They don't let me see my grandson George': Prince Charles' concern at the 'March of the Middletons'

Following the birth of Prince George, the Prince of Wales described the experience of becoming a first-time grandfather as ‘a unique moment in anyone’s life’.

But nearly two years after this very public display of affection, Charles is said to have become increasingly perplexed about the peripheral role he occupies in the young Prince’s life.

At the heart of the heir-to-the-throne’s frustrations is the so-called ‘Middletonisation’ of his son William’s life — specifically the inordinate amount of time he spends with his in-laws Michael and Carole, with whom he recently holidayed in Mustique for Carole’s 60th.

In fact, so vexed is Charles about the so-called ‘March of the Middletons’ that he has complained to friends: ‘They never let me see my grandson.’

Adds a source: ‘Carole has rather taken over, dictating when George naps, when and what he eats. All in all, behaving like she’s Queen Carole.’

It is certainly true there have been few, if any, trips to Charles’s Gloucestershire home Highgrove over the past year. Some think it’s a deliberate move on William’s part to protect his young family from suffering the same stiff, and often unhappy, upbringing he endured.

 

Certainly, Carole, who is the granddaughter of a miner and was brought up in a council house, is not thought to enjoy any particularly strong bonds with Charles’s wife, Camilla.

Most of William and Kate’s time is spent at their Norfolk home, Anmer Hall, on the Queen’s Sandringham estate, where the Prince has been busy revising for his Air Transport Pilot’s Licence.

The Middletons are frequent visitors and play an active role in the household. They stayed there over Christmas, when William pointedly hosted lunch for them on Christmas Day rather than eat with the Queen, as is traditional.

Last month, it emerged that William’s housekeeper and gardener had abruptly quit after just five months at Anmer.

The couple, Amy and Colin Wood, have returned to their previous jobs at Sandringham.

‘Staff have complained that Anmer is not run like a proper royal household,’ says my source. ‘It is too middle class.’

Yesterday, when asked when Charles had last seen little George, a Clarence House spokesman unusually issued a statement: ‘We would not comment on the specifics of private arrangements. ‘His Royal Highness enjoys an excellent relationship with his grandson.’