The Australian Women's Weekly May 2016

THE QUEEN has been a Weekly cover star more than 60 times, but the last was back in 1982. With Diana Spencer in the family, the royal limelight shifted focus. This month, however, we are proud to be featuring Her Majesty as The Weekly’s cover star again, with her grandson, Prince William, and great-grandson Prince George. I suspect we won’t be the only ones. The Queen will be back on front covers around the world as months of celebrations for the longest-reigning monarch’s 90th birthday kick off. The Queen’s real birthday is April 21, but her official birthday will be marked with typically British pomp, ceremony and a lavish Patron’s Lunch along The Mall in London across the weekend of June 11, a day after Her Majesty’s husband, Prince Philip’s,…

PEARL OF WISDOM Knowledge comes by taking things apart, but wisdom comes by putting things together. MERLIE CLAYTON, WYNDHAM VALE, VIC. Dying with dignity I had the privilege of being with my mother when she died of cancer. I know she would have preferred, before the extreme pain of her last months, to terminate her life at a time of her choosing. Hooray for Andrew Denton’s crusade to end the needless suffering of the terminally ill. We can choose to not let our pets suffer, yet the law as it stands will not give us the same choice. The options discussed (Watching My Father Die, WW, Apr) applied to the terminally and chronically ill. Perhaps the aged and physically infirm could also be considered. It’s time Australia joined…

I was diagnosed at 48 with severe menopause. After consulting my doctor, I was prescribed HRT, which changed my life for the better. For 10 years, I was comfortable with the medication and then news broke of adverse side-effects of the drug. After four years experimenting going off HRT, with lots of tears, moods and sleepless nights, I decided to continue with a reduced dose. I have settled on two tablets per week. After reading your informative article (Special Investigation: HRT, WW Apr), I’m happy with my decision. S. MCAULIFFE, ADELAIDE, SA.…

CAST YOUR MIND forward half a century or so when, if things take their natural course, a 60-plus King George VII will finally be sitting on the British throne and Australia’s head of state. If we’re lucky, as a teenager, he may have emulated Grandpa Charles and spent time studying in Australia, or perhaps followed Uncle Harry and trained with our armed forces. At the very least, George should have made some use out of that customised surfboard he was given by Manly’s Mayor as a baby and frolicked in our surf on his jaunts to this far-flung corner of his realm. When he tours on those official visits, he will be accompanied by a small group of dignified media, all Palace-approved and trained by his father King William V,…

DEBORAH HUTTON “I’m a huge fan of the Queen and while she is still with us I would like her to remain our head of state. Would I want Charles to be our King? No.” JUNE DALLY-WATKINS “No. Being part of the Commonwealth is our history and why would we want to change our history? [After the Queen] it’s time for the next generation to take over as head of state. I think Prince William is ready for this role.” ITA BUTTROSE “Like many Australians, I respect the Queen and her years of service to the Commonwealth, and believe she should remain our head of state until she dies or steps down from the throne. On her death, Australia should become a republic.” KATHY LETTE “For an egalitarian country which…

“BEING A MUM IS PROBABLY THE MOST SERIOUS JOB I’VE EVER HAD.” SHELLEY CRAFT IS like a smiley face sprung to life – even when she has been dragged out of bed before dawn. Byron Bay is still waking up this morning as her two little girls flit around the hotel room and her husband surfs at Wategos Beach nearby, but Shelley chats away in the make-up chair, every bit as warm and sunny as her on-screen persona. “There’s no demarcation,” says her husband, Christian Sergiacomi. A former cameraman, “Serge” fell in love with Shelley’s “permanent bubbliness” and suspects it’s why so many Australians like her, too. “The most common thing I hear is, ‘You just know that off-camera she’s going to be normal’.” Shelley has made a career out…