To think that the Royal Family have a golden opportunity here

[NewNNsoShootMe]

Prince Charles has compared the crisis of harvesting with the 2nd world war efforts.

HM the Queen served in WW2 and remains the only decorated monarch in Europe.

Can you imagine if members of the RF volunteered to pick fruit and veg etc how hugely successful they would turn around their rather battered image of late?

[Samcro]

Sorry when i was reading that I thought you meant the queen should do it.
That made me lol.
Think you are right, but can't see it happening. Easier to tell other people to do it.

[Toilenstripes]

But it would be seen as a PR move, and rightly so. For all we know Princess Anne is already doing it without fanfare, but W&K aren’t likely to get out in the fields and do pleb stuff.

[EdithWeston]

Given that the Wessexes have turned up, totally unsung, in crisis food distribution roles, then this is perhaps something that some Royals might go in to for a while.

As could many sportspeople whose sport is continuing suspended for a while to come, or actors etc.

The chance of meeting interesting people might stimulate flow of other volunteers. It was always a role for students when I were a lass

[letmethinkaboutitfornow]

@NewNNsoShootMe - could be a great idea, however!

I have reached out to several farms nearby and ALL of them came back with being full of workers / volunteers!
I have no idea where the people - Land`s Army needed but certainly not in the South East!

So first they need to have some availability for me before the RF upstages me!

[C130]

Maybe they could do it for an hour or so. Long enough to get the pics, It would not do for them to tire theirselves out.

[Wolfgirrl]

They won't. They'll never be held to account for their actions (or lack of) so they wont bother.

[SunbathingDragon]

I saw the headlines and thought the same thing. I can’t see that they will but, even though it would without doubt be a PR move, I think it would be well received by the public.

[Pixiefringe]

I was so confused I read that as 'Royal Mail' and I sat here re-reading the OP trying to find the relevance of the RM in it 😫

[NewNNsoShootMe]

It definitely wouldn’t work as a PR exercise.

They would have to do it properly or not at all.

But if W&K did it, and photos taken for prosperity a la Princess Elizabeth circa the 1940s, I think the position of the monarchy as role models will be secured without doubt for the foreseeable future.

[AdaColeman]

Charles couldn't possibly do any fruit picking, it would ruin his impeccable cream suit!

I think it's unlikely that the RF will donate cash from their vast private fortune to fund vaccine research or any major project, which I think is a pretty poor show from them.
As for H & M having been given ten years to pay back the two and a half million they knowingly fleeced UK taxpayers of, well, it's just a joke.

[Pelleas]

That was my first thought when I heard Charles was calling for volunteers. Get your own family off their lazy backsides to do some fruit picking! Bloody cheek.

[Ultrasoft]

I think it's a good idea, except that if they tell anyone, it's a PR stunt and if they don't, there's not much point (from PR pov)

I believe PoW is quite active in the management of his farms, I'm not saying "hands on" but he will well understand the issues.

[PickUpAPickUpAPenguin]

Princess Charlotte's birthday photos were of her delivering food so I assume that they will do that sort of thing for image's sake.

[ChandlerIsTheBestFriend]

Charles couldn't possibly do any fruit picking, it would ruin his impeccable cream suit!

Isn’t he a very hands grower of things? I don’t think a bit of dirt bothers Charles.

[timetest]

Well Prince Andrews free and could do with some good pr.

[Floatyboat]

Maybe the People's Princess Meghan would be be up for that but Kate ran her out of town because she couldn't handle the competition.

[MrsFogi]

Now is the time to abolish the RF, liquidate their assets and use them to pay off some of the massive debt caused by this crisis. Anything else is just window dressing.

[Floatyboat]

@Timetest

Think prince Andrew is keeping as low a profile as possible. " Profile " won't make the FBI forget about him.

[Pelleas]

Now is the time to abolish the RF, liquidate their assets and use them to pay off some of the massive debt caused by this crisis.

I couldn't agree more.

[SpooniesAreGo]

It’s in the press that the Queen ordered construction workers working on Buckingham Palace a week before Boris Johnson said construction workers were allowed to return to work.

Prince Andrew has like two mini-scandals in the past month (dipping into charity funds for a payoff and another story about his relationship with Epstein).

No one cares. The press don’t care. Royals whose names don’t rhyme with Barry and Pegan could drive a school bus full of orphaned puppies off a cliff right now and get maybe one article in the Daily Mail about it.

[Ultrasoft]

Construction workers were never "ordered" to stop, so that seems unlikely Spoonies.

[OutwiththeOutCrowd]

Doing the Clap for Carers thing, and Zoom chats, is too easy a win for the Royals. They look too safe and comfy in front of their laptops, cheering on the troops from a distance. They could do with finding something more imaginative and just a bit more taxing.

Prince Charles is in the interesting position of having had the coronavirus, albeit a mild version. He could spearhead a drive to encourage those who have recovered from the virus to donate their blood for research purposes or as a potential source of therapeutic antibodies to help those who are severely sick in hospital.

So blood donation rather than picking fruit for Prince Charles. And if in time it looks like he really has developed a reasonably long lasting immunity to the disease, he could leave his book-lined study and visit the sick.

[1forAll74]

Yes I can well imagine Princess Anne picking out potatoes,, and cabbages, she is not afraid to do any manual jobs, and will do it quietly,without any fanfare..Charles likes gardening,and all things countrified, so he maybe will pick some apples and pears, whilst Camilla holds the baskets.

Maybe Prince Andrew, could get down on his knees,and pick some asparagus, as I am sure that he has been down on his knees before !!

The Queen should just be the supervisor in the fields at her age, and needs to keep all her lovely clothes clean.

[PickUpAPickUpAPenguin]

I saw a pic of Andrew and Fergie packing cupcakes (?) Considering his reputation you'd think he'd be desperate to help

[NewNNsoShootMe]

Imagine if Harry and Meghan chose this moment to comeback to the UK and pick fruit?

All would be forgiven and their position as the nation’s if not the world’s favourite royals cemented....