Royal row between King Charles and Earl Spencer 3

[Viviennemary]

A new thread and book not even published till Tuesday. I checked on Amazon and its only 12th on the non fiction bestseller list. Doesn't show Earl Spencer in a very good light imho.

That was a cracking speech Charles gave to Congress. I'll concede that and use it to show how brilliant he can be the same goes for him speaking fluent German. Not that either changed anything, but they were impressive and good for morale.

That said, then we see the chasm between that and his execution of William's role, where hyena-like shouting at football matches seems to be the highest summit he can climb, and not even watching the movies he's commenting on at the BAFTAs. And let's be honest, a man in his 40s is pretty much cast for the remainder of his life this isn't some temporary youthful phase that he's likely to grow out of.

At the very least, master the brief: sit through the meetings, read your executive summaries, know what you're talking about and at least pretend you care.

I think modern parlance is "stans" I'm not sure why.

At the very least, master the brief: sit through the meetings, read your executive summaries, know what you're talking about and at least pretend you care.

Someone send this to KP, quick, and tell them there's a bod on MN who they need to snap up as a royal adviser PDQ. To think he's been doing the job wrong for ages and all the time all he needed was the benefit of foxylady's advice.

A quick google would fill in that gap.

Another occasion KC impressed me - actually, a went a bit teary - was when he changed his schedule to meet Zelensky, who was on his way back from that shameful meeting with Trump and Vance, where both of these rednecks laid into him for not wearing a suit.

KC was just brilliant. He greeted him so warmly, embraced him, spoke quietly and reassuringly and showed huge respect. I thought: that's how a proper HoS greets another. You could see Z was thinking the same. Whatever his critics say, no-one can accuse KC of pomposity - he always does humble brilliantly.

What that poor country has been/was going through, and Trump and Vance didn't like his combat jacket.

I am cheap but not free and a gun for hire and personally in my distant past went to St James Palace to receive an award from the then Prince Andrew.So I have form.

Oh, should add that I think there's a great rapport between KC and President Macron - they are both similar in their demeanour - neither have an Alpha Male, Big, Strong Guy vibe, which Trump has. Both are cultured, sophisticated men.

These things do matter to international relations.

KC’s speech at Congress too, was fantastic.

"And if it wasn't for us, you'd be speaking French."

Yes it emineminently would 😎

For gaslit, mainly, and others who are concerned about the CW.
The late Queen loved the CW. I honestly don't think Charles or William care that much. The Queen used to say that anyone who wanted to leave - no problem, and let's still be friends.

The CW will exist as long as its members want it to. It's stupid to think the monarch would co-erce any members to stay - and particularly now, when the old bonds of Empire are long, long in the past (which they wouldn't have been to QE2).

But some people have to frame is as Empire II and something the monarchy forces on nations.

I care not a fig for it, personally, but as sure as eggs is eggs, British influence will be replaced by something hostile to us. But history will take its course.

It was hilarious that Trump sat there, all orange and pouting, pleased as hell with himself, while the slightly sharper Vance behind Charles could be seen frowning as it dawned on him that the speech wasn't entirely flattering to their administration.

But some people have to frame is as Empire II and something the monarchy forces on nations.

I'm 72. Empire was over before I was born; and yet the only people going on about empire are the people telling us how ashamed we should be of it. I mean, who are the ones who keep harping on about it but the people who'd have preferred us not to have had one in the first place?

I agree, and we are probably witnessing a terminal decline in Great Britain, which may well lose its “Great” in the near future along with three of its constituent nations. We will therefore have to do more with less, while a population that is becoming increasingly restless and angry may be less inclined to pay for an extravagant Royal Family that doesn't appear to be doing its part.

Playing at homelessness, or attaching themselves to whatever fashionable social-media cause happens to be trending, isn't going to cut the cloth, I'm afraid. So my second unsolicited piece of advice to the British Royal Family today is: adapt or die and stop being so greedy and grasping.

We see you, even if the commemorative-plate-and-coronation-mug crowd are happy to keep cheering you from the sidelines with their cheap pound shop Chinese plastic flags. And nostalgia isn't going to save them either: the past was rarely as good as the memory of it serves, and trying to recreate some idealised version of Britain that never really existed won't address the problems of the Britain that exists today.

Here endeth the second lesson !

I agree, and we are probably witnessing a terminal decline in Great Britain, which may well lose its “Great” in the near future along with three of its constituent nations. We will therefore have to do more with less, while a population that is becoming increasingly restless and angry may be less inclined to pay for an extravagant Royal Family that doesn't appear to be doing its part.

I agree with your first sentence. It's the march of history. In 1066 and All That, which is absolutely brilliant in poking fun at the way history is thought about, they have 'Top Nations'. During 17th c it was France, then in the 18th/19th, Britain, followed by America in the 20th and now China (not Russia, I don't think). We aren't going to like it, but we can't do anything about it.

I'm a constitutional monarchist but I don't much mind how small the RF is. I would put money on William V definitely reducing the size of it. But I think it's beneficial to us, it's a system that works and has many advantages.

I think people are restless and angry but not so much about the RF. The instability and the perceived threats to Britain are translating into far-right voting. The corollary of saying that few people now care about the RF is that -well, very few care enough to protest or change things.

And frankly, why the hell would we waste time and energy on this question when the whole political scene internationally is so volatile. We'd be crazy to do it. Even the Labour Party know it's a dead duck. People do indeed have other concerns.

I know! It's tiresome in the extreme.

But the thing that bugs me is that - all great powers have been imperialists from time immemorial. We just had our moment, as did many other European powers.

Yesterday I went to see the film, De Gaulle: Resistance, and there was a huge map of French colonies in Africa. I knew they had many colonies but I was amazed at the extent - almost half the continent! Well, I hope the French get as much criticism as the Brits do about this Actually, someone on MN once let slip that they thought only Britain had an Empire in the 19th c.

The long term demographics show that it is only the over 60s who have a majority in support of the Windsors

This change will happen quickly as the older generation dies off.

This does not mean the uk will be ‘unstable’ as coming generations are either actively hostile or indifferent to the Windsors. It will be a gradual chipping away . We are seeing the start of that process now .

Change is revitalising . The UK needs this more than ever . The institution at the head of our state is rotten .

Change is revitalising . The UK needs this more than ever . The institution at the head of our state is rotten .

No it ain't.

Change in a time of extreme global turbulence is not revatalising - it's destablising.

And those 60 year olds might have several decades in them yet and they are the ones keenest to use their vote.

Your prediction of the arrival of Republic of Great Britain is premature.

But the thing that bugs me is that - all great powers have been imperialists from time immemorial. We just had our moment, as did many other European powers.

This is the thing that bugs me too. Hey people, have a go at the Dutch, the Spanish, the Portuguese, the Germans and the French! they had empires too.

Back in the days I was on X a Spanish poster was claiming how wonderful the Spanish empire was in the 15c and 16c. After I'd picked myself off the floor laughing I told him he might want to check the effects of the Spanish on the indigenous population. Nope, wouldn't have it even when I cited contemporary references.

The institution at the head of our state is rotten .

No it isn't. Don't be daft.

Several decades is exactly what I’ve said before.
The House of Lords bill passed in April is a start. I think it leaves Charles as the only person on the UK legislature who is there as result of accident of birth .

Lots of countries have booted out their parasites - sorry monarchy - and carried on without the sky falling in , particularly in the last century .

I think it leaves Charles as the only person on the UK legislature who is there without mandate .

Apart from the will of the people as expressed through parliament - and that view is that ATM, the people seem to be happy enough with a monarchy and there's no demand for a republic.

Incidentally, how many Lords have a mandate to be there apart from being mates with a PM or former PM? and given that the legislature is enacted in the name of the monarch, I'd say that's a pretty good mandate for KC.

Lots of countries have booted out their parasites - sorry monarchy - and carried on without the sky falling in , particularly in the last century .

And for several of those countries - Russia being the one that springs to mind - the sky fell in rather spectacularly. Italy not so much but their monarchy was less than a century old anyway. Germany and Austria and Turkey it took a world war and tens of millions dead.

I consider covering up for pedophiles over decades ‘rotten’ but you do you

but you do you

That unanswerable mumsnettism. 🙄

And many countries, often cited on here as veritable earthly paradises, retain theirs.

There’s no direct correlation between monarchies/republics and happiness/misery. Our system works.