The First Year: Farewell Queen Elizabeth & Rise of King Charles –  Hw

foreign a few moments ago Buckingham Palace  announced the death of her majesty Queen   Elizabeth II breaking news from Scotland here  at Balmoral where her majesty Queen Elizabeth   II has passed away at the age of 96. The  Queen Is Dead at 96 Elizabeth II is gone   the news came through just a few minutes ago  it was released on the Royal Family’s Twitter   account the statement reads the queen died  peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon the king   and the queen consort will remain at Balmoral  this evening and will return to London tomorrow

it’s been one year since the passing of  Queen Elizabeth II the end of the monarchy   as we all knew it it is a day of great loss  but Queen Elizabeth II leaves a great legacy   today the crown passes as it has  done for more than a thousand years   to our new monarch our new head of  state his majesty King Charles III seven news Europe bureau chief Hugh Whitfield  has been covering the royal family for years   on September 8 2022 Hugh and seven  cameraman James Cannon were the   first journalists in the world on the  scene at Balmoral as history was made

the amazing thing was this wasn’t just a momentous  week in terms of the change of the Monarch it had   already been a history making week because we were  up in Scotland because the queen was overseeing   the changeover of prime minister Liz truss had  arrived shortly after Boris Johnson had left   Balmoral Castle on the Tuesday the whole country  and all of us had been expecting that momentous   change of prime minister which in itself was an  important occasion we were up in Scotland we chose   to stay on for another 24 hours we we felt like  we had a few more stories to pick up there and

then on the Wednesday night we received word that  the queen had pulled out of a privy Council Zoom   meeting now over the course of the previous  12 months we knew that she’d had some health   ailments she experienced covert of course back  in February of 2022 but had been able to continue   working virtually on these Zoom meetings so the  fact that for the first time to our knowledge   she’d pulled out of a zoom meeting if she wasn’t  well enough to get in front of a computer screen   and basically oversee a meeting of a dozen or  so people then something was seriously wrong

we made it back to Balmoral that night  we’re there the next morning we were   the first journalists on the ground there at  Balmoral and then what played out was obviously   a history making history defining day I received  phone calls from people close to the Palace who   told me not to go anywhere that the Queen’s Health  had deteriorated to the extent that the change of   sovereign was going to happen that day and I think  the the truth is that it all happened very quickly Charles was in Dumfries house in the south of  Scotland he was only scrambled to Balmoral on that 

morning of September 8 when it became apparent  that the queen was unlikely to survive the day   and then around lunchtime Liz truss barely 48  hours into her prime ministership she’s trying   to lay out this ambitious domestic agenda in  the House of Commons she’s slipped a piece of   paper by her cabinet minister Nadeem zahawi  which we now know is her being informed that   the queen was Gravely ill and momentous things  were about to happen all of this was playing   out live on TV so very quickly the nation became  aware that things were beginning to move quickly

and that the country and the Commonwealth had to  prepare itself for history changing news thank you over the course of that afternoon of course  we saw this scramble of members of the royal   family Prince William prince Andrew Prince  Edward up to Balmoral Charles was at that   point there along with his sister Princess  Anne who was already in Scotland there was   this very sad scramble by Prince Harry as well  effectively left behind by his brother and his   uncles having to catch commercial flight to  Aberdeen he didn’t make it in time to see the

Queen by the time she’d passed away it was a  wet day it was a very somber day at Balmoral   um news crews who who quickly discovered that they  needed to be at Balmoral were scrambling up there   it became busier as as locals from aberdeenshire  and Scotland tried to get there as well and then   of course that moment at 6 30 p.

m uh Scotland time  3 30 in the morning in the on the Australian East   Coast that news came through that the queen  had passed away and this was an event we were   preparing for for I Was preparing I’ve been  preparing for for the last nine years and so   they were one of two ways that it could have gone  obviously the queen may have ended up in hospital   with this long illness that had her bed ridden for  months years I mean she was a woman in her mid-90s   anything could have happened to her um I think the  fact that it happened so quickly on the Tuesday   we’d seen her up and about greeting Liz truss  in front of the fireplace at Balmoral Castle she

looked really old I mean everyone who saw  that photo knew that she’d changed in the   couple of months since we’d seen her she looked  incredibly thin she looked tiny these tiny old   woman but I think just the speed that it ended up  happening in the end and I think for her you know   we’ve all got grandparents great grandparents who  we’ve seen go over the course of our lifetimes and   I think for her it was a bit of a blessing she was  in her favorite place and it did all happen very   quickly she wasn’t convalesced for a long period  of time and and her family knew that it was coming

um but in the end it happened really quickly  and that day unfolded really quickly as well   at Balmoral between waking up in the morning  having a sense that this could be the day that   it all unfolded and then by lunchtime knowing  that uh that it was going to be a day that we’d   all remember and a day that would change  the country and the Commonwealth forever the the bit that gave me goosebumps was not just  the fact that the queen had died because we were   expecting that message to come through but the  term the king and queen will remain in Balmoral

tonight and will return to London tomorrow and  that was the first time in more than seven decades   that the palace had released a statement  with the words the king in it and I think   that was the first moment for me certainly that I  realized we realized that the change had happened   and a massive series of events was  about to unfold over the next 10 days Prince Charles Philip Arthur George Is Now by  The Death of our late Sovereign of happy memory   become our only lawful and  rightful leads Lord Charles III

it is my most sorrowful duty to announce to  you the death of my beloved mother the queen   I know how deeply you the entire nation  and I think I may say the whole world   sympathize with me in the irreparable loss  we’ve all suffered well I think the the thing to   remember is that whenever this happens and this  is something the palace had spoken about when   we’d been briefed over the years is that these two  dueling narratives that play out there’s the death   of the Monarch and the morning period that needs  to happen in order to fully reflect and respect

a rain and then there’s this dawn of a new age and  what we saw was the dawn of a Caroline era I shall   strive to follow the inspiring example I have been  set in upholding constitutional government and   to seek the peace Harmony and prosperity of the  peoples of these islands and of the common rules   Realms and territories throughout the world no  amount of preparation for what he would be feeling   on that day no amount of conversations of how he  would prepare his speech his address to the nation

and the world I think it would have all gone out  the window because the feelings of sadness that   he would have felt at the passing of his mother  would have really overtaken the moment and yet in   that moment he did give his speech to the world  I think we saw the character and the purpose of   what a man he wants to uh to become in this role  as king the thing that struck me is that   24 hours after his mother had died Charles was  in London where he needed to be as the new king and he was embracing the people  and the people were embracing him

I’m gonna take that kiss forever keep in mind that he had just lost his  mother he was mourning the loss of his   cherished mother and then was out and  about outside Buckingham Palace shaking   hands being kissed by people greeting  people speaking with people with Camilla   by his side he’s stopping the Camilla is  getting out of the car right now the king   is getting out of the vehicle right now  they’re going to do a walkabout foreign well actually I think that really what happened in  the immediate aftermath of the Queen’s death was a

lot of people had empathy and sympathy with the  King because of the way he spoke which was very   eloquently very lovingly about his mother but also  the way you know he sort of was really taking it   all on his shoulders a lot of people think and I  think you know some understanding of they’ve all   we’ve been there most people they’ve lost someone  they loved and I think that helped him the the   way that the people responded to him helped him  I think he was touched by the response he got if you think about it you are appointed to  that position at the very second that the

the previous Monarch dies so you take it on  immediately uh he had a coronation to plan he   had a grief he had issues to deal with he had to  consider whether his brother Andrew whether Harry   whether that we’re military uniforms and that  time of mourning so there was a lot of pressure   on and we saw immediately uh that pressure  sort of combust in his altercation with a pen 33 years in those days after his mother’s  death he had to visit all the Realms Island   Wales Scotland England I mean it was pretty  grueling and we have to remember he is a man

who is now 74 he didn’t come to the throne  in his mid-20s like his mother he came to   the throne at a time of his life that most people  are retiring so even though a child was in his 70s   he brought a new energy to the monarchy straight  away I think and he needs to keep that up going   forward but but that’s the thing that struck me  straight away we had a monarch on his feet out and   about with the people they put despite you know  leaky pens and slightly bad tempered along the way   um in the first couple of months I think that  actually he did pretty well in that transition

problem I think it came when of course we had  the Harry book and all the issues that followed when Charles became king his family was  in crisis from Harry to Andrew to the   lack of senior Royals to carry out his work his  first big test began well before his coronation   well there’s three big challenges he faces with  his family the first one of course is Harry the   second one is Andrew I think the jury is still out  on how he’s handled those issues early on we look   at the controversies over the last 12 months these  are potentially not going to go away anytime soon

because I think you look at the family matters  at heart we’ve had Scandal and infighting in   abundance over the last few years and that is  something that the king really does need to get to   grips with what is the relationship with his son  Prince Harry he said it would be one of love and   affection pretty much in his first speech to the  world and yet we’ve seen Harry on the other side   of the Atlantic dropping these Bombs all over the  place and the relationships are still in tatters   and I think that people would expect King Charles  to try and bring Harry back into the fold to try

and be the bigger person in the argument Harry  the thing with Harry is that he’s got William as   well now William can be a positive and a negative  in this relationship William and Kate appeared   outside Windsor Castle in the days after the  Queen’s death alongside Harry and Megan it was   ice cold it was so tense you could cut the tension  with a knife they were not getting along they are   not getting along it’s not just the relationship  between Harry and his father the king it’s the   relationship between Harry and his brother  William William has the ear of his father if

Harry’s relationship with Charles is going to be  restored it needs to be restored with William as   well my brother and I love each other I love him  deeply I thought the you know the four of us would   you know bring me and William closer together we  could go out and do work together there needs to   be a constructive conversation one that can happen  in private what I have to say to them will be in   private the key thing I think they’ve done that’s  been very wise is that they have taken the damage

limitation View they will say nothing about  spear so there hasn’t been a single comment   of about Harry’s book which of course came out  in early January just a few months after the   Queen’s death it made these extraordinary claims  it revealed family secrets it uh you know through   daggers at various people uh but they didn’t say  a word and interestingly now nine months on from   the publication of that book we have Harry and  Megan who look on more Shaky Ground than ever they   don’t have a purpose they have been cut off from  some of the Partnerships uh Megan is reportedly

wanting to kick-start her career Harry of course  has the Invictus games but really has no other   uh large-scale purpose that we’re aware of like  I couldn’t see it as though I was like laughs pleasure to meet you your majesty like  was that okay Harry’s on the outer he’s made the   decision he and Megan have made the decision  to be in California the door they’ll say is   always open for Harry to return it’s practically  impossible for him to come back to the full-time   role that he had before his two his two children  are American they will be raised in America by

Megan there is no appetite from The Duchess of  Sussex to return to the UK I think to be honest   the attitude from the palace and from the king  is just to let it go and let Harry be Harry he   seems to have got most of the gripes that he’s  got off his chest now there’s a lot that can   happen between now and then but you know the door  is always open the board is in their Court there’s   a lot to be discussed and I really hope that they  are willing to sit down and talk about it the second issue being Andrew is much more  delicate there are still big questions about

any actions that Andrew May face from  the complainants against him whether or   not he may face further legal issues  down the track in the United States   Andrew it is clear now behind closed doors has  been accepted back into the family as has his   ex-wife Sarah Ferguson who he lives with at  Royal Lodge it seems as though the move to   Frogmore Cottage um that was signaled because  Harry and Megan are being forced to move out of   there is on hold Andrew seems to have gotten his  way by being able to stay in Royal Lodge on the

Windsor estate that’s privately publicly there’s  no way that prince Andrew would be able to turn   up to a public event in the UK and not be heckled  to such an extreme extent that it’s probably the   sort of thing that we haven’t seen for decades  for a member of the royal family it’s just not   going to happen on the eve of the anniversary of  the Queen’s passing Andrew was spotted alongside   senior Royals something the daily mirrors Royal  editor Russell Myers thinks was a major misstep   over the last couple of days we’ve seen prince  Andrew riding shotgun riding front and center

with uh Prince William and Princess Kate and what  does that look like for the royal family I thought   it was a bit of a PR disaster to have Andrew front  and center with the family at church because you   know he’s had to leave in disgrace this is  something that the the royal family wants to   try and sweep under the carpet they think that  the business with Virginia Joffrey is done and   dusted but I think that that is far from it for  the public and if there was a rehabilitation of   prince Andrew I think a lot of the public  would find that pretty unpalatable indeed

but King Charles’s biographer Rob jobson disagrees  he thinks both Harry and Andrew have no official   future as Royals look I think that he’s been  dealt with both Harry and Andrew I think that   um it’s clear that neither will come back as  work in Royals there’s a lot of nonsense talked   I think uh Summer Stories I call them about will  will Andrew now come back because he was seen   in Bellmore well he was there at Christmas it’s  Andrew I mean it’s a family gathering at family   gatherings Andrew B Andrew will be there  but he’s in deep storage when it comes to

um being a working role in fact not stories deep  freeze he’s not coming out that job is over for   him and the same for for Harry there’s a lack  of trust for Harry and the other members of the   royal family particularly William and Camilla  so I don’t see that ever resolving itself yeah Charles has spoken a lot about  wanting a slim down monarchy   it is pretty slim now it’s just Charles and  Camilla the king and the Queen the prince   and princess of Wales William and Kate the Duke  and Duchess of Edinburgh Edward and Sophie and

Princess Anne and her husband sir Tim Lawrence  and is also getting on in age so is Tim Lawrence   but edinburghs aren’t going to be working forever  either it really falls to the Wales is and at some   point in the next probably 15 years you’re going  to see Prince George doing Royal duties as well   when you look at the the business of the royal  family I think they’ve got a really club together   the slim down monarchy is looking Slimmer by  the day and that is something that princess   Han has commented on in the past and they’ve  got a club together a bit more collaboration

less drama and we can all but hope that  it all goes swimming for them I suppose   and when you hear sometimes people refer to a slim  down monarchy I I can’t imagine what what that   might mean for a rule like yours I don’t know how  many more hours in the day you have to take more   things on well I think the slim Dan was was said  in a day when there were a few more people around   make that seem like a justifiable right a comment  the world changes a bit it changes a bit I mean   it doesn’t sound like a good idea from where I’m  stunning Charles has got the slim down monarchy

he wants but the danger he faces is that it gets  too slimmed down and so he’s gonna have to come   up with a plan to make sure that there’s enough  working Royals to not just cover events in the UK   but also around the Commonwealth and that  includes Australia a slim down monarchy means   senior members will need to work hard to ensure  the public keep their faith in the institution   and playing a crucial role is Camilla Hugh says  the queen is one of Charles’s biggest assets   20 years ago if you asked people how they would  feel about Queen Camilla there would have been

overwhelming negativity towards her because of  the way that she came into the relationship and   the history with Princess Diana well a lot of  people were quite surprised strangely that she   you know even though we all knew in the media  she was going to be crowned a lot of people   were saying I didn’t realize she was going to  be crowned well you know that’s what happens   when the king is crowned the queen is crowned  alongside him I don’t need to put a put a foot   wrong for like over 10 15 years since they’ve  been together you know like in terms of marital

situations she’s worked hard she supports him as  much as she can but there’ll always be people that   will say that she was the wrecker of the the  first marriage and not accept that the fact   is that Charles and Camilla have been married  longer than Charles and Diner ever were and   um they get on better and they’re in love and they  support each other through thick and thin so look   you know marriages don’t work sometimes and that  first one didn’t work but I think a lot of people   um a secret as a good supporting wife to the king  and you know he needs all the help he can get

well Camilla has paid a Blinder over the last  12 months it’s been very very much a supportive   role of the king keeping her hand in with her  patronages and her Charities still working   diligently on the women’s domestic violence  still working diligently on children’s literacy   to Passion projects of hers and I don’t  see that changing anytime soon if at all she has worked so hard over the last 18 years  since Charles and Camilla married to build up   credit with the people she has except she excels  herself in public duties when she’s meeting with

members of the public she puts people at ease  she’s relaxed she comes to the role not with   any great Royal Blood so she has the touch of a  commoner she’s able to talk to people you know   you’ll see her go to events and she’s the one  who’s willing to pick up the piece of cheese   and try it at the farmer’s market she’s the one  that’s willing to Pat the sheep in the in the   farm yard on a trip to a to a farm she’s willing  to embrace people and reach out and I think the   people have responded well to that she’s lost  that kind of devilish Persona that was given to

her by well not just members of the British  media but also it seems Prince Harry behind   the scenes as well Camilla is a massive asset  to Childs and for William and Kate they’re the   Stars they’re the young new stars welcome George  welcome to Lambert play Louis welcome and welcome   Charlotte lovely to have you with us they’re the  family that everyone kind of wants to have I guess   with George Charlotte and Louis their challenge  though is balancing that family life that they’re   so desperate to have with the Royal duties that  they need to carry out Charles’s other key asset

is the newly crowned Prince and Princess of Wales  they are the future of the royal family and how   they perform their roles in the coming years will  be pivotal for the king and his legacy they have   these titles Now The Prince and Princess of  Wales there is so much history that goes with   those titles not just Charles but also his late  wife Diana and William’s mother and Kate taking   on that title is momentous in itself they have  a big challenge to carve out their own roles and   their own future with those titles Charles did  an incredible job as the Prince of Wales over 50 

years with his Prince’s trust and the work that  he did with the Charities and the causes that   he wanted to uh to Champion William has said his  sights on the environment in particular and they   both have on Mental Health Kate also has her  interests in early years development and the   like but they really need to strike out and make  those titles their own the Dilemma that they face   is that they are so desperate to be ordinary  parents for their three children and any time   that takes them away from Adelaide Cottage where  they live now on the Windsor estate is difficult

for them because they want to be the ones who  take the kids to school and pick them up from   school as well they want to be around they want to  be present like a normal family might be able to   the challenge that they face is that they’re not a  normal family and they probably need to lift their   game a little bit in terms of public appearances  just purely being present a bit more I think thank you one year into the reign of Charles and  it’s been labeled one of mixed success depending   on where in the Commonwealth his report card  is written I think when you look at the first

12 months of King Charles on the throne has it  been a success or has it not I think that that   the jury is still out because it’s been a bit of  a quiet year in some senses I think some people   have expected to see a lot more foreign travel  should he have gone out to the Commonwealth   straight away should we have expected a trip  to Australia as well I certainly was hoping   for one and I think it’s been a bit of a slow  grind over the first 12 months trying to get   to grips with what the business of running  the monarchy running the firm is all about

no I think in Britain it’s sort of an 8 out of ten  I think he’s done very well but I think you’ve got   to look at also you know his role as king of  Australia King of New Zealand of Canada and   the other Realms because I don’t think that’s gone  very well I think that to pick Germany and France   you know he’s now doing France in a few weeks time  as your first two visits sort of puts a lot of   emphasis on Europe and brexit and post-brexit  when frankly you’re if you’re the head of the   Commonwealth and you are the king of Australia  you should be going to Australia I think within

the first year now I understand you go there next  October I had a chug them but I think that was a   missed opportunity William not going to the the  Women’s World Cup in Australia to watch England   play even for that England Australian match  I think everyone will concede was a misstep   there’s all sorts of rumors and Reporting  here about the fact that he can’t go before   Charles goes to Australia as the new king  it’s absolutely rubbish because of course   Queen Elizabeth II was the first Monarch  reigning monarch to go to Australia or the

previous to 1952 when uh the Georges were the  king of Australia Queen Victoria King Edward   um they sent their heirs to the throne and  so the the argument that William couldn’t go   before Charles is just yeah it’s just not true  we’re sorry we can’t be there in person it was   so proud of everything you’ve achieved and the  millions you’ve inspired here and around the world   good luck lionesses that when the Women’s World  Cup was on everyone’s going on about William going   there as head of the fa well actually I think it  was a bigger situation than that when England and

Australia were playing in the Women’s World Cup  semi-final I think the king of Australia should   have been there uh along as the King of Great  Britain too because you know he could have one   could have won an Australian shirt one could  have won an England shirt just make a bit of   fun with it and I understand that it’s a long  way to go um but you could combine that with   the trip to the Great Barrier Reef and just make  it work you know I think in terms of adapting to   situations on the hoof I think they missed the  opportunity there that was a great opportunity

when the matildas played the lionesses huge  crowds talking about you know women’s soccer   big moment in Australia and I think that the  king should have been there not just William   the question will be well when are they going  to go Charles hasn’t visited a commonwealth   country in his first 12 months as king neither has  William and Kate and you have to ask at what point   are they going to visit Australia at what point  are they going to go to New Zealand and Canada   um they need to really quickly lay out their plans  for keeping the Commonwealth on board

and that appears to be one of the biggest  challenges King Charles is facing Charles began   his reign with a huge amount of Goodwill from  the public they knew that he was a man who’d lost   his mother um but the queen had so much credit  stored in the bank before she died apart from   in the 90s the handling of Diana’s death there  weren’t too many things in modern times that you   could point to the queen where she got it wrong  or was burning through Capital with the public   too much Charles has some in the bank but not as  much as his late mother and so that’s why I think

we do see now when the king in particular appears  in the UK at a public event the chance that you’ll   see Republican protesters and they have been  popping up at various events particularly this   year people who were Republican in the UK  really held off until the queen passed away   and they view Charles’s reign as an opportunity  to make a change in the UK no one’s really sure   what that change would be it’s not an argument  that they lay out but that is Charles’s challenge   not my cakes Rob jobson takes a different view  he believes the king is in charge of a stable

Commonwealth despite its shrinking over the  years and the rise of Republican Rumblings   in the UK and Australia I think as the head of  Commonwealth everyone talks to the Commonwealth   is in trouble it’s not the Commonwealth  is stronger than ever before yeah okay   the Commonwealth Games may not be happening  but that’s more to do with it that used to be   called the friendly games when that started you  know there weren’t so many emphasis on Olympics   and and uh World Championships so that’s  a completely different matter I think that

the the Commonwealth itself is pretty healthy as  as in terms of a republic and whether Australia   will ever become one I think it’s inevitable  that Australia become a republic but first of   all they’ve got to work out what they want how  they what they want their president to be you   know the point of it is at the moment there’s  a governor general and a system that works   um constitutional monarchy parliamentary democracy  and if you’re going to change things I think it’s   going to be rather than a yes or no vote and again  a majority teachers and States you’ve got to work

out what is that person the president and how  they’re going to elect him if it’s going to be   by the general public that then creates almost  like a another king or a you know a situation   that’s in America and puts about loggerheads  with the Prime Minister who’s the executive   power so I think they’ve got to sort out a lot of  things other than whether a yes goes first or no   Charles’s base level success as king is  essentially keeping the monarchy in place anything   beyond that is a massive success the failure  becomes when the Republican chat in the UK gets

too loud to the point where government ministers  or the government starts discussing it and that’s   when it’s a long way off but it exists more now  than it did when the queen was on the throne   but now it’s Charles who’s on the throne on the  anniversary of the Queen’s passing the family will   be honoring her in private at Balmoral the place  the queen loved the place the queen went to escape   her troubles and ultimately the place where she  left this world we will be with our friends again   we will be with our families again we will meet  again it’s now up to her son and his small circle

of family to keep her Legacy and her monarchy  alive I think that it’s a tough she’s definitely   a tough act to follow but I don’t think the king  is looking it that way I think he’s looking at   it as a modern Monarch somebody who out after  all in a world where we are slightly devoid a   Statesman he is the Statesman he’s got great vast  experience in the world stage and I think when he   speaks on behalf of Great Britain Australia  New Zealand whoever he’s speaking with after   Consulting the Prime Minister he speaks as a  Statesman I think that’s good for all of us

foreign stories since the early 90s and you know  I think you know I covered death of Princess Diana   um that’s a Duke of Edinburgh you know what  we’ve seen in the last 18 months um has been   huge and I think it’s seismic really I mean you  know lots of amounts of the queen Killers for the   second has left us all in a strange Place both  in the UK and Australia and all around the world she put up with all of us that’s quite an  achievement I think Kobe was so many different   challenges and complications and always being  there really in that remarkable way steadfast

in terms of the Queen’s Legacy no I think it’s  very hard for anyone to really Define and describe   the enormity of the Queen’s reign you can’t say  that the queen invented the internet stopped Wars   or you know brought World Peace but what she did  do is keep a level of stability not just in the UK   but in commonwealth countries as well that I think  was valuable over a time in history that has been   so fundamentally transformative in so many ways  politically in terms of technology that we deal

with when you look at the world in the 1950s when  the queen came to the throne and the world today   the only real constant was her and she managed  to adapt and keep her relevance alive for so long   that is a remarkable achievement in itself  and beyond that is the emotional attachment   that people had to that stability and that’s  what they were really mourning when people   were crying at the Queen’s death they were  mourning the loss of a woman that they revered   but also fundamentally as well the loss of a  sense of stability through a tumultuous time

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