during

the height of the credit crunch, the Queen memorably asked academics at the London School of Economics: ‘Why did nobody notice it?’

Prince Charles appears to be taking a similarly close interest in economics. i hear that he held private talks at Highgrove last Friday with Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England.

A Clarence House spokesman declines to disclose what they discussed, but it’s a shame Canadian Carney didn’t bring his wife, diana. She shares Charles’s environmental concerns and wrote a blog with eco-tips.