A week before King Charles III’s coronation, a survey conducted by the National Center for Social Research shows that support for the monarchy in the UK is at an all-time low: just three in 10 Britons think their monarchy is ‘very important’. the lowest percentage ever recorded. 45% of respondents say that it should be abolished, is not very important or not important at all. A figure that was 35% in a similar survey conducted in 2022, the year of the late Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee. NatCen data also shows that the number of people saying the monarchy is “very important” dropped to 29% (from 38%) last year alone.
The data should worry Charles and Camilla, because they reflect a significant trend of declining support. Also because as Guy Goodwin, CEO of NatCen points out, “if there is a general downward trend in support for the monarchy, it also usually emerges that on the occasion of important national events and celebrations such as jubilees, weddings and births there is a clear and positive rebound on trends».
This time, however, it seems that the spell did not work. Not only that: support for the monarchy is waning among the younger population (only 12% of 18-34 year-olds consider the monarchy ‘very important’, compared to 42% of those aged 55 and over ).
The Sun: ‘Coronation will cost taxpayers £100m’
Known for his frugality and thrifty lifestyle, Charles III wanted a “lean” coronation, different from the one that accompanied the accession to the throne of his mother, Elizabeth II, but also many of his ancestors. With the number of guests cut (from 8,000 to 2,000), the bills should also have gone down. Yet the exact figure will not be known until after the ceremony, Buckingham Palace said. For now, only the tabloid Sun has done the math: a source from the organizing committee spoke of around 100 million pounds.
The chirping of King Charles III: the emoticon for the coronation is born. Everything is ready for May 6 (except Harry and Meghan)
Emanuela Minucci
A credible estimate suggests that the costs will reach 120 million. Instead, we already know who pays: the funds will come from the sovereign grant, the annual indemnity destined for the king fixed by the treasury, and from the treasury: therefore the taxpayers will pay. Is a hundred million pounds a lot or a little? It is also difficult to say because the comparison must be made with events that date back to past centuries and inflation must be taken into account. However, one hundred million is about the cost of Charles’s 1981 wedding to Princess Diana, considered one of the most expensive royal weddings ever. This time, however, it was the Royal Family who paid the entire bill. While the Platinum Jubilee cost £28m last year.
It should be noted that, according to a recent YouGov poll, the majority of Britons would like Carlo, who has a personal fortune of 600 million pounds, to pay for the expenses of his ‘big day’: in fact, only 32% of those interviewed believe that the coronation should be paid for from the public purse.
Harry will only be making a flying visit to London for the coronation
Next Saturday, for the coronation of his father, King Charles III, Prince Harry will only make a flash visit to London: more or less 24 hours with a restart no more than a couple of hours after the end of the ceremony at Westminster Abbey, to be back home in Los Angeles the next day to celebrate little prince Archie’s fourth birthday, which falls on May 6th. This is what the Sun and MailOnline write, citing informed sources.
The ceremony will begin at 11 local time (midday in Italy), will last a couple of hours, and at 15 local time, the Duke of Sussex should already be on his flight to the United States. Here is the latest indiscretion of the soap opera of the prince on the run. A few weeks ago Buckingham Palace officially announced that it was “pleased to confirm” the presence of Prince Harry among the guests. It was then also confirmed that he would participate alone, leaving his wife Meghan and his children Archie and Lilibet at home in California. Another source recently revealed to MailOnline that «Carlo will be happy with this. The rest of the family will be relieved by Meghan’s absence.”
Harry and Meghan, those tendernesses on live TV that ward off the idea of divorce
Emanuela Minucci
