The arbiter of all things fancy, Nicky Haslam, has revealed some of the things he finds common at Christmas – and one of them involves the king’s speech.
The socialite and furniture designer spoke about the issue in an interview with the Telegraph.
According to the 85-year-old, it is not the speech itself that he considers “common,” but the way people look at it that determines whether it is appropriately elegant or not.
In Haslam’s opinion, it is common “not to see the King’s speech in real time.”
He went even further and noted that some people recorded the speech, which he called “appalling.”
Haslam, who has royal ties, as the son of one of Queen Victoria’s goddaughters, is, according to the Telegraph, a good friend of Queen Camilla.
Additionally, he socialized with Diana, Princess of Wales, and worked for King Charles.
He is said to be impressed by how the monarch has taken on his royal duties while undergoing cancer treatment.
Nicky Haslam (pictured in London in June 2023) said it is “appalling” to record the king’s speech rather than watch it live.
However, Haslam had something negative to say about Her Majesty, telling the outlet: “She’s doing all the royal things I expected, and that’s very touching.” But it’s a shame he doesn’t want to live in Buckingham Palace. It symbolizes the monarchy.
His interview comes after he launched his annual tea towel, titled ‘The Last Things Nicky Haslam Finds in Common’, a tradition he started in 2018.
To launch the 2024 tea towel, which retails at £50 (up from £18 when it was first launched in 2018), it has teamed up with Selfridges.
In early November he presented this year’s tea towel, which includes 39 items he considers “common”, to the Sunday Times.
Presenting this year’s tea towel to the Sunday Times, Haslam, who lives in the Cotswolds, declared that his controversial list should be varied enough to upset everyone in some way, as he targeted dairy-free alternatives, destination weddings and yellow bags (products will be sold by Selfridges).
Among those he targeted were people getting married abroad, people having bonfires in their garden, people drinking almond milk and people holding gender reveal parties.
She even put Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour on the list of her daily routine, which she has shared on several occasions and which involves going to the gym and doing her hair.
King Charles is pictured recording his first Christmas broadcast at St George’s Quire Chapel at Windsor Castle in December 2022.
Among those Haslam considers lower class are people who rescue dogs; to suggest that an adopted dog is now similar to a “Birkin bag.”
He revealed that his method for designing the tea towel each year is to write down the “common” things throughout the year that have irritated him.
While many people are likely to flock to Selfridges to pick up one of Haslam’s tea towels, he will certainly ruffle some feathers too.
The socialite’s 2023 list mocked grief and the Northern Lights, prompting money-saving expert Martin Lewis to take to X (formerly Twitter) to brand Haslam a “moron”.
This may well have been noted by Haslam, who claimed that “insisting on discounts” was on the list this year; Lewis is known for helping consumers find the cheapest deals possible on bills and everyday expenses.
The same year, Haslam also took aim at Zoom meetings, flyovers, 110 per cent, podcasts, Grayson Perry and Wimbledon.
Haslam’s 2018 list, the first she produced, included Breakfast Meetings, Swans, Hedge Funds, Mindfulness, Bono, Intensely Private People, Woman’s Hour, The Proms and Central Heating.
Speaking at the time, he said: “No one can have opinions anymore and everything has to be PC.”
“There is no individuality; even the buildings start to look the same.”