A little while back I came across a copy of Ted Hughes’s Laureate poems which had an inscription to some friends. Inside was an unpublished squib by the late poet laureate which read: ‘The Royalist/ Is afraid/ The Queen’s a pin/ In a hand-grenade.’ If I understand the poet’s meaning correctly then I count myself such a royalist.

I dislike criticism of the royal family, especially of the monarch. When it happens it feels too much like people hammering at something fundamental – far more fundamental than the critic appreciates. If criticism is to be made it seems to me that it should be done privately, so as not to disturb the fragile equilibrium of the rather magical arrangement we have on these islands.

I suspect Meghan has no idea how obsessed we are here as to whether or not a child is going to turn out ginger

I suspect Meghan has no idea how obsessed we are here as to whether or not a child is going to turn out ginger

Obviously not everyone agrees with this view. A while back I got into a row with an American producer over a play depicting a member of the royal family. I told him how disgraceful I thought it was. He observed that I had strong views about a play I hadn’t even seen. I had to explain that I have strong views about all sorts and whether I have seen a thing or not is neither here nor there. After a certain amount of back and forth I put forward my foundational belief that I think it quite wrong to portray members of the royal family on stage. My interlocutor dismissed this as a ridiculously anachronistic........

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