Prince Charles: People thought I was ‘dotty’ over climate fears
The Prince of Wales has been in training to become the reigning monarch since his mother the Queen ascended the throne when he was just three years old. Charles has worked tirelessly to prove his worth as the heir to the throne throughout his adult life. He has been praised for using his platform to implement real change, by championing action on climate change and founding one of the most successful funding organisations in the UK, The Prince’s Trust.
Yet, the majority of the public still want his 38-year-old son, William, to succeed the Queen instead.
A YouGov poll from last month showed 40 percent of Britons want the Duke of Cambridge to take the throne compared to just 32 percent who were still rooting for Charles to take over from his mother.
Yet, royal commentator and an acquaintance of Charles, Howard Hodgson, told Express.co.uk that there was no chance that the line of succession would be changed any time soon — regardless of how popular any particular royal is.
Mr Hodgson explained: “People still say maybe Charles should abdicate and William be the next King after the Queen dies.
“If you think that, you don’t understand monarchy at all.”
Prince Charles is the heir to the throne, while Prince William is second-in-line (Image: Getty)
Charles has been the Queen’s heir for the vast majority of his life (Image: Getty)
He pointed out that the famous proclamation, “The King is dead, long live the Queen”, demonstrates how it is a lifelong commitment to reign — and not a duty to just be shirked.
The royal commentator continued: “That’s the only reason they exist.
“If you start retiring, you’re no different from a president.
“You don’t retire — the Queen will never retire, she will die in power.
“So will Prince Charles, so will Prince William, so will Prince George, and so and so forth.”
He joked: “If you think that actually the younger, the better-looking, the more hair you’ve got, well then why don’t we make Prince George the monarch now?”
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Charles will then be succeeded by his eldest son, William (Image: Getty)
Addressing the YouGov poll, Mr Hodgson said: “We live in such a celebrity society, from the Sixties onwards.
“Youth means being loved and liked, and ever since that time, it’s been that way.
“People look at a young family like [the Cambridges] and say, ‘Wouldn’t that be nice?’
“That’s not how it works.”
He also added that despite being 72, Charles “has not changed at all” with age, implying he is still just as passionate about reigning effectively as he was during his investiture as the Prince of Wales in 1969.
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The majority of the public want the line of succession to skip the Queen’s eldest son (Image: Getty)
William has cultivated a better public image than his father (Image: Getty)
Yet, Mr Hodgson did acknowledge that Charles appears to have been “dealt a bad card” with his public image, and that it’s hard to then “get rid of it” and refresh your appeal.
Charles and his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall, have faced some brutal abuse in recent weeks, so much so they had to turn the comments off on their social media posts.
It’s thought that this criticism was sparked by Netflix’s drama, The Crown, which retold the story of Charles’ turbulent marriage with Princess Diana.
He was portrayed as a cold husband who still hoped to one day be reunited with his first love, Camilla Parker Bowles.
The drama seems to have undone years of reputation damage control which Charles has been successfully working on since Diana’s death in 1997.
The Princess of Wales was in a fatal accident a year after she secured a divorce from Charles — but she had spoken out about her misery behind Palace walls several times, leading the public to resent her then husband.
Line of succession to the throne (Image: Express)
William with his three children and his wife Kate Middleton (Image: Getty)
William, on the other hand, has cultivated a reputation as the perfect family man.
He dated his wife, Kate Middleton, for seven years before they tied the knot in 2011.
They have since had three children and any reports of their family life behind closed doors rarely make it into the public eye.
However, the Royal Family has never indicated that the line of succession may be changed according to the public’s wishes.
The Queen is also likely to reign for the entirety of her life, meaning there is little chance of Charles becoming the regent for his mother.
