King Charles Passed This Dangerous Hobby on to His Sons Prince William and Prince Harry
After stepping down from his royal duties, Prince Harry described his relationship with King Charles III and Prince William as “space.” And while the Duke of Sussex remains estranged from his father and brother today, someone who used to work for the family is remembering how close they used to be and the dangerous hobby the monarch passed on to his sons that they bonded over.
Here’s more on that, plus the Prince of Wales’ other hobby that his wife hopes their children don’t pick up.
King Charles has a couple of ‘dangerous’ hobbies and passed one on to his sons
Grant Harrold was King Charles’ butler from 2004 to 2011. His duties also included that of valet, housekeeper, house manager, and driver. Harrold recently spoke about one of his former boss’ little-known hobbies that can be “dangerous.”
Speaking on behalf of Spin Genie Harrold revealed: “I don’t think it’s that publicly known, but the king loves hedgelaying, which is a technique of laying a hedge and turning it into a pretty fence. It’s an old skill and I think it’s a little dangerous.”
“You have to hack the branches of a hedge and weave them together,” the former palace employee explained. “There’s pictures and videos of Charles doing it, but it’s not a known thing. I think he even judges or gets involved in the national hedgelaying competition. I don’t think people know that the king has that love.”
The king’s other dangerous hobby is one his sons picked up at a young age. Prince William and Prince Harry take after their father with a love for polo, which is considered a high-risk sport.
“[The princes] enjoy playing polo,” Harrold said. “I remember they used to go off with friends and polo playing was a big thing. You would see them in local pubs, you know, getting together with friends and having a drink after the polo … Everybody left them alone, nobody bothered them because they were known there. I suppose their hobbies were going out with friends and the polo was the big thing.”
Both men still play the sport today. William participates in charity polo events during the season while Harry plays for the Los Padres, the club he joined after moving to the U.S.
Prince William’s other hobby that Kate hopes their children don’t pick up
The Prince of Wales has another hobby that always scared his wife, and that is motorcycling.
The future king has been a fan of riding for many years and once owned a Ducati 1199, an Italian-manufactured sports bike with a top speed of 177 mph. The Princess of Wales (formerly known as Kate Middleton) once admitted that she is “filled with horror” every time he gets on the bike and it’s something she hopes their children don’t ever start doing.
Hello! noted that after the birth of their first son, the princess said: “It always fills me with horror when [William] goes out on it! I’m terrified. Hopefully, I’m going to keep George off it.”
