal family.  I’ll show the ups and downs, and the moments of love and grief.

At first I’ll be posting mainly about George VI and Elizabeth and their myriad relationships. I’ve lived with them for five years, and I’m bursting to share what I know. In The King’s Speech, Colin Firth gave a mostly accurate portrayal of George VI’s determined and often touching battle to conquer his crippling stammer, but there is much more to tell.  The general impression of Elizabeth has overlooked her role as queen and helpmeet, jumping to her image as the jolly “Queen Mum” during the fifty years following the premature death of her husband when he was fifty-six and she was fifty-one. I’ll also offer personal insights into the late Queen and Prince Philip, as well as King Charles III and Queen Camilla—all of whom I have observed at close range in public and private settings.

One of great joys of writing biographies is the opportunity to talk to groups and share what I have learned. With ROYALS EXTRA, I am aiming to connect with readers in a similarly direct way.

I will also be using ROYALS EXTRA in a similar vein to my Facebook page, although there I will be able to connect with all of you in a direct and meaningful way, and I hope we can build a positive and vibrant community together.

I hope ROYALS EXTRA will be a happy place. I’ll welcome comments and respond as much as I can. This is an exciting new journey for me, and I hope it will be the same for readers.

To sign up, please go to sallybedellsmith.substack.com