Desperate Housewives of Monaco?

Nah, it's just the 52nd International Television Festival in Monaco, attracting noted television stars from all over the world including, as we see here, Eva Longoria. The former "Desperate Housewives" star is currently campaigning for Barrack Obama in the Latino community in the United States and is starring in the film "Cristiada" (aka "For Greater Glory") about the Catholic rebellion in Mexico in the 1920's when the government of President Calles enacted anti-religion policies. So, she does have a little something in common with the Sovereign Prince who, as we've talked about before, also had a cameo appearance in a film about Mexican history called "One Man's Hero" about the San Patricio Battalion of (mostly Irish) U.S. soldiers who left the American army to fight for Mexico during the Mexican-American War. Okay, it's not much, but it is something and the Sovereign Prince does have a few drops of Mexican ancestry thanks to his grandfather Prince Pierre.

TV Festival Follow Up and News

As the Monte Carlo TV Festival was shutting down for this year HSH Prince Albert II was asked about his own viewing habits. The Sovereign Prince said he doesn't have much time for TV and mostly watches the news but is also a fan of "House MD", "CSI" and "24". Albie, the king of all nice guys, a fan of Dr House? Who would have guessed the boss and your humble blogger have something in common. He also said the events he will remember most watching on TV was the moon landing, the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, the fall of the Berlin Wall and 9-11. When asked when his own wedding would be seen on TV he gave no answer (they were expecting what?). Were I him I probably would have said something like, "Friday; didn't you hear?". The Sovereign Prince also confirmed that he will be attending the upcoming wedding of his friend HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden. The heiress to the Swedish throne was present for the most important public ceremony in Albert's life; the pontifical mass marking his succession to the Monegasque throne.

In other news Prince Albert II has gone to Kenya where he met on Tuesday with President Mwai Kibaki who thanked His Serene Highness for supporting the Green Africa Foundation in Kitui and other groups supporting the environmental protection of Africa.

Also on hand for the recent TV festival was HSH Princess Stephanie who hosted a radio show during the event to talk about the primary cause in her life; her charity focused on caring for AIDS victims; Fight AIDS Monaco. She showed up for the event with her new puppy, too bad you can't see 'cute' over the radio.

Television in Monaco

Yesterday HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco and longtime girlfriend Charlene Wittstock joined local elites, celebrities and television icons for the 50th anniversary of the Monte Carlo TV Festival at the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel. It was 50 years ago that Albert's father Prince Rainier III started the festival and handing out the 'Golden Nymphs' when TV was a relatively new thing. This year those attending included TV icon Larry Hagman (star of shows such as "Dallas" and "I Dream of Jeanie", Cote de Pablo star of "NCIS", Zachary Levi star of "Chuck", Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder of "The Vampire Diaries", and Julie Benz lately of "Dexter" among others. For more information you can go to the official website of the Monte Carlo TV Festival here and see, among other things, Prince Albert's openning speech.