Prince Charles’ 70th birthday was yesterday, November 14th. He celebrated it for weeks beforehand, with a new, flattering documentary, a tour of African countries, interviews and more. On his actual birthday, he and Camilla had a day-party at Spencer House in London – these are photos of their arrival – and then an evening birthday party at Buckingham Palace, black-tie only. What I love about these “tea party” photos is that Charles looks like a kid – he’s so utterly delighted that people are making a fuss over him on his birthday. He just looked purely happy (and possibly a bit toasty from some birthday cocktails).
Here’s a special story for the birthday boy too: apparently, Charles keeps his pockets full of nuts, for the squirrels he adores. I actually knew, years ago, that Charles is nutty for squirrels, specifically the beloved British red squirrel. He so loves squirrels that he lets them come into his house, and he feeds them nuts out of his pockets.
He’s nuts for them! Prince William has revealed that his father, Prince Charles, is absolutely obsessed with a certain type of squirrel.
“He is completely infatuated by the red squirrels that live around the [Birkhall] estate in Scotland,” Prince William told Country Life in a special edition of the British weekly guest-edited by Prince Charles himself. He added that the Prince of Wales likes them, “to the extent that he’s given them names and is allowing them into the house.”
Prince Charles, who celebrated his 70th birthday Wednesday, noted that the rodents are “incredibly special creatures. They come into the house at Birkhall and we get them chasing each other round and round inside.If I sit there quietly, they will do so around me. Sometimes, when I leave my jackets on a chair with nuts in the pockets, I see them with their tails sticking out, as they hunt for nuts.”
Charles is such a gentle, eccentric soul, isn’t he? I think that’s one of the reasons why he’ll make a good king – an eccentric king, ruling over an eccentric people. What does one name squirrels? Do you give them human names, like Bob, Dennis, Shirley and Yvonne? Or do you give them animal names like Prancer and Stretch? Hm.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Backgrid.
As a fellow animal lover and rescuer, I love this story. Animals, of all types, are amazing beings, and when shown respect and kindness they show you their hilarious and unique personalities!
We have a groundhog that lives in our backyard (it’s a big yard) and we plant extra of his favorite veggies so he gets all the yummy veg he wants to dig up. We call him Bob. We also plant lots of sunflowers which the squirrels climb and eat the seeds, endless hours of entertainment for our indoor kitties to watch as well 🙂
That is THE sweetest thing! Bob! An excellent name for a groundhog!
He is big and grumpy! we give him a wide berth 🙂
Oh my god this is adorable. That’s what I’d do – I’m a sucker for all animals. Heck, even bugs other than ticks and earwigs. I’ve rescued those little carpenter bugs from our wood stove as I’ve lit a fire because I felt awful. We had a super young bird hit into our house this summer. It was just learning to fly, but it was so disoriented from hitting the window, and exhausted. So we gathered it up, and put it in the tupperware type container with holes punctured on the top covered with grass and put it in our bedroom in the dark for about 40 minutes so the neighbors indoor/outdoor cat wouldn’t grab it while it was confused. The little bugger immediately flew back into the house (but not hard at all) this time because it just didn’t have the steering ability down yet. So I gathered him up again and brought him out to the rose bush where it was further from the house, and had some protection with the thorns.
I herded a muskrat off of the road on Christmas morning last year – which I insisted on referring to as “Elon Muskrat”.
I was telling my husband this morning that we need to turn the abandoned veggie garden from the previous homeowners into a giant wildflower patch to attract bees and monarch butterfly. And that I wanted to build some bat-boxes to put up along the woods on our property.
The squirrels have an ongoing war with us – the cat we ‘acquired’ (was left when the owners moved) when we bought our house spent part of her time outside when we moved in. I converted her to an inside kitty eventually because of health issues and a near-death. But this little 5lb elderly cat would grab the biggest freaking squirrels (I realize that’s relative because parts of the US have cat-sized squirrels. These are like small Nova Scotia squirrel that are under .5lbs) and bring them to us as ‘sorry you suck at hunting, human’ gifts. I joke now that even though the cat passed this summer, and hadn’t been outside in the last 3 years the squirrels are still warning their kids of the Cat War of 2015. But I still leave out a separate little pile of bird feed for them because they’re adorable and I feel bad.
Okay, Erinn, I think I love you.
Okay, that is too cute! Bob the Groundhog…it’s literally making me giggle. I love animals too, though in my neighborhood I rarely see anything other than regular squirrels (with the occasional albino squirrel thrown in for fun). I don’t have a yard because I live in a condo, but one day I hope to have a house with a small patch of grass, and then hopefully I can get a dog, a cat, a horse, a llama, a few chickens, maybe a goat hahahahaha.
haha we have the same dream! my hubby doesn’t want to have horses, goats chickens and Ilamas ( we only have three cats) so I volunteer at a farm sanctuary weekly and get to hang out with dozens of them! hard work, but oh so much fun!
My parents also have a groundhog in their backyard. It’s a cute little rascal and kind of bounds away when it is spotted. However my father really hates it along with the deer and rabbit because they eat everything he tries to grow. So not so cute for horticulturalists/gardeners!
we are gardeners! we have huge vegetable gardens and I am happy to share my food with the animals. It’s their home after all 🙂
@OriginalLala
You’re just wonderful. I love your attitude.
The story about Bob just brightened my day.
Our groundhog is named Pineapple. With children that are called Lemon and Lime. 🙂
1) I think I just fell in love with Charles. 2) I think I’ve fallen in love with all of you that are cherishing your wild life.
Every morning at 6am I wake up and put seed in dishes on my patio for the birds and squirrels. I then go back to bed until 8am.
Every evening after the sun goes down, I put the uneaten seed into a container for the next day, sweep the area, and then vacuum errant seeds so the rats don’t come around.
And it starts all over again the next day at 6am.
It’s times like this I’m glad the late Diana gave the Panorama interview 🙂
The picture with the balloon!
My aunt had a pet squirrel. She loved it. I hate the ones ruining my attic with their shenanigans. I will admit the little buggers are kinda cute when they are playing hide and seek with me. They like to hide in the gutter when I walk the pup.
Cute story!
I haven’t seen a red squirrel, I know there are now several thriving in the Lake District but the red squirrels were outnumbered by the grey ones when they were introduced here in the UK & their numbers have fallen. Most people have a soft spot for the red squirrels because of that, my partner even goes as far as to say that the grey ones should be classified as vermin.
There are loads of the grey ones & we occasionally get one or two that visit in our garden but we only need to go to the park or woods to see plenty of them. Some of them are quite bold & will come up to people in the hopes of getting some food.
When I visited Ireland I learned about how the grey squirrels are more aggressive and wiped out the red squirrels. The red squirrels are adorable. Where I live we have some black squirrels and we love spotting them amongst the grey ones. I wish we had red ones here in the states. I love that Charles has a soft spot for animals and it is hilarious he allows them in the house (of course he doesn’t need to clean up after them if they make a mess).
Maybe that’s why I am not getting the charm of this story, I come from the land of the gray squirrels.
aaa, the article says they are red squirrels which are rare here in the UK, having been decimated by the grey ones, so I understand Prince Charles fascination with them. I hope I can see a red squirrel one day and a hedgehog. I’m still waiting for hedgehogs to visit my garden. We have a badger nearby but haven’t had the fortune of seeing it, the cats aren’t scared of it though.
Rodents is right!! I am not fond of the grey squirrels or the black ones (never seen a red one)…for years I lived in a house and they lived in the roof. Eventually it just got to be too horrible hearing them year after year give birth between my walls, scrambling and squealing and peeing and pooping. Ugh! I moved, and now I dislike them intensely because they LOVE to run the fence line and make my dogs crazy!! They are protected, I know not why, or I’d learn how to be deadly with a pea shooter, I swear!!
I had been fascinated with the squirrels in our neighborhood for years due to their cute antics. Our nextdoor neighbors for a time were sloppy college boys who would wait weeks before taking their trashcan to the road, where it would sit so full, it couldn’t shut. One morning, as I sat in my home office gazing out the window, I watched a cute squirrel fish an entire wedge of pizza out of a box in the trashcan and run to the giant oak in our yard, and race up to enjoy his find. Another squirrel came running after him and attacked him, killing him and then sat there eating his victim. I was so traumatized that I just haven’t been able to look at them the same way since. These were the fat gray squirrels.
OMG 😮 l didn’t realise squirrels were like that?
My sister took a course in firing guns. The instructor asked everyone why they were taking the course. As they went around the room, person after person said “Personal defense”. They got to my sister, an avid gardener, and she said, “Squirrels!” to the instructor’s enormous dismay.
Hunter, that is one HORRIFYING story!! Sorry you saw it (shivered).
OMG do you live in the Lake District?! I’m hoping to visit that area next year. What would be the best time of year to go, for pretty gardens and such?
I just have gray squirrels here but saw a red one in New England last month.
Hi Lucy, I live in South Yorkshire, my partner’s mum grew up near the Lake District and she used to go on holidays there on her sister’s caravan. I still haven’t been because I prefer to go south where it’s warmer (or should be).
I really need to take my son there some time, especially to visit Beatrix Potter’s place.
It depends, you can visit around April-May to avoid the crowds, June-August is peak season due to it being summer & always attract large visitors. Some prefer to visit during autumn when it’s cool.
Thanks! I think we’re considering May. Beatrix Potter’s house is something we have been wanting to see.
I cant hate anything in this.
My favorite interactions with squirrels will forever be DC. They are almost domesticated to perform or obey for treats. And they snuggle the homeless there. I have a soft spot for this.
Oh my goodness, that’s so sweet!
NYC squirrels are just as aggressive as their human counterparts… Still cute tho
Lol they adapt like any creature
We have been feeding the squirrels (red european squirrels) in our garden since I was a child, by now they are trusting enough to come into the flat (luckily our cat is too old to bother hunting them) to pick up nuts in. And we have named them as well, Hugo, Louisa, Antonia and Erik.
My fiancee has even started to name the birds in the birdhouse in front of the window, but it is more difficult to distinguish the individuals.
This headline sounds like a character quirk of a Manic Pixie Dream Girl 😂
I love this anecdote. It’s very sweet and endearing. I’ve said this before on here, but I genuinely like the man.
That is probably why this anecdote is coming out now.
“Stretch.” I don’t know why but this made me LOL.
When I lived in the country, I used to allow chipmunks to come into my house. They were easy to tame, and knew where I kept their food. They would take naps in my shoes, and yes I would name them. Andromeda, Arachne, Eris, Chiron…..
For awhile there I had befriended a squirrel who we named Wenceslas. He would hang out at the window and eat the little squirrel sandwiches I would make for him. I miss him.
Alas, where I live now my landlord will not even allow birdfeeders. 🙁
Charles seems so lovable and I’m glad we seeing more of this side of him.
I believe Spencer house in London is still owned by the Spencern family, but it’s leased out on a 99 year lease. It’s so close to Charles’s London residence (almost next door). Just interesting.
I definitely sat up and said “WHAT?!” when I read that the celebration was at Spencer House. It is indeed still owned by the Earl Spencer. That’s…quite a choice of venue.
This is really endearing! A Prince and His Squirrels.
A few years ago we had a black squirrel in the yard who would come take peanuts from my hand. I called him Captain Jack after “Torchwood;” he was a big, handsome guy. The grays we have outside now will come to the window and glare at me if I haven’t put seed out for them but otherwise want nothing to do with me.
We mostly get only grays down here in VA. When we visited Toronto a few years ago I was in heaven watching all the different-colored squirrels running around.
Centuries hence, this anecdote and “oldest ever heir apparent” will be the only thing history books note about this guy.
The Prince’s Trust helping 800,000 people get job training or start their own businesses, Duchy Originals, the saving of Dumfries House. Plenty to remember him by. He has been the most active, effective Prince of Wales in history. William certainly isn’t going to come close to his father’s achievements.
Yes, I was just thinking that everyone has assumed that Charles has been waiting all his life to be king…but he’s been actively playing the role of POW very well all his life. And I’m also thinking of going to look for a red squirrel costume and hanging about Birkhall….LOL
The Queen used to name corgis in pairs (Sugar and Honey, Whiskey and Sherry, Willow and Holly). Wonder if Charles does the same with his squirrels.
I live in the Los Angeles area. Squirrels are everywhere. Our squirrel, the one who’s territory, along with a female, is a couple of large trees in our backyard. Mr. Squirrely is friends with the cat, eats (ate) nuts out of our hands and a couple of times came in the house when the back door was open and got on the kitchen table, into the fruit bowl, and rolled a couple of apples and a mango right out the door. Alas, there’s an outbreak of Typhus is LA. Squirrels carry fleas, fleas Carrie Typhus. We are very careful with the door and leave the fruit and nuts under his tree a couple times a week and once a week a peanut butter stuffed pretzel or two. We say hi from a distance.
Well, as one who has had unwelcome squirrels get into our attic and run around, he can have them!
Squirrels are VERY DANGEROUS!! I know nothing about red squirrels, but gray squirrels around here can chew through electrical wires, and have started fires that way. Also, they are wild animals which can carry diseases. I would NEVER let one into my house willingly. Just imagine them without fluffy tails: they are rodents!!
Do not feed wild animals.
This is the sweetest thing! Yay, Prince Charles!
We have neighborhood squirrels named “Sandy”, “Peanut” and “Mr Nuts”. Our daughter named them when she was tiny. She’s a teenager now, and still calls the squirrels by name every day.
I’m semi-convinced that there are probably dozens of squirrels in our neighborhood, and we’re just calling them by name randomly, but they do seem to come when called. Who knows?
Either way, they’re so fun to watch, and we love to feed them.
The red squirrel isn’t exclusive to England, they have them scattered all over Europe. I did not know the Eastern gray squirrel had been introduced to England! I’m so sorry it has decimated the red squirrel population, they are quite annoying here on the East Coast of the US. My French cousins freak out whenever they come to visit since squirrels aren’t common in France and take an embarrassing large amount of photos. The red squirrel is native to France too but for reasons I do not know it is not very common and rather elusive. I have spotted it in France on a few occasions but it is very rare for that to happen.
In fact I follow on Instagram an account called Tintin the Squirrel, it’s about this guy in Denmark who rescued a baby red squirrel and named him Tintin. He takes the squirrel out every day on a leash with his tuxedo cat Tiger. It is so amusing to see the cat and squirrel both going out for walks on leashes! Tintin is the cutest thing ever and cuddles with his owner like a cat.
If only he & camilla were this nice to foxes, instead of hunting them.
🦊
I am sorry but there is nothing gentle about someone like Prince Charles who has been supporting the grey squirrel cull.
Prince Charles was also a very keen supporter of fox hunting, how has everyone forgotten this?
Do not mistake the affection that the rich elite and royals show for specific animals such as hounds, red squirrels (the English squirrel as opposed to those bloody grey foreigners stealing our nuts!!) and horses for “animal love”.
Are you honestly trying to make the management of dangerous invasive species some kind of xenophobia stand-in?
Lol.. Invasive species like the grey squirrel can completely mess with the whole ecology of a place.. Sadly, they need to be culled or managed somehow..
Grey squirrels are a scourge in almost every country – they are invasive, destructive, empty out bird-feeders and drive out chipmunks and other less hardy squirrel species. Planned culls of invasive species are important to maintain a careful balance and success of other species and plants. Furthermore, fox hunting was banned in 2005.
Chipmunks are even worse!
I was about to say aren’t gray eastern squirrels invasive in the UK anyways? If they are destroying the red squirrel population, they need to be managed somehow. Killing a few hundred in the UK is not going to make them go extinct. That may sound harsh but… we have millions of them in the US! I feel similarly about the deer population. Yes they are cute to a degree but with no natural predators the population here outside of NYC has exploded to an unhealthy degree and they are basically standing around on our suburban front lawns. That’s not an exaggeration.
What a sweet story. I’ve always liked Charles and Camilla. It’s nice seeing him so happy, and his children celebrating him.
That last photo of him with the balloon and the gift bag is giving me life. Dude looks thrilled.
The story if the balloon and the bag is squirrel related .
They were presents from some of the royal reporters and in the bag was grey squirrel repellent – which he found hilarious
The picture with balloon is everything. haha
that’s a funny story. I wonder how original he is in naming them. I’d just go with the obvious – Nutkin and Twinkleberry 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTG5SlsSkkI
Ummm…..
Clint Eastwood has a little squirrel friend but he’s OLD and a little senile kind of like Prince C.
It comes into his office and takes peanuts from his hand.
That’s where I draw the line.
No squirrels in the house and no feeding them by hand!
We do feed the squirrels, birds and bunnies but from a slight distance and the squirrels get pretty aggressive.
They come up to the patio door every morning and climb it and knock on it and sort of yell, “HEY! WHERE’S MY BREAKFAST???”
I get rid of the raccoons (Don’t ask.) and they certainly carry rabies and are loud and destructive and are like small bears but squirrels aren’t harmless either.
We have two squirrels that are missing a right front paw. Nub and Nub II.
Someone was going to say it.
I don’t think that was an accident and male squirrels will bite the “nuts” off baby male squirrels to reduce population. You’re welcome.
So far, the squirrels and I have an agreement…You don’t mess with me and I won’t mess with you.
Charles & Camilla are probably my favourite royals after the Queen. Lot’s of people love squirrels. My dad had a read thing for them and now my kids do too.
The world is trying to make me love Prince Charles and George Bush. WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE???
This is why I love Prince Charles and have done since his early years since he first admitted to talking to plants, as I do.
He does sound rather sweet and eccentric. I always liked that he and Joan Rivers were good friends. Kaiser wrote an article about it a few years ago. Such an unlikely friendship! I love it.
And just like that, I fell in love with Prince Charles 😍 I knew that he fought for the protection of red squirrels but I didn’t know he befriended them 💕 I feed the black and grey squirrels at my apartment complex – they eat out of my hand and I talk to them, like I was Snow White 😁
I adore him (and Camilla) at any time, and picturing red sqwerls having the run of the house is delightful….and good on him too, they are rare enough alright. (Imagine the staff’s delight too……heh heh).
However……what about his SUIT!! The carefully selected accoutrements! He’s such a dandy, I love it so much.
LOL He looks very happy and a little drunk 🙂 which is Ok because I’m sure he wasn’t driving 🙂
I love squirrels too! What a nice story about Charles. Growing up, I heard a lot of people complain about him because they felt he mistreated Diana. My mom and I talked about the Royals often over tea. We felt that Charles and Diana were incredibly different people with personalities that were absolutely not a match. There is no way the marriage could have worked. Charles and Camilla on the other hand seem to have good chemistry. It sucked the everyone bullied Camilla because she doesn’t fit the beauty standards. And it sucked that Diana was so depressed during her life and battled an eating disorder. It sucks that Charles didn’t know how to handle the whole situation and made his own mistakes. I like these squirrel stories. Honestly, I don’t need to know all the sordid details of that family. But I hope for their own sake that they continue to move towards a path of wellness and sanity. They all seem to be working at it and they are giving us a great example of changing one’s family history. Feed the squirrels, not the drama 🙂