Kerry Parnell: Harry and Meghan’s step down puts George in the firing line
In a bid to give his own son a normal taste of life, Prince Harry has effectively stripped his niece and nephews of the same right and ultimately made everyone’s lives harder, writes Kerry Parnell.
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There’s one big side-effect to Uncle Harry’s tantrum that will affect the littlest heir to the throne – poor Prince George.
With Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex throwing their gilded dummies out of the royal pram and huffing off to North America instead of doing their duty, it means the rest of the work has to get done by the remaining royals – the direct heirs and their kids.
It is something Prince Charles has wanted for a long time with his vision of a slimmed-down monarchy taking less of the public purse, but one thing probably nobody but their parents has considered is the new focus on the Cambridges will mean extra attention on George, six, Princess Charlotte, four, and Prince Louis, one.
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We already saw this over Christmas, when George and Charlotte made their debut outside the church in Sandringham. The tots accepted flowers, hugged a lady in a wheelchair and waved to the 2000-strong crowd of wellwishers.
They were marvellous and very cute – but I can’t help feeling slightly sorry for them, as the intensity of the public gaze inevitably increases on them.
They will have to start doing more public appearances and be on their best behaviour at all times. So while baby Archie gets to loaf about overseas, his cousins in the palace will be facing a completely different future.
It’s a lot of pressure – most kids get nervous doing their first nativity play at that age, let alone having to face a huge crowd and the world’s press.
One fan at Sandringham described Charlotte as confident “but cheeky”, but said George “was more anxious.”
With Prince Andrew in disgrace and Harry acting in what many are saying a disgraceful way, it means The Firm is now two senior royals down. Considering last year Andrew and Harry attended 475 official engagements between them, that’s a lot of extra work for the Cambridges to pick up.
No wonder Prince William is reported to be ropeable. Not only has he had to do all the restrained king-in-waiting stuff his whole life (no Nazi uniforms and naked poker larks for him), now he has to do all the work as well – and send his kids out into the spotlight to pick up some of the slack.
It’s the royal equivalent of stuffing your nippers up a chimney to put some bread on your Victorian tea table. Granted, the Cambridges will never be short of bread, figuratively or literally, but you can be assured William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge would have rather let their kids play with Lego at home for a few years longer, than shove them out into the spotlight.
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Still, they seem to be doing it well – the adorable photos of George making a Christmas pudding as part of a British Legion initiative in December charmed the world, especially when he formally posed with veterans, his dad and the Queen.
He has all the ingredients of a future king, polite, earnest and dutiful, as he mixed the pudding to the delight of his great-granny – unlike his uncle, who has stirred up a whole heap of trouble, cooked up a crazy plan and got himself into a right royal stew.