AFTER the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving monarch in our nation’s history, it was widely expected the importance of the Royal Family would enter a slow but inevitable decline.
Our late Queen was special. And many believed any future monarch could never mean that much again.
King Charles met Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky fresh from his bruising humiliation in the Oval Office[/caption]
Prince William will meet British troops in Estonia next week to ‘learn how they are bolstering Nato’s eastern flank’[/caption]
Our alliance with the US has ensured the peace and prosperity of the west, but it can not be broken by rogue Trump[/caption]
But it turns out that in this scary new world, the soft power of our monarchy is needed more than ever.
When King Charles met Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, fresh from his bruising humiliation in the Oval Office, it mattered.
When the King, who is Canada’s head of state, met Canadian representatives in Buckingham Palace this week and hailed “a proud, resilient and compassionate country”, it mattered.
And when Prince William meets British troops in Estonia next week to “learn how they are bolstering Nato’s eastern flank”, it will matter.
These events are not meaningless dates in the diary of the royal court.
They do not change the world.
But they do move the dial by sending a clear and unequivocal message to our friends and our enemies alike: “This is who we are. This is what we still believe. This is what we stand for. These are the values we will fight for.”
When President Trump blithely talked about making Canada the 51st state of the USA, does the Tango-tinted tyrant even know that King Charles is Canada’s head of state?
When Zelensky is ritually humiliated in the White House, does Donald understand that, to our King, the Ukrainian people are heroes?
Perhaps he does now. In the great tide of history, did it matter a damn that King Charles and President Zelensky took tea together in Sandringham’s Saloon room?
I strongly suspect that it did. Because suddenly the pressure is all on Putin.
Suddenly it looks like Russia seeks to prolong the war they started.
Suddenly the MAGA White House stopped demanding that “ungrateful” Zelensky stand down as Ukraine’s president.
The murderous old thug in Moscow is not smiling now.
We find ourselves living in uncertain and terrifying times.
A poll by the More In Common foundation found less than half of Britons — and only a quarter of French and Germans — still see the USA as an ally.
And with that mercurial, unpredictable POTUS in the White House, Nato’s future, and the defence of Europe, feels far from certain.
We find ourselves living in uncertain and terrifying times
But in the midst of all the global turbulence, the soft power of our Royal Family feels like a force for good.
The King did not have to make time to meet the President of Ukraine.
The Prince of Wales does not have to visit British troops in Estonia next week.
They do it because this country still knows who its friends are, we still know what we believe and we still understand the value of our freedom.
The King meets Zelensky and the prince meets the troops because, whatever Trump may believe, some things matter more than the next deal.
We can all understand why the majority of Europeans now look at America as an unreliable partner.
But an alliance that has ensured the peace and prosperity of the West cannot be broken by one rogue administration.
And when the King honours President Trump on a second state visit to this country, America and the world will be reminded of the values we still share.
And of the enduring — and very real — power of the British Royal Family.
TRUMP’S TESLA JOY
“WOW, that’s beautiful!” said Donald Trump, taking ownership of his new Tesla.
So there is at least one satisfied customer for Elon Musk’s EV, even if Donald has never been seen driving anything faster than a golf buggy.
Donald Trump taking ownership of his new Tesla[/caption]
But sales of Tesla are down around the world.
“We’re worried just having a Tesla will suggest we’re showing support for Trump,” says one embarrassed owner. “And we don’t want that.”
Musk has gone from saving the world from climate change with EVs, to serving a President who has withdrawn the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, and removed national electric vehicle targets.
The kind of people who own a Tesla — affluent, enlightened, anxious about environmental issues — are exactly the same people who don’t want to be seen dead in one now.
COMFY OVER COOL
WHEN George Clooney graced a red carpet in Adidas Forum Classic trainers, we were suddenly aware that the MAMITs – that’s middle-aged men in trainers – walk among us.
Clooney’s Adidas got as much comment as his newly brown, Just For Men barnet.
George Clooney gracing a red carpet in Adidas Forum Classic trainers[/caption]
But the trend for rich and famous men out on the town to eschew formal footwear for trainers – while wearing a suit! – has been around for some time.
Daniel Craig, Prince William, Jason Isaacs, Idris Elba, Nigel Farage – there is no major male icon that has not been a proud MAMIT in his day.
But it was the ultimate male style icon, David Beckham, who has come closest to explaining the move towards sports footwear for formal occasions.
When Queen Elizabeth died, Becks queued for 12 hours to see Her Majesty lying in state in Westminster Hall.
While he was still in the queue, Becks was asked by a BBC reporter how his knees were feeling.
“Knees are OK,” he smiled. “It’s the back – and the feet.”
Looked weird
That confession from David Beckham will have rung a bell with every ageing lad in the land.
Formal footwear hurts. Women’s high heels hurt even more – but the guys just don’t have the female pain threshold.
That’s why you see all these middle-aged men in trainers.
The last time I did BBC’s Question Time, I wore a suit, shirt, tie – and white and gold ASICs.
It looked weird, but there was no way I was yomping to see Fiona Bruce in Wolverhampton in a pair of posh shoes.
Middle aged men in trainers is not a fashion trend. Once you are no longer a spring chicken, it’s a necessity.
Not because it’s cool but because it’s comfy. Just ask George Clooney, 63.
GAL IS A BIT OF ALL WHITE
ALL the controversy around Disney’s troubled production of Snow White is obscuring the most striking thing about the film.
Gal Gadot as Snow White’s evil stepmother steals the show.
Gal Gadot steals the show as Snow White’s evil stepmother[/caption]
I don’t recall evil stepmothers looking like this[/caption]
The former Wonder Woman is surely the fairest of them all.
I don’t recall evil step-mothers looking like that when I was a kid.
SHAH’S GENIUS
SAMIR SHAH, who is chairman of the BBC, reckons that Match Of The Day would be improved by having less football and more analysis.
Genius.
Perhaps Mr Shah could bring back Top Of The Pops.
But this time without all the music.
BOND GONE WOKE
THE NEXT 007 will be a man, revealed Amazon Studios, the new owners of the Bond franchise.
That’s controversial because eagle-eyed readers will recall that the last 007 was a woman.
Daniel Craig as James Bond and Ana de Armas as Paloma in No Time To Die[/caption]
In No Time To Die, Daniel Craig’s spy was retired and his 007 handle has been awarded to Nomi, played by Lashana Lynch.
So I struggle to understand the anxiety that Amazon will make the world’s favourite spy all modern and woke.
Because he is already woke. Dead woke.
Having a woman as 007 was just the tip of the iceberg.
No sex
The really jarring moment was when Ana de Armas rocked up as a Cuban CIA agent with all guns blazing and a backless, braless dress slashed to the navel and the hip. And Craig’s Bond deeply admired her professionalism.
There was no romance. There was no sex.
Craig’s Bond hardly had a twinkle in his eye as Ana de Armas rolled across the floor taking out the bad guys.
James Bond looked at this vision – and gave no indication that he had even noticed that his Cuban colleague was rather attractive.
Bond even got Ana to look away when he put on his tux. Oh, James!
No Time To Die was a decent Bond film.
But with that female 007 and the hot Cuban agent who never got an admiring glance from our hero, it was comically PC.
Whatever Amazon inflict on James Bond, they can’t possibly make him more of a woke wuss than he was in No Time To Die.
