Biography’s a vile attack on Charles
READING the latest unauthorised biography of Prince Charles – Rebel Prince: The Power, Passion And Defiance Of Prince Charles, by veteran hack biographer Tom Bower – has made me feel slightly sick.
Unlike Andrew Morton’s book about Diana, which at least had the virtue of the late Princess’s full co-operation and revealed her misery in her own words, Bower’s tome is just a vicious confection of tittle-tattle that is almost completely unattributable. Nothing new emerges from this nasty book and most of the negative comments from wholly anonymous courtiers could simply have been made up.
I know royals must expect to be gossiped about and that salacious and sensational “revelations” make some writers a lot of money.
But I really do object to this cynical dabbling into people’s souls and their deepest emotions, sadness and regrets while they are still alive – and the causing of collateral damage to innocent family members such as William and Harry. Heaven knows, they deserve our kindest wishes for their happiness at this crucial stage of their lives.
They have come through deep trauma, emerging as likeable and responsible young men.
As they raise a young family and plan a longed for marriage they don’t need some avaricious old gossip throwing yet more nasty stuff in their direction.
Look: Charles and Diana had a disastrous marriage. It happens. Neither of them behaved particularly well.
The Prince had a long affair with Camilla but I guess Diana was no picnic and she had affairs too. Surely we are all grown up enough to know that some relationships can turn toxic. And really there’s nothing more to say, is there? William and Harry have grown up well. We all feel hugely warm towards them and they are the future. But Charles and Camilla are the future too. This new biography paints her as scheming, manipulative and dying to be queen. I don’t believe it. I think she’s just a middle-aged woman who had a lousy marriage and fell in love with a man who will one day be king. Actually I really like Camilla (though I’ve never met her). I like her face, her laugh, her attitude. In her own way she’s as much a breath of fresh air as are Harry and Megan and I’d love her to be queen. It’s about time we stopped being so judgmental and accept that the past is gone, over and done with. And if Charles is to be our king (as he will be) then his wife should be our queen. SETTING my alarm for 3am this week, sitting in for Piers Morgan again on Good Morning Britain. I’ll be going to bed earlier than I did when I was seven.