bitchy | Why did King Charles give a plastic surgeon the Royal Victorian Order?

One of the few compliments I’ll give to both King Charles and Queen Camilla is that it’s nice that they’re aging naturally. There’s nothing so disconcerting – unnerving, really – to see someone in their 70s with a fresh facelift or really obvious cosmetic work. I think Camilla probably gets some injectables here and there, but she’s never gone overboard and she truly looks her age. So does Charles – while his appearance has often been tired, grey and ashen in recent years, he looks like himself. Why am I talking about this? Because a plastic surgeon was included in the king’s New Year’s Honours list and people are like “wait, has Charles had work done?” Traditionally, when doctors are singled out for honors, it’s usually because they did some kind of service to the monarch… or the royal family.

His Majesty made his appreciation for his doctors known once more in his New Year Honours list for 2025, which was released on Monday. The list saw Professor Philip Anthony Bloom, King Charles’ eye surgeon, Professor Charles Deakin, a travelling physician to the King and Queen, and plastic surgeon Simon Eccles, become Lieutenants of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO) for their service to the monarch.

The honouring of Professor Philip Anthony Bloom is of particular interest, after His Majesty suffered an eye injury in July, which saw his eye look red and inflamed during a state visit from President Macron. The redness was thought to be due to a burst blood vessel in his right eye, which we understood was not related to any existing health conditions.

The decision to honour plastic surgeon Simon Eccles is an interesting one. It is unknown in which capacity he has served the royals, with the senior consultant plastic surgeon specialising in cosmetic surgery to the face, nose and eyelids, with a focus on reconstructive surgery.

[From Hello]

Let me be careful with what I say! I mean… look at Charles’s face. Look at Camilla’s face. Do they look like they’ve had cosmetic work? As I said before, I don’t think they have. Which isn’t to say that Dr. Eccles hasn’t worked on other members of the Windsor clan. If only there was evidence of a royal looking dramatically refreshed when he or she came back from a mysterious disappearance. Incidentally, I love how they specify that Eccles does face work. This probably wasn’t a case of “someone got a scar lasered off.” No, this was someone who got cosmetic surgery on their face. Now, something (or rather, someone) else did occur to me: Princess Anne was kicked in the head by a horse in 2024, and she showed up in public with visible bruising. It’s possible that she needed some reconstructive surgery. But I kind of wonder if it was someone else.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.