Several days ago, the Mirror exclusively reported that King Charles’s trip to the South Pacific this fall was being changed. Originally, Charles and Camilla were planning to attend the Commonwealth meeting in Samoa, and then they would tack on trips to Australia and New Zealand, because C&C still haven’t visited any/all of their “realm” since becoming king and queen. Then Charles was diagnosed with cancer and he’s apparently still being treated. The planning for the trip was put on pause but not canceled, and now there’s saying that the trip will be shortened and they’re skipping New Zealand. Interestingly, very few outlets have picked up that news. But the Daily Beast has picked it up and they’re basically saying that Charles is going to try very hard to go to Samoa and Australia and nothing else.

Clive Alderton, King Charles’s private secretary who was memorably nicknamed “the wasp” in Prince Harry’s memoir, has been in Australia in recent days, preparing the ground for his master’s forthcoming visit to that country, expected to take place in mid-October this year. The absence of an Alderton sighting in New Zealand, however, has served as yet more evidence that Charles has now all but cancelled his tour of that country, which was to be bolted on to the Australia trip. A proposed trip to Fiji has also, reportedly, been shelved.

The Palace’s unwillingness to rush out an announcement is entirely understandable, given that they still hope Charles will be able to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) conference in Samoa despite his ongoing cancer fight. Courtiers will want to have a definitive schedule approved and signed off by the king and his doctors before they start rocking the boat.

As to why his office has appeared so intent on maintaining what many now believe is the fiction that he is still going to New Zealand and Fiji, another royal source told The Daily Beast: “They are in denial by continuing to say that planning for the overseas trip is full steam ahead, but the orders come from the top. Charles is optimistic and desperately wants to keep going with everything. Missing New Zealand is a great loss, and it will be a source of great regret for him, because to be honest he probably won’t be doing it again. But it’s frankly incredible that he is still doing Australia and that should be celebrated.”

“Australia is such an important part of the Commonwealth that Charles feels it is absolutely non-negotiable. There is considerable popular antipathy to the entire concept of the British monarch being head of state there, and of course he doesn’t want to go down as the man who lost Australia. To go there when he is being treated for cancer wasn’t what he planned—but you could hardly think of a better way of letting Australians know how important they are to the crown.”

The Mirror also reported that the Australian tour is being reduced to six days—including a two-day break. But Charles’ entirely unsurprising decision to cancel the New Zealand leg of the tour has raised questions about running a packed schedule while being treated for cancer. A friend of the king told The Daily Beast: “Charles is keenly aware of the importance of a visit by the monarch, not just to a foreign country but to domestic charities and organizations. That is why he has been determined to do as much as he can, meet as many people as he can and support as many causes as he can. Sitting in splendid isolation in Balmoral with his feet up would not be good for his morale. But at the same time, if the doctors—and his wife—say no to something, he has to listen to them. I think that is what we are seeing now.”

[From The Daily Beast]

“There is considerable popular antipathy to the entire concept of the British monarch being head of state there, and of course he doesn’t want to go down as the man who lost Australia.” LOL. I mean, I’m actually surprised that Australia hasn’t made more significant moves to free themselves from the British crown, but it’s a long process and maybe they’ll get there eventually. What’s the over/under on Charles actually making this trip? I’d say it’s pretty good – I think he’ll absolutely go to Samoa and he’ll probably spend some time in Australia, although his public schedule will probably be pretty curtailed for both. If you notice, there’s been a shift in how almost everyone talks about Charles’s “plans” across the board. Source after source, insider after insider, unnamed friend after unnamed friend, they’re all basically telling us that Charles is not doing well. Not only that, there’s no talk of handing off anything to Charles’s worthless heir.

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