Prince William and the Air Ambulance

PW is based in Cambridge and our local radio station based in kings Lynn reported that he will have to have a packed lunch each day as there are no canteen facilities on site. There was a fatal road accident on the A47 yesterday,which stretches from GT Yarmouth through to Peterborough,it was rush hour yesterday morning,it was reported that PW had attended his first incident around this time,I am full of respect for him for doing this worthwhile job...I like Harry as well..

Princess Diana tried hard to instil into her boys the need to do positive things with their privilege and I think she succeeded. They strike me as very caring and good men. She would have been so proud.

And he's donating his wages to charity.
I was never one of Diana's devotees but I do think she would be justifiably proud of her boys.

Yes I think both boys have grown into fine young adults in spite of their mother's strange self absorbed ways.

I'm not sure what I think about his talking about wanting to be "a good guy". Maybe only the privileged can think that way, at his age. Most people have to quietly get on with their lives as best, and as decently, as they can.

I think he sounded a bit immature.

I was always an admirer of Princess Diana (although not a huge fan of the Royals).

She has obviously influenced her "boys" although her life was short and they are lovely chaps. She would have been very proud indeed.

One thing they have learned from their life with their mother , do not subject your children to the media to get yourself on the front pages

I have mixed views with PW new job.... Now before I get a barrage of backlash from Royals (of which I am one) and like a lot of mothers and grandmothers feel a sort of protection towards PW and PH after what happened to their mother....I do feel slightly that he is taking a job that a man (or woman) needing to support a family could have done with. It is very gracious to be giving his wages to charity but would have been more acceptable to me had he tried to live off those wages paying rent/mortgage Income tax, childcare, train/bus season ticket or petrol etc. A bit of down sizing perhaps? As it is he is getting to live a lot of young mens dreams of becoming an Air Ambulance man as a sort of hobby as no doubt he will need a bit of time off for Royal duties. Having said all that I do believe he is a genuinely nice man trying to be as in touch as he can be.

Right Dunit that's us finished!! How could you say a word against this delightful young man?! I agree that somehow us mothers and grans do feel a sort of protectiveness towards him. He's sort of the nation's surrogate grandson. But he's such a nice young man. I think its important for him as a future King to have experience of a real job. He'll see people in awful situations: his future people in extremis : anyone needing an air ambulance would be in trouble. He'll also mix with all the other workmates. Invaluable experience helping him to have a more accurate understanding of us UK residents in a way that other Royals just have not. btw I see you call yourself a royal Dunit I hadn't realised. Will we all have to curtsey to you at next week's meet up?

Ooops sorry J10 I see the mistake...I meant a Royalist Phew no need to curtsey after all... I do honestly admire him for so many things that he does and this is one, but can't help my deep down first reaction. It's going to be a quiet walk..Ha Ha

I can't see any evidence that he is 'immature'. On the contrary it seems to be very mature to realise that you need a job that keeps you on touch with ordinary people.

Does he really get to know those he works with? will they be so relaxed that they will talk freely ,I doubt it

Ooops sorry forgot to add - good for Catherine doing such a good job as a mother, a house that size to clean, laundry , shopping , loss of sleep , I remember it well, not the large house though

At least he's trying. He's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't.

I bet those air ambulance teams get to know each other really well. As well as having to work closely in emergency situations there will no doubt be long spells just waiting around. Playing cards? I spy? Hide and seek? Nightmare for the royal close protection officers!

Jane, will they groan about the pay , the running down of the NHS, the government, corrupt police officers, the coroners verdict of the deaths of the three soldiers who died on exercise, the English votes for England, how they wish they had voted differently at the last election, how they admire Nigel Farage? I think it will be relax but watch what you say

I agree with grumppa - he is trying. If he wants to do a useful job and is qualified, then it is reasonable that he should; and offering his salary to charity seems a decent thing to do.

If he had just swanned around on the royal income he would have been criticised for that too.

They may well take the opportunity to really talk to him. He seems genuinely interested. He would benefit from hearing a wide range of views. It will all stand him in good stead. Just hope he's got plenty of time for this sort of thing.

I can't believe I'm sticking up for a royal but it seems he's damned if he does and he's damned if he doesn't.

I would think that if he makes the tea like everyone else then very quickly people will forget what his title is and just see him as part of the team. There will always be sycophants but I would imagine that quite quickly conversations will go back to the way they always were.

He's bound to say positive things about his wife. Yes, his idea of family life and being a parent is different to most people's but he doesn't know any different.

I remember Princess Anne once saying that until she was about 7 she thought everyone lived in big houses with servants and every child had a nanny and pony. It came as a shock to her to find out that she was different to other children.

What will all this mixing with so-called ordinary people stand him in good stead to do? He is destined to become a constitutional monarch so no amount of flying air ambulances or being in the army (apparently another piece of "useful training" for a future king) really has any relevance to this role.

Might make him a better-rounded person than if he hadn't had the experience.

I certainly don't begrudge him a bit of normality, even if it is 'pretend', before he has to take on the role of constitutional monarch (which could be many years away if Charles carries the longevity gene!).

No one is "damning" him.

We are all informed by our experience, absent, and generally speaking the wider the better no matter what we end up doing. For an interesting take on the relationship between Royalty and subjects see Henry V, Act IV scene i.

A very lonely life really, he will not be treated as one of the men -well I don't think so- is anyone going to tell him not to talk a load of ***, or complain when he takes extended holidays! must be a strange life surrounded by sycophants, which the windsors are. Wonder when the windsors do their walk abouts and ask the usual questions if anyone has said - that's a damn stupid question , doubt it, their jokes are laughed at and the most stupid comment is treated as a pearl of wisdom