The image of the royal family

Surely those in the 'last chapter' have as much right to live it to the full as anyone else. This is an incredibly ageist thread.
You obviously misunderstood my post M0nica if you thought that I was in any way saying that women in the "final chapter" (reference to book) have less right to live life to the full. They can actually make the most of these years in a way that younger women find more difficult.
I was talking about how the RF is statistically speaking top heavy in terms of age because The Queen herself is undeniably very old.

It is not an ageist thread. I am not criticising anyone for being elderly or suggesting that people over the age of sixty shouldn’t be seen. I’m over 60 myself. What I am asking is if the age of the Queen, Camilla and Charles is a detrimental matter for the RF and would it be better to have a younger presence. I appreciate that the Queen will stay in control till she dies and that Charles will take the throne in his very elderly years. It is just a discussion that is all. Is is ageist to raise a question about older people? Can we not discuss anything anymore without it being an ‘ist’?

What I am asking is if the age of the Queen, Camilla and Charles is a detrimental matter for the RF and would it be better to have a younger presence.

How can it be detrimental? It's the RF. They serve or abdicate.

I think it's ageist to suggest that having more mature people isn't a good look. Which is what it being suggested.

Do we need younger Kings and Queens to represent us so that the UK is not seen as a doddering old country, or does it make no difference to how we seem to other countries or to ourselves

You said that we look like a doddering old country! How can that not be ageist?

If I were Camilla I would not be happy to have to take on more work. I'm younger than her and have much less energy than I used to. What energy I do have, I like to use pursuing my own interests now. I feel someone in their 70s has worked hard enough when younger.

When Camilla married Charles, she knew she was marrying the future King. If the Queen had died years ago, it would just have meant her (Camilla’s) life was more regimented earlier and for longer.

Most heads of states; monarchs, presidents, supreme rulers, whatever you call them, they are nearly all over retirement age, often well over it. It goes with the job of head of state.

I think HM the Queen has done us all proud. She has given sterling service, always mindful of the duty she vowed to undertake in 1952. As the years have gone by I think she has become more popular and people like the feeling of constancy and steadfastness that she provides in this sometimes tumultuous world in which we live. Her longevity and decorum is revered by foreign heads of State when they visit. We have been very fortunate I think.

Urmstongran I agree with every word you've written.

I also think it would be most unkind to their three young children for William and Catherine to begin their reign before they have to.
Their time will come soon enough.

William Charles and the rest of Royals are hypocrites #Cop26

Experts say Anne’s trips three trips in October caused carbon emissions of around 3.9 tonnes, used hundreds of gallons of aviation fuel and cost at least £15,000.

It is estimated carbon footprint down to an estimated 0.5 tonnes if she had made the same journeys by car.

Helicopters private jets, private train, multiple large houses.

Burning vast amounts of land for grouse shooting
Did they listen when a petition delivered to Buckingham palace about rewilding land for climate emergency??

Abolish the monarchy

www.crowdfunder.co.uk/republic/comments#start

Keep the Monarchy! Don't get rid of all their experience, history, continuity in favour of an elected head of state and all that goes with it. The elections would soon be accused of corruption, no doubt. Our royals are worth every penny, and much of their wealth, land, estates, buildings, belong to the country anyway. No other head of state commands as much affection and respect as our Queen.
It was recently on the news that President Biden had 85 cars in his motorcade when he visited the Pope in Rome.

As for the age of the Queen and her heirs, it is just through circumstances that they all happen to be elderly. It will change in time and no doubt we will one day have a younger monarch again.

I’m personally more worried about the Prince Andrew scandal. I think he should have been sent off to live quietly somewhere abroad. His continuing his friendship with Epstein after Epstein was convicted with child sex offences should have seen him exiled by the RF then and there. Colossal lack of judgement. I support the queen, but once she dies I will be happy to see the Royal Family go for good.

I suspect the Queen is hanging on for her Platinum Jubilee next year but the loss of Prince Phillip, the ongoing scandal re Prince Andrew and ongoing whingeing from H&M may mean that the toll on her health is too much. Prince Charles has been taking on a lot of duties for a few years now and I suspect that's how it will be until she is finally told to retire by her doctors. Charles will be fine as King - he's had a lifetime of training for the role and his interest in the environment mean that he will be exactly the Monarch we need at this moment in our history. William & Catherine should be left alone to raise their young family - their turn will come soon enough. (And for those who want to get rid of the RF, I would far rather have them - who have been brought up to understand their roles and responsibilities, than Presidents across the Atlantic such as a recent sleazy so-called "businessman").

It’s really tragic when you are judged by your age and not your capabilities.
As for the queens clothing, what is it that you want her to wear? If she revealed a little too much cleavage or leg it would be front page news and not in a positive light. She dresses perfectly well for a lady of her years.

I think it is a PR exercise to get Camilla into the public's affection. It won't work as far as I am concerned. I think she and her husband are despicable pieces of work and, having been a Royalist all my life, (despite being a Roundhead with the English Civil War Society!) I am beginning to think that if they are the best we have to offer, we should call it quits!

I love the Queen, to me she's kind of like the the granny I never had, o.k., so I'm mid 60's, to be honest I used to love seeing both the Queen & Prince Philip together, I do think perhaps she could have taken the rest of the year to mourn his death, she has never really looked the same without him, oh!, I know he had his life & she hers, but they loved each other.
She does look frail now, I do think that there should be a kind of stepping aside time, where Charles is prepared for leadership especially while his mother is still with us & can help him, but to merely wait until her death & while he is mourning all this responsibility is heaped on his shoulders, let her stay at Balmoral where she is happiest, let her have some time where she doesn't have to be bothered with all the pomp and ceremony, if she wants to see visitors then so be it.
I'll be quite surprised at how things are going if she survives next year. I get so sad thinking about it.

I wonder if this spell of being unwell is linked to loosing her beloved husband. He was her rock and gave her strength. My heart goes out to her. I just wish Prince Charles inspired more trust as i am sure she would love to retire now and spend the rest of her days doing just as she pleases with no schedules to worry about. It will be a very sad day when the enivitable happens.

In her recent video links, iit has been noticeable that her dress gapes round the neck. I wonder why the dressmaker would not take her clothes in. Her weight loss is very obvious. As she said, apparently, recently, that she is too young to be oldie of the year. That means she doesnt consider her age an issue. She clearly wants to keep going until shes ready to stop. Her decision, her life.

I suppose it is ‘tradition’ to die before another person takes the role. I am not up on history at all, have any previous monarch ‘retired’ to allow another to succeed?

She took a vow, she will reign over us until death.
I am delighted with this decision as the alternative is not looking good.

Calistemon

Lucca

Or what Josianne suggested …. Judi dench style or maggie smith etc

Judi Dench doesn't change her style at all either - shopping with a friend in Bath many years ago we saw clothes in a rather expensive shop and she said 'they're Judi Dench clothes, ok if you're at least 5'7" and slim".

Neither HM nor Dame Judi are tall and slim. However, I do like the way JD dresses for best.

Quote: ^Judi Dench: 'In my mind's eye I'm six foot and willowy^

Judi Dench and Helen Mirren are in the film business and have their own style. I tried to picture the Queen in Judi’ s long tent dress, shawl over the shoulder and hippie jewellery and it just made me giggle. Would the Queen have to change her hairstyle to a cropped pixie cut too? Or could she keep her bouffant ?

She cannot retire she would have to abdicate and I certainly
believe she wouldn’t consider abdicating.

What more could she do to prepare Charles ? He has been prepared from a young man as the Queen was when her father
became king.

I really don’t understand why some are so against Charles .

The monarchy is wrong in principle, wrong in practice and it's bad for British politics.

Monarchy stops us from modernising the House of Lords

Queen can only ever act in the interests of her government not the people as seen when Johnson perouged parliment. That's when many people could see she has no real power, so pointless.

But she has power to act in her own interests chaging laws to suit her own private interests an anarchic law named Queen's consent.

HannahLoisLuke

Calistemon

Lucca

Or what Josianne suggested …. Judi dench style or maggie smith etc

Judi Dench doesn't change her style at all either - shopping with a friend in Bath many years ago we saw clothes in a rather expensive shop and she said 'they're Judi Dench clothes, ok if you're at least 5'7" and slim".

Neither HM nor Dame Judi are tall and slim. However, I do like the way JD dresses for best.

Quote: ^Judi Dench: 'In my mind's eye I'm six foot and willowy^

Judi Dench and Helen Mirren are in the film business and have their own style. I tried to picture the Queen in Judi’ s long tent dress, shawl over the shoulder and hippie jewellery and it just made me giggle. Would the Queen have to change her hairstyle to a cropped pixie cut too? Or could she keep her bouffant ?

It doesn't have to be tent dresses, shawls and hippie clothing HannahLoisLake, though you're right that the bouffant would have to change.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202111/medium-284819-judi-dench-covers-british-vogue-june-2020-by-nick-knight-4.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202111/medium-907465-judi-default-june-2020-insert-1-crop.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202111/medium-225902-judi-dench-vogue-cover-june-2020.jpg

As here

The image of the Royal family is a bit like the image GN gives. Ageing people still doing their bit. Convinced that they have the right to be here regardless of what others think. Some always polite, others not. Determined to push forward our ideas because we know best.
With our own scandals and wrongdoings -though they aren’t available for public criticism.
I wonder how we’d feel if GN was closed down because we are all considered too old. Past it at 40, and getting worse by the decade.
Who on here has experienced ageism in the work place?