How come William chose to ignore the massive elephant in the room and no one challenged him on it?

[Roadtripwithpretzels]

Prince William spoke about the very important subject of mh yesterday on Radio One and while it’s a subject that should be highlighted, does no one else think that his credibility on this issue has now been damaged by the AMW case?

He may not have been personally responsible for the alleged cover up, and he may well loathe Uncle Andrew, but he is still a central player in the institution that helped to pay off and cover up the voices of AMW’s alleged victims? Virginia Giuffre took her own life fhs! He can’t just ignore it!

To me this interview came across as incredibly unintelligent and insensitive in current circumstances. And proof that William himself just doesn’t “get it”.

Why on earth did he not say that in the light of current circumstances and out of respect for victims; the interview couldn’t go ahead?

Or why did his new ex crisis manager PR person not advise this?

And why was he allowed to sit there by the BBC and not address this?

And what about the mh of the Palace staff who have suffered because of AMW’s boorish and inappropriate behaviour for years? The nanny who allegedly left because of AMW being inappropriate and the policeman whose arm was hurt by AMW’s speeding at Windsor? The maids who were screamed at? What about the mental health of the police protection offices who quite recently were, according to Lownie, reminded about their NDAs and the safety of their pensions if they spoke out?

I don’t think it’s good enough any longer for a senior member of the RF to sit there and say yet again in a rather generic way “we all need to talk about our mental health” while ignoring what their own institution has covered up for years and is still allegedly trying to suppress?

And the BBC should hold some accountability about this too!

Sorry, I’m a Republican, but I think that’s a bit ageist.

I do agree with the point though that if we have to have a RF, then they should abdicate at normal retirement age just like the European royals are starting to do.

And there’s no need to spend £72 million on tax payers money either on a lavish Coronation!

A dignified religious ceremony with a handshake with W wearing an “ordinary” Gieves and Hawkes suit should do it!

Bloody hell- Mumsnet can even be ageist about the Queen!!

Nasty and not as embarrassing as your comment.

I felt immense pity for her. It co oincided with my own mother who similarly refused to give up. There was something terribly sad about her last months. The Platinum Jubilee where she was so tiny and frail and couldn't attend the rather tedious shows.

The poor woman could barely move. Sad, just sad.

PumpkinPieAlibi

I’ve just seen that I have commented on
your thread actually! Apologies! There are so many of them atm that it is easy to get confused! 😃

Your time line of events certainly makes the RF’s unequivocal support for AMW look very damning indeed.

Which begs the question, how much autonomy does the heir to the throne have to dissent or take an opposing course of action to the monarch?

I’m just trying to be strictly fair and objective about William and asking how much power did he have to attend, or not to attend things, when his grandmother was monarch and supporting AMW and then his father was being ineffective?

Lownie reports that both W and H have always loathed their uncle AMW.

Again, to be clear, as a Republican, I think this family loyalty business is why we should have an elected head of state.

Agreed @Roadtripwithpretzels. To be fair to William, I don't know how much power he would have truly had, as the Duke of Cambridge, to institute any kind of meaningful change when it came to his uncle. However, he certainly could have made a stand against being seen driving Andrew around on several occasions.

Charles however, surely could have done more.

And well, the Queen...she was an enabler through and through. I know she's passed and people may ask why bring it up now, but this isn't about her but about the accountability that the role itself holds and how there are so few checks and balances to mitigate against situations like this.

Ageist, just ageist.(Incidentally, sad and embarrassing are not synonyms)

I give William a pass for the first driving Andrew situation - he was driving both his uncles to their mother’s deathbed. At that point they may even have thought they would make it in time so that was all anyone would have been thinking about.

The other time was interesting. It was the first time Charles and his siblings had gathered back at Balmoral after the Queen’s death. They ended up driving in three cars and in order of precedence. Charles and Camilla in car one, William, Kate, and Andrew in car two, then Edward, Sophie, Anne and Tim in car three.

Now we know they have no shortage of vehicles so it was a deliberate choice to take just three cars.

Did no one want to take A? Did Sophie, Ed, Anne and Tim bagsy the same car and ‘shame we have no room for A, you’ll have to take him’

Did Charles insist he wanted to be compassionate on an emotional reunion at Balmoral and guilt William into it?

Did they flip a coin?

Charles certainly openly brought Andrew and Fergie back into the family events where he could just have had them attend stuff quietly.

Charles certainly openly brought Andrew and Fergie back into the family events where he could just have had them attend stuff quietly.

Agree with this - at the end of the late Queen's reign AMW was not attending the Christmas walk at Sandringham; he did in 2022.

The Late Queen certainly wasted no time getting Fergie back in the fold as soon as Phil had died. Apparently he refused to have her around.

Ageist? Really? She was very very ill and the Firm kept churning out "mobility problems" I thought it was sad to see and somehow I felt embarassed. Like she should have been resting at home.

Ableist??? Rubbish. I recall a clip where she was rooted to the spot unable to move. She even made a little self deprecating comment about it.

Unless she didn't have capacity she had every right to decide if she wanted to go out.

Thank you @Daygloboo I appreciate you answering my question. Thank you for sharing so candidly what your thoughts were about the Royals in the past and how you’re feeling about them now

Charles certainly openly brought Andrew and Fergie back into the family events where he could just have had them attend stuff quietly

I think the first sign that Fergie was back from the cold was when Harry and Meghan invited her to their wedding - and she was allowed to attend.

I’m often rooted to the spot and in too much pain to move. It’s absolutely my bloody decision if I want to go somewhere and risk it or not. As I’m stubborn 99% of the time I’ll take the risk. Your post is ageist and disablist. You are the one who should be embarrassed and no one else.

You said it was embarrassing.

My husband can “barely move” due to a progressive neurological disease. Are you saying that he too should just “rest quietly at home”? Does he not have a say in the matter? Did the late Queen not have a say in the matter? What a crass ageist and ableist thing to say 🙄

Totally agree.

She also had the right to privacy in medical matters.

I think the majority of posters can agree , whether they are a monarchist or a republican, that it is not ideal to have to work in late old age, especially in public facing roles. especially when seriously ill.

I don’t understand the mindset that says it’s embarrassing, rather the reverse, I think those who do so are extremely brave and should be applauded.

And that also applies to many pensioners in the uk, especially single women, who are having to work full, or part time, because they can no longer make ends meet.

It’s a shame if the thread gets de railed because someone said the Queen was embarrassing. Remember that it’s very possible that some people may be trying to derail to shift the conversation away from Andrews behaviour and Williams lack of any real response.

Hopefully mumsnet will delete the ageist/ableist response but if not hopefully the thread can get back on track.

I'm not sure she did. I remember an event where she was cutting a cake and she seemed incredibly confused. To the extent that she said something and it didn't make sense.

I am sorry to hear you are facing this challenge. I assume your husband is not on the world stage and obliged to attend formal events.

Thank you WhaAMess
I agree about the potential derail

Thanks also PumpkinPieAlibi
and Wordler for your thoughts on William and the attempted rehabilitation of AMW.

It’s clear that the late Queen was an enabler. Charles has been ineffective and indecisive until very recently.

William? Who knows but I reckon he is just about distant enough from the top to evade being involved in this current scandal.

I’ve found the passage in Entitled about the relationship between AMW and the princes.

Lownie describes a RF summit in 2021 where
AMW’s siblings agree that there is no way back for him “because of the reputational damage he was causing the monarchy and his ‘ungracious and ungrateful’ attitude.”

(Shame it wasn’t because of the damage AMW allegedly caused to vulnerable young women but there you are… .)

But I think that passage points to AMW not exactly being brother of the year.

Lownie also says that AMW’s relationship with Charles’s two sons “was also a problem”.

He describes a serious argument between H and AMW in 2013 and says there have been tensions between AMW and W for years.

Hopefully W can effect change - don’t hold out much hope for radical change - but I still think having an elected head of state would be a much more efficient way of avoiding family difficulties!