Tom Parker Bowles has no idea if his mom will eventually be called ‘Queen Camilla’

'Fortnum and Mason: Christmas and Other Winter Feasts' book launch in London

The recent machinations by the Duchess of Cambridge and House Middleton have given me a renewed respect for the Duchess of Cornwall. Camilla is far from perfect, but it’s gotten to the point where I respect her IDGAF vibe, especially when it comes to the game of thrones playing out between William and Charles right now. Camilla stays out of the fray and she’s not pushing “Keen Queen Camilla” stories or trying to embiggen herself by exploiting murder victims. I think Camilla is actually pretty content in her position, because she knows Charles is bound and determined to see her as his Queen Consort. This has been part of the conversation for years and years now, what Camilla will be called when Charles accedes to the throne. At first, Charles said that Camilla would be called Princess Consort, an interesting branding choice and little else. But as we get closer to Charles’ ascension, everyone kind of admits that Cam will probably be called Queen Consort. But Camilla’s son Tom Parker Bowles is still playing the “maybe/maybe not!” game. Some quotes from Tom’s recent interview with the Times (via People):

Whether his mom will be “Queen Camilla.” “I honestly don’t know if Mum will be called queen. That hasn’t been decided. There are a lot of interesting Sky documentaries about that I’m sure, but I honestly don’t know if that’s true.”

The backstory on the issue: The question of Camilla’s future title has been debated since a press release was shared on the day of her 2005 engagement to Prince Charles, which said “It is intended that Mrs. Parker Bowles should use the title HRH The Princess Consort when The Prince of Wales accedes to The Throne.” Despite this, it is now widely believed that Charles intends to make his wife Queen Consort in the days after he’s crowned King, although nothing has been confirmed by Buckingham Palace. The palace also removed the question of whether or not Camilla will be Queen from the FAQ on Charles’s official website a number of years ago.

Tom on The Crown and the portrayals of his parents: “The Crown is beautifully filmed and beautifully acted but complete bollocks mostly. I saw a bit with my dad and thought, ‘God, you’ve got him wrong,’ but I would say that, wouldn’t I?”

On Harry and Meghan: “What can I say? Families are never easy, but they’ll work it out in the end. I stay out of that. That’s nothing to do with me.”

His closeness to the royal family: While Tom is extremely close to the royal family — his children call Camilla “Gaga” and Prince Charles “Umpa” — he told The Times he did not personally attend the Duke’s Windsor Castle funeral. “I really blubbed during the Last Post,” he said about watching the funeral from his home in London. “I didn’t know Prince Philip at all but it was all very moving. The clear blue sky, the music… We’ve lost so many due to Covid it also felt like a chance to mourn that loss too.”

[From People]

I’ve heard it whispered and said outright that Charles enjoys a much closer relationship with Camilla’s kids and grandkids than his own children and grandchildren. I think that says a lot about Charles, both good and bad. As for Queen Camilla and all that, every time this conversation comes up, I think about the Guardian’s long-read piece called What Happens When Queen Elizabeth Dies, published in 2017. Royal historians and genuine “constitutional scholars” believe that Charles will simply have Camilla confirmed as his Queen Consort the day after his mother passes away, when he meets with the Accession Council. As for what Tom says about The Crown – I know it’s probably awkward for him, given all of his family’s drama, but I swear to God, The Crown only touched on *part* of what Camilla, Andrew and Charles were really up to in those days.

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The Prince Of Wales And The Duchess Of Cornwall Present The Queen's Anniversary Prizes

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43 Responses to “Tom Parker Bowles has no idea if his mom will eventually be called ‘Queen Camilla’”

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  1. Courtney B says:

    She going to be a Queen Consort whether she’s called that or not. And I really think she will. The statement was smart at the time. Especially because it’s not like it could be known how many years the queen might live after the marriage. Time was needed to gain a little space. As for Charles’s relationship with his stepgrandchildren, there are very cute informal photos with them.

    • BayTampaBay says:

      “She going to be a Queen Consort whether she’s called that or not.”

      Queen Victoria made a statement exactly to this effect when discussing British morganatic marriage not existing in the UK. If the King (Prince of Wales) marries a charwoman, the charwoman automatically becomes Queen of England on the King’s (Princes of Wales) accession to the throne.

  2. Lauren says:

    Good for him that he said basically no comment on the Harry and Meghan front. Harry seemed to have a warm relationship with Camilla, so it’s good to see that her son doesn’t add fuel to the dumpster fire that is Chuck’s relationship with his youngest son. I have also heard the rumors that Chuck is very close to Camilla’s children and that he has set aside money for them. It really says a lot about him if he is more willing to be a good father for his stepchildren and not for his own kids. Maybe he is reassured by the fact that they are as far removed, as humanly possible, from the throne.

    • Elizabeth Regina says:

      Charles is an awful, awful father. He enjoys a good relationship with Camilla’s kids because he loves them as an extension of his love for her and maybe out of guilt as his actions did break up their family as well. He also probably feels guilty that Camilla’s name is still mud despite the clean up jobs He loathed Diana especially at the end and deep down Harry and William know this. Him setting aside money for his step kids but being unwilling to pay for Meghan’s wardrobe and his own son and grandchild’s security when he can actually conveniently afford it makes him lower than a skunk in my eyes.

    • equality says:

      That’s what I thought. Somebody who can actually mind his own business and give a classy reply.

  3. BayTampaBay says:

    I think Tom Parker-Bowels looks very much like his father.

  4. Sofia says:

    I’m sorta surprised he says they haven’t really decided yet. I am aware they announced at the time of Charles and Camilla’s marriage that she would be Princess Consort instead of Queen Consort and then removed that bit from Charles’ website BUT I also remember a similar story i.e what will Camilla be called and Clarence House responded with “She’ll be Princess Consort”. That was fairly recent (about a year ago) so maybe they’ve changed their minds again lol. Or they haven’t decided for sure and just throw “Princess Consort” out just so people don’t get too annoyed (although I really doubt most will care but Charles probably thinks they do).

    Anyways, I would just stick to Queen Consort. No need to invent a new title for Camilla and then go back to using the old one for Kate (and I doubt she’ll want to use Princess Consort lol)

    • ElleV says:

      altho CAN YOU IMAGINE after all the embiggening kate doesn’t even get to be future future queen? delicious. that would be Charles putting his petty to good use.

    • Ronin says:

      JMO but I think KP has made it clear Kate won’t accept less than QC, and I think it’s silly to use PC just for Camilla’s tenure. Unless Charles is making a longterm change to what consorts are called, call her Queen Camilla and have done with all the silliness.

  5. Izzy says:

    I didn’t realize they had removed the info about Princess Consort from the FAQ on the website. So yeah, probably Queen Consort. They’ve been laying the groundwork for a while now.

  6. Becks1 says:

    Isn’t Charles Tom’s godfather? So it makes sense that there is a general closeness there as Charles has been part of his entire life (whether that’s a good or bad thing in terms of what it meant for their respective marriages.)

    Anyway I definitely think Camilla will be Queen Consort. She’s not called Princess of Wales and I think she’s okay with that but I don’t think Charles is going to allow her to NOT be called Queen.

    The only way I see it happened – if she’s Princess Consort – is if something is passed that makes all wives of kings princess consort, so its the precedent going forward. No more queens unless she is the monarch. Wonder how the Cambridges would react to that though HA.

    • BayTampaBay says:

      @Becks1 – I do not think thet Andrew Parker-Bowles ever had a problem with Charles. I think the problem was with the “arrangement” becoming general public knowledge and fodder for the British Tabloids.

      • goofpuff says:

        Agreed. Andrew Parker-Bowles was a serial cheater as well so I don’t think that kind of arrangement bothered him. Seems very much like how they roll in the aristo circle. The divorce only happened because it became public.

      • Becks1 says:

        I didn’t say that Andrew Parker-Bowles had a problem with Charles.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        @Becks1 – SORRY! I did not mean to imply that you did say anything regarding a problem. Sorry! I used a very poor choice of words when posting my thoughts on the general closeness and Wales-Parker Bowles relationship dynamics.

      • Killfanora says:

        Yes, as they saying at the times went “Parker-Bowles was prepared to lay down his wife for the King-to-be”.

  7. Cecilia says:

    When it comes to the truthfulness of the crown im more inclined to believe harry. And i personally think camilla should just be titles queen consort. Its time. People might feel a way about it in the beginning but will eventually get used to it.

    • ElleV says:

      agreed – faffing around with some princess consort nonsense undermines the whole ordained by god thru birth and marriage business

      • Cecilia says:

        That and changing the title to “princess consort” will just put renewed interest on the whole diana ordeal and camilla’s part in it. If they go that route it will all be a much bigger deal than if they just call her queen consort.

  8. ElleV says:

    This interview is a breath of fresh air – tom sounds like a good egg and his response re: harry and meghan is the only one anyone should be giving

    • MF1 says:

      Yes, his answer was very classy. Same for his response about The Crown. Will and Charles could take a few PR lessons from this guy.

    • molly says:

      Camilla, her son, and her daughter (don’t even know her name- good job!) are all excellent at keeping their mouth shut and staying out of the royal drama.

      • Elle says:

        Camilla’s daughter, Laura Lopes, knows when to keep her mouth shut and when to scream at William – probably the only person to ever stand up to him!

  9. Shawna says:

    Good answers! This guy really threaded the needle well.

  10. Eurydice says:

    I think this is the first interview I’ve read in which the person who has nothing to do with H&M actually says that it’s none of his business – very refreshing.

  11. aquarius64 says:

    I think CH is hedging its bets again thanks to the Oprah interview. Meghan is Diana 2.0 and the interview reminds everyone Camilla got her HRH dirty.

  12. Bellaluna McKenzie says:

    “The recent machinations by the Duchess of Cambridge and House Middleton have given me a renewed respect for the Duchess of Cornwall. Camilla is far from perfect, but it’s gotten to the point where I respect her IDGAF vibe, especially when it comes to the game of thrones playing out between William and Charles right now. Camilla stays out of the fray and she’s not pushing “Keen Queen Camilla” stories or trying to embiggen herself by exploiting murder victims.”

    Thank you Kaiser. You summed my feelings exactly. I always loved Diana but have grown to respect/admire Camilla too.

  13. Murphy says:

    Seriously, the only time you ever see any fluff pieces about Camilla is when someone is trying to butter up Charles. She truly gives zero effs and you know she would have been perfectly happy to not even bother getting re-married.

  14. Geraldine Granger says:

    I don’t t know much about him, but it sounds like a nice and healthy in law relationship. Middletons should take note.

  15. Lizzie says:

    So they actually wrote an article where the subject is asked a question, ‘ I don’t know’ is the reply and that’s a headline. Sub par journalism as always.

  16. Gabby says:

    I say this as an American who DGAF about royal protocol. Just call her the damn queen consort. It’s awkward to call an old woman “Princess”. Yes I think it sounds bad with Princess Anne, too. Plus, after the H&M exit, Camilla seems the closest thing to a normal human being remaining in that family. Who does it hurt to call her the Queen Consort?

    • observing says:

      I think the Queen Consort title reminds everyone that she got the role meant for Diana. Maybe enough time has now passed for it to potentially not be an issue, but at the time initial discussions took place I would imagine the ghost of Diana was hovering over discussions.

    • Agreatreckoning says:

      I don’t think Camilla is bothered so much by which title. I have a hard time imagining her wanting to be called Princess. Agree…it is awkward to call an older woman Princess.

      Thought her son answered ?s well.

    • Q says:

      Just as awkward as calling an old man a ‘prince’.

  17. Betsy says:

    God I love people with self-awareness. “It’s nothing to do with me,” which could be read as bitchy or just as a door quietly clanging closed. Duh he knows more and it’s good of him to keep his trap shut. “I would say that, wouldn’t it?” I mean good on ya, guy.

  18. Nina says:

    Isn’t it interesting? Camilla is of course, very sure in her marriage to Charles and also that she will become either Queen or Princess Consort one day. So she’s mostly keeping silent or just doesn’t care much about how press is seeing her. Makes you wonder why so many embiggening, frantic stories about King Maker Kate? What is she proving and to whom? Because Camilla certainly doesn’t need to prove anything. Very interesting this contrast between 2 future Queens

    • observing says:

      The one time she did give an interview to say how she felt about something such as what it felt like to be attacked by the press, everyone was unwittingly reminded that she had the affair with Charles that drove Diana mental. It kind of makes sense she’d stay quiet or have to. In all honesty, I think people probably prefer that the “other woman” stay silent to some degree. Whenever someone in a cheating scandal opens up, you can tell the public prefer not to to hear that much from the person about their perspective. It’s likely in her best interests to remain silent and fly under the radar.

  19. Wit of the Staircase says:

    The only just title is “The Rottweiler.”

  20. MerlinsMom1018 says:

    Tom looks like his Dad.
    That’s all I got

    • Curious says:

      Camilla is just going on with her life. while headlines about Charles, William/Catherine ,is in the press about mudslinging towards Harry/Meghan nearly every day . in the mean while Camilla is doing her duties.staying in her lane . I know a lot of emotional painful things happened between Diana/Charles/Camilla. but since Camilla publicly got with Charles, (with the queen blessing)got engaged,married , they stayed faithful to each other, and she followed all the rules and what not. don’t think Camilla ever stepped out of line ,or cause any bad press about herself. she always have her own home to go to ,to relax and spend time with her children and grandchildren, without anyone screaming she is using the tax payer money. or trying to get pics of her with her family.she never took her children with her so they can be part of the royal family. she kept them out of that . her little grand daughter was a flower girl at Catherine wedding.Camilla will always have her own home to go to, and let the other royals battle their issues. she might be sipping her tea and watering her flowers.lol watching it play out.

  21. livealot says:

    Camilla looks FABULOUS in the green binoculars outfit !