Camilla’s charm and charisma... perfect for stiff Charles
EVERY time the Prince of Wales puts his foot in it – something that even his greatest supporters would not deny he occasionally does – it prompts speculation about the Succession. He’s been King-in-waiting for too long; he’s too old-fashioned and set in his ways; the monarchy needs new blood; why not skip straight to Prince William. And so on.
Luckily for the Prince, he has a secret weapon. Someone who cuts through all the pomp and circumstance, who understands not only the world around him, but also what makes him tick. Someone who knows how to handle his foibles – and who softens his rather stiff persona.
A wise head whose breezy charm and charisma perfectly complement his circumspection. And who will ensure that, whatever happens to the Royal Family over the next few years, he, Charles, will have the courage and confidence of his decisions.
That someone is his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall. Today, she celebrates her 75th birthday in the company of her family, a woman at the absolute peak of her powers.
OVER the past 17 years, since she and Prince Charles married in 2005, she has slowly but surely, and with great patience and humility, rebuilt her own story. From being the wicked Jezebel who destroyed a marriage, a woman reviled by the late Princess Diana’s legions of fans, she has, through sheer hard work, dedication and a quiet sense of duty, recast herself as a Royal consort every bit as
crucial to the safeguarding of the royal brand as the late Duke of Edinburgh or the Duchess of Cambridge.
And she has done all this by simply being herself. No spin, no games, no simpering media interviews. Just her straightforward, confident, unapologetic self. Through her openness, her self-deprecating humour, her sense of mischief, undimmed by age, she has finally shown the whole world what Prince Charles always saw in her, and why, ultimately, he could never forsake her.
Her most attractive characteristic is her authenticity. She never tries to be something she’s not, never compromises her values or behaviour for the sake of convenience. And it’s this inability to be anything other than true to herself that is so attractive in her. It’s not just a question of confidence. It’s also, in a world where trust in public figures seems to be at an all-time low, just very refreshing.
Her little joke the other day – where she started a speech with ‘Ladies and Gentlemen, if I’m allowed to call you that’ – perfectly encapsulates that attitude. As does her loathing of mobile phones, and her worries about children seeing stuff they shouldn’t online. At the same time she is not confused by the modern world, or scared of it. She’s perfectly happy to embrace the internet where necessary, such as her ‘reading room’ on Instagram, which boasts 142,000 followers.
She is also not afraid to put in the hours. She must have known, when she married Prince Charles, that she had a mountain to climb in order to rewrite her narrative. And climb it she has, step by step, day in, day out, come rain or shine, good or bad, happy or sad.
That’s something to respect. Unlike the Duchess of Sussex – who demanded the instant adoration of the public and the Royal Family, spouting lofty pronouncements but never underpinning them with concrete action, and running for the hills of California the second the going got even slightly tough – the Duchess of Cornwall stuck in there. If she now sits highly in the estimation of the Queen and the public, it’s because she’s earned it.
What a woman. And what a lucky man Prince Charles is. With Camilla by his side he will, when his time comes, be the best King he can possibly be. I know he knows this, but it bears repeating. Happy birthday, Ma’am.
JK ROWLING has offered her support to the parents of a severely disabled 16-year-old girl who were told their daughter no longer had the right to same-sex intimate care. That meant she might have to submit to a male member of staff for help with going to the toilet and menstruation. All in the name of diversity. In what world
is humiliating a vulnerable young girl in this way – not to mention exposing her to potential abuse – a
sign of progress?