Royal visit is better by smiles

Love ‘em or loathe ‘em, there’s no denying the Royals can pull in a crowd.

Two days after William and Kate’s visit to Sunderland and the city is still basking in the warm glow of a hugely successful whistlestop tour.

How you measure that success is difficult to quantify.

The critics will dismiss the event as a meaningless PR charade by glorified social security spongers hellbent on protecting their vast fortune.

The Royal supporters, naturally, will have a different take.

Traditionalists see the Royals as the walking epitome of Britishness, steeped in history and working hard to promote our nation at home and abroad, attracting investment and goodwill wherever they go.

You pays your money you takes your pick.

But there was certainly no shortage of goodwill about during their Wearside walkabout.

And they provided worthwhile community causes and ventures with the kind of publicity money can’t buy.

The Fire Station arts and culture development will only benefit from being officially opened by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, while the Royal seal of approval of our Northern Spire bridge brings more welcome publicity to our city.

What great stories all those who met the Royal couple have to tell their friends and family. And in the case of two-year-old Isobelle Nockles, what a great story and pictures!

The value of the Royal visit is difficult to quantify, but there’s a simple formula that works for us.

The smiles of children overjoyed to meet a real life prince and princess trumps hard-hearted cynicism every time.