Prince Charles insists he will not be an intrusive monarch: "I'm not so stupid"

LONDON – Prince Charles has strong opinions on many topics: plastic pollution, modern architecture, organic agriculture and even the fate of Patagonian toothfish.

But the heir to the British throne insists that he will stop interfering in controversial – or even general – issues after his accession to the throne.

"I'm not so stupid," said Charles, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, when asked if he would continue to campaign publicly after he came to power. "I realize that it's a separate exercise to be sovereign. So of course, I totally understand how it should work. "

The comments, which come from an hour-long documentary on the BBC, "Prince, Son And Heir: Charles At 70," mark the first time that he publicly addresses his concerns regarding the fact that He could be an intrusive monarch.

Unlike her unstoppable mother Elizabeth, who can discuss topics like Brexit in a neutral way, Charles has sparked criticism – and praise – for his controversial views. More famous perhaps, he has already described the planned extension to the National Gallery in London of "monster carbuncle" (the drawing was later abandoned.)

The expected future king was also scrutinized after the publication of a cache of letters he had written to government ministers – dubbed the "black spider's memos" because of the writing manuscript of Charles – who showed him that he was a supporter of several causes.

"Charles will never be neutral as he will never be a political party," writes Catherine Mayer in her book "Charles: The Heart of a King." She continues: "For better or for worse – in my final analysis, more often for better than worse – the Prince is a man with a mission, a knight in search. "

Charles, who will turn 70 next week, is the oldest heir to British history. In the BBC documentary, he stated that he would operate as part of "constitutional parameters" when he would become monarch, "completely different" role of the Prince of Wales role, as the heir. in Britain is known.

"The idea that I will continue to follow exactly the same path, if I have to succeed, is totally absurd, because both – the two situations – are completely different," he said, according to excerpts from documentary published before its broadcast Thursday night.

The documentary features interviews with his sons, Prince William, who said he would like to see his father spend more time with his grandchildren, and Prince Harry, who congratulated his father for having Led Meghan into the driveway while her own father could not get married. .

While Charles claimed to have understood that being a king would be different from being an heir, he defended his activism.

"If you're worried about downtown as I did 40 years ago," he said, "if it's an interference, I'm very proud of it. "