Prince Charles and Camilla have visited Clapham Old Town today to celebrate non-essential shops re-opening following the easing of coronavirus restrictions.
The Prince of Wales, 72, and the Duchess of Cornwall, 73, toured the south London high street to mark the retail sector finally resuming business after Britain’s lockdowns.
From stepping into a barbershop to sipping a pint, Charles appeared in good spirits as he enjoyed a jam-packed morning – which also included a trip to the Michelin-starred restaurant, Trinity, run by chef Adam Byatt.
Charles and Camilla’s trip comes nearly a week after Prince Harry accused his father of making him ‘suffer’ as a child in his new AppleTV+ five-part show The Me You Can’t See.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall during a visit to Clapham Old Town, south London, to celebrate the high street and retail sector as non-essential shops re-open and coronavirus restrictions ease
From stepping into a barbershop to sipping a pint (pictured), Charles appeared in good spirits as he enjoyed a jam-packed morning
It was business as usual today for Charles and Camilla; visiting a restaurant, pub, barbershop and even firefighters when touring the high street
The couple’s visit also included a trip to the Michelin-starred restaurant, Trinity, run by chef Adam Byatt (pictured centre left)
In candid interviews with Oprah Winfrey, the Duke of Sussex dropped another nuclear ‘truth bomb’ on the Royal Family accusing them of ‘total silence’ and ‘neglect’ when Meghan was suicidal, and insisting he would not be ‘bullied into silence’ when he alleged ‘The Firm’ ‘trapped’, smeared and dumped them.
The heir to the throne is said to be ‘deeply hurt’ by his youngest son’s latest accusations – yet he showed no sign of strain while charming the locals alongside his wife today.
It was business as usual for Charles and Camilla this morning; visiting a restaurant, pub, barbershop and even firefighters when touring the high street.
Charles was all smiles as he chatted with the public – even bursting out laughing after pulling a pint at the Prince of Wales pub and trying to drink it under his mask.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall meet locals during a visit to Clapham Old Town, south London
The Duchess of Cornwall looks on as the Prince of Wales studies a pint he poured in the Prince of Wales public house
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall (pictured in the pub) toured the south London high street to mark the retail sector finally resuming business after Britain’s lockdowns
Prince Charles arriving at Trinity restaurant in Clapham, alongside the elegant Duchess of Cornwall
Charles poured himself a glass of Sambrook’s bitter at his namesake pub in the Old Town area of Clapham and pulled up his face mask to enjoy a sip.
The heir to the throne and Camilla admired the eclectic decorations inside the pub, pointing out a Toby jug of the Duke of Edinburgh, which the landlord did not realise he had among his collection.
Charles said he has always thought it would be fun to visit every Prince of Wales pub in the country and joked about a ‘free drink’.
The royal couple were happy to go behind the bar, with the prince getting in the spirit of pint-pulling. He joked that he would not drink it all, and then went for a sip as Camilla watched.
Prince Charles stepped out of Trinity restaurant as royal fans eagerly waited outside to get a photograph of the royal
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall speak with firefighters during their visit to Clapham Old Town
The prince put his best fashion foot forward in a navy pinstriped suit, while Camilla (pictured together centre) sported a floral dress
The Prince of Wales (centre) and the Duchess of Cornwall (second right) walk along the high street while royal fans eagerly stand around waiting to snap the perfect photograph of the royal pair
Prince Charles (second left) and Camilla (second right) appear in good spirits as they tour the south London high street
It was a sunny day for the couple’s visit to the area, and the duchess, who wore a summery multi-snowdrop silk print dress by Fiona Clare, was heard saying it was lovely to be outside.
Pub landlord Dermot Connell said it was ‘exciting’ to have the Prince of Wales visit the pub. He added: ‘It’s good that he’s getting out and about and showing people it’s now safe again to be in the pubs.’
Talking about Charles going behind the bar and pulling a pint, Mr Connell said: ‘They thought we might have to push him into doing it but he volunteered.’
On whether he enjoyed his tipple, Mr Connell said: ‘He seemed to like it.’
Pub landlord Dermot Connell said Prince Charles (pictured with Camilla) ‘volunteered’ to get behind the bar and pull a pint
Charles poured himself a glass of Sambrook’s bitter at his namesake pub in the Old Town area of Clapham and pulled up his face mask to enjoy a sip
Charles and Camilla’s visit to the area, which also included stops at a Michelin-starred restaurant, a theatre, a florist, a barbershop, a pet shop and a fire station, was almost reminiscent of pre-Covid engagements.
The couple’s visits appear to be steadily returning to normal – they also mingled with the public in Northern Ireland last week. However, signs of the ongoing pandemic were still evident, with everyone wearing masks indoors in Clapham.
Charles and Camilla’s first stop was at the acclaimed Trinity restaurant, where they met staff, as well as representatives from the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts.
Outside the restaurant they chatted with with local suppliers – M Moen & Sons Butchers and Moxon’s Fishmongers.
The butcher had a sizeable display of mutton on show, with Camilla calling it ‘my husband’s favourite’, and Charles could be heard saying that mutton is ‘so much better than lamb’.
Inside the restaurant, they met the Trinity front of house staff and chef team.
The Prince met with locals in Clapham as he visited the area to celebrate high street shops reopening
It was a sunny day for the couple’s visit to the area, and the duchess, who wore a summery multi-snowdrop silk print dress by Fiona Clare, was heard saying it was lovely to be outside
Charles and Camilla’s first stop was at the acclaimed Trinity restaurant, where they met staff, as well as representatives from the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts
The couple also met Omnibus Theatre staff before walking down the hill, passing a range of independent shops and businesses.
By the time they ended their walk at Clapham fire station, where they greeted firefighters and thanked them for their service, a crowd of onlookers had gathered, hoping to get a glimpse of the royal visitors.
The couple’s visit was to celebrate the high street as figures from the British Independent Retailers Association (Bira) show that a fifth of independents did not reopen after the first lockdown.
Figures show that footfall is still down 25 per cent on the same pre-pandemic period in April 2019, despite lockdown restrictions being lifted.
Meanwhile, it’s been a difficult few weeks for the royals. Lord Dyson’s damning report into how Martin Bashir secured his 1995 BBC Panorama with Princess Diana found the shamed journalist hoodwinked her with an elaborate fiction that painted some of those closest to her as traitors.
The Duchess of Cornwall looked elegant in a billowing navy dress covered in a white floral pattern which she paired with a cream handbag
Signs of the ongoing pandemic were still evident, with everyone wearing masks indoors in Clapham
The couple’s visit was to celebrate the high street as figures show that a fifth of independents did not reopen after the first lockdown
Prince Charles appears in high spirits as he chats with locals and staff working on the Clapham high street
He commissioned fake bank statements to secure his interview, but covered up his ‘deceitful behaviour’ in a ‘shocking blot’ on the BBC’s near 100-year history.
The Duke of Cambridge said Bashir’s deceit hastened his parents’ divorce, ‘hurt countless others’ and fuelled the ‘paranoia and isolation’ of his mother’s final years, while Prince Harry – who is based in California – also responded saying his mother ‘lost her life because of this’.
On Friday Harry launched another attack on The Firm in his latest interview with Oprah, arguing he and wife Meghan felt ‘trapped’ with ‘no option to leave’.
‘I thought my family would help, but every single ask, request, warning, whatever it is, just got met with total silence, total neglect,’ he told the chat show host.
‘We spent four years trying to make it work. We did everything that we possibly could to stay there and carry on doing the role and doing the job. But Meghan was struggling.’
He added: ‘That feeling of being trapped within the family, there was no option to leave. Eventually when I made that decision for my family, I was still told, ‘You can’t do this’, And it’s like, ‘Well how bad does it have to get until I am allowed to do this?’. She [Meghan] was going to end her life. It shouldn’t have to get to that.’
Royal biographer Phil Dampier said Harry’s trip to unveil a statue of Princess Diana with his brother William on July 1 will now be in ‘grave doubt’, especially after the Duke of Sussex said London is a ‘trigger’ for his anxiety.
And royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said there is now ‘clearly a huge gulf between the Royal Family and the Sussexes’, while Harry’s biographer Angela Levin called his appearance ‘phoney and embarrassing’.