Prince William ‘has no such Game of Thrones-like urges’ to usurp his father

The Daily Beast’s Royalist (Tom Sykes) has an interesting new piece about Prince Charles and Prince William’s “uneasy alliance” these days. William went to his first State Opening of Parliament this week, where he walked behind Rose Hanbury’s husband and generally looked bored and boring. To hear Sykes tell it, William performed his duty perfectly though, because William didn’t overshadow Charles on his big day, standing in for the Queen and performing her speech. This is the jumping-off point to analyze how Charles and William’s relationship has changed so much in recent years, something we’ve heard a lot. Basically, as soon as William succeeded in exiling his brother, William and Charles have been “closer” because Harry is not around. Some highlights from the Daily Beast:

No one paid attention to William in Parliament: There was precious little attention paid to the other royal in attendance, Prince William, who was very deliberately dressed down to the point of invisibility. Seated on a lowly chair compared to his father’s magisterial throne, his dark suit enabled William to effectively disappear into the background for his father’s day in the sun. Charles couldn’t have wished his son to be more helpful and supportive.

Charles was always closer to Harry: Charles’ relationship with Harry was actually understood by most friends of the family to be warmer than his relationship with William when the boys were teenagers and young men (which is part of what has made Harry’s attacks of the past two years particularly horrible for Charles). Some have speculated this is because William saw more and understood more of the breakdown of his parents’ relationship.

Charles wasn’t a fan of William’s emotions: If William had his reservations about his father, the feeling was mutual; Charles, a source tells The Daily Beast, was regularly dismayed by William’s emotive style, and what he felt was an overdoing of the common touch after he married Kate Middleton. “Charles hated William’s ‘I’m in touch with my feelings’ schtick,’” a friend of the family tells The Daily Beast. “He felt it wasn’t regal. It annoyed him with both sons, but particularly William because he didn’t feel the future king had to be touchy-feely, and it irritated him that William didn’t seem willing to take that on board. Charles’ style is very different; buttoned up, reserved and he hated the emoting, the interviews about his mental health and his feelings.”

Fights about work: But William, girded up by Kate, has absolutely refused to be pushed around. As Andersen says: “William is incredibly headstrong, and has had many rows with his father over the years about what royal duties he was or wasn’t willing to perform.”

William isn’t playing Game of Thrones: The truth is that had William wanted for one moment to be the next king (as his mother hoped), to weaponize the toxic past of his father would have been the work of an instant. But William has no such Game of Thrones-like urges. He and Kate are quite happy being the warm-up guys for the next few decades. William will always have a significant hold over his father, though, and the relationship between Charles and William, while not one of equals, will be significantly more even handed than that between the queen and Charles. Elizabeth has been queen since Charles was four years old, and for all of her reign, bar perhaps the last decade, he has been very much the lowly cadet. William is more likely to get something closer to partner status, largely because Charles needs him on side.

The Oprah interview: Things between William and Charles might have ticked along in this rather lukewarm fashion had it not been for the Harry and Meghan bombshell that struck the family in 2020. It changed everything, forcing father and son to finally fully commit to working together. There seems no reason to disbelieve reports that William was instrumental in the defenestration of Prince Andrew from royal life, another moment of unity. But ultimately, it was Harry who pushed William into Charles’ arms with his inflammatory comments to Oprah, including the jibe that he pitied his brother and father because they were “trapped” in their royal lives. “Harry forced William to jump, and when the moment came there was no doubt for William which way to go,” says the friend. “William picked the monarchy, and that has meant working closely with Charles. The relationship is as good as it’s ever been in his adult life.”

[From The Daily Beast]

Yeah, none of this reads as a genuine warmth between a father and his oldest son. It reads more like an uneasy alliance between two men who could do a lot of damage to one another. Of course William could really go after Charles and try to usurp him. So why doesn’t William do that? Because of mutually-assured destruction – Charles has a lot of dirt on William, and he could easily put William in his place with a few phone calls. They have just enough on each other to keep the other “in line.” Which, again, is not really a healthy father-son relationship.

As for Harry and the Oprah interview and all of that… Harry and Charles were genuinely close for many years. I absolutely believe that some of Harry’s deepest hurt – which came out in the Oprah interview – was that Charles didn’t have his back, that Charles behaved as if Harry was dispensable, that Charles “chose” the heir and not the spare.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Instar.

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112 Responses to “Prince William ‘has no such Game of Thrones-like urges’ to usurp his father”

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  1. ThatsNotOkay says:

    This is the funniest thing I’ve read in a while: “William…effectively disappear[ed] into the background for his father’s day in the sun. Charles couldn’t have wished his son to be more helpful and supportive.”

    And, yes, they have to have each other’s backs because they’re skating on thin ice on the world stage. Harry wanted Charles to treat him like a son, when instead, he treated him like a business associate who was leaving to form a new company. What a messed up institution.

    • Chloe says:

      It also goes to show just how insecure Charles is.

    • Elizabeth Regina says:

      Truth is both William and his papa are unlikeable. Charles for the Camilla debacle and William for being workshy and uncharismatic. The article had to get in digs about Kate being common of course. Also what happened to her being the peace maker revolutionary if William was indeed girded up by her? Just a whole load of nonsense written in support of William who is mortified at his recent take your stroppy teenage child to work appearance.

      • Chloe says:

        All i got from this is that william is basically more boring than his father.

        In any case i am pretty sure that william was more than happy the attention was on his dad. Did you see the way Charles was dragged through the mud on twitter for this event?

      • Jennifer says:

        It’s a shame they didn’t breed for charisma. They have anti-charisma.

      • aftershocks says:

        @Elizabeth Regina: “Just a whole load of nonsense written in support of William…”

        ^^ Exactly! It’s a pile of ridiculous bs that makes no sense.

        “Things between William and Charles might have ticked along in this rather lukewarm fashion had it not been for the Harry and Meghan bombshell that… changed everything, forcing father and son [Will and Chuck] to finally fully commit to working together… ultimately, it was Harry who pushed William into Charles’ arms with his inflammatory comments to Oprah…“

        All of this is nonsensical excuse-making. First off, Will & Harry fought with each other, and fought with Charles over everything under the sun since forever, and especially in the aftermath of Diana’s death. Tensions within the Wales-Windsor clan is nothing new. It did not start when Meghan married Harry! Also, it did not take Harry revealing truths to Oprah for Will & Chuck to begin working together, because they actually aren’t working together in lockstep. They are still at loggerheads with each other, even if surreptitiously.

    • Becks1 says:

      that comment made me HOWL. so William supported his father by disappearing into the woodwork? It reminds me of James Comey trying to hide in the curtains from Trump.

      • Eurydice says:

        I know, that photo above looks like Will has been a bad dog and Doggy Daddy has put him in his place.

      • Chloe says:

        @eurydice; this article has me thinking that while father and son were close for a while because they wanted meghan out, the relationship has now cooled significantly. And william is getting a pat on the back for behaving like a good boy and doing nothing that could potentially take the spotlight away from Charles.

      • Becks1 says:

        @Chloe – I think part of the problem was what we’ve said on here before, they wanted Meghan out but Harry went too and I think Charles blames Harry for that.

      • BothSidesNow says:

        @ Becks1, do you truly think that Charles blames Harry for leaving with his wife and child? I would think that Charles would be angry that it was to the point that Harry realized what his brother was up to which led to their escape. I think that Charles is mad as to how out of control TOBB had became. TOBB wanted to get rid of Meghan at any and all costs which became an embarrassment for the family, and The Monarchy as as whole. It’s still causing harm within their own CW countries as we have seen. This does not bode well for his reign.

        I am trying to see how Charles blames Harry for leaving.

        And you could be completely right and I am not seeing it.

      • TangerineTree says:

        Yes, lol! Or Mike Pence closing his eyes when he wanted to disappear!

      • Becks1 says:

        @BothSidesNow –

        sorry, mistype! I meant to say that Charles blames William for that, not harry. Whoops lol.

      • aftershocks says:

        @Eurydice: “… that photo above looks like Will has been a bad dog and Doggy Daddy has put him in his place.”

        Yeah, I think William has been relegated to the royal doghouse after his & Keen’s disastrous Caribbean tour, which Chuck surely knew would end up being a bomb. LOL!

      • aftershocks says:

        @Becks1: “… they wanted Meghan out but Harry went too and I think Charles blames -William- for that.”

        In general, I believe Charles genuinely liked Meghan when he got to meet her and spend some time with her. But ultimately, he must have harbored attitudes (consciously or unconsciously) about Meghan’s background and her married-in status. Harry and Meghan were not supposed to shine brighter than everyone else in the Windsor cult. They were to be useful for Chuck’s own embiggening and p.r., not become Diana all over again in terms of media popularity.

        Charles and everyone else knew that Harry had more leadership capabilities and more charm than Will, but Harry was still taken for granted as the convenient spare and scapegoat. Probably initially, Charles appreciated Meghan’s positive influence on Harry. But ultimately, Charles did not support or protect M&H against KP’s and the Lamebridges’ jealous betrayals.

        M&H were advised to take the abuse with a stiff upper lip. But KP, Charles & crew, forgot that Harry is a soldier and a strategist, willing to do necessary battle for his loved ones.

    • Moxylady says:

      So. Charles was in vibrant red. Sitting on a gold throne. Wearing sashes of medals daisy chained together. Covered with more medals. And he was still like
      Dress to blend in with the carpet or
      I am slighted.
      The things these people think are important or value don’t make any sense to me.

    • Jais says:

      This line is amazing. Helpful and supportive is disappearing into the background? Meghan and Harry could never even if they tried.

  2. HeyKay says:

    I don’t think W does have any true interest in being King.
    He is interested in having the lifestyle, the staff, the trappings of it. Doing actual work? Nope.

    • Alexandria says:

      Maybe in previous years he showed little interest to start something like what his dad and brother did. Now, I think he really wants to be a mover and shaker on the world stage to beat his brother down. But of course without doing all the work, everything he produces becomes performative and useless.

      • Jan90067 says:

        Let’s correct this: He wants HIS NAME attached to some big, performative project. He wants to REAP the glory of it, BASK in the attention for it, but DO NONE of the work to make it happen.

      • aftershocks says:

        ^^ Yes, @HeyKay and @Jan90067, Wills is disinterested and ambivalent in actually being King, in the working sense. Plus, there are royal documentaries on YouTube from the early 2000s in which Will’s aversion in his teens and 20s to accepting his fate of becoming king, is spelled out in detail.

        As he’s grown older, Will has become peevishly acquiescent about being ‘trapped’ in his heirdom. He’s still allergic to working though! He’s only interested in the money and power attached to being the British monarch.

    • Mf says:

      Right? Usurping his father and taking over the throne would take actual work. And we all know how Bill feels about work…

    • Merricat says:

      William may not be interested, but Kate certainly is. She’s gone from Waiting for William to Waiting to be Queen Consort.

    • solid gold dancer says:

      @HeyKey
      This quote jumped out to me immediately: “But William, girded up by Kate, has absolutely refused to be pushed around. As Andersen says: “William is incredibly headstrong, and has had many rows with his father over the years about what royal duties he was or wasn’t willing to perform.”

      William absolutely does not want this role and has shown little interest. How is his behavior not more alarming than whatever Harry has said to Oprah??

      • BothSidesNow says:

        An excellent point that Charles should be paying close attention to as well as the Tory’s too!! You would also think that the peasants are too happy about his work ethic either. Bulliam will be a useless PoW and it will only become worse as he steps closer to being king.

      • L84Tea says:

        I’m convinced William’s plan as king is to simply do exactly what he does now, or at least try his hardest to. I think he’s going to try to spin his role as a more “behind the scenes king” and will likely flat out tell people that the public won’t see him as much as the previous monarchies. Maybe I’ll eat my words, but I have a very hard time believing William is going to actually step up and do the work when the time comes–he’s simply not fit for the job. He’s a trust fund brat loser on the largest scale and nothing more.

      • aftershocks says:

        @solid gold dancer: “How is [Will’s] behavior not more alarming than whatever Harry has said to Oprah??”

        This is so true, which makes it very obvious why the firm continues attacking Harry. The firm and the rota are continually trying to cover up and spin Will’s bad behavior. It’s been going on since the very beginning of Will’s and Harry’s adolescence. When will the firm and the BM stop going to bat for Willileaks?

        Sykes:
        “… that has meant [Will] working closely with Charles. The relationship is as good as it’s ever been in Will’s adult life.”

        Huh? If their relationship is “as good as it’s ever been,” that’s rather alarming. We already know that Will and Chuck have never had a good relationship, so this claim is Will telling on himself. He still doesn’t have a good relationship with Charles. They just pretend sometimes in public, with laughable performative playacting. Simply judging solely by Will’s pouty, ‘incandescent with rage’ expressions during his recent torturous opening of Parliament appearance, I don’t think anyone believes any of the claims made in this Sykes article.

    • Princessk says:

      I do have think that he even wants the trappings. I think that William would like to live an anonymous upper middle class lifestyle.

  3. Colby says:

    William also wants to do as little work as possible for as long as possible. While I’m sure his ego want him to be King, his laziness does not.

    • Over it says:

      This, 100 times this

      • BothSidesNow says:

        Yes!!! Bulliam is not interested in any type of work, whether it’s required or not. His sole intention is to live his life how he wanted to live it without being responsible or actively pursuing a cause.

  4. A says:

    There’s also no way William wants to do the work Charles has to take up now. Not only Prince of Wales stuff but also dealing with the Queen? I can’t see William actually showing up for that.

    • Elizabeth Regina says:

      I agree. That’s why after every misstep, the latest being his not-so-flattering appearance in parliament with his dad, he gets his mouthpieces bleating about modernising the monarchy.

  5. Snuffles says:

    Oh these people absolutely read Celebitchy! How often have we dropped that Game of Thrones comparison!? 😂

    And, yeah, there is no love or respect there. It’s like that scene in Grosse Point Blank where the two hit men meet up and keep their finger on the trigger of their guns the whole time as they try to talk and work out an alliance.

    • HeatherC says:

      I love that movie, so underrated! And it was weird phrasing as well, “pushed into his father’s arms” etc. What a weird family and institution

    • aftershocks says:

      ^^ Exactly @Snuffles. That was my immediate thought too. The rota most definitely follows Celebitchy threads. They get some of their turns of phrase and ideas for stories from reading comments here. Too bad that the rota and the royal firm aren’t wising up and taking some of our sound advice. LOL! Nope, they just keep telling on themselves with the asinine leaks and crazy write-ups. The only audience of people they’re fooling are royalists or Sussex-haters, who enjoy the bs spin, and who actively want to be fooled.

  6. Chloe says:

    Charles and william became close because they wanted to cast meghan out. Not because of the oprah interview.

    • Elizabeth Regina says:

      Exactly! It was an uneasy alliance based on mutual hate and jealousy. They are now stuck with each other. I love this for them.

  7. Eurydice says:

    Huh, so weird that William is made out to be the one who’s “touchy-feely” – haven’t the narratives been that Harry is the emotional one? And why does this sound like it’s from The Crown, with the Queen telling Charles he should suck it up?

    • Maggie says:

      When these words are used for Bulliam they mean “unhinged, explosive rage”.

      FFK is not smart or motivated enough for GoT strategies

      I am eagerly waiting for him to say “off with their heads!”

    • Susan says:

      @Eurydice that is my question when reading this: WILLIAM is considered the touchy freely emotional one? When did I miss that article??

    • Amy Too says:

      I wonder if the “touchy feely” goes along with the “pretending to be a middle class bloke who tells his dad what work he won’t do,” as in “I can’t do more work because I’m busy being a husband and father,” and to Charles, “prioritizing your family” (we know this is just a line for will), or even just acting like you have a wife and children AT ALL that you give even a cursory thin about when you’re making your decisions, is seen as being touchy-feely. Charles was fine with basically working constantly and never seeing his wife and children (plus openly cheating on them), and he didn’t talk to or consider Diana or his kids’ feeling, wants, or needs, when he made any decisions. So that fact that Will uses his wife and children as an excuse for why he can’t work, or go on tours, or meet up with Charles to learn how to be a POW, is what’s being considered terribly emotionally middle class.

    • Princessk says:

      I disagree with William being touchy feely, he seems to fake it. I think Charles is more in touch with his feelings actually.

  8. Rapunzel says:

    This is Will sending a message to the soon to be visiting Harry: Dad and I are working together, so watch your step.

    Kate is in danger too if Will and Chuck are allies, as Will needs dad to take her out of the picture, which I’m more and more convinced is happening.

    • Elizabeth Regina says:

      Her mother will fight it with every last breath in her body. Getting Kate this close to the thrown was her life’s work.

    • Chloe says:

      @Rapunzel: i am intrigued. Why do you think Kate will be out of the picture?

      I am in the “they’ll separate but never divorce or stay miserably married, while william gets to do what he wants “ boat.

      • Becks1 says:

        i don’t think anyone can say for sure what will happen obviously, but one thing that I do think is clear is that IF william wants a divorce, he needs Charles on his side. So william and Charles being allies is not good for Kate if it comes to that.

    • HeatherC says:

      I’m not convinced this is a warning shot toward Kate, especially when it states William was “girded by Kate.”

      • Charm says:

        Um…..no.
        Sykes has obviously not yet bought into the notion that bullyiam is eyeing the possibility of a divorce. He’s still stuck at pushing the narrative that charles and the incandescent one are getting closer ‘bEcAuSe oF wHaT HaRry HaS dONe.’
        But for the discerning, the ‘closeness’ between charles and bullyiam spells trouble down the road for the decades-long waiting game of camp middleton.

      • C says:

        I mean, that sentence basically says he and Charles have fought over the years with Kate’s encouragement. It’s not a great thing, lol.

  9. Merricat says:

    We know that William is very in touch with his rage, but what other “emotive” states are we talking about? Jealousy — offshoot of rage. Vindictiveness–offshoot of rage. It’s all of a furious package with him.

    • BothSidesNow says:

      This is the truth @ Merricat! Bulliam has one speed only, rage. He can’t control it nor does he have any interest in doing so. Bulliam is incredibly damaged goods, as they say. The Lamridge children will grow up suffering from traumatic childhood.

  10. Amy Bee says:

    In Charles’ desperation to be respected by William he threw Harry under the bus and didn’t protect him. Charles now has what he always wanted which is William on his side.

    • aftershocks says:

      ^^ I don’t think Charles is overly fussed about whether or not he’s ‘respected’ by Will. It’s pretty clear that Will respects no one in the first place. To me, Charles seems more interested in being respected by the British public, and embiggened by the BM.

      Charles’ relationship with Harry is a bit more complicated. Harry was always charming, outgoing, and more personable than Will. In general, Charles was distant as a father and preoccupied with his own life. Despite getting along a bit better with Harry, Chuck was still not hands-on or attentive. He often used his sons for p.r. purposes. Even worse than that, he told both of his sons (as Harry revealed) they had to suffer the same way he did growing up!

      Someone down-thread says that Chuck’s personality is unsuited to being a father, and it probably wouldn’t have been his preference to have any children, except that being heir to the throne required him to produce an heir and a spare.

  11. C-Shell says:

    Welp.

    I’ve lost the struggle to keep from laughing. Sykes’ spin on Bulliam’s behavior at the Parliament ceremony is very amusing and a more than tad shady.

    On a serious note, Charles’ relationship with his sons is deplorable. I believe there may have been/may be some genuine affection between Charles and Harry. However, that his loyalty can be and must be bought, whether literally or with reputational blackmail is lower than a snake’s belly in a wagon rut. My heart hurts for Harry who quite justifiably feels fundamentally betrayed.

    • Robert says:

      Charles didn’t want to marry Diana. The monarchy made him. And I’m not even sure Charles wanted children. That was just part of the job. Charles really seems to be an introvert. He prefers to spend time alone. Camilla being the only one he prefers. But I think they both spend a lot of time together not talking to each other. I figure they read or garden anything but have conversations. That’s why he prefers her over Diana.

      • Lux says:

        I actually believe that he and Camilla have “conversations” where they can finish each other’s sentences and share plentiful “looks” that convey all meaning. They are of the same (well similar) class, share the same values, and Charles supposedly found Diana woefully uneducated when he tried to talk to her about classics or whatever. He probably fancies himself as such an intellectual, but it’s interesting how every generation seems to view the one below it as dreadfully “sensitive/emotional” (Philip to Charles to William and Harry).

      • Tessa says:

        Charles IMO was not “forced” to marry Diana. I think that he was the one who started that spin. He was a grown man of 32. He made the decision. Philip wrote and said if you don’t want to marry her, then break up with her. He was right. Charles wanted his heirs to succeed him and could not marry Camilla and force her to divorce, he’d risk the throne.The Duke of Windsor as Prince Edward was under pressure to marry but did not until he met Wallis. Charles did not have the be all and end all love for Camilla that he’d be willing to risk the throne to marry her. Charles had many women in his life and he proposed to at least two others allegedly and Diana was the one who decided she wanted to marry him when he proposed. Other women including Amanda had turned him down. I don’t think Charles is an intellectual, he took on “mentors” like Van Der Post. And Charles got low grades. Diana perhaps in many ways was smarter than Charles and she was eager to learn. Charles had no business marrying Diana if he could not give his all to the marriage. And Camilla was married to another man. Charles and Diana could have worked on the marriage, something difficult because Camilla stayed around. I think CHarles saw the “philosophical concept” of marriage and did not see the realities, Van Der Post had kept at least one mistress so Charles would appreciate his books.

      • Tessa says:

        I don’t think Camilla is an intellectual, the conversations (like the infamous tape were decidedly not intellectual. Camilla and Charles were part of the Highgrove set. They seemed to have the same ethos which to me was and is not a good thing, considering all…Plus Charles was raised to be the center of attention, one writer said that DIana was one of the first ones to tell him no.

      • aftershocks says:

        @Tessa: “Charles IMO was not ‘forced’ to marry Diana. I think that he was the one who started that spin. He was a grown man of 32. He made the decision.”

        First of all, Charles is not a strong-minded individual. He was not close to his father, Prince Philip. Charles had always felt that his father was overly strict with him. They did not understand each other, and did not get along. Charles interpreted Philip’s written letter regarding Diana, as an ultimatum. Plus, don’t forget that Diana & Charles met and began dating as a direct result of the machinations of the Queen Mother, and her Lady-in-Waiting (Diana’s maternal grandmother).

        Another factor: Charles’ most trusted mentor, Lord Louis Mountbatten, had been killed about a year-and-a-half earlier, thus, he wasn’t around to counsel Charles in making a decision. It is significant that Charles had only asked Amanda Knatchbull to marry him, a few years earlier, due to Lord Mountbatten’s urging — Amanda was LM’s niece. Amanda and Charles were not romantically interested in each other.

        Charles and Diana initially were at least somewhat attracted to each other. But for sure, their relationship was a mismatch. They had only dated for 13 months before becoming engaged. Perhaps the most influential person in Charles’ life at that point, was Camilla Parker-Bowles. It was Camilla who ‘approved’ Charles dating Diana. Camilla saw young Diana as shy and timid, i.e., ‘manageable.’ What a misread! Diana may have seemed shy and demure in public during her late teens, but she was never ‘timid.’

      • aftershocks says:

        ^^ I have corrections and additions to make to my above post:

        1. Amanda Knatchbull is Lord Louis Mountbatten’s granddaughter, not his niece.

        2. Charles and Diana initially met when she was 16, due to the fact that Charles was dating Diana’s older sister, Sarah.

        3. C&D reconnected in the Summer of 1980, when she was 18 going on 19 (her birthday is July 1), as a result of matchmaking by the Queen Mother and Diana’s maternal grandmother. BTW, the Queen Mother had been more like a mother to Charles, having taken care of him in his youth, when his mother was away on royal tours.

        4. Diana has said that she and Charles went on 13 dates before becoming engaged. They were engaged in February 1981. So, they essentially saw each other over a span of about 7 months (not 13). Yet, they only went on 13 dates before their engagement, according to Diana. 13 was NOT their lucky number.

      • aftershocks says:

        @C-Shell: “My heart hurts for Harry who quite justifiably feels fundamentally betrayed.”

        ^^ So much this @C-Shell. The worst is not only Charles remaining passive and refusing to rein in KP’s and Will’s abusive machinations against Meghan. The absolute worst betrayal is Chuck pulling security from Harry in Vancouver, post-Sussexit. Meghan told us in the Oprah interview how she had begged the firm not to take security away from her husband! Meghan had likely pleaded with Clarence House go-betweens, and not with Chuck directly. But it was entirely Chuck’s call and Chuck’s doing.

        Apparently, Chuck and his grey men advisors thought that going scorched earth on Harry would scare him, and force him to come crawling back. This laughable reasoning and cruel tactic proves that Chuck knows very little about Harry and what makes him tick. All of the firm’s bonehead doubling down on their dirty treatment of M&H, has only solidified how much Sussexit was the right, bold move at the very right time!

        Plus, Chuck’s passivity during the smearing of Meghan, and the caricaturing of 2-day-old Archie, further emphasizes the fact of young Harry being left to twist in the wind at the hands of palace p.r. and men in grey, for the sole purpose of protecting and propping up Willy’s image. Charles did nothing back then to stop that inequity and unfairness toward his younger son. All those long ago forgotten and discarded chickens have come home to roost.

        Meeting and marrying Meghan opened Harry’s eyes on a number of levels, some very painful, others uplifting and transcendent.

    • Princessk says:

      Charles was always going to choose William and the monarchy over Harry but it could have been done in a better way.

      Right now Charles main objective is to be King and ensure that the succession continues.

      • Tessa says:

        Yes he would have chosen William. But I think he picked the wrong time to support him when he allowed William to try to boss Harry around and try to break him up with Meghan. That was more of a family thing than a dynastic thing. Charles perhaps could not see the differences between dynastic and family. If he had he would have been wise to tell William to back off and leave Harry alone, and that he was not in charge. Or maybe the Queen could have. The Queen approved the marriage. Charles could have called it as William disrespecting his grandmother’s wishes. That would be all it would have taken.

      • aftershocks says:

        @Princessk, I agree with you that the monarchy has always been concerned with its dynastic survival. They have always tended to strictly adhere to the line of succession, with some exceptions (including the unsuitable Prince Albert, Duke of Clarence & Avondale; and the unsuitable David –Edward VIII, who was never crowned king, and thus later became the Duke of Windsor).

        As we know, Prince Harry is more suited for a kingly, leadership role. Yet TOB, Prince William, is the first-born heir. It’s clear that Charles and the royal firm favor William due to his birth order, despite all of his behavioral and personality drawbacks. OTOH, I am beginning to wonder whether self-centered Charles truly cares what happens to the Windsor dynasty after his own death.

      • aftershocks says:

        @Tessa: “Charles could have called it as William disrespecting his grandmother’s wishes. That would be all it would have taken.”

        As we know, via multiple reports, William does not tend to be respectful of anyone’s wishes. Not even the Queen’s, much less Charles’ wishes. So no, that’s clearly not “all it would have taken.” Not when trying to reason with ‘Incandescent with Rage’ Willy.

  12. Mslove says:

    I’m lmao at the line about Harry pushing William into Charle’s arms. Tom Sykes is a very dramatic fellow.

    • BothSidesNow says:

      Sykes is a Bulliam mouthpiece, nothing more.

    • aftershocks says:

      ^^ Yeah @Mslove. LOL, it’s all Harry’s fault for standing up against the royal firm’s abusiveness toward him and his wife, Meghan.

      Quite clearly, Sykes and his cohort, Will/ Cain, are proving the truth of what Harry said in the Oprah interview: Charles and William are “trapped” within the monarchy’s gilded cage. Chuck and Wills are the ones being held hostage, by their gnarly heirdoms, and by the palace’s men in grey! 🤣😆😜

  13. girl_ninja says:

    The part where Chuck hated Wills getting in touch with his feelings is hilarious. We all know he set up that Apple Walk in Woods With a Weirdo to try and compete with Harry’s mental health interviews. Willy is a lazy bum, Chuck knows he has nothing to worry about as far as his oldest trying to snatch the throne from him.

  14. Princess Peach says:

    William is Joffrey Baratheon and Charles is Tywin Lannister. He can’t really go toe to toe with Charles because he can’t think or plan beyond his own rage. Meanwhile, Charles will deal with his tantrums and then send him on a disastrous tour to the Caribbean where he knows the Cambridges will fail miserably.

    • sunny says:

      I mean great comparison except that Tywin was proud of his family and was obsessed with protecting them as an extension of his own self and the only thing Charles has ever cared about protecting is himself and maybe Cammie. Everything else fits though.

      I am one of those people who believe Charles would have never have had kids except it being the number one requirement of his job. While he certainly had a warmer relationship with Harry than TOB I don’t believe it was ever all that good. I mean, Charles isn’t close to his mother and wasn’t close to his dad. Harry was close to both of them. In addition in the lead up to the wedding there were a few stories about Meghan encouraging Harry’s relationship with Charles. I think at best, Charles is and was a disinterested, passive father who found warm, affable Harry easier to deal with than TOB who was way more caught up in the terribleness of the charles/di divorce. He also probably liked Harry better as well because Harry wasn’t set to replace him one day. But I bet whatever civility existed between the two was frayed when they forced Harry out of his beloved army and while they probably made progress before the wedding, everything after was a huge step backwards. Charles threw his lot in with the heir and here we are.

      • Justwastingtime says:

        Charles was raised to be the divinely appointed head of England, Elizabeth escaped that fate in her childhood.

        Charles frankly had a terrible example of parenting – he was both bullied and ignored by his parents. Charles could have worked to be a better parent than his parents (as Diana did) but apparently he was incapable of doing that. I have a bit of insight into this dynamic as both of my parent overcame difficult childhoods and were far better parents than their parents. So, yah, Charles should have done a better job with his kids, but instead he wallowed in his pain.

      • Tessa says:

        Charles probably sees the “philosophy” of marriage and family. He may be like his mother and ostriches and avoids the realities and did not want to confront his petulant son William.

      • aftershocks says:

        ^^ Thanks for your observations @sunny. I agree with your well-stated views regarding Charles’ personality, and his mostly difficult interactions with his sons. You seem on the mark about the fact that Charles is so self-centered, he is ill-suited to having children, and he may have preferred not to, except for the dynastic necessity.

        @Justwastingtime: “Charles was raised to be the divinely appointed head of England, Elizabeth escaped that fate in her childhood.”

        ^^ I agree about their different upbringings. However, Princess Elizabeth knew by the age of 10 (after her Uncle David’s abdication), that she would be Queen of Great Britain one day. You could say that during her very early childhood, Elizabeth and her sister, Margaret, were able to enjoy a more carefree, happy existence, unburdened by dynastic worries.

        Despite their happy childhood, unfortunately Elizabeth and Margaret were not provided with a substantive academic education. The British government had to step in by the time Elizabeth was 13, to at least give her British and world history lessons, and some knowledge of Parliament, and constitutional matters.

  15. Rapunzel says:

    So Will has no game of thrones like urges to usurp dad, but he had made a game of thrones like alliance against Harry and Andrew? Okay then.

  16. JFerber says:

    If Diana had this same “wonderful” quality as William of turning invisible on a dime, she’d still be alive.

  17. Over it says:

    See I read that fights about work paragraph as in Charles has to threaten and bully and force will and Kate to work even though it hardly works. Kate and William kept throwing themselves on the floor like the permanent toddlers they are and screaming no, we don’t want to work but we want lots of shinny new buttons , cars and trips.

  18. tolly says:

    Is William growing out a comb over? It looks like he started parting his chick fuzz on the side. Maybe that’s something else that they can bond over.

    • aftershocks says:

      ^^ LOL @tolly! It does look like Will is doing a lot to try and make it seem like he has more hair. His efforts are obviously hopeless! 🤣😂😆

  19. Becks1 says:

    the line about how William and Charles have fought over what kind of royal work he will and won’t do…..basically Charles has tried to get William to work more and he refuses; now that Harry is gone William has to step up but ALSO he has an advantage now bc he’s the only “young” blood royal and Charles needs him desperately.

    This article does not make William or Charles look good and it does not make the Windsors look like the kind of family I would want to even know, much less be a part of, even with all the castles.

    • aftershocks says:

      ^^ Yeah @Becks1, Chuck and Wills are both ‘hoist by their own petards.’ Translation: Charles’s and especially William’s “plans to cause trouble for [M&H] are backfiring onto them,” with deserved karmic consequences.

  20. L84Tea says:

    “the next few decades…”

    Wow, these people are true optimists when it comes to Charles’ health.

    • twoz says:

      I would laugh so much if Betty surprised us all and Charlie-boy got pipped at the post. 😂

  21. nutella toast says:

    I realize this is probably the American and Brazilian in me, but I look at that hunk of metal with shiny stuff all over it (still just heat-compressed bits of earth at the end of the day) and think it’s all just ridiculous. The shiny bits of earth were important in 1547 when education was only for the wealthy and the understanding of “Divine Right” was that if you didn’t worship the King, you failed to worship God and therefore went to hell, etc, etc, etc…I don’t know – you get one life, and if you destroy each other and entire civilizations over a circle of metal and shiny stuff…I’m out of things to say.

    • antipodean says:

      Spot on, nutella toast! You have absolutely encapsulated the true worth of all their shiny frippery. All gained at the expense of others, and propped up by meaningless, and worthless “protocol”, based on the despicable tenet that these creatures are somehow intrinsically “better” than everyone else! Bah humbug, off with their heads. I shall get my knitting out for when the tumbrils come for these loathsome articles.

  22. Saucy&Sassy says:

    Something tells me that PC has tied work to money. Doesn’t the year start April 1st for the money train? If Willi has spent all of his money, then Kati and Willi are going to have to pay the piper in order to get money. It’s quite possible that their performance from April-June determines the amount of money for next quarter. Willi can rage all he wants, but if he wants to continue to play he will have to work. It’s going to be quite interesting in the next six months or so. Let’s see if he and Kati can actually work.

    • Lady D says:

      If the Cambridges do step up, I think it’s also more proof that Charles is the actual Regent and in charge.

      • FeministYeah says:

        And the more they show up, the more they’ll inevitably fuck up <3
        Every picture of their messes reduces Chuck's blood pressure, and every damning story about them clears his kidney, one nephron at a time xD
        Yes Chuck, Dorian Grey yourself into a British Republic for us! Woohoo!
        You go girl.
        Really though, GO.

      • Becks1 says:

        For the cambridges, this is kind of the worst case scenario, right? Charles is running the show as a de facto regent/monarch, but William doesn’t have the financial freedom he’ll have when Charles is actually king (and William is duke of cornwall.) So charles is calling all the shots, even more so than before for W&K, as if he’s the king, and they don’t have the financial independence they’ll have from him when he IS king.

      • Beverley says:

        Bring on the Lambridges! Let them work for their keep.
        The more they work, the more they’ll likely show their asses. 😁

        Bring ‘em on!

  23. Talia says:

    I think this was part of the ‘deal’ for a new house in/near Windsor (either for them both or more likely for an unofficial separation).

  24. equality says:

    What a load. Will cannot usurp PC. TQ and Parliament have already declared PC as her successor (which, primogeniture, pretty much made a done deal anyway). If by “usurp” they mean try to embarrass him with bad press and leaks, then yeah, PW does do that.

  25. Therese says:

    The reason William looks so upset is because he just discovered the Celebitchy website.

  26. MsIam says:

    Maybe part of the deal is that William should put a muzzle on his mouthy in-laws and stop with the skip Charles and Kate the next queen b.s. That seems to have calmed down quite a bit.

  27. Beverley says:

    Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
    *catches breath*
    Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

  28. Sophie says:

    I’m so here for the tiny chair they made William use. He looks hilarious.

  29. SH says:

    William may not want to be King right now, but he certainly wants to be Prince of Wales ASAP. That is where he gets full control of the purse of the more profitable Duchy and freedom from the scrutiny and work that actually comes with being King.

    • Feeshalori says:

      Actually, it’s the Duchy of Cornwall that he automatically gets, not the POW title. The two titles don’t go hand in hand, POW is conferred not inherited so William may wait awhile before Charles grants it to him.

    • Julia K says:

      Wm doesn’t need to wait for POW title. When Charles becomes king, Wm becomes Duke of Cornwall and the duchy $$$$$ is his!!!

  30. Margaret says:

    There is no close with those two. They are back stabbing each other every chance they get. Willie, and kate have help from Ed and society, because of chick withholding Phillips title from them, they are really all very obvious. Oh yes willie and kate want the throne, and they want it now. Harry is right, who is protecting the queen?.

    • Tessa says:

      I wonder why the Queen did not use Edward getting the title as a bargaining chip with Charles. Maybe she did and was turned down. Charles got her memo about Camilla’s title.

  31. JFerber says:

    I also thought of a sentence Charles can use to make sure Will is sufficiently invisible and non-attention-stealing, “Put on the brown suit, William.” It reminds me, in the reverse of course, of the Police’s song Roxanne, wherein she is told, “You don’t have to put on the red light, Roxanne.”

  32. Kaye says:

    Even if I knew nothing about William or Charles or any of the intrigue within the Royal Family, I would still look at those pictures and think William looked like a surly teenager. And it’s not just catching him in one or two shots – he looks pouty and grumpy and put out in every one, from his posture to his expression. How immature is that??

    • Jennifer says:

      His good looks depended entirely on his hair, Now he just looks pouty all the time.

  33. Christine says:

    “But William, girded up by Kate..”

    Yeah, hard pass.

    • aftershocks says:

      ^^ Exactly @Christine!

      Sykes:
      “Harry forced William to jump, and when the moment came there was no doubt for William which way to go. William picked the monarchy…”

      Duh! As if. In truth, Harry is the one who ‘jumped.’ William is still trapped. The lengths to which Cain/Will is going to blame Harry for his own miserable existence, is dumbfounding. Obviously, Will did NOT pick the monarchy. Will was ‘picked’ by the accident of birth order. LOL for days! 🤣🤣😆

      Tim Sykes spewing all over the place merely proves that Will should stop trying to be a badass chess player. He not only stinks at strategizing, he’s completely out of his element in everything he attempts to do in life. Game of Thrones, indeed! LOL! 🤣🤣😅🥴🤮😜