Brits don’t give a hoot

– A global audience will be watching when Prince Harry weds his US fiancee, Meghan Markle, on Saturday, but most Britons do not care much, a YouGov poll said on Monday.

The poll, commissioned by antimonarchist pressure group Republic, found that 66% of Britons are not interested in the event, with 60% of Britons planning to have a normal weekend.

Harry and Markle are set to marry at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle with more than 5 000 media staff and about 100 000 well-wishers expected to descend on the market town.

The poll by polling firm YouGov showed that 57% of respondents believed the royal family should pay not only for the wedding but also for the costs of police.

An opinion poll published last week showed that most Britons are in favour of the monarchy continuing in Britain.

And another poll by polling firm ComRes found 58% of respondents thought the royal wedding and the recent birth of Prince Louis to Prince William and his wife Kate were events of which Britain could be proud, although support was more pronounced among older people.

The YouGov survey suggested that the popularity of the royal family is contingent on the personalities of its members.

While 60% of respondents say they like Queen Elizabeth II, her son Charles is far less popular. –