Royals flushed

NOW that is what the royals are for. And it took this special time of year, as we wear our poppies with pride, to remind them – and us.

I have a son in the Army right now, and I will be at a Remembrance service as you read your paper this morning.

I have never felt so proud, nor so scared, nor so worried about where our world is heading – with persistent conflict, terrorism and threat.

But after all of the stupid bickering and headline trading that’s been going on within the royal family for the past few months – and yes, even they confirmed there were clashes between brothers we all believed were joined at the hip – at last they’ve shown us a bit of traditional style.

This week, the Sussexes and the Cambridges were out bowing their heads to the ordinary men and women who are, or who represent, true heroes.

And that’s how it should be. They do not live in palaces and castles to lord it over us, they are there to embody what is best about us as a country, as a human community.

Their job is to remind us what is best about ourselves, how utterly brilliant and brave some are, and to pay tribute.

This week, they did that job really well. It’s been a long time coming. The last few months of “William and Kate this versus Harry and Meghan that” has been nauseating, destructive and disrespectful.

And I can’t help thinking how their mum would feel. Diana would, I think, bang their heads together.

But how brilliant to see Meghan crouching on her knees to go eye to eye with a true British war widow, pictured d below. She got on her haunches to talk to 96-yearold Elizabeth Herschel, in a wheelchair chair and proudly wearing her medals.

And don’t you just love the devil may care attitude that comes with age?

Mrs Herschel gave Harry some personal advice. “I told him you can’t pick your ur family but you can pick your friends, and he said, ‘I will remember that’.”

Prince Harry, wearing full ceremonial emonial uniform, acknowledged her words and aluted.

He and Meghan bowed their heads ads as they planted tiny crosses at the Westminster Abbey Field d of Remembrance to pay their respects to servicemen n and women who made e the ultimate sacrifice.

Meanwhile the Cambridges helped elped launch the National tional Emergencies Trust, t, a new independent charity ty that will specialise in a better resourced and more efficient response to disasisasters like 7/7 and Grenfell.

All of the royal fashionistas stas twittered about both duchesses’ couture ture choices.

Each wore solemn blue and looked ked “demure, slim and stylish”.

I thought Meghan and Kate were re pretty understated. You could even en say boring.

Fan- bloody- tastic! Because the e most important thing was that they smiled, they made eye contact with the people who mattered, and they bowed to them. Do you think the Queen has had a word?

I think so.

I’M so proud that I even know what a lexicographer is.

Countdown’s Susie Dent is our best known and is celebrating the latest issue of the Collins Dictionary and the trendy new words of the year.

They include “cakeism” – the wish to have two desirable but incompatible alternatives – and to “milkshake” – throw a drink over a public figure to humiliate them. Think Nigel Farage.

Susie thinks this annual word fest helps to remind us of our verbal

heritage and also to indicate that language evolves.

Her favourite word of all time? An old American dialect expression – to “scurrifunge”.

It means to run around the house madly trying to clear up because visitors are coming.

I scurrifunge all the time. Now I know there is an ancient and highly regarded word for it, I’ll be a prouder scurrifunger.

But I still won’t get anything done – and I still cannot FIND anything.