Buckingham Palace - what's going on?

.........and.......



No, you weren't agreeing with me. We'll also miss his sheer rudeness, his incredibly short temper, his arrogance, his foul language and so on. I've been in his company for 3 or 4 hours, I'd guess, and he remains one of the most outstandingly and memorably obnoxious humans I've ever had the misfortune to meet. The mask slipped for 10 or 15 minutes of that time. There's something else, too, which belongs in the "Secrets you can never tell" thread. You'll just have to trust me on that one............it's not good.

He's a reptilian shape-shifter who lives of bottles of the Blood of The Queen of Hearts?
 
No:

At a fundraiser for the protection of turtle doves in Anguilla in 1965: “Cats kill far more birds than men. Why don’t you have a slogan: ‘Kill a cat and save a bird?’”

and

On Russia, in 1967: “I’d like to go to Russia very much — although the bastards murdered half my family.”
 
While being bang alongside the idea of a republic - and acknowledging that such a transition would not be easy - I would respectfully suggest that now is not the time.
Why not now? The last time the monarchy had anything to do with Australia's internal politics was when some old drunk sacked the prime minister.

It may be a lengthy process finding a suitable model for a republic but there is no reason not to start the process (other than Elizabeth still has her admirers).

Guess who said this about the monarchy? - " It exists in the interests of the people. If at any time any nation decides that the system is unacceptable, then it is up to them to change it."
I give up. Who said it?
 
Why not now? The last time the monarchy had anything to do with Australia's internal politics was when some old drunk sacked the prime minister.

It may be a lengthy process finding a suitable model for a republic but there is no reason not to start the process (other than Elizabeth still has her admirers).


Ah, I was under a misapprehension as to your location.

Totally up to speed now, just ignore me :)
 
...

I give up. Who said it?

Phil the Greek apparently. From his Wikipedia page -

In Canada in 1969, Philip spoke about his views on republicanism:
It is a complete misconception to imagine that the monarchy exists in the interests of the monarch. It doesn't. It exists in the interests of the people. If at any time any nation decides that the system is unacceptable, then it is up to them to change it.
 
Why not now? The last time the monarchy had anything to do with Australia's internal politics was when some old drunk sacked the prime minister.

It may be a lengthy process finding a suitable model for a republic but there is no reason not to start the process (other than Elizabeth still has her admirers).
I guess the big question I would ask is "why bother"? How exactly would it improve the life of either a resident of the UK or of any commonwealth country? Would you suddenly have huge wads of cash in your wallet that weren't there before? Would you suddenly find yourself with all sorts of new rights that didn't exist before?

Being in Canada, the Queen is officially our monarch. Yes, she (and her representative the governor general) are largely figureheads. But, the cost is minimal, our country is still considered a "democracy", and some of us think having a non-political individual around we can trot out for ceremonial purposes is a good thing. (Public awards, etc.)

If anyone is going to go through the trouble of dumping the monarchy, it would be nice if someone could come up with some sort of compelling reason (more than just "oh its outdated/they're all a bunch of inbreds/etc".)
 
Exactly. The media cycle is a strange thing though.
Really, if they wanted to have publicity and airtime, it would have had to be announced today, or left until after the General Election. Today lots of places in the UK have local elections, so that means that by law no election campaigning, local or national, can be done until after the polls close at 10.

By tonight, we'll be back to wall to wall politicians and opinion polls and all that rubbish.
 
Given the path the queen followed to become Queen and given her rock solid belief in her divinity the idea she would ever consider abdication is rather fanciful.

I agree. She will do everything in her power to stay alive as long as possible. I wonder if this retirement of Prince Philip is one measure to help keep her alive a little longer?
 
He's getting senile maybe? They had to advise the staff if they say anything they'll be fired and never work again?
 

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