Duchess Sophie brought her royal presence on on March 5, to Hever Castle Ltd for a pivotal DEBRA UK event tackling epidermolysis bullosa (EB). 

EB is a rare skin condition where even the gentlest touch can cause the skin to blister and tear.

As Patron of the charity, the Duchess joined 25 of the world’s leading specialists in EB, dermatology, paediatrics, pharmacology, and reconstructive surgery for the inaugural two-day EB Global Taskforce. 

The gathering focused on accelerating the development of groundbreaking treatments and shaping the charity’s forthcoming Global EB Strategy, set for release in April 2026.

Speaking to the assembled experts, Sophie in lilac coat praised their dedication and vision.

 “There is the passion and drive evident in the expertise in this room to truly make a difference,” she said. 

“It will take innovative thinking, bold ideas, and strategic creativity that can be the catalyst for the change that is so desperately needed.”

DEBRA UK shared highlights from the historic event on Instagram, thanking the Duchess for her guidance and support. 

“Yesterday at the historic @hever_castle, The Duchess of Edinburgh GCVO, our Charity Patron, joined medical experts for our inaugural two-day EB Global Taskforce,” the post read with a heart emoji.

Timothee Chalamet found himself embroiled in backlash on social media after he shared his controversial opinion on ballet and Opera as dying art forms.

The 30-year-old actor sparked an outrage with his comments as ballet and opera artists began to share their disappointment over the “tone deaf” joke he made.

The Marty Supreme star drew a response from the Metropolitan Opera itself as the organisation shared a TikTok video with the caption, “This one’s for you, Timothee Chalamet…”

The video showed people diligently working on costumes and wigs, as well as artists rehearsing, and the hustle bustle ahead of a performance, and the text over the video read, “All respect to the opera (and ballet) people out there,” taking a dig at Chalamet’s comment which he made after jokingly insulting the art forms.

The Metropolitan Opera’s response comes after many artists, as well as companies including the Royal Ballet and Opera in London critiqued the Dune actor for his disrespectful comments.

During the interview between Chalamet and Matthew McConaughey, the Beautiful Boy actor said, “I don’t want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this anymore.’ All respect to all the ballet and opera people out there.”

Although he immediately realised the nature of his remark, and said, “I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I just took shots for no reason,” it seems that had already been too late.