Flagship Odeon Leicester Square cinema is part of private equity firm Terra Firma’s portfolio Financier Guy Hands, the boss of private equity outfit Terra Firma, is considering selling the market-leading Odeon & UCI cinema chain as he begins rebuilding a City reputation that was dented by the EMI debacle. Hands has seen his image as a master dealmaker tarnished by his firm’s disastrous acquisition of music group EMI, which was seized by Citigroup in February , leaving Hands’s company with a loss of £1.75bn. However, Hands is already giving serious consideration to his next step and is mulling the sale of Europe’s largest cinema group and one of the UK’s big three chains, after rivals expressed interest in the business. According to initial reports in the Financial Times , Bank of America Merrill Lynch is expected to run the auction if one goes ahead, but it is understood that Hands has made no definitive decision yet. Another option on the table includes refinancing the business with new debt of about £600m and holding on to the company. BC Partners, a UK buyout firm, is a leading potential buyer of the chain, which owns around 200 cinemas with a total of 1,850 screens. The majority of its portfolio is in the UK, including the flagship Odeon Leicester Square cinema which often hosts gala premieres. However, the sheer scale of the business means that a bid from rival Vue Entertainment would likely face competition hurdles. Odeon & UCI generated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £80m in 2009. Despite the travails of the movie business in the home entertainment market, cinemas are still viewed as an attractive investment because 3D films are giving a new boost to the market, although UK attendance slipped 2.4% last year. Odeon & UCI leads the UK by market share, with 23%, followed by Cineworld on 21% and Vue with 17%. Analysts said the neck-and-neck positioning of the businesses would make any sector consolidation a likely target of regulators. Film industry Guy Hands Private equity Dan Milmo guardian.co.uk
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Eugene O’Neill Theatre, New York There is an extended sequence showing Hitler enjoying oral sex with the devil, a blown up x-ray of a rectal blockage caused by a religious text, and its central song involves characters literally sticking up their middle fingers to God: it is safe to say that this Broadway musical is not Les Miserables. Predictably, it is the work of Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the permanently sniggering but deceptively brilliant duo behind South Park. The musical – The Book of Mormon – is their Broadway debut. Less predictably, it has become the most critically acclaimed new musical for years. Jon Stewart, host of the Daily Show, described it as “so good it makes me angry”, and Ben Brantley, the New York Times’s notoriously difficult-to-please theatre critic, apparently underwent a religious conversion during the show, using the kind of evangelical language in his review that the show mocks, beginning with “heaven” and ending with “paradise”, with an “ecstatic” along the way. Only heavy prayer will get you tickets – that or celebrity status: the night I went Sandra Bullock was sitting in front of me, an experience only slightly more surreal than hearing a whole auditorium singing along to a chorus that goes: “Fuck you, God, in the ass, mouth and cunt.” Sandra’s shoulders shook delightedly. This terrific musical follows two Mormons, the narcissistic Elder Price (Andrew Rannells) and the socially awkward Elder Cunningham (the wonderful Josh Gad), who are sent to Uganda to convert the natives. It’s a classic buddy movie set-up combined with the equally classic tale of Americans bossing around other countries, from South Pacific to The Three Amigos. But the joke here is what happens when religious and cinematic idealisation meets reality: “Africa is nothing like The Lion King! I think that movie took a lot of artistic licence!” wails one Mormon upon arrival. It’s hard to convince people of the relevance of a religion when even its devotees occasionally struggle to explain why a warlord is threatening the village’s women with clitoridectomies. The music, written by Parker, Stone and Avenue Q’s Robert Lopez, is catchy, catty and scatological, as was Parker and Stone’s brilliant 2004 film, Team America: World Police. Some critics have marvelled at the show’s “surprising sweetness” but the pair’s longtime fans will raise no eyebrows. Although fearlessly offensive, the two are always deeply moral, even occasionally sentimental, and this show is no exception. The have-it-both-ways conclusion tells us religious prophets were probably all lonely fantasists with self-esteem problems, but if it makes people happy, so what? Parker and Stone reserve their real bile for a far more offensive target: The Lion King. As if poor Julie Taymor hasn’t suffered enough this year with the humiliating debacle of her deservedly vilified Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark, her more successful Broadway musical is held up for constant ridicule here. The animals in The Lion King shrugged away their worries with Hakuna Matata but the Ugandans here find that their problems (“We haven’t had rain for several days / 80% of us have Aids”) need more so they opt for a cheerful Hasa Diga Eebowai or Fuck you, God. Even Taymor’s Spider-Man collaborator, Bono, gets an always deserved kicking: “I am Africa! / Just like Bono, I am Africa / Africans are Africans but I am Africa!” sings a distinctly unAfrican Mormon. The Book of Mormon is funny, it’s fun, the sets and music are excellent and, most of all, it’s smart as hell. Spider-Man, weep and learn. Rating: 5/5 Broadway Theatre New York South Park Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark Sandra Bullock Bono United States Hadley Freeman guardian.co.uk
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Prince William and Kate Middleton are due to be married at Westminster Abbey in four weeks time. Follow here for live coverage of all the latest royal wedding news, build up and reaction 7.53am: The French news channel France24 is reporting that French president Nicolas Sarkozy is using diplomatic back-channels to try to seize control of royal wedding preparations. “This is seen as crucial for the president’s hopes of re-election in 2012,” comments the Paris-based political analyst Avril de Poisson, though French union leaders have accused Sarkozy of taking his eye of the ball at home, and are threatening a general strike. 7.49am: Royal bakers Greggs have today released a range of commemorative Royal wedding cakes and fancies, writes G2 chef Angela Hartnett. The Newcastle-based bakery — whose award of a royal warrant in January was seen as a mark of the Queen’s desire to become a more populist, Scandinavian-style monarch — insisted that the confectionary range, entitled “Let Them Eat Cake”, contained no clues as to the top secret recipe of the Royal wedding cake itself, which Greggs pastry chefs have been developing since last October at an undisclosed location. 7.45am: We’re excited to be able to confirm that the Duke of Edinburgh will be writing a daily online diary for Guardian.co.uk in the run-up to the wedding, and we’ll be bringing you the first installment soon, here on the blog. The Duke jovially told Guardian deputy editor Katharine Viner she was “making [him] work like a bloody Yugoslav” but he graciously agreed to the request. 7.39am: Let’s kick things off with a summary of developments overnight: • Reuters is reporting on rumours from Westminster of an initiative to amalgamate the Royal Wedding with that of Labour leader Ed Miliband and his longtime partner Justine Thornton. A senior Labour aide tells the wire service that the “undeniably cost-effective” move would “reflect the national focus on austerity” as well as highlighting the Labour leader’s “deeply felt and longstanding admiration for the royal family.” Our political editor Patrick Wintour is in the lobby with his ear to the ground. • In a story that would be astonishing if true, Sky News is reporting that the president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, has been granted the front three rows of seating in Westminster Abbey on April 29 as a result of a deal brokered by Prince Andrew. A source “close to Andrew” is quoted as saying that the arrangement is “crucial to furthering democracy and UK trade interests in central Asia”. More on this as it emerges. • Suggestions are flying around the Twitterverse this morning that the Queen’s corgis will be present at the wedding — and that one may even bear the wedding rings to the bride and groom. Sir Simon Jenkins is investigating. 7.35am: As explained in this morning’s leader column , the Guardian is enhancing its royal coverage by temporarily recalling correspondents from various parts of the world to focus full-time on coverage of the wedding preparations. Justin McCurry is currently en route from Tokyo, and Chris McGreal will be joining us later in the week. (“Can’t wait finally to get my teeth into a big story!” Chris emails.) Meanwhile, Esther Addley is heading up a team of reporters who are already based in special wifi-enabled tents on the Mall and outside Westminster Abbey. She tweets: @estheraddley On Mall. Mood palpable. no sign of crowd yet but slowly building thru day. Ice crm vn playing nat.Anth, no queue. so exciting!!! #gdnroywed 7.30am: Good morning, and welcome to a radical new frontier in the Guardian’s embrace of the live blogging format. For the next month, in line with our new commitment to unrivalled coverage of the royal family, we’ll be bringing you a minute-by-minute, 24-hour live blog of preparations for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in Westminster Abbey on 29 April. There’s little doubt that, when the history-books come to be written, the spring of 2011 will be remembered above all for one event of major geopolitical significance — and this will be the place to stay up-to-date with it. The fashion, the parties, the souvenirs, the world’s reactions, the constitutional implications, and the razor-sharp commentary: we’ll have it all. I’ll be here for the rest of today; my colleague Andrew Sparrow will then be working a 19-hour extended night shift to keep us going through until the morning. Monarchy Prince William Kate Middleton The Queen Olaf Priol guardian.co.uk
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The Foreign Office has said people should get out of Yemen while commercial airlines are still flying All British nationals have been urged to leave Yemen in the run-up to likely protests planned for Friday which could result in violent clashes. The Foreign Office said people should get out while commercial airlines are still flying, “in light of the rapid deterioration in the security situation”. It warned that it was highly unlikely it would be able to evacuate British nationals in the event of increased disorder. It said in a statement: “In light of the rapid deterioration in the security situation in Yemen and likely protests on Friday 1 April which might result in violent clashes, we strongly urge all British nationals to leave the country now while commercial airlines are still flying. “Given the situation on the ground, it is highly unlikely that the British government will be able to evacuate British nationals or provide consular assistance in the event of a further breakdown of law and order and increased violent civil disorder. British nationals should therefore plan accordingly. “We have advised against all travel to Yemen since 4 March and have urged British nationals to leave immediately since 12 March. The latest amendment to our travel advice reflects the increasing seriousness of the situation. “We urge all parties in Yemen to exercise the utmost restraint and take all steps necessary to defuse tension on the ground. “We call on all parties to make urgent progress in implementing much needed political and economic reform. “The government of Yemen must take urgent action to build trust with the opposition and with the protesters: without this trust, no agreement can be reached. The Yemeni people want to see their legitimate demands acknowledged and met and the UK fully supports them in this aspiration.” Yemen Arab and Middle East unrest Protest Middle East guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …The Foreign Office has said people should get out of Yemen while commercial airlines are still flying All British nationals have been urged to leave Yemen in the run-up to likely protests planned for Friday which could result in violent clashes. The Foreign Office said people should get out while commercial airlines are still flying, “in light of the rapid deterioration in the security situation”. It warned that it was highly unlikely it would be able to evacuate British nationals in the event of increased disorder. It said in a statement: “In light of the rapid deterioration in the security situation in Yemen and likely protests on Friday 1 April which might result in violent clashes, we strongly urge all British nationals to leave the country now while commercial airlines are still flying. “Given the situation on the ground, it is highly unlikely that the British government will be able to evacuate British nationals or provide consular assistance in the event of a further breakdown of law and order and increased violent civil disorder. British nationals should therefore plan accordingly. “We have advised against all travel to Yemen since 4 March and have urged British nationals to leave immediately since 12 March. The latest amendment to our travel advice reflects the increasing seriousness of the situation. “We urge all parties in Yemen to exercise the utmost restraint and take all steps necessary to defuse tension on the ground. “We call on all parties to make urgent progress in implementing much needed political and economic reform. “The government of Yemen must take urgent action to build trust with the opposition and with the protesters: without this trust, no agreement can be reached. The Yemeni people want to see their legitimate demands acknowledged and met and the UK fully supports them in this aspiration.” Yemen Arab and Middle East unrest Protest Middle East guardian.co.uk
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Dramatic reductions for libraries and children’s services will take effect at start of new financial year Cuts to council-run services will bring dramatic reductions in children’s services, libraries and youth clubs and a new wave of privatisation for frontline services, the most comprehensive survey so far of town halls will reveal today. It shows the cuts, which will begin to really bite today as budgets for the 2011-2 financial year kick in, have been disproportionately targeted at the young. Youth clubs, play services and Sure Start centres are bearing the weight of above-average reductions. The impact will be compounded by further cuts to libraries, cultural services, parks and leisure, triggering warnings that children and teenagers will be forced on to the streets with nothing to do. The study, conducted by the Local Government Association (LGA), surveyed finance directors from 40% of local authorities. It also finds that two-thirds of councils are embarking on privatisation programmes to cut costs. The communities secretary, Eric Pickles, has accused some councils of failing to rein in costs before making cuts to services. However, the LGA said the survey proved councils were doing everything they could but were faced with reductions in their grants of up to 17% this year. “It’s a matter of managing which services are cut. You can always trim a little from some things but to say you can do it without any strain on services is unrealistic,” said Lady Eaton, who chairs the LGA. She added that the pattern was for town halls to protect the most crucial services for the vulnerable, creating inevitable new gaps. “Only 5% of the total budgets are flexible – things like library services, cultural activities, youth services are not statutorily required. “Now we’re in a position that statutory responsibilities – education, social care, refuse collection – those come first. It’s a sad reflection of the resources, it’s the way the world is at the moment,” she said. Eaton also added that councils would like to make more profound reforms to save money but had been hampered by the government’s decision to frontload the cuts this year. “When the cuts were front-loaded it didn’t allow time for innovative thinking. You can’t share your library services with another authority within a week,” she said. The biggest cuts are being made to central services – largely the back-office functions administration, human resources, finance and IT that residents do not see. A third of councils have dipped into their reserves to prevent further cuts and nine out of 10 have already reduced the cost of senior staff, either through cutting numbers or pay. Seven in 10 councils are setting up shared services with other authorities to find new economies. The survey asked finance directors to list the services facing above-average cuts. Some 58% said that their central services were getting greater spending reductions, 22% said services such as youth clubs and play groups, 16% said library services, 14% said early years services and 12% refuse collection services. Some 63% are planning to cut Sure Start services. One in 10 said that their planning and economic development work would get a disproportionately high cut, raising concerns about the government’s growth plans in those areas. Anne Longfield, chief executive of the youth charity 4Children, said the cumulative effect would mean there was going to be “dramatically less for teenagers to do”. She said: “Young people don’t feel there are enough places to go and things to do even now. We are predicting that provision is going to halve one way or another. This will store up trouble. We’re going to see troubling rises in crime [and] more early parenthood.” The survey found 63% of areas were protecting children’s social care and 57% were protecting adult social care – the services that cater for the most vulnerable – with below average cuts. Another 21% said other services were being cut to preserve refuse collections. Four out of five councils are cutting library services. The plans include transferring libraries to community groups to run, moving them into other public buildings such as schools, mobile libraries and other reforms including privatisation plans. Private firms are springing up including Library Systems & Services, a Maryland-based chain which has set up in Liverpool with a target to manage 15% of local libraries in England within five years. Nearly 80% of councils have, or are planning, pay freezes; a quarter are embarking on pay cuts. The survey shows that 67% of councils are embarking on outsourcing programmes. Dave Prentis, the general secretary of Unison, said: “Outsourcing is a false economy, savings are over-promised and often fail to materialise. “The dangers to workers and people who depend on outsourced services are huge. The evidence proves that the profit motive and public services do not mix. We’ve all heard the horror stories of home care – vulnerable elderly people left with sub-standard care as 15-minute slots are sold off to the lowest bidder.” The Department for Communities and Local Government
Continue reading …Dramatic reductions for libraries and children’s services will take effect at start of new financial year Cuts to council-run services will bring dramatic reductions in children’s services, libraries and youth clubs and a new wave of privatisation for frontline services, the most comprehensive survey so far of town halls will reveal today. It shows the cuts, which will begin to really bite today as budgets for the 2011-2 financial year kick in, have been disproportionately targeted at the young. Youth clubs, play services and Sure Start centres are bearing the weight of above-average reductions. The impact will be compounded by further cuts to libraries, cultural services, parks and leisure, triggering warnings that children and teenagers will be forced on to the streets with nothing to do. The study, conducted by the Local Government Association (LGA), surveyed finance directors from 40% of local authorities. It also finds that two-thirds of councils are embarking on privatisation programmes to cut costs. The communities secretary, Eric Pickles, has accused some councils of failing to rein in costs before making cuts to services. However, the LGA said the survey proved councils were doing everything they could but were faced with reductions in their grants of up to 17% this year. “It’s a matter of managing which services are cut. You can always trim a little from some things but to say you can do it without any strain on services is unrealistic,” said Lady Eaton, who chairs the LGA. She added that the pattern was for town halls to protect the most crucial services for the vulnerable, creating inevitable new gaps. “Only 5% of the total budgets are flexible – things like library services, cultural activities, youth services are not statutorily required. “Now we’re in a position that statutory responsibilities – education, social care, refuse collection – those come first. It’s a sad reflection of the resources, it’s the way the world is at the moment,” she said. Eaton also added that councils would like to make more profound reforms to save money but had been hampered by the government’s decision to frontload the cuts this year. “When the cuts were front-loaded it didn’t allow time for innovative thinking. You can’t share your library services with another authority within a week,” she said. The biggest cuts are being made to central services – largely the back-office functions administration, human resources, finance and IT that residents do not see. A third of councils have dipped into their reserves to prevent further cuts and nine out of 10 have already reduced the cost of senior staff, either through cutting numbers or pay. Seven in 10 councils are setting up shared services with other authorities to find new economies. The survey asked finance directors to list the services facing above-average cuts. Some 58% said that their central services were getting greater spending reductions, 22% said services such as youth clubs and play groups, 16% said library services, 14% said early years services and 12% refuse collection services. Some 63% are planning to cut Sure Start services. One in 10 said that their planning and economic development work would get a disproportionately high cut, raising concerns about the government’s growth plans in those areas. Anne Longfield, chief executive of the youth charity 4Children, said the cumulative effect would mean there was going to be “dramatically less for teenagers to do”. She said: “Young people don’t feel there are enough places to go and things to do even now. We are predicting that provision is going to halve one way or another. This will store up trouble. We’re going to see troubling rises in crime [and] more early parenthood.” The survey found 63% of areas were protecting children’s social care and 57% were protecting adult social care – the services that cater for the most vulnerable – with below average cuts. Another 21% said other services were being cut to preserve refuse collections. Four out of five councils are cutting library services. The plans include transferring libraries to community groups to run, moving them into other public buildings such as schools, mobile libraries and other reforms including privatisation plans. Private firms are springing up including Library Systems & Services, a Maryland-based chain which has set up in Liverpool with a target to manage 15% of local libraries in England within five years. Nearly 80% of councils have, or are planning, pay freezes; a quarter are embarking on pay cuts. The survey shows that 67% of councils are embarking on outsourcing programmes. Dave Prentis, the general secretary of Unison, said: “Outsourcing is a false economy, savings are over-promised and often fail to materialise. “The dangers to workers and people who depend on outsourced services are huge. The evidence proves that the profit motive and public services do not mix. We’ve all heard the horror stories of home care – vulnerable elderly people left with sub-standard care as 15-minute slots are sold off to the lowest bidder.” The Department for Communities and Local Government
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enlarge Lt. William Calley – considered by many to be a scapegoat for an even darker side. Click here to view this media No end to drama or news on this day in 1971. Starting with Sentencing of Lt. William Calley for his role in the My Lai Massacre to life without parole at hard labor and a mass outpouring of support for Calley and suggestions he was scapegoat for an even more sinister involvement to the U.S. Military view of the Vietnam war. Aftershocks continued over Southern California with the latest registering between 4.0 and 4.5 after the big earthquake in February. The Senate Sub-committee, looking into the pension funds of 87 corporations found that only 10% of employees who participated in them ever saw any money (surprise). Jimmy Hoffa was denied parole from prison for a second time. Fighting was continuing in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam while the Pentagon came out with the (sort of) good news that the May draft call-up would be only 15,000, which was 2,000 less than the previous month and lowest for the year so far. A Bill introduced in the Senate to abolish the Draft was defeated by 73-11 and the National Association of Broadcasters released the results of a Roper Poll on People’s Attitudes Towards TV News with the findings that most people still got their news from TV, with newspapers, radio and magazines following in that order. 49% thought TV news was most believable (?) – almost 50% believed no more government control was needed than was in place in 1971. And (get this . . .) a whopping 69% believed TV news was fair as far as political stances were concerned. And . . .Deputy Attorney General Richard Kleindienst said the Nixon Administration was against limiting political contributions. Fancy that. All in a days news – this one via NBC Nightly News for Wednesday March 31, 1971. And the word for today is – “Pucker Power”.
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Click here to view this media As you can imagine, Fox News was all over the massive Tea Party rally on Capitol Hill today: A small but vocal group of Tea Party activists gathered outside the Capitol on Thursday to urge House Republican leaders to hold the line and push for deeper spending cuts in the federal budget. Chanting, “Cut it or shut it” and “We want less,” the activists directed their ire at Senate Democrats, arguing that the cuts they have demanded are not “extreme,” but necessary to right the nation’s fiscal ship. As you can see, there were at least 8 million people there! Give or take about 7.9998 million. Dave Weigel reports that there were about 200 in attendance, though he tartly adds: “If there’s much media focus on how small the rally was, I think that would miss the point. There was a total sense of victory on display.” Yeah, not to mention a total sense of having a strangely mixed message . The Tea Partiers wanted to blame the Democrats for shutting down the government — while simultaneously demanding a shutdown! But some Senate Democrats have suggested those Tea Party principles are to blame for the current budget stalemate, saying they have led to infighting among House Republicans that is complicating negotiations. Republicans at the rally laid the blame for a potential shutdown square at the feet of Democratic leaders in the Senate. “House Republicans have run headlong in to Harry Reid. Harry Reid actually took to the floor of the senate and said that our modest down payment on fiscal discipline was reckless, irresponsible, mean-spirited,” Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., told the boisterous crowd. “If liberals in the Senate would rather play political games and shut down the government instead of making a small down payment on fiscal discipline and reform, I say shut it down.” Not to mention the total sense of victory Tea Partiers are enjoying with the general public : The public’s approval of the conservative Tea Party has reached a new low, according to a poll released Wednesday. A CNN/Opinion Research survey showed that only 32 percent have a favorable view of the Tea Party, while 47 percent view it unfavorably. Seven percent said they have not heard of the Tea Party, and 14 percent said they have no opinion. No doubt this has nothing to do with the fact that Tea Partiers are increasingly over-the-cliff-batshit-crazy — to the point that longtime mainstream conservatives are distancing themselves from them: The Tea Party movement is brewing up a far different ideology that the country’s traditional, so-called “mainstream” conservatives, according to a new multi-state survey conducted by University of Washington political scientists. The UW survey found Tea Party activists more likely to believe President Obama is a Muslim, less likely to believe he is American born, and far more likely to want the 44th president to fail. The survey found that just 6 percent of mainstream conservatives believe President Obama is “destroying the country: 71 percent of Tea Party conservatives believe this to be true.’ Would-be Republican presidential candidates have “good reason” to court them, because people who support the Tea Party are “incredibly more political active than those who don’t,” said Christopher Parker, a UW associate professor of political science who led the survey. “It will be hard to mollify them,” said Parker, adding in an interview: “We are seeing a split in the Republican Party right now.” Among the differences between mainstream conservatives and Tea Partiers the survey found: –Sixteen percent of mainstream conservatives believe that President Obama is a practicing Muslin: 27 percent of Tea Party conservatives believe that; –Forty-six percent of mainstream conservatives believe Obama is a practicing Christian; but just 27 percent of Tea Party conservatives believe that; –Fifty-five percent of mainstream conservatives believe Obama was born in the United States, compared to just 40 percent of Tea Party conservatives; –Forty percent of mainstream conservatives believe Obama’s policies are pushing America toward socialism, but 75 percent of Tea Party conservatives say he is; –Thirty two percent of mainstream conservatives want Obama’s policies to fail, but 76 percent of Tea Party conservatives want this to happen. Of course, Fox’s Megyn Kelly featured an interview with a Tea Partier making exalted claims on behalf of the movement — in this case, Kitchen Table Patriots’ Ana Puig, claiming that “the Tea Party movement is strengthening in numbers.” Sure they are. At least 8 million of them today, right?
Continue reading …Prince William has shown he can be a new kind of king. It is time to put away the cynicism and pledge our full-throated support A few short weeks from now, with the world looking on, William Arthur Philip Louis Windsor will exchange rings with Catherine Elizabeth Middleton, and much of Britain will rejoice. Yet, at such moments, certain voices – this newspaper’s included – have long expressed dissent. All this mawkish celebration, they maintain, merely bolsters an anti-democratic institution based on privilege and patronage, a costly anachronism that ought to be abolished. That view is understandable. But it is time for them – for us – to reconsider. A decade ago, the Guardian prominently announced its commitment to republicanism . But Prince William has shown that he can be a new kind of king. That is why, in a significant change of course, we today pledge our full-throated support for the British monarchy. Let’s face it: the current crop of world leaders is far from inspiring. Across the Arab world, dictators battle their own people; at home, attitudes towards Cameron and Clegg alternate between apathy and outrage. In America, the hope that greeted Barack Obama has long since faded. As The King’s Speech so vividly reminded us, there are times when only the calming leadership of a hereditary monarch will do; and as the MPs’ expenses scandal illustrates, it can be dangerous to trust power-hungry elected officials, who lack the security provided by land ownership and immense wealth. Amid all this, William in particular stands out as something unique: a bastion of tradition with a deeply modern sensibility – not to mention a helicopter pilot’s licence. When the time comes, we urge Prince Charles to redouble his focus on his important work in the field of alternative medicine, and to pass the mantle of head of state to his son. For too long, a hair-shirt tendency on the left
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