Kylie Kelce and Catherine, Princess of Wales have a lot in common. Both women played field hockey, are mothers to young children, and are in the public eye alongside their husbands. However, when it comes to royal formalities and etiquette, that may be where the similarities end.
In the most recent episode of her podcast, Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce, the Narberth native addressed a flub she made in a past episode when she invited the Princess of Wales, who’s also known as Kate Middleton, onto the show.
“Princess Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, if you ever wanted to come on and chitchat about some field hockey and maybe kids. I don’t know. We got a couple things in common,” Kelce said in the Sept. 24 episode.
Unbeknownst to her, Kate Middleton’s formal title is Catherine, Princess of Wales.
Listeners were sure to point out her mistake, with Kelce apologizing in the “rage bait” section of the episode. One commenter wrote that Kelce would need to “clean up her act” in terms of language if the Princess of Wales were to join her for a conversation. And Kelce did not dispute it.
“First of all, you’re correct. … Agreed,” she said.
Despite this, Kelce acknowledged that she knows when to tone it down.
“Would I curse at her face? No,” she said. “Here’s the thing. I love curse words. I love it so, so much. I love curse words. You guys know that. But at the end of the day, I am respectful of the situations that I am put in, at least being respectful to the people I am speaking to.”
She went on to apologize to Catherine, saying that she always wishes to respect people’s chosen names.
As for a future collaboration? The offer still stands.
“I would love to speak to the Princess of Wales, OK?” Kelce said. “Because of many reasons. She is an incredible woman. She has children. She played field hockey. She battled cancer. There are so many things that I would love to speak to her about.”
Buck has had a lot stacked against him in Philly during much of his broadcasting career. Eagles fans have hated Buck because of his association with Hall of Famer Troy Aikman, who led the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl victories. Phillies fans felt like he was rooting against their team because they were used to hearing fan-friendly announcers like Harry Kalas and Tom McCarthy.
“Philly fans are at times hard to please, and that’s what makes them great,” Buck said. “They demand effort and excellence.”
A good example of the divide was 2008, when Buck was broadcasting the Phillies’ World Series victory on Fox while Kalas provided the radio call.
Kalas’ passionate call of the final out, a strikeout by closer Brad Lidge, still gives goose bumps to Philly sports fans: “Swing and a miss! Struck him ooooooooout! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 world champions of basebaaaaaaaall!”
Buck’s call, by contrast, was dry and direct: “Phillies are world champions.”
“I was raised in a house where I was taught to dislike Joe Buck,” Kylie Kelce said last year on her husband’s short-lived ESPN late-night now. “It seemed as though he was always cheering for the other team,”
Buck’s voice is one of the few in the sports world that signal a big game, and fans have come to view him and Aikman as one of the best broadcasting duos in the league. This year, the two will be back calling the Super Bowl, their first together since 2020 at Fox.
Joe Buck (left) and Troy Aikman have been calling games together since 2002. ESPN Images
Buck isn’t sure what to attribute his newfound respect from Philly sports fans to. Likely it has something to do with Aikman being far removed from his playing days with the Cowboys, but the more likely culprit is that he no longer calls national baseball games.
“Everyone is listening to every tone that comes out of your mouth and assigning some rooting interest that just doesn’t exist,” Buck said. “There would just be no reason why I would root against Philly. It’s just silly stuff.”
“I think people have come around on Joe over the past five to 10 years,” Cataldi said. “He’s always accused of rooting for the opposite team, but if you listen to his broadcast, it’s right down the middle.”
In his fifth season on ESPN’s Monday Night Football, Buck won’t have a rooting interest when the Eagles take on the Chicago Bears. But his stat guy in the booth will.
Ed Sfida, a Villanova grad, has worked with Buck and Aikman since 2003, dating back to their days at Fox Sports. They’ve become so close Buck invited Sfida to his wedding when he married Michelle Beisner, who now works alongside her husband at ESPN.
“Back at Fox, if the Eagles were playing the same time we were doing another game and scored a touchdown, we’d look down in the corner of the booth where Sfida stands and he’s doing the Eagles’ wing flapping thing,” Buck said. “He’s the best.”
Buck doesn’t see himself following in Merrill Reese’s footsteps
Merrill Reese is in his 50th season as the radio voice of the Eagles. Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
Buck is in his 33rd year calling NFL games in a career that dates back to Fox acquiring TV rights to the league in 1994.
That’s a long time, but he has a ways to go to match Eagles radio announcer Merrill Reese, who is in his 50th season calling the Birds, easily the most-tenured announcer in the league.
If Buck were to make it to 50 years, he’d be 74. So does he seem himself lasting in the booth that long?
“The answer to your question is no,” Buck said. “It’s just amazing to me, whether it’s Merrill or Al Michaels, the mental clarity and strength it takes to find your way through these games and not say something ridiculously stupid.”
“I’m just blown away by Merrill and how smart and clear and energetic is he,” Buck said.
A future without Troy Aikman at ESPN?
Troy Aikman’s ESPN contract expires at the end of the season. Jayne Kamin-Oncea
Buck recently signed a contract extension reportedly worth more than $100 million that will keep him at ESPN through the 2032 season. But Aikman hasn’t and reportedly won’t until after the season ends, after he and Buck call the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium in February.
There’s been uncertainly about the longtime duo before. When Aikman signed with ESPN in 2022, Buck had a year remaining on his deal with Fox, but executives let him out of his contract early so he could move to ESPN with Aikman.
Buck hasn’t spoken with Aikman about his plans, but he hopes the two will remain together at ESPN and keep the NFL’s longest-running TV booth going.
As for Aikman, there could be plenty of options. With uncertainty at CBS due to Tony Romo’s arrest and subsequent suspension, Aikman could solidify their No. 1 booth ahead of their Super Bowl next season. There’s also Amazon Prime, where Thursday Night Football announcers Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit have contracts that expire at the end of the season.
“I’ve been in this business long enough to know nothing is a guarantee,” Buck said. “So my only answer to any of that is we’ll see.”
A new fitness show has hit YouTube, and the first episode stars the Philly area’s own Kylie Kelce.
On Thursday, the debut episode of Power Hour with Ilona Maherdropped, and Maher, one of the stars of the 2024 U.S. Olympic rugby team, brought Kelce, her friend and fellow athlete, into the gym to lift weights, complete challenges, and talk sports.
“Here we champion three things: strength, pushing boundaries, and looking good while doing it,” Maher said in the episode’s intro.
Between jokes about what position they could play on the Eagles, the team for which Kelce’s husband, Jason Kelce, played for 13 seasons, and comparing Instagram hate comments, Maher instructed Kelce on how to do an incline bench press and throw medicine balls.
The duo kept it real, though, as the sometimes adult-themed conversation strayed from gym-related content and they laughed about dating failures and facing sexism as women in sports.
“Do you objectify [Jason]?” Maher asked.
“Of course I do,” Kelce responded, jokingly. “It’s all about equality.”
Maher, who has previously appeared on Kelce’s Not Gonna Lie podcast, is retired from professional rugby, and Kelce played field hockey at Cabrini after graduating from Lower Merion. More recently, they have advocated for women in sports and philanthropic causes.
The two appeared together earlier this summer at the sixth annual Team 62 fundraiser in Sea Isle City, where Maher was among the celebrity bartenders for the Kelces’ annual event for the Eagles Autism Foundation.
Kylie Kelce adds some money to the cash register during the Shore Birds celebrity bartending event in Sea Isle.Courtesy of the Philadelphia Eagles
Kelce has been outspoken about her life as a mother of four and brought that experience into the weight room on Power Hour. The final challenge, dubbed “The Motherhood,” reversed the roles and put Maher to the test, challenging her to grab the kids, pick up the toys, and, at the end of it all, push a classic weighted sled, which represented the expectations society puts on mothers.
“To put this pressure on moms, have your kid and get right back in shape,” Maher said, stunned.
“That’s the dumbest part,” Kelce responded. “You just built a human being, and people are like, ‘You gonna bounce back?’”
New episodes of Power Hour with Ilona Maher drop on Thursdays.
Ever wonder who the region’s most searched for locally born celebrities are?
Kobe Bryant? Of course. Sabrina Carpenter? Obviously. But a fighter pilot born in the early 1900s? Not so much.
The Inquirer’s Lizzie Mulvey and Charmaine Runes recently dug into the 2025 most popular celebrities on Wikipedia who were born in the Philadelphia area. The results were a mix of obvious contenders and surprises.
We went even further, looking at the top five most-searched individuals born in Lower Merion or Narberth, with the tiny borough punching above its weight class.
Topping the list is Narberth native Kylie Kelce, who is also among the top 100 searched celebrities in the region, ranking No. 50 overall. Part of her online rise came about after her podcast “Not Gonna Lie” launched in late 2024.
She’s followed by fellow Narberth native James Julien “Pug” Southerland II, a Navy fighter pilot credited with a number of victories in World War II. He reportedly earned his nickname because he was a pugnacious boxer at the U.S. Naval Academy. Sutherland died in 1949 at the age of 37 during a flight training accident, according to his page.
Author Beck Dorey-Stein grew up in Narberth. Lawrence Jackson
Beck Dorey-Stein, another Narberth native, has the third-most page views among area residents. A Lower Merion High School alum, Dorey-Stein gained acclaim after penning her 2018 memoir From the Corner of the Ovalabout her time as a stenographer in the White House, predominantly under former President Barack Obama. Her most recent book, Spectacular Things, came out last year.
Former Phillies minor leaguer and Houston Astros player Taylor Buchholz and former Cleveland Browns president Alec Scheiner, both from Lower Merion, come in numbers four and five, respectively.
Kobe Bryant played for Lower Merion High School.Ron Cortes / Staff Photographer
While Kobe Bryant was born in Philadelphia, he famously attended Lower Merion High School. The 18-time NBA All-Star is the No. 2 most-viewed page among all locally born celebrities.
This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.
NEW YORK —When Jeffrey Lurie purchased the Eagles in 1994, he had two goals.
Goal one, as any owner will say, was to win. Goal two was to make the franchise synonymous with a “global health cause.”
Lurie’s accomplished the former, winning two Super Bowls in the past decade. On Tuesday, he was celebrated for the latter.
At ESPN’s Sports Humanitarian Awards at Gotham Hall in Manhattan, the Eagles owner was presented the Stuart Scott ENSPIRE Award for his work with the Eagles Autism Foundation and the Lurie Autism Institute. The two initiatives have collectively donated more than $100 million toward Autism research and clinical care programs. The award is given annually to someone who uses their position in sports to help disadvantaged groups.
“You know, [winning] was sort of unexpected,” Lurie told The Inquirer. “[We] devote so much time to what we’re trying to do off the field with autism research and spend so much time trying to assure the Eagles are great … It’s a wonderful award. You know, I’ve sort of followed it over the years, and it’s nice to be recognized for humanitarian things.”
The Eagles Autism Foundation was founded in 2019 following the first Eagles Autism Challenge — an annual 5K bike ride to raise research funds for the neurological condition. The latest Eagles Autism Challenge had 6,500 participants and raised $16 million.
The Lurie Autism Institute is a center for autism research at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine. It opened last June after Lurie and his family donated $50 million to the two institutes. It is the largest center for autism-specific research.
Jeffrey Lurie (center) shown with Kylie (left) and Jason Kelce after winning the named Stuart Scott ENSPIRE Award. Jason and Kylie presented Lurie with his award.Courtesy of ESPN
“Autism was natural for me, my family, and millions of others around the world,” said Lurie, whose brother Peter is on the spectrum. “We’re getting there. We want the Eagles to be synonymous with trying to do everything possible that’s innovative with autism research and serving that community. And we’re certainly getting there. And it’s nice to be recognized on a national basis, and hopefully we’ll have a global impact.”
Lurie was supported by his Eagles family at the event. Jason Kelce — who raised $1.26 million for the Eagles Autism Foundation at his “Team 62” event in Sea Isle City earlier this month — presented Lurie’s award along with his wife and Not Gonna Lie podcast host Kylie Kelce.
Other notable figures present at Tuesday’s award show included Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and his wife, Ayesha Curry; former NBA player Jarron Collins; New York Giants co-owner Laurie Tisch; Buffalo Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin; and former MLB pitcher Jim Abbott.
Moments from the Sports Humanitarian Awards are scheduled to appear during the ESPYs, ESPN’s annual sports awards, on Wednesday (ABC, 8 p.m.).
‘Boo-Yah’
The namesake for the ENSPIRE award belongs to longtime SportsCenter anchor Stuart Scott, who died from appendiceal cancer in 2015. After being diagnosed in 2007, Scott stayed at ESPN while undergoing chemotherapy. Months before his death, Scott delivered a now-famous speech at the ESPYs in which he told the audience to “fight like hell.”
Sydni Scott, one of Stuart’s two daughters, was 14 at the time of her father’s famed speech. She attended Tuesday’s award show.
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie and Jason Kelce embrace after Lurie was honored for his humanitarian efforts with the Eagles Austim Foundation and Lurie Autism Institute.Ben Solomon
“This is one of my favorite nights of the entire summer,” said Sydni Scott. “I really think of my dad’s ENSPIRE Award as an award for people that are breaking barriers to bring more people into sports. You think back to the 90s, early 2000s, that was my dad. He was bringing Black culture, hip-hop, rap — all of those types of things into a very straight-laced kind of sports journalism and sports broadcasting environment.”
“In the past years you see that there are people who are working to make sure that deaf people are able to enjoy sports and Indigenous people are able to enjoy sports,” she added. “Every year, there is a community that I didn’t even realize.”
While posing on the red carpet on Tuesday, Lurie mouthed “Boo-Yah” — Scott’s famous SportsCenter catchphrase.
“It means a lot to have the award that Stuart Scott epitomized,” Lurie said. “I admired him. You know, he was inspirational. He was authentic, always genuine, and his battle with cancer was something we all were struck by, how he handled it. And having had family members with cancer, it was inspirational. To have the ENSPIRE Award inspired by Stuart is a something I’m proud of.”
You open the door to the rental and let in the roaring summer sun, and you’re fully prepared for a relaxing day on beach: Toy Story-themed towel, Cherry Float Coke Zeros, and a thin layer of suntan spray coating everything in the canvas tote bag.
But you could really use a snack.
There’s a lot going on this holiday weekend, and it’s a mess. So the last thing you need is another one.
What you’re looking for is a classic Jersey Shore treat, but ice cream isn’t built for travel and a slice of pizza has too many variables.
You need a “Walking Taco.”
Walking tacos are offered at the Wells Fargo Center.Michael Klein / Staff
I’m Tommy Rowan, and I’m once again subbing in for Amy S. Rosenberg. I’m a lifelong Jersey Shore-goer who was raised on visits to the Ocean City boardwalk and Wonderland Pier. I spent my teenage years on the Wildwood boardwalk, my 20s in Sea Isle City, and nowadays I have family in North Wildwood. And maybe it’s because I’m within spitting distance of 40, or because places I once loved are being torn down, I find myself wanting to cram in more of everything.
Which brings us back to the food that moves.
The “Walking Taco” is for people who want to walk and talk, and who want to fit in more and keep moving.
It’s a snack-sized bag of Fritos that’s crushed into pieces, garnished with seasoned ground beef, shredded cheddar cheese, and homemade pico de gallo, and eaten with a plastic spoon.
It encourages you to get your steps in, but it’s not quite fast food. That’s why they don’t call it a “Running Taco.”
It’s best eaten on the walk to the beach, but if you’re a “save for later” kind of person, it still works: The bag is self-contained, and yet it’s protected from splashes of sand and saltwater. And it’s an easy disposal: Just crush the bag into a ball and toss it in a trash can.
It’s salty and crunchy and cheesy, but it’s not a true overindulgence.
A cheeky hot dog stand in Sea Isle City has unfound claims to “the original,” but the product can be found up and down the Philly-favored beach towns between Atlantic City and Cape May — and many swap out Fritos for Doritos.
And, honestly, what better way to ring in the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence than with a uniquely American product: a nonrecyclable bag of ultraprocessed salty particles, topped with chemically altered cheese strings, covered in oily animal fat, and topped with what can only be described as a “modern interpretation” of pico de gallo.
It’s America in a fun-size.
📮 What’s your favorite beach snack? And how do you feel about the “Walking Taco?” What are you eating this holiday weekend? Let me know what you think by replying to this email, and your most interesting responses may end up in a future newsletter. Have ideas or news tips about the Shore or this newsletter? Send them here.
😡 We’re in for a dangerously hot holiday weekend. Remember to hydrate.
🏖️ Pumped up. Sand-pumping operations are expected to begin next week in Ocean City, while replenishment of the Seven Mile Island Beaches will reportedly begin toward the end of the summer. Avalon’s beaches are up first, with work scheduled to start in mid-August, followed by Stone Harbor in October.
🛵 Take a number. A reminder that New Jersey is now taking appointments for e-riders to register their e-bikes, per a new state law (which doesn’t seem to affect visitors from Pennsylvania). We have a full look at the confusing law here.
🎃 Halloween in July? Spirit Halloween is getting a head start on the spooky season and listing seasonal job openings on its website, including for pop-up stores at the Shore in May’s Landing, Rio Grande, and Egg Harbor Township.
🏫 Stretching out. Dominique Dawes, a former Olympian who founded a chain of gymnastics schools, is planning to open a new location in South Jersey this fall. The new school is part of the former gold medalist’s expansion into the greater Philly region.
🇺🇸 The Declaration. Two days before the country’s 250th anniversary, on July 2, Avalon is hosting a public reading of the Declaration of Independence. And then a few days after, on July 8, Cape May is planning its own public reading and reenactment. Both are worth checking out.
👻🦀 Ghost crabs! Every Thursday between 8 and 9 p.m., the Nature Center hosts a ghost crab hunt on the beaches of Cape May. So grab a flashlight and watch the translucent crustaceans scurry in the spotlight. Preregistration is required.
🌭 Hot Dog Tommy’s in Cape May. No. 1, fantastic name. No notes. And No. 2, helluva chili cheese dog.
🎥 Beach movies. Catching a flickoutdoors at the Shoreis underrated. Ocean air, salty breezes, and overpriced ice cream cones coalesce to create the most perfect conditions to take in a picture. Cape May and Margate show movies on the beach, Sea Isle utilizes the Band Shell in Excursion Park, and Wildwood hosts at Byrne Plaza.
🧢 Card show. If you’re looking for an escape from the heat this weekend, the Sports Card, Toy, Comic & Collectibles Show will be trading in childhood treasures and autographed memorabilia at the Wildwoods Convention Center on the boardwalk.
🎸 Free tunes in Atlantic City. On Wednesday, Bayou Blues guitarist-vocalist Tab Benoit is playing Mardi Gras on the Boardwalk, a New Orleans-themed concert series at Kennedy Plaza. The free show starts at 7 p.m.
🥡 Delicious takeout. Craig LaBan is a big fan of the General Tso’s at China Sea of Absecon. He went inland for his latest list of places to eat at the Shore.
Shore snapshot
Jason Kelce takes a selfie with fans at his annual fundraiser in Sea Isle City.Courtesy of the Philadelphia Eagles
After starting last year’s fundraiser with tear-away shorts and a Speedo, Jason Kelce was comparatively reserved this year for his entrance at his and wife Kylie Kelce‘s sixth annual “Shore Birds” event at the Ocean Drive in Sea Isle City. The event benefits the Eagles Autism Foundation.
I hope the next milestone after the Semiquincentennial is easier to pronounce and simpler to spell.
🧠 Trivia time
On June 27, 1958, this civil rights leader addressed a convention of Quakers in Cape May in a little remembered episode in this cultural icon’s extraordinary life.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Wonderland Pier and the unmistakable value boardwalk rides bring to the Jersey Shore, which is what made Joseph Farley’s recent submission jump out.
The station wagon seemed to bulge like in a Willie the Worm cartoon; where endless hordes of Mickey Mouse types invade a building. Our family of ten filled the seats with the baby on mom’s lap. It was 1955, the tires were near bald and Dad kept a gallon of water handy to feed the radiator should it geyser in heavy traffic. We left Cheltenham, PA for Wildwood already singing, “On the Way to Cape May.” My pockets bulged with the contents of my piggy bank, my life’s savings. It was a six-hour trip, four of them spent in Dorothy, a town on the Tuckahoe Road, enjoying lunch while Dad made repairs to the car.
That night I choose to ride the “Salt & Pepper Shaker” on Morey’s Pier; a scary ride that took you into the stars. At the top, it flipped upside-down. All the coins in my pockets fell out, clanking off the girders to oblivion. This broke ten-year old, turned moocher, still had a glorious vacation. I returned home brown as a berry with a tale that became family lure, a “feel sorry for dad story” that still brings sympathetic sighs every time I tell it.
Send us your Shore memory in 200 words! Tell us how the Shore taps into something deep for you, and we will publish them in this space during the summer.
✌️ That should do it. Amy’s back from vacation next week, so I’ll see ya at the rest stops.
— Tommy
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Jason Kelce must have learned that “no shirt, no shoes, no service” applies to pants as well.
After starting last year’s fundraiser with tear-away shorts and a Speedo, Jason Kelce was comparatively reserved this year for his entrance when he and wife Kylie Kelce hosted the sixth annual “Shore Birds” event at the Ocean Drive in Sea Isle City benefiting the Eagles Autism Foundation on Wednesday.
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) June 24, 2026
Local social media influencer Katie Begley, also known as Popstar Katie, led the workout, which took place on the grass at Sea Isle City’s Excursion Park.
While most of the other current and former football players opted to sport their own names and numbers on their jersey, Allen, who played with the Eagles across four seasons from 2014-17, instead represented one of his former teammates.
Allen, a staple at the Team 62 fundraiser, not only had a new jersey, but he also had a new job this year, helping Donna Kelce serve — or in Allen’s case, eat— water ice, alongside Eagles edge rusher Jalyx Hunt.
Cornerback Cooper DeJean, defensive tackle Ty Robinson, and safety Andre’ Sam were also in attendance, along with chief of security for the Eagles Dom DiSandro, and Cole Peterson, assistant to the head coach.
