Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, is known as “Grandpa Wales” to his five step-grandchildren. In an interview with Hello! Magazine, Camilla, the Queen Consort, revealed that Charles has a key role in his grandchildren’s lives, and they adore him. She said that Charles reads Harry Potter to them and can do all the different voices, which the children really appreciate.
Over the past few years, Charles’s bond with his grandchildren has been evident in both public and private moments. He takes inspiration from his grandmother, the Queen Mother, in creating a strong bond with his grandchildren. “It’s a different part of your life,” he has said of becoming a grandparent. “The great thing is to encourage them. Show them things to take their interest. My grandmother did that. She was wonderful. It is very important to create a bond when they are very young.”
Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis are encouraged to live as normal a life as possible. The youngsters moved to Adelaide Cottage on the Windsor estate last year and attend fee-paying Lambrook School in Berkshire. They maintain a close relationship with both sets of grandparents, with Kate’s parents Michael and Carole living close by in Berkshire. Charles dotes on the trio and enjoys crawling about with them for hours, making funny noises and laughing.
Charlotte, who “rules the roost”, according to her parents, enjoys instructing her siblings on how to behave during key moments. At last summer’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, she was seen telling her siblings how to behave during the National Anthem. That didn’t stop Louis stealing the show with his cheeky antics, pulling faces at his amused mother during the Party at the Palace concert, and making his displeasure known when he was bored. At one point, Charles was seen sitting with Louis on his lap in a bid to keep his attention from wandering.
Despite living a continent away, Charles is keen to maintain an equally close relationship with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s children, Archie and Lilibet. While Archie spent the first few months of his life in the UK before moving to California with his parents, the King only met Lili for the first time last summer when the family flew over to take part in the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. An insider told Hello! that Charles and Camilla were “thrilled” to meet her. “The Prince, of course, hasn’t seen his grandson Archie for a bit of time and so it was very, very, very special to have some time with him. He hadn’t met Lili his granddaughter and so to meet her was very emotional; a very, very wonderful thing.”
Prince William is looking forward to Charles spending more time with his grandchildren. “I would like him to have more time with the children,” he said. “Having more time with him at home would be lovely and being able to play with the grandchildren. Because when he’s there, he’s brilliant. But we need him there as much as possible.”
Charles shares a love of football with his grandchildren, including Archie and Lilibet. It’s heartwarming to see the future King of England enjoying his role as Grandpa Wales and taking the time to create a special bond with his young grandchildren.
