Prince William and the Air Ambulance

I doubt he will meet many old Etonians Merlotgran , and again the point I am making , no one would put him in an embarrassing position therefore they would always be careful what they say . Not ALL air ambulance crew are ex RAF and there are paramedics too, doubt they were at Eton , not the ones I know anyway . He will mix with ordinary working men , police, mountain rescue, firemen , etc

Rather have no monarch, grumppa.

DH, who has no time for most of the human race, saw the interview with William today and remarked that he seems quite a decent chap! [falling off chair emoticon!]

If you watch any of the TV series involving rescue helicopters and air ambulances it is obvious that they are all working in situations where one person can't stand apart and say "I'm sorry I'm not mixing with you lot" they have to build a team where everyone shares everything and they work as solid unit. Peoples' lives depend upon it. Having watched an air ambulance landing and taking off among the trees behind our house at the weekend it is not a job that could be handed to any just any unemployed chap who turned up at the job centre.

Lona, that is just my point, he may listen, probably be interested but he can not take part, he cannot be one of the blokes .

grumpa, most of my working life was with men only , no way did men in their thirties and older spend much time talking about pop music and cinema , more likely to talk about crippling mortgages and what a pain in the a** the boss/manager can be

But he doesn't mix with the common man. He went to public school, university and was then an RAF officer. All walks of life where etiquette and good manners are the norm. His colleagues in the Air Ambulance Service will have received similar training.

It's highly unlikely that anyone will put him in a embarrassing position.

Why would they want to?

That sounds like a plea for an interventionist monarch rather than a constitutional one, durhamjen.

Lona, if I was working in a team, even with someone who happened to be in line for the throne, I think I would engage with him as a team member rather than as someone to be debated with. Chances are that the talk will be mostly about sport, TV, films, pop music and coping with kids.

Anniebach, surely the way to respond to a Windsor asking a question is to reply appropriately, just like anyone else. If they ask a probing or challenging question give as good as you get; if they are dutifully going through the motions, respond in kind: there's no need to be rude. And they aren't always predictable; the Queen famously asked a distinguished economist or banker why nobody apparently saw the 2008 disaster coming, and left him floundering.

If you get snapped at by the D of E or the Princess Royal, fight back! They don't mind, and there's nothing they can do about it anyway.

No, I don't suppose he would be giving any opinions, but he may listen to the chat and may even begin to get some understanding of the trials and tribulations of the common man.
Shame, we'll never know!

No Lona, for two reasons , 1. It would not be fair to expect him to air his views if the subject was political. 2, I would think he is well school in avoiding being involved in such discussions .

Do you think he would take part in a discussion on the budget or millions being spent on buck house , or the latest trouble in N Ireland, the coroners criticism of the army following the inquest into the deaths of three soldiers on exercises, he could relax listen to talk about a night in the pub or saving the elephant but no one could or should expect him to discuss anything remotely political , and these are things people talk about during tea breaks, no idea if he would join in dirty jokes or moans about a row with his wife or in laws, doubt it, they never know what may teach the press ,

Anniebach If you were working with William in these circumstances, wouldn't you try to engage him in some serious conversation about the state of the country?

Maybe if he meets lots of ordinary people he will not read out the king's speech as readily as his gran. He might even disagree with some of it and want his say. Can but dream. Will not be around to find out.

Oh, whatever you say Anniebach.

Most but not all surely Ana

Most people are polite when meeting anyone they don't know personally, aren't they, unless they have an axe to grind?

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

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.

No one is "damning" him.

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!).

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.

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.

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 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.

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 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!

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

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