Jobson: Prince William really thinks he can be a part-time monarch

I agree with many commenters that this week’s “attacks” on the Prince and Princess of Wales are likely a temporary blip. They’ll be forgotten – or shelved – as soon as William and/or Kate jazz-hands their way through a public event. The women’s Rugby World Cup starts today, incidentally. It feels like some courtiers are probably suggesting an emergency appearance to quell the British press’s general unrest. It would be sort of funny if Will and Kate still refuse to go outside though, and god knows, they’ve dug in their heels before and refused to take advice. Anyway, let’s enjoy this moment while we have it. The Daily Mail’s columnists have been ripping into Will and Kate all week, and now it’s Robert Jobson’s turn to get some punches in.

Prince William is moving his family to a “forever home” in a bid to build happy memories after three tough years, The Sun exclusively revealed last week. However, according to an expert, the downsized monarchy could come at a huge price. Royal commentator and journalist Robert Jobson told The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show that the father-of-three should be ”careful” of what he wishes for. Chatting to The Sun’s Royal Editor Matt Wilkinson, Robert said that Prince William, 43, could ”become less connected to the people”.

“People do turn out when they see, particularly people like Sophie Wessex and the new Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Edward. They turn out in droves. They like that connection. And if you lose that connection, the monarchy actually loses something that it’s about. I think you’ve got to be careful what you wish for.”

But for the time being, as William is changing ”things the way he wants to”, the expert said fans of the Royal Family will just have to ”wait and see”.

William’s time to become the future King is still away – and in the meantime, Matt Wilkinson said, ”he’s very much focusing on his young family. Remember, Charles as King doesn’t have a very young family that he has to make sure he’s at home when they get back from school […] – that’s what William enjoys. ‘He enjoys the school run, and he wants to bring his children up in the countryside. ‘His life is very different to what King Charles’ is. ‘I know the late Queen Elizabeth II […], she worked extremely hard when she was bringing up her children, but that’s what William perhaps is choosing not to do. But it’s a different era as well.”

However, in Robert’s eyes, ”it’s not a question of choice – it’s a question of duty. I think that William has got to be quite careful whilst doing this balancing act.”

While Robert was understanding of the family going through ”a difficult time” and raising three kids, ”the role of the monarch is one where duty has to come first. I don’t think there’s any way around that unless you want to have a part-time monarch or a president. The reality is that is the job. It’s a job for life and it’s a job that’s pretty relentless.”

[From The Sun]

“I don’t think there’s any way around that unless you want to have a part-time monarch or a president…It’s a job for life and it’s a job that’s pretty relentless.” At this point, these people WISH they could get William and Kate to commit to being “part-time.” Here in America, part-time would mean working something like twenty hours a week. When was the last time William put in twenty hours of work in any given week? A tumbleweed just rolled by as I asked that question. So, never. When was the last time Kate put in twenty hours of work in a MONTH? Yeah.

Basically, I don’t buy that the roles of king or Prince of Wales are these “relentless” jobs which need a man’s undivided attention, and I completely reject the notion that William couldn’t do the fakakta school run AND work twenty hours a week. The idea that William has to “choose” is a false argument, and they know that too. It’s not that William is rejecting the idea of balancing royal work and fatherhood – it’s that he’s openly quiet-quitting and refusing to do the bare minimum, all while enjoying the perks and privileges of his position.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

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111 Responses to “Jobson: Prince William really thinks he can be a part-time monarch”

  1. Scamuppet says:

    They turn out in droves to see Edward??? That’s new

    • Monika says:

      LOL. Jobson should have gone to Specsavers to get his eyesight checked.

      (Specsavers is a British company offering optometry and optician services for eyesight testing and sells glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses.)

      • LRB says:

        And to add… Specsavers has for many years had very silly adverts where people are doing silly things with the tagline.. he should have gone to Specsavers!

    • Smart&Messy says:

      To be fair, I don’t think any fewer people show up for Edward than Peg. The crowd barriers are usually there to catch tumbleweed.

    • DouchesOfCambridge says:

      LOL IN DROVES?? I made a sandra bullock face doing a sara paulson face when I read that.

      It is true that the barricades are empty when willie goes anywhere. They also like to show up unexpectedly so we can’t say nobody’s coming for them lol losers

      • SarahCS says:

        That’s the thing, with decent planning and targeting the right audience they absolutely could get crowds to show up in a lot of places.

      • Tessa says:

        Samuel Goldwyn the movie producer had famous sayings like include me out. He said about a movie that the public “stayed away in droves.”

      • Jane says:

        When are they going to come right out and say that Charles was such a dogshit father that both William and Harry became completely traumatized and wanted out.

        How many more events can he blow off to finally drive home that he doesn’t want to be king? I wouldn’t want to be the monarch either!

        So, now what?

    • Indica says:

      Doves, droves, potayto, potahto.

      Clearly they’re counting the birds that show up.

    • Droves must mean a few because that’s what usually shows up. As for him raising his family. I don’t believe he lives with his “family “ so that excuse is old and those children are in school so what the hell is he doing with his time? My guess is day drinking and video games and whatever extracurricular activities that he is up to.

      • BeanieBean says:

        That school run excuse is so ridiculous and why, WHY, does no one ever ask the follow-up question–what does William do all day? Between school runs??

        And they want to be seen as normal regular people? Well, normal regular parents don’t have the option of simply not working when their kids are young. SOMEbody has to work to pay the bills.

      • lungta says:

        Time to decode all the Royal Rota’s terminology:
        “School run” – I reckon the chauffeur takes the kids to school.
        “Difficult 3 years” – Can someone give us a run down of the difficulties? Kate disappeared from public life after Xmas 2023. That’s barely 2 years.
        “raising 3 kids” – who uses the excuse of raising kids, who attends school full days, 6 days a week to do f**k all at their actual job, which pays him millions? At what point will raising the kids be no longer an excuse for not working? When the kids are in their 20’s? 30’s?
        “normal family life”? He doesn’t know the meaning of that phrase!

      • HeatherC says:

        Don’t forget the sports on line forums!

    • Colleen says:

      I don’t know where. I was in Edinburgh last year at the same time he was and people came out in tens.

    • Steph says:

      I had to read that so many times. My brain kept reading.
      “People do NOT turn out when they see, particularly people like Sophie Wessex and the new Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Edward. They turn out in droves. They like that connection”
      It was like my brain couldn’t accept that first part so the rest didn’t make sense. 😂

      • BeanieBean says:

        What got me about that–in addition to the utter implausibility of people turning out in droves for Sophie & Ed–is that he’s hardly the NEW Duke of Edinburgh. He got that title in 2023. Royals must have the developmental stages of elephants (they take forever to mature)–Eddie still being ‘new’ after two years, Billy Boy & Katiekeen still preparing to step up into their roles as P&POW, etc.

    • Friendly Crow says:

      William’s insistence on “normal family life” is NOT normal family life. People don’t get to live like this. And – while it was awwww a different way of doing things, no emotional handshakes to show your 5 year old son you missed him while you were away from months – this has just become a slap in the face to every parent out there, trying their best with limited resources – both time and money.

      And it’s deeply insulting to the rest of the world that has to work. As though we are failing our children by having commitments outside of the children’s entire existence. We need to work to have money so that our kids can eat and be clothed and have shelter and go to the Dr and alllllll of the things. Then there is all of the invisible labor that takes us away from our kids so that our lives can function. Phone calls, making appts, errands, cleaning the house, laundry, meal planning and prep, actually making each meal etc. I am deeply fortunate in that I am currently able to be a stay at home homeschooling mom.

      And from the bottom of my heart – having the kids home creates so much more mess – not to mention the deep levels of planning a curriculum and field trips and co-op and social opportunities- that someday it feels like I don’t spend actual quality time WITH them, I spend all that time DOING.

      William has people to do all the doing. All of it. Every little bit. He could work 7-3 (school hours) and do some night events and not miss a single moment with them. He also has a wife who should be his parenting partner so they can divide and conquer on some of the things. Especially since they have no mental or emotional labor as it relates to the running of their lives on their plates at all.

      • QuiteContrary says:

        This the truth.

      • jais says:

        Agree with all of this. No one wants them to be derelict parents but again these people don’t even work close to part time. They get to be with their kids so much more than 99% of the population and yet they still use their kids as an excuse for barely doing a thing. They are soooo fortunate and yet all they do is explain and complain about how they can never ever miss a school run. They barely express any kind of gratitude, just absolute contempt for being asked to do something like show up for a veteran memorial.

    • Friendly Crow says:

      I have a question.

      When was the last time the royals held / hosted a fundraiser for a charity that wasn’t the kings trust or the princes trust or a charity that was directly tied and funneled to them?

      There used to be such glamorous fundraisers and all sorts of people decked out in beautiful clothes. Yes they were wealthy people. But then you would hear – Diana surprised everyone by auctioning off three of her dresses and in total X amount of money was raised for the charity. The Princess of Wales will be making multiple visits to the charity in the coming weeks to bring further attention to the good work this charity is doing for families in poverty with young children.

      To me – that was royalty. The ability to put on gorgeous clothes, highlight a truly good cause and then show up over and over again in casual clothes highlighting the immense increase in the charities ability to help their community because of the successful fundraiser.

      When did that stop??? They show up with nothing, do nothing and then don’t even post about how to donate to the charity or what the charity even does on their social media!

      • Megan says:

        There are many reasons why gala-style fundraisers no longer exist, but the most important reason is people stopped going to them. You can tap your rich friends so many times before they tap out.

  2. ChewieNYC says:

    I’m sorry but if the kids are over 5 you don’t have a “young” family anymore. Your kids have busy after school activities and friends they would rather hang out with until dinner time. They are so beyond out of touch with the reality of what every day families really are. No healthy adult lives for every waking moment with their children and makes that their entire personality.

    • Kittenmom says:

      Thank you! I am so sick of hearing about their “small” children.

    • DouchesOfCambridge says:

      They think we think that they have young kids and understand the importance of school runs: they are trying to say outloud what peasants are thinking and got it so wrong. That’s how disconnected they are about the tiniest thing.

      • Tessa says:

        Parents work. Sometimes parents send a,friend or relative to pick up the kids. It’s not a scandal to do this and parents do this all the time.

      • Moondust says:

        And what do they do while the kids are in school? Relax and rest before the next school run because it was too exhausting? I can’t believe the school run excuse for their laziness is not mocked by the press.

      • Betsy says:

        I usually have my royal protection officers pick up the kids.

      • Friendly Crow says:

        I think Kate or William heard someone mentioned how important the school run was for connecting with your kids – that they tend to open up more in the car when they aren’t the entire focus of your attention – from Pippa maybe – and then they went ahead and made the school run their entire identity which is WILD.

      • Magdalena says:

        @Friendly Cow: Well, there was that excerpt from The Cut which describes M picking up little A and how he launched himself into her arms to greet her and how they closed their eyes and hugged, both full of emotion, and that M and H regularly do the school runs. I can’t help but think that William and Kate have been trying to co-opt that image for themselves, but going overboard with it as usual.

      • Lurker says:

        @magdalena

        They conventiently ignored the part where M gets up at 6, makes breakfast, gets the children ready, does the school run and rushes home for meetings all day, until it is time to pick up the kids, spend quality time with them, and after 7 PM when they are in bed, spend quality time with H.

        And that, when she cannot make it, H does the school run.

        Just like regular people, get the kids to school, work, pick them up. Both couples have staff to do the time consuming chores such as laundry and cleaning. So WTH are WillNot and CanNot doing all day

    • Hypocrisy says:

      Just my thoughts exactly this isn’t a “young family” and that argument is laughable at this point when all the children are in school every day. If WanK are still struggling with children that old they should never have been parents in the first place especially with all the help they employ.

      • MarqueeMoon says:

        I wonder how parents used to connect to their children when their children walked or biked to and from school ? ..(which is still the norm in the country I live in) , and what excuses could their parents make then, for not being able to do anything else?

    • Pumpkin says:

      Right? Plus all the kids are allegedly off to boarding school within 5 years so there are going to be no more school runs or at least everyday ones.

      Plenty of parents work 40 hours each a week and still manage to pick/drop the kids off at school. It’s not easy but they do it with less than 1% of the resources W&K have.

      • Lorelei says:

        Honestly, what is this nonsense, W&K insisting that BOTH parents be home every single day when the kids get home from school? No one lives like that! When I was growing up, my dad was at work during the week, ffs, and that was normal because everyone else’s dads were at work, too. And now, my friends and I consider ourselves extremely fortunate if we can afford for *one* of us to be a stay at home parent. These two call themselves “modern,” but in reality they’re so delusional that I’m just left SMH.

        I don’t know how they aren’t beyond mortified to behave this way.

      • BeanieBean says:

        I know times are different & I don’t have kids so I have no idea what’s happening in the school realm anymore, but–nobody did ‘school runs’ when I was a kid. We walked to school, rode our bikes, or took the bus. My walk to/from junior high & mid high was about a mile & a half, each way. And I know, I know, I wasn’t a royal kid, but still. Also, does the UK not have school buses? I truly don’t understand the ‘school run’ thing.

  3. Cassie says:

    Will and Kates decline in the last 5 years is so obvious .
    In every way , they really are a shadow of themselves .

    Bitterness, jealousy and holding on to hate really does eat away at you .
    I have absolutely no sympathy for them .being rich definitely does not bring happiness .

  4. Blogger says:

    Oh dear, the rats are in a bit of a dilemma.

    How does one embiggen a taxpayer funded lazy couple who can’t be arsed to do 10, nay 20 hours of work a week? Every week?

    Poor diddums. The Greek yacht was so exhausting for them that they couldn’t appear at the VJ80. So exhausting, that they’ve not been seen since Wimbledon as their last “public” outing.

    At £23M a year, the only thing the rats can write about in great detail is their next forever home 😂

    You definitely can’t polish this 💩.

  5. Smart&Messy says:

    KC is getting the press to discipline William. Looks like a last resort, weak and desperate.

  6. Chloe says:

    I agree that it is not a “choice” he has to make. He can easily chew out 2 bread and butter engagements a day during the hours the kids are in school, seeing as most engagements don’t laat more than an hour. I doubt he does the school runs anyway. He simply enjoys faffing about in the countryside.

    But i don’t think the press has any room to complain about this either because they have pretty much endorsed it for the past 7 years.

    • Blogger says:

      Yup, the Lazies main enablers with the “Lazy is perfect” while “Willy is a great family man!” – they have to do the “school run” while “Lazy is still learning” tags 😂

      Oh sweet karma has it for them.

      • sarah w says:

        I agree! they only came down from Norfolk when Meghan joined the family and people saw how committed she was to becoming a working royal and outshone the others without hardly trying ! they are full of resentment that Harry has left them and refuses to be 3rd wheel ever again and rightly so!

    • Brit says:

      @chloe, sometimes I wonder if they don’t have regrets because they praised William and Kate for virtually everything but the bottom dollar is suffering as a result. Papers are closing and redundancies are everywhere. It truly does feel like the rota are coming to a close and it won’t be around when George reaches teenage years, These people are terrified.

      • JT says:

        If the rota is terrified of losing their jobs they need to start spilling the tea to sell papers. The BM is worried about maintaining access but they aren’t getting any access. W&K aren’t working at all, so what’s the point of all the propaganda? Just report the truth and let chips fall where they may.

      • Lorelei says:

        @JT, I could not agree more. I’ve been saying this for so long. They could print money if they started telling some truths about W&K. The tabloids certainly didn’t spare Charles in the 80’s and 90’s, and the monarchy hasn’t gone anywhere.

    • Becks1 says:

      That’s the thing right – when they talk about being part time, they’re not even that. There’s no “juggling” of royal duties and family life.

      I think the public accepted the lack of work when the kids were in diapers. But now? You’re telling me you can’t work because you need to be there for your kids 24/7 apparently? Your kids who presumably are in school hours a day, do extra curricular activities etc – but you can’t work because “school run?”

      Charles is pissed at Hell at them. Jobson isn’t saying these things without some sort of tacit go ahead from BP.

    • windyriver says:

      I’m curious what’ll happen once Charles is gone, very possibly sooner rather than later. With the help of trusty Camilla and her media contacts, he turned the “invisible contract” into an art form. On the other hand, what we’ve seen about KP operations indicates they’re sorely lacking in PR and related skills, that Will has a poor track record for hiring truly competent staff.

      I agree the media focus will shift back to “normal” next week as WLM season 2 premieres, and the Wales’ likely also set up some event to compete. But, the spate of articles this last week are more pointed than we’ve seen in a long time. The public has been losing its appetite for anti-M&H hit pieces and rehashing years old Sussex news. The chance Will as monarch will have people around who can play the game as well as Charles is questionable, and he’s already pissing off potential BM contacts rather than forging connections a la Camilla. If the press lose the incentive for pandering to W&K and can benefit more by going another way, the dam may break for good.

  7. DouchesOfCambridge says:

    I think William (and kate) is of course lazy as hell. All this to me points to William falling out with his father, and not seeing him anymore or avoids him at events, purposely avoids work opportunity. That move to forest lodge might be about Kate’s separation house, but also might hide something about his relationship with charles.

    Also, the recent report that he must be careful and show up to work because he’s gonna be irrelevant like other royals in europe/scandi have actually revealed what he really wants, and what going it his own way means: become irrelevant and not work.

    • MaisiesMom says:

      I agree. That is what he wants. And I don’t blame him, but it depends on WHY he doesn’t want to do more engagements or be in the public eye. Does it make him truly anxious and miserable, or is he just being lazy and ungrateful for his privileges?

      • Blogger says:

        It doesn’t matter at this stage. This violent man assaulted his only brother and set his attack dogs on the Sussexes.

        He can be as much anxious and miserable as he likes. They’re happy. He’s not despite his many, many attempts.

        Fix your house in order Willy cos you’re messy as fuck.

      • DouchesOfCambridge says:

        He only works because 1. It’s expected and not because he enjoys service to his people. 2. Good King Harry fckin always shows up doing better and with authentic good will and kindness. (Fckng Harry – RAGE 😡)

        So after so many fake attempts to be good, and not racists and not lazy, and not grifters, they are just gonna say “fck it”. Move to forest lodge so this “forever home” has all the luxuries they like, as they rotate homes, apt1 if they ever go back to the city, anmer hall in the country, forest lodge in windsor and not peasant house adelaide. They will have their own traditional rotation of their own luxury homes and not palaces like the queen. Wow, how modest!

      • Kittenmom says:

        The man gets millions upon millions every year without lifting a finger. If he is willing to give that up, sure he can avoid the public eye. Otherwise…we pay, you pose was it?

    • Laura D says:

      @DouchesOfCambridge – That’s fair enough but, the “irrelevant” European royals still carry out more appearances for a lot less money than William does. They also (on the surface) appear to take their duties and obligations a lot more seriously than our man-baby and his sick note wife. Unless he abdicates William will be the monarch. Therefore, if he wants the wealth and privilege that comes with the role he better get used to the fact that an “half in half out” option is not on the table.

      • Bqm says:

        They’re also better educated and trained. The future queen of Belgium is at Harvard. Princess Leonor is finishing up her military training. King Frederick of Denmark is very accomplished. Then there’s William.

    • Smart&Messy says:

      Are the other European royals as wealthy as KC and William? Do they have access to that many palaces and other real estate? Like all of the castles KC has access to, visiting a different one every month to make the gardeners miserable.

      I’m asking because I really don’t know. Maybe they are just as wealthy.

      • Blogger says:

        No. The only rich Euro royals on par with the Windsors would be the Dutch Royal Family because of their investments amongst other things, in Royal Dutch Shell (ie coloniser wealth) which caused some controversy.

        The rest would be the feudal monarchies in Asia (Brunei) and the Middle East (freebie yachts!), not a constitutional one like in Europe.

        The Spanish monarch lives on a low six figure income per year. There’s an article somewhere that compares and contrasts the public funding of European royals.

      • Laura D says:

        @Smart&Messy – yes the European royals are also very wealthy but, they all take less from the public purse than the BRF. In fact King Filipe actually cut his salary by 20% in 2015 because Spain was going through an economic recession. Something I could never imagine William or Charles ever considering.

      • FlamingHotCheetos2021 says:

        Last I checked, the official expense numbers put the BRF as #1 most expensive monarchy. #2 are the Dutch, and they are about HALF as expensive as the BRF, and everybody else is waaaay far down at something like half or two thirds (or less) of what the Dutch Royal Family costs.

      • Bqm says:

        The Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Monaco royals are hugely wealthy.

  8. Brit says:

    I would feel sorry for the press if they weren’t so revolting about the Sussexes. They knew for years that the Waleses were never hard workers and lazy. It’s clear they never thought the Sussexes would leave. They were going to use them as punching bags, while the Waleses did what they want until the new generation got older. Removing themselves from the country entirely has forced to the press to face reality faster than they would’ve liked. Jobson knows no one cares for Sophie and Edward. It’s denial at this point.

  9. Gemini says:

    Queen Elizabeth justified the private wealth, numerous number of royal residences and the tax payer cost by making the larger royal family visible. When Chuck offered a slimmed down monarchy, his aim was to get rid of the extended royal relatives but not the royal residences and certainly not the duchy money. If he passes before George is of age, Willy will have control of the income of two duchies. Royal math as it stands now is fewer working royals, fewer engagements, less content for tabloids, less need for royal rota members, more public and private income. A monarchy based on social media with fake virtual support by bought influencers is not sustainable even for the die hard monarchist.

    The tabloid criticism is mild. They are basically calling for the Keens to come out and play.

    • SarahCS says:

      In case anyone was fooled, it’s now become clear that the slimmed down monarchy was just about pooling more wealth with Charles, not having less overall.

      Apathy will take them a long way but there are limits.

  10. Gosi says:

    Tbh I feel like this pertains to that same statement of “it’s is going to be the most ardent supporters of the monarchy who do the most to damage it”
    The British press has completely lost the ability to criticize these two so at the very least they don’t just feel they can do whatever the hell they want. Even their fans are all sychopants who label very fair critisicm as honest to God vitriol. William and Kate never take advice because they know where will never be any consequences for not taking advice. William will drive the moranchy into the ground and be a part time king if that’s what he wants to do becuase legit NO One will tell him no. Will royal reporters only truly start going in in Wank when the monarchy is literally on the brink of collapse.

  11. SarahCS says:

    If he doesn’t want the job I’m happy with him being a country gent, just pack up your palaces and give them and all the crown estates and other looted goodies back to the nation (and nations they came from). That would actually be an amazing legacy. If Phillip could die with an estimate £30M fortune (from a navy pension) I’m sure they’ll be fine financially and with all the ‘private’ homes they already own.

    The questions is whether William is self-aware enough to realise he want this more than the perceived adulation and power that come with being the monarch.

    And yes, I know we’d need acts of parliament, etc. etc. but that’s not a blocker.

    • Blogger says:

      Unlike Harry, he won’t survive in the real world.

      Harry wrote about adjustments eg using a credit card. They’ve infantilised Willy to such an extent that he won’t know what to do in the real world.

      Perhaps Lazy can survive but the Middletons have been spending more than their income allows.

      This will be the ultimate riches to rags story. Willy will be the one working at a McDonalds to survive, not his brother.

      • lemondrop says:

        Let’s not belittle McDonald’s workers because they have more skills than William. They arrive on time, are personable, know how to be pleasant and engage customers, can multitask, can cook and clean, can troubleshoot problems, work well with colleagues. When was William able to do any of this?

      • Blogger says:

        @Lemondrop McD reference was the cartoons at the time of Harry and Meghan when the Sussexes left.

        Agree. Willy wouldn’t last an hour at McD.

        I do think he had a bit of work ethic before he met Lazy – cleaning toilets during his gap year. But she brought out the worst attributes in him.

      • BeanieBean says:

        I telya, whenever I go through a drive-through, either at McDonald’s or Starbucks, I’m always so very impressed at the person who both takes orders & deals with the person at the window. That job would send me ’round the bend.

  12. Tessa says:

    That school run again. The article is patronizing to those struggling in a bad economic time with parents having several jobs to get food on the table. I don’t feel the least bit sorry for lazy People like the keens. The average family can’t afford to buy multiple mansions to cheer them up.

    • Jais says:

      That’s what is getting to me. How very patronizing all of it is. We need to move bc life has been rough. We need to do the school runs or we’re not being good parents. It’s patronizing to almost anyone who isn’t rich and privileged. And yeah, the Wales don’t even do part time work. That’s an insult to part time workers. They dabble in work from time to time at best. They are so patronizing and offensive.

      • Brassy Rebel says:

        And they have nannies and staff that most people don’t have. It’s not like they have latch key kids. Plus, I rolled my eyes at the suggestion that William needs to be there when the kids get home from school. Why?

  13. okay says:

    George will be at university and they’ll still be talking about how important the school run is and how they must prioritize their “young” family over any semblance of work

  14. Noomi says:

    It pains me to say this but thank god it’s the weekend so that by Monday this faux outrage will have run its course. Each article only illustrates the diminished influence of the media with W&K carrying on as if the world was a forest of trees in need of hugs.

  15. Me at home says:

    This is a gentle nudge rather than the kick in the butt the Waleses really need. Jobson ticks all the boxes about the tiny little children and the “three tough years” (three???) the Waleses have had. He never points out that nobody needs four international vacations in half a year, not to mention a megayacht. Nor does he point out that the rest of us do the school run and then go off to work. Lame attempt, Jobson, and you’re nuts if you think your piece will affect the Lazies at all.

    • Lurker says:

      They count from the Queen’s death in 2022. Poor sausages grieved so hard, they could grin widely into the camera right after the funeral. Camilla and Kate wearing the Queen’s jewelry.

  16. Eurydice says:

    We question William’s intelligence, but it seems he’s got it all figured out. Right now, he has zero constitutional obligations to do anything. It makes no difference to the running of the country (or anything, really) if he shows up or not. And it doesn’t seem to matter to Charles if William shows up or not.

    There’s really no such thing as full time/ part time king – there’s just King. And once William is King, he’s got like 4 things he’s obligated to do – the rest is ceremonial. He’s already told the world and shown the world that his royal position is not a priority for him, so why expect him to act differently once he’s on the throne? It’s the same for Kate – she’s established herself as an invalid for life. And, for 2 years now, has shown that it doesn’t matter to the country if she exists or not.

    So, good luck with your future career, Mr. Jobson.

    • bisynaptic says:

      What are the four things?

      • Lady Digby says:

        Appointing and removing the Prime Minister and other ministers;
        Dissolving Parliament, to bring about general elections;
        ‘Proroguing’ Parliament – that is, disbanding it for a set period of time;
        Approving the most important laws (primary legislation) – through granting what is known as ‘Royal Assent’;
        Appointing members of the House of Lords;
        The conduct of diplomacy, and agreeing treaties;
        Acting as head of the Armed Forces, being responsible for their deployment within and outside the UK, including in potential or actual hostile action;
        Being head of the Church of England,
        Granting honours

  17. Amy Bee says:

    Most people have to work and take care of their children at the same time. Why is it so hard for William and Kate to do it?

    • Brassy Rebel says:

      There’s a not so subtle implication that parents who don’t spend every waking minute with their kids are bad parents.

  18. Harla says:

    It strikes me that WandK seem to be the worst kind of helicopter parents, never leaving their children’s sides for a moment. I really feel for G, C and L, if this is the case and can’t imagine how much they, especially Kate, will overstep boundaries when these kids start dating and forming other relationships.

    • Becks1 says:

      Yeah I started to say something similar above and got sidetracked lol.

      But if what we hear is true – that William and Kate can apparently never leave their children’s sides for a minute – that’s unhealthy too and causes a different sort of damage than William’s upbringing.

    • Nic919 says:

      If only that were true. Part of why they moved from London is because parents at Battersea confirmed that more often than not it was RPOs dropping off George and Charlotte, sometimes with Carole.

    • Me at home says:

      It sounds like this is what Kate knows, because this is how Carole brought up her kids. And we can all see the problems there. Carole raised three kids who basically failed to launch and refuse to work except on marshmallow companies that fail. (OK, Pippa has done a few things.) Are we doomed to watch failure-to-launch George?

  19. Brassy Rebel says:

    I just get the sense that the real issue for the media is their fear that William is killing the monarchy which has been their gravy train for so long.

    • Tina says:

      Yes of course. There will be no international tours, no weekly bread and butter engagements, no weekly rural church appearances when at Sandringham or balmoral, no glam gala appearances. I’m not convinced he will even keep up with traditions like the order of the Garder stuff. He looks miserable at these types of things. I used to think the wales would just use their kids to make these types of appearances once they were older but now I think they will deny the press that too. The cushy life of a royal reporter no longer looks so cushy.

      • Blogger says:

        If they’re not careful the British tabs will full time turn into the British paps and they’ll start chasing them down instead of allowing Paris Match to get the ski photos etc.

    • Noomi says:

      I’ve been noticing for quite awhile now that the lack of holiday coverage shows how little the public cares about the number of trips W&K take. No one is paying top dollar for pics of Kate in a bikini or Will on a jet ski. They have successfully shown the world that they are uninteresting people and we should stop pretending that they can be shamed into having a sense of purpose.

  20. Elizabeth says:

    Edward and Sophie (interesting that Jobson still refers to her as Sophie Wessex instead of the Duchess of Edinburgh) managed to work as full-time royals and still make time for their children. William and Kate could do three engagements a week and still have time for their children. It’s not like they are going out every night for engagements. It’s embarassing that elderly royals are outworking these two.

    • Ciotog says:

      Full time royal work still doesn’t equal part time human work, and it’s such an insult by this Royal Family to suggest that it does.

  21. Kate says:

    William can continue to do less and less and no one will do a thing about it. The press will always allow it and the tax payers will continue do nothing to get rid of the monarchy. Willam knows this. He doesn’t have to be careful, he doesn’t have to have an excuse, or worry. Not a thing will change. I expect each year he’ll do less and less and get more and more from tax payers. In next couple years the press won’t even bother with excuses anymore. We know the school runs and young family and cancer cells stuff is nonsense. It has been going on long before those things. The press will not turn on the next king and queen. That is all they have. There will never be some big turn and exposing of william. A little hand wringing and a shoulder shrug and then back to kate walks on water and willam hates harry.

    • tamsin says:

      Perhaps after William does his best to make the monarchy invisible, perhaps people will realize that it is time to change a few things. Perhaps the invisible monarchy doesn’t need a half a billion dollars to continue being invisible. BP and WC could be opened up to more revenue sources. I can see William even cancelling a weekly meeting with the Prime Minister. The government can quit sending over the red boxes. They could just open parliament with the crown on a cushion. When William dies, people will go “who?” If George tries to have a coronation, people will go “what?” Thus a thousand year-old monarchy just dies a death into invisibility and irrelevance. Queen Elizabeth’s reign was supported because she was always there to remind people of her existence. She realized that she had to be “seen to be believed.” Leaving William to his own devices should be a godsend to the republicans.

  22. QuiteContrary says:

    I know this criticism is likely only a blip, but there’s also been an undercurrent of warning in these pieces.
    Even Jobson said, ”it’s not a question of choice – it’s a question of duty. I think that William has got to be quite careful whilst doing this balancing act.”

    I’m hoping that the warning is this: Keep hiding, William and Kate, and we’ll have no choice but to spill the beans on what’s really happening with you two. (A girl can dream.)

  23. Maja says:

    I would like to add another aspect. Perhaps Kate really is seriously mentally ill. Be it because of post-traumatic stress disorder or because so many people in this institution become so terribly mentally ill. Obviously there are structures there that, even in co-operation with the press, seem like a terrible prison that nobody wants to go into and those who are in it want to get out and as far away as possible. Perhaps Kate really does need to be protected from the public. Not only is she frighteningly thin, but in some videos she also looks very disturbed and frozen.

    • Tessa says:

      Peggs is just as bad possibly worse imo mean spirited mostly. Dian a was labeled mentally ill by Charles supporters like Nicholas Soames. She was being gaslighted. I don’t think a lot of people in the royal family are mentally ill. Some feel superior to others being royals and they really are not superior.

  24. Shadeau says:

    You would think from the way the “school run” is talked about by these people that it was a holy rite. I suppose having to take the school bus every day scarred me for life.

  25. Peanut says:

    The way they bang on about raising their children and they have inadvertently set these kids up.. we now expect them to be be well adjusted teenagers and adults with all the love and attention they get from two parents. They will have compassion and depths of empathy and positive self esteem! Hopefully hard working?! 😀😀🙄

  26. maisie says:

    William forgets at his own peril the lessons of history. particularly French history.

  27. Vicki says:

    Aged like curdled milk, that guy.

  28. dee says:

    It’s almost as if when Harry and Meghan suggested a half-in, half-out situation, they were proposing a sustainable way for a future monarchy…not just for themselves but for George, Charlotte and Louis in the future too. The royals are so full of hate they can’t see anything past their own vacations and greed that even when a good future-planning idea comes along, they can’t see the the merit of it

  29. VegasSchmegas says:

    Has anyone physically seen either of them do a “school run”? Does Will use the helicopter for them? /s

  30. Fina says:

    Could some British celebitchy explain the cultural significance of the „school run“ to me? I really struggle to get it. When I was school age (so let’s say seven years old) I walked to school, mostly with a friend, sometimes alone. Later on once older I went by bike. I am sure my parents accompanied me the first few times to practice, but it was not really not a thing to bring your child to school. While especially in big cities parents are now more careful, the norm is still that the children learn to go alone early on. Normally in towns, the school is quite close by to walk, or in rural areas there are school buses. It seems they live about 4miles from Lambrook, that is 5-7 minutes together in the car, how much quality time can this be?

  31. therese says:

    I agree that KC has given the go ahead to the rota to give them a dressing down. Proof that he could have helped H&M since he has so much say so. I want to borrow @Blogger’s expression that certainly must be British “he can’t be arssed”. I think they (if indeed Willy will be there) moved there for a bigger separation house, but it is secluded, and people can’t see the comings and goings. I think the privacy and seclusion are a big part of the house.

  32. Newt says:

    Of course he can get away with working PT as king. Who’s going to stop him? Or start him – ha!

  33. Henny Penny says:

    Because there was such a preternaturally stable, dutiful, hard-working, seemingly benign Queen for so many generations, we’ve forgotten that the natural state of monarchies is malevolent and parasitic. There’s nothing romantic about any of it.

    William is a deeply troubled, visibly angry man with an alcohol problem, a sports obsession, and a deep-seated, obsessive jealously against his brother. He’s not well, and he’s going to be a catastrophe as a king. I don’t see George ever wearing the crown unless William kicks off early.

  34. Penny says:

    I bet they spend hours arguing and making snarky comments to randoms on the Aston Villa forums and Mumsnet. Then it’s time for the school run again.

  35. Duch says:

    Through the last 15 years we’ve been hearing that he’s resting up and sowing wild oats before assuming larger responsibilities. But I think “start as you mean to go on” would have made him a more serious person. His half-hearted and soon forgotten initiatives are the only thing he has to show for himself compared to Harry. It doesn’t bode well for future of monarchy.

    Last night, while debating the merits of Meghan Sussex, I mentioned to a very highly educated new British friend (at least I hope we’re still friends) that it feels like I’m watching the twilight of the 1000-year old monarchy. Her reaction was great surprise. She didn’t say, because she’s better-mannered than I (but she easily could have), that she’s watching the twilight of a 250-year-old democracy.

    We live in interesting times.

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