The Royal Wedding!

Well...what can be said beyond: What a perfect day!

“Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by this....” lovely wedding. It’s so much more than a day’s celebration. Like the Abbey, it’s a thousand years in the making: the perfect blending of royalty with the people.

There was a time when people blamed their kings and queens for all their ills. There was a time when kings and queens viewed their people with disdain. It has taken centuries for the two to come together and every step along the way has led to the lovely blend of dignity, pageant and respect with the fun and sense of camaraderie that we have seen today. Alongside all the implications for the nation, we shared the joy of two lovely people who are so perfectly suited and who are both fun-loving and dignified - what a perfect combination! I hope they are having a really happy party this evening in the palace!

God bless all of the many, many people behind the scenes who rehearsed in the early hours for months in advance to make this day so lovely for our country!

And every blessing upon Prince William and Princess Catherine! May they always be as beautiful and happy as they are today!

And thank heavens for the survival of the monarchy!!

"I wonder what the [future] king is doing tonight...."

Here, we don’t have Independence Day or Thanksgiving. We don’t have a version of Australia Day, and our religious festivals are swept up in commercialism. In England, we don’t really even celebrate St. George’s Day, as the Irish celebrate St. Patrick’s Day; and we don’t have Burns’ Night or Hogmanay. In fact, in England especially, but throughout most of Britain, we don’t really have anything that celebrates who we are....

Except when it comes to Royal events! And wow! Has this wedding captured the nation...and we do this so well!! Please forgive a little Englishness/Britishness tonight but of all the royal occasions in my lifetime (the Queen’s Silver and Golden Jubilees and the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana), tomorrow seems to not only continue a link in a chain dating back to the processions of the Victorian era, but also to have created something quite new.

Seeing children Maypole dancing in red, white and blue; the shops bedecked with bunting, and the people who camp out all night for a glimpse of the procession, the historical link is so apparent. It could be any celebration from any era when royal visits and occasions were celebrated. My grandmother spoke of King Edward VII coming to Leeds in 1908 and what she, as a schoolchild, did was no different from what children in schools all over Britain have been doing today. The new part, however, is that I don’t think that (in my lifetime) there has been a royalty who inspired such sincere and genuine affection as Prince William. Perhaps it is because the country mourned the death of his mother, that we kind of took him and Prince Harry to our hearts in a way that is quite unique...more likely it is because he has shown himself to be all that could be wished for in a prince: the common touch with the dignity and mystique of royalty; the ability to empathise with ordinary folk and yet to remain a Prince.

And Kate....well, everyone seems to be claiming a part of her right now so I will stick in the oar for the Leeds connection! Her ancestors gave their name to an area of the city (Middleton) and were part of the philanthropic founders of this northern place.

There is so much excitement throughout the country – such a sense of celebration - and it seems like everyone is not only wishing this lovely couple well, but also being so grateful for this opportunity to celebrate who we are as a nation. You have to admit the inch perfect placement of the knives and forks and glasses on the tables, the perfect timing of the processions and the carefully measured placement of every guard along the route is really rather wonderful! Just for tonight and tomorrow, I am so very proud to be English/British...and as night falls the song from ‘Camelot ‘ comes to mind:

“I wonder what the King is doing tonight?” For ‘King’ read ‘future king’....

I know what my people are thinking tonight,
As home through the shadows they wander.
Ev'ryone smiling in secret delight,
They stare at the castle and ponder.
Whenever the wind blows this way,
You can almost hear ev'ryone say:

I wonder what the king is doing tonight?
What merriment is the king pursuing tonight?
The candles at the court, they never burned as bright.
I wonder what the king is up to tonight?
How goes the final hour
As he sees his bridal bower
Being regally and legally prepared?
Well, I'll tell you what the king is doing tonight:
He's scared! He's scared!

You mean that a king who fought a dragon,
Hacked him in two and fixed his wagon,
Goes to be wed in terror and distress?
Yes!
A warrior who's so calm in battle
Even his armor doesn't rattle
Faces a woman petrified with fright?
Right!

You mean that appalling clamoring
That sounds like a blacksmith hammering
Is merely the banging of his royal knees?
Please!

You wonder what the king is wishing tonight?
He's wishing he were in Scotland fishing tonight!
What occupies his time while waiting for the bride?
He's searching high and low for some place to hide.
And oh, the expectation,
The sublime anticipation
He must feel about the wedding night to come.
Well, I'll tell you what the king is feeling tonight:
He's numb!
He shakes!
He quails! He quakes!
And that's what the king is doing tonight.

I’ll bet he is!! But he needn’t be...we love him!

View From the Street...

The shops are filled with memorabilia: Union Jack scarves, tee-shirts emblazoned with the royals crest, tasteful glasses and tacky crockery. There is red, white and blue bunting, dotted with pictures of William and Kate, in the shopping centres; and the pubs are advertising all kinds of deals with screens in the beer gardens for the 29th April. With St. George’s Day approaching and Easter being late this year, there’s a whole series of Bank Holidays coming together, making the working weeks much shorter, and we have amazingly beautiful weather for April – the cherry blossom is out everywhere and the bluebells are beginning to bloom!

Like the rest of the world, Britain is going through a recession engineered by bankers and the shady groups who hide in the shadows. Bread and circuses might seem like the order of the day to some of those who wish to keep us in line with the programme but there is something deeper here in this Royal wedding than simply being appeased with a few street parties and a set of souvenirs.

Is it a strange coincidence that we are having so beautiful a Spring? Britain’s climate is so unpredictable and often so wet that even way back in history the Roman invaders hated being here and the Normans didn’t think much better of it. For the past few years, winters have been extremely long and summers have been virtually non-existent - a couple of sunny days in June and that’s it. As soon as the sun appears the mood changes. We’re no longer the buttoned-up people with stiff upper lips, but the friendly, happy people who hurry out at the first possible opportunity to savour the sun!

It is pretty amazing, though, that throughout my lifetime the loveliest summers and the brightest days have always coincided with royal occasions. I was at school in 1977 when the Queen and the whole country celebrated the Silver Jubilee. We were all
given souvenir mugs and hurried to watch the Queen drive by as she toured the country. In 1981, I recall the Union Jacks in windows for the wedding of Prince Charles and the then ‘Lady’ Diana, and the warmth of those summer evenings. Again, 2002 and the Queen’s Golden Jubilee...warm summer days, the flags, the coming together, the feeling of a country united.
Now, 2011...a wonderfully warm spring; a handsome prince and a real love-match...Our Royal Family obviously doesn’t control the weather, but they certainly raise the mood of the country...and somehow that mood is repeatedly reflected in the weather.

This is so wonderful a time for England/Great Britain. An estimated two billion viewers from all over the world will watch the wedding ceremony, which has also led to so many more hotels bookings, thriving businesses, generating huge amounts of income and providing many people with more work. Pubs (which have been closing down all over the place since the EU directed smoking ban) will prosper on the day. Prince William and Kate asked that people who wish to send gifts, send money instead to their charity, which has already received huge amounts in donations.

Above all, though, this wedding is drawing people together with the great love and appreciation we feel for the traditions of our country and who we really are, which is reflected in our Royal Family who somehow – regardless of their individual foibles – personify the finest spirit and aspirations of this country....and provide us with a wonderful excuse for a jolly good party and fun!!

The Making of a King

When their first son, Bertie, was born Queen Victoria and Prince Albert – both of whom were still so young – sought guidance about his upbringing from Prince Albert’s mentor Baron Stockmar. His advice couldn’t have been more detrimental to the poor Prince of Wales whose memories of childhood were so unhappy that as soon as he became King, he disposed of that great (and beautiful!) symbol of his childhood, Osborne House. As a boy Bertie could never please his parents. He just couldn’t fit their (or Stockmar’s) ideal of the perfect prince. Gauche, not studious or particularly academically intelligent, his natural talents for diplomacy and charm were so often overlooked. I adore Prince Albert and think that the one mistake of his life was his treatment – albeit well-intentioned – of the future King Edward VII. In later life, the perceived traumas of this strict regimen showed up in Bertie’s addictions to food, sex and gambling and anything else that brought him comfort. His life, however, was not a tragedy! He was well-liked, affable, had the common touch alongside great dignity and he was a great statesman and ambassador, though his reign was so brief.

Prince Albert and Queen Victoria wanted to raise the perfect prince.

Seeing the footage of Prince William in New Zealand today, I was over-awed by the thought that it took a few generations and far less strict regimen for that dream to
come into being. Prince William was amazing! One moment dressed in casual clothes, shaking hands with the crowds, crouching to have his photo taken with children, and chatting to them as freely as if they were old friends. When someone in the crowd called out, “I will see you in London on the 29th!” Prince William, with genuine delight replied, “You’re coming? You are all invited!!” The next minute, in a smart suit and a Maori ‘stole’ he was addressing the earthquake victims with a solemnity and wisdom that was so touching. He spoke of his grandmother and the advice she had given him – and who could fail to notice that he, having lost his mother at such a young age, understood grief - and his dignified references to Her Majesty also showed such respect for the Queen (as did the way he sang the National Anthem, ‘God Save the Queen’, with such gusto).

Kipling's wonderful lines immediately came to mind:

“If you can walk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings nor lose the common touch...”

If ever the British monarchy needed a lift when the scurrilous newspapers go in search of scandals, I am sure this young prince is the perfect person for the job. Not only would his mother be so proud of him, but also his great-great-great-great-grandparents, Prince Albert and Queen Victoria must surely be looking down at him and thinking, “Well, we got there in the end!”

Prince William's Engagement

Hurrah for the announcement of the engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton! What a dignified, level-headed and beautiful couple, with both dignity and ‘the common touch.’ Diana, Princess of Wales must be ‘looking down’ in sheer delight at the way in which times have moved on from the days of her more-or-less arranged marriage, to that of her son to someone he genuinely loves. Congratulations to them and may they be blessed with every blessing!

An interesting phenomenon about the British is that only 3 things seem to really unite us as a nation. The first is football: when a major tournament (like the World Cup) is taking place, we suddenly become patriotic and, (with the ‘triumph of hope over experience’!) think that this time we might, just might, actually win....Alas! That hope usually fades pretty quickly! The second is some minor upset like a little extra snow or a flood or some other ‘extreme’ (by our standards) weather. The buses can’t run or people are stranded and suddenly we see ourselves in the ‘spirit of the Blitz’ – everyone pulling together for the common good. Neighbours help neighbours, strangers help strangers and everyone feels good about it all....then the thaw comes or the flood subsides and we all return to our British singularity.

The third thing, however, is perennial. It is the Royal Family: give us a jubilee or a royal wedding and suddenly the whole mood of the country shifts and we all have the excuse to celebrate, shed our English reserve and come together again! I admire all the work done by our Royal Family (who, for all the complaints of their critics, work extremely hard) and I have heard even the most ardent Republicans express their amazed sense of surprise when they came face to face with members of the royal family – the magical mystique of royalty! – but there is one thing they do better than anyone else: they have the ability to embody the hopes of a nation. People get engaged every day and it is no big deal....but when a prince (particularly so charming a prince as Prince William) is engaged, the entire country feels the ripple of joy. I guess that after centuries of having a monarchy, what happens in the lives of individual princes affects us all. It’s something that goes right into the very cells of our bodies and all the inherited memories of past generations, I suppose.

All in all – a very happy day for the country and I am grateful for the joy that the Royal Family brings us! Congratulations to William and Kate!

Trooping the Colour

Queen Victoria's granddaughter, Marie of Roumania, wrote of her grandmother's almost childish excitement about the theatre troupes or circuses that came to Windsor, and how it was lovely to see that thrill and hear her laughter. When the present Queen smiled yesterday at the red, white and blue flowing from the Red Arrows, there was something of the same effect.

The military aspect apart, the perfection of the Trooping of the Colour inspires such a sense of history and respect for the values of Her Majesty. We have gone through a lot of wishy-washy stages in this country in an attempt to remain up to date and it is good that we have discarded ancient prejudices or the ideas of Empire, but, at the same time when we seem to have 'thrown out the baby with the bath water', it is truly wonderful to see the pride that the young men, who marched with such perfectly choreographed steps, feel in marching before the Queen and all she represents. After all the scandals and shame of our Parliament, and the constant and continuing bickering between different political parties, to watchthe Trooping of the Colour, with all the history it evokes and the seemingly timeless way the tradition continues year after year, was like hearing what Robert Louis Stevenson so brilliantly described as a quiet mind marching at its own private pace like 'a clock in a thunderstorm'.
In the crowd a few politician snuffled to and fro, but the real reflection of this nation came in the persons of the Queen and Prince Philip - who at 88 years old stood tall in his busbym, saluting at the National Anthem - Princes William and Harry, who saluted and behaved impeccably, and the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal and the Duke of Kent, riding behind the Queen's carriage, and still more in the young men who upheld the tradition of centuries.

It is truly tragic that all these ceremonials are based on old military ideas. We all long for a time when there is no call for soldiers or any sense of the need to kill other people. But I pray, with all my heart, that when humanity no longer requires people to be at war, this brilliant pageantry, and the respect behind it, will continue. The respect for the Queen isn't about militarism or empires or anything of the sort. It's about the real values of altruism and individual freedom and all the noble ideas for which our monarchy stands.