Partly this is due to the Queen herself. However archaic the insitution might appear, you have to admit she has done the job very well for the last fifty odd years. She hasn't really put a foot wrong.
It's not actually that people respect the monarchy, they respect the way she does the job.
People look at the potential Presidents we'd get, and the idea of monarchy looks OK.
It won't the day after she's gone.
First we have the man who talks to plants appearing on our banknotes to look forward too.
Then it's the turn of the boyband Prince, the stuff of Hello! gossip columns, but a hell of a comedown from her Maj, in terms of dignity.
Like her or loathe her, she managed to remind us of something very big we were once part of. Something in the nostalgaic side of our national psyche, that she encapsulated.
A living, breathing Merchant-Ivory Film resident in central London.
But, consider this.
What if William was to die in a plane crash, without leaving heirs?
Who then becomes King?
If we bother to use this way of choosing our figurehead, then we have to at least be sure that is actually what we're doing.
The whole point is, that it's supposed to be hereditary.
If we were going to start having Hewitts as Kings, why bother with the idea?
The fact is, the whole nation talks about this.
It's not even a whisper.
It's one of the stock pub jokes.
There's only one way to settle this once and for all.
And it has be done openly so the people have no doubt.
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22 comments:
One thing I learned when I stayed in England is that the pub is much more than a place to share a pint. It is a social network, much my like MySpace, FaceBook, etc. where people seem to share a part of themselves through their debating skills.
In America we seem to be fascinated by the British monarchy because we know little about it. As far as Diana goes, she wasn't as pristine as she is portrayed in the press over here.
Ohh... ! Was wondering what 'it' was til I saw the title again. Now I see...! Never knew it was in doubt (when you said there was only one way to settle it, my mind had immediately jumped to the way China would settle it - just find William a wife!)
James Hewitt was a bad egg for sure. Do you think we should pay £1million for the Queen's household repairs, btw? I think at least she should contribute half towards the repairs of Buck Palace.
I love the Queen. Look at that grin! and the way she looked at Bush recently...priceless.
I want to be the queen!
I think you are right to separate the monarch from the monarchy. QE2 has been exemplary. Would we elect her if there was a contest? Yes I think we would. It would be between her and David Beckham anyway.
I certainly don't relish the prospect of Charles though: he's been brooding like Brown for even longer!
But the question always comes down to "what would you do instead"? Should we go down the executive president route?
Old England appeals to the descendants of Boadicea to make themselves known... these Normans are all pretenders....
Pardon my ignorance, but who the fuck is James Hewitt? When I read 'Hewitt' I though of the 'Australian Royalty' (as dubbed by the tabloids) Lleyton Hewitt and his wife.
I never knew his heritage was in doubt. Gossip might travel quite fast in the UK, but it has to take a steam boat to get over here apparently.
You're gonna get done for treason! I am calling Buck House now........ I will say though,I think Harry is cuter- name sucks though!
i never knew there was any doubt about harry's genetics. wow!!!! scandal to my ears!!!
-eve-, you say in China they would "just find William a wife!".
We tried that with Charles.
The whole WORLD knows Harry is not Charlie's son. I reckon they would have done a DNA test once the red hair sprouted. It's hardly something they'd admit to if indeed he is that cad's son.
Steph - apparently I've been living under a rock. A really big one. Uluru even. I suppose its easier with you having rello's over there.
Alexys- Yes the pubs in this country are where opinion is formed.
Diana was a very shrewd media manipulator, no angel.
Eve- Yes, but Harry himself must be sick of the rumours. It might as well be answered once and for all.
Ellee- The nation pays either way, it's just which fund you credit it against. Half seems fair, but remember, Bucks house is the monarch's official resdence, so one could view at as state property, as against, say, Sandringham.
Lilith- I think there's a lot to be said for her as a person. The rest are awful.
Ed- This is it though, we like the Queen I think, deep down. When she's gone we'll like the institution A lot less.
Mutley- Well, we got rid of our rightful kings in 1688, if you take the idea seriously.
Phish- Diana's long term ginger lover. That she was having an affair with when she had a ginger son.
The Ego- sedition maybe.
Raffi- It's a national joke over here. Allusions to it keep rearing their head, but no one ever says it directly.
Onyx- Good point!
Steph- Including Harry, I think. I heard from someone who had come into contact with him socially, that his friends make allusions to it.
Phish- Now you know.
Are u off to the 2ndlife thing/Blogpower tonight- ?? its going to be hard for me to be up so late - still I expect it will be worth it!
I very much agree with you about Her Majesty, but I think William will rise to the job when it's his turn. My hope is that Charles would step aside...but then I am a very optimistic person.
Mutley- Good to see you there, even if it was a little late.
Glad to see you humping a few legs there.
Your Ladyship- But can Willam's glitz override the obvious anachronism of the thing?
I don't see it.
I haven't heard any of the whispers either! They don't mention such things on Radio 4.
I think William is probably okay and would be a better king than Charles.
Does it really matter? About the monarchy I mean? Although all the etiquette and stuff is just nonsense. Bowing and curtseying to another human being. (Still I would do it and be overwhelmed if I met one of them!)
Onyx stone - You're right; it slipped my mind for a moment.
CBI - What happens once he's done the test, though? Does he get disowned?
Well, you know what I think about the Windsors from yesterday, Crushed. But the thought of H as king is worse than anything - even Charlie! The Queen has done a good job, I suppose, though she has tried not to change anything and that is mad - but what I object to is the enormous wealth [unearned] that they all enjoy and the privilege. Having said all that, I am rather proud of yesterday and the concert because it went ahead when the country was on critical alert and people had a good time. If something like the weekend's events in the UK had occurred here in Italy, such a concert would have been cancelled. I'm sure the security round the princes was enormous but they weren't ensconced in bullet-proof glass and, given that we are, for the moment, stuck with the royals, I think the country did rather well [with the proviso that everyone misses a deceased parent but most of us can't go out and hire Wembley Stadium in their memory].
Far be it from me to defend a Windsor, but maybe Harry got the red hair from the Spencer side?
Liz- I'm not sure there's too much in the current generation of Royals worth bothering with. And seeing them on TV last was cringeworthy.
Eve- Depends on the result, doesn't it? :)
But if somerhing happerened to William, wouldn't we have a right to know?
We pay for them.
Welshcakes- Your point about hiring wembley out, I was thinking exactly the same. Disappointed at the sycophancy shown by the celeb culture.
Your genetic point COULD be true, but there's only one way to find out...
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