Heir Presumptive?

Tonight, YouGov has the former Prince Andrew only one point more popular than Keir Starmer. Yes, Andrew is as disliked as that. Banishing him to Norfolk on Alan Partridge night is why Charles is King. But how is Andrew a mere Mister? As the younger son of a Duke, how is he not Lord Andrew Mountbatten Windsor? Is it something to do with the hyphen? At 11am on 11 November, restore Prince Ernst August of Hanover as Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale, and Earl of Armagh, and restore Prince Hubertus of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and Baron Arklow.

Although he has lost his close protection, his cancer-stricken brother will be 77 in a fortnight's time, and the next King cannot stand him, Andrew has never been convicted, nor even charged, nor even so much as arrested. As was not the case four years ago, between 60 and 80 per cent of men in prison are now there for having failed to curtsy deeply enough to a woman. We may yet find out whether that could be pulled off even from beyond a grave on the other side of the world.

In the meantime, at least, Andrew enjoys the presumption of innocence. As, whether any of us may like it or not, does the acquitted Ricky Jones, does the acquitted Soldier F, and do the three Just Stop Oil activists who have been acquitted of causing a public nuisance at Stonehenge. It may stick in the craw that there will be no public inquiry into the Birmingham pub bombings, but that may be the price of no further prosecutions such as that of Soldier F, and vice versa.