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SEBASTIAN SHAKESPEARE: Why Harry's friend Natalie has had her baby's blood frozen

By Sebastian Shakespeare for the Daily Mail

Published: 20:48 EST, 9 February 2015 | Updated: 03:37 EST, 10 February 2015

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No one can accuse Prince Harry’s chum Natalie Pinkham of not being forward-looking.

She has had the blood from her baby son’s umbilical cord deep-frozen by a high-tech firm.

Sky Sports presenter Natalie gave birth to her first child, Wilfred, last month and has banked his cord blood with a company that has more than 25,000 samples stored in cryogenic vats.

She opted for the unusual procedure in the hope that the blood — which is rich in potentially life-saving stem cells — could be used if Wilfred became seriously ill when he is older.

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Sky Sports presenter Natalie Pinkham hopes her baby's blood could be used if he became seriously ill when he is older

‘We see it as the ultimate insurance policy that we hope and pray we never need to use,’ says the 36-year-old Formula One presenter, who married TV executive Owain Walbyoff in 2012.

‘We decided that we needed to take this opportunity because we have a responsibility to protect our child.’

She used Biovault in Plymouth, which charges £2,150 to store the blood for 25 years.

‘I first heard about it at my antenatal class in Battersea,’ says the property developer’s daughter.

‘I’d heard of stem-cell treatments and was interested straight away.

‘The potential is so huge and there doesn’t appear to be any downsides.’

Cord-blood transplants are used in the treatment of life-threatening blood disorders such as leukaemia, and could even regenerate body parts in future.

‘I have a real interest in stem-cell research because I have a friend of a similar age in the U.S. who is benefiting from stem-cell treatment for a serious condition.

‘Sadly, I lost a friend to motor neurone disease in his 30s, so I’ve always had a curiosity around the potential of stem cells to treat such diseases.’

Natalie Pinkham went back to Romania to find orphan Mirela

Critic Brian Sewell is among many viewers to have given up on the BBC’s version of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall

Wolf Hall author Hilary Mantel might have received her damehood at Buckingham Palace last week, but art critic Brian Sewell is among many viewers to have given up on the BBC’s version of her novel.

‘I’ve had enough,’ fruity-voiced Sewell tells me.

‘What was the point in one scene last week of giving us a black screen with a few pinpoints of light?

‘I know that’s how it was in Tudor times, but they are using the most artificial of mediums to suggest reality.

‘It’s utterly pointless.’

Take a look at the design of Tudor set for Wolf Hall

George Osborne reveals extraterrestrial dreams

Chancellor wanted to be a spaceman

George Osborne has a hinterland that embraces theatre, skiing, pop music and an obsession with U.S. politics.

Clearly it’s not enough, as David Cameron’s putative successor reveals extraterrestrial dreams.

‘My ambition was to be an astronaut,’ Osborne tells author Dominic Shelmerdine.

‘My room as a child was decorated with pictures of the stars, rockets and Halley’s comet.

‘However, I made the right decision to pursue politics, as there have been many more Chancellors of the Exchequer than British astronauts.’

Speaking of space, with the probe into the fatal Virgin Galactic crash still ongoing, Sir Richard Branson continues to evangelise about extraterrestrial tourism.

‘Virgin Galactic should be up, up and away and flying high into space, despite our recent setbacks,’ he tells Travel magazine.

Some may question, however, his ability to launch a jet into orbit when he has trouble finding his own hotel room.

The entrepreneur recalls he once got so drunk with cricketer Ian Botham in Hong Kong that he ‘wandered around for ages until I realised I was in the wrong hotel!’.

The Queen studiously avoided being dragged into the row over where to bury Richard III, whose remains were found under a car park in Leicester two years ago.

But the Royal Family will be represented at the reinterment ceremony at Leicester Cathedral next month.The Queen’s cousin the Duke of Gloucester, who holds the same title as Richard before he became king, will attend with his wife, Birgitte.

More than 30,000 people signed a petition calling on the Government to ensure the last Yorkist king was laid to rest at York Minster.