'William and Harry get their moves from me': Prince Charles opens up about his dancing skills and calls wife Camilla 'an incredibly good sort' in delightful new interview
- Charles spoke to Australian Women's Weekly following his visit
- Says he still feels the beat and 'the old two-step comes in handy'
- Claims Harry and William have inherited his moves
- 'They're very good. They do make me laugh when they get going.'
- Also spoke of his joy at the warm reception given to Camilla in Australia
By Katy Winter
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The Prince of Wales has revealed that his sons the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry have inherited an essential quality from their father - a love of dancing.
Charles joked about his prowess on the dance floor and how William and Harry have picked up the skill during a wide-ranging interview with the magazine Australian Women's Weekly.
The heir to the throne also spoke of his joy at the warm reception the Duchess of Cornwall received from Australians last year.
The Prince of Wales, pictured here in a disco dancing session in Derby in 1992, claims that sons William and Harry inherited their dancing skills from him
Charles hit the Dance-O-Mat with Lisa Shannon during a visit to Christchurch, New Zealand last year, but says at his age he dances less
Prince Harry showed off his moves when he was invited to dance by Chantol Dormer, when he visited Rise Life, a youth charity project in Kingston, Jamaica last year
Charles and Camilla made their first official visit to the country as a couple last November, and the royal described his delight after wellwishers realised she was 'an incredibly good sort'.
The royal was first interviewed by the magazine in 1974 when, aged 26, he declared, 'If I hear rhythmic music, I just want to get up and dance.'
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited Tuvalu and danced with the ladies at the Vaiku Falekaupule
Asked by the publication's deputy editor Juliet Rieden if he still felt the beat, Charles, who became a grandfather for the first time in July, repled: 'Perhaps, it's slightly less becoming once you get to my age.'
He added: 'I think given half a chance though, the old one-two and the two-step can come in handy. I'm glad to say that both my sons have inherited it, I think.
'They're very good. They do make me laugh when they get going.'
The Duke clearly amused his wife as he demonstrated his 'swagger' dance moves with Vanessa Boateng during a reception at Centrepoint's Camberwell Foyer in London in 2011
It is easy to see why Prince Harry makes his father laugh when he 'gets going' on the dance floor when you see him dancing with local women during a walkabout at a 'block party' in Belmopan, Belize, central America during the Diamond Jubilee world tour
Harry was spotted dancing numerous times during his Diamond Jubilee tour of the Caribbean last year - especially in Kingston when he visited a charity.
And when Charles and Camilla travelled to New Zealand at the end of their Diamond Jubilee tour, they both strutted their stuff with different partners on a pop-up dancefloor in Christchurch.
Asked if he was passing his wisdom on to William and Harry, Charles suggested his sons had learnt from him - but wanted to keep it a secret.
Charles, seen here trying his hand at Latin dancing at a state banquet in 1999 in Buenos Aires, says even nowadays 'the old one-two and the two-step can come in handy'
He said: 'Well, I don't know. I hope so. How do you know? You can try, but no, I've always believed I just do what I do and I hope that they might notice something.
'I mean, funnily enough, I don't see what they're up to when I'm not there, but sometimes I hear back from others that they're surprisingly similar in some ways (to me). So maybe some things rub off ... which they wouldn't want me to know.'
Speaking about last year's Australian visit, which marked the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, the prince told the women's magazine: 'Before you go, you wonder what is the reaction going to be - it's always the same. But it was wonderful that they took to her and saw her for what she is - an incredibly good sort.
The Prince and Princess of Wales dance together in 1985 at the Lady Mayoress's Committee Dance in Melbourne. Diana made a lasting impression on Australians during numerous visits
'She loved it and has such incredibly happy memories of her experience and, obviously, I was thrilled, as you can imagine, for Australians to discover just how special she is ... because she's got the most wonderful sense of humour and has some very good jokes.'
Charles' first wife Diana, Princess of Wales made a lasting impression on Australians during numerous visits and the Duchess appears to have also won the affections of many people in the country.
The first stop for the royals during their tour was the remote outback settlement of Longreach and Camilla endeared herself to the locals by cuddling a 12-month-old kangaroo.
The prince still has fond memories of his first visit to Australia, made in 1966 when he was aged 17.
When the royal couple visited the outback settlement of Longreach and Camilla endeared herself to the locals by cuddling a 12-month-old kangaroo, called Ruby Blue
The royal spent two terms in the Australian outback at Timbertop, an off-shoot of Geelong Grammar School in Melbourne, on a private exchange from Gordonstoun.
During the visit the prince said he plucked up the courage to really talk to the public and learnt to communicate with wellwishers.
Speaking about the crowds that had come out to see him Charles said: 'Then, of course, finally, I took the plunge and went over and talked to people, and that suddenly unlocked a completely different feeling and I was then able to communicate and talk to people so much more.'
While at Timbertop, 100 miles from Melbourne, the prince joined the other pupils who had to fend for themselves and complete expeditions into the surrounding hills.
He said: 'There were leeches and snakes, and those enormous bull ants and funnel web spiders I've never forgotten. And then waking up in your tent and you're frozen stiff in the frost.
'I never imagined that would happen in that part of the world - or all these strange creepy crawlies wanting to do you mischief. But it was jolly good for the character and, in many ways, I loved it and I learnt a lot from it. And I certainly discovered what good value the Australians are.'
Speaking about the issues that motivate him the royal said that we had created a 'throwaway society'.
He stressed that nations had to look after the natural world: 'What I'm trying to say is there is another way of looking at this if we're going to hand over to our children and grandchildren a planet that isn't totally degraded and compromised. You can't push nature beyond a certain limit. We have to look after it.'
Charles and Camilla made their first official visit to Australia as a couple last November, and the royal described his delight after wellwishers realised she was 'an incredibly good sort'
Speaking about his views on balancing conventional medicine with complimentary treatments he said: 'I know lots of people who find they aren't benefited in every case by just the conventional, orthodox drug and finally discover that actually an approach - whether it's herbal medicine or acupuncture or various other forms of complementary medicine - actually does benefit them.
'There's a lot that can be done on the preventative side. There's an enormous amount we can do by looking at the whole person.'
Charles also stressed that he wanted to see if some of his UK charities could link up with Australian counterparts to tackle issues.
One project already off the ground will see the Prince's Foundation for Building Community develop the 'Prince's Australian Terrace' in Melbourne.
The development will be an update to the popular Australian terraced house, combining 21st century Australian lifestyle demands with the technology of today which aims to create a sustainable and eco-friendly living solution.
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Here we go again, St Di's fan club venting their wrath as ever! All this bit about the 19 year old being SO innocent etc etc well I married at 17 & girls are more mature than boys anyway & even at that age, I knew what I was doing! She was quite obviously emotionally weak from her childhood, but I NEVER thought she was "in love" with Charles, but more with the position & the money! She was brought up in an old fashioned way, even for the 80's & was making a "good" marriage by those standards, but to forever put the blame on Charles is just not fair. I would have thought, had Diana put as much effort into "wooing" Charles, as she did the British public, it's highly likely that Charles would have come to love her, but I always felt that all that media adulation went to her head!
Charles is such a wonderful man and I am happy he is married to Camilla. He loves her and she makes him very happy. It's so cute what he say about her. Camilla has done an amazing job since she is married to Charles, so leave her alone. She has payed her dues.
I love the royal family. I think Charles is a great ambassador for the Country, as so are his sons. He has done a marvellous job with those boys. Both grown up to be very nice natured and understanding men. Diana did influence them I agree but Charles has finished the job. Camilla is ok too. Remember you cant help which family you are born into. You just have to do the best you can.
Whatever has happened in the past, it would be nice just once, for Charles to credit or even acknowledge the influence their MOTHER might have had on them instead of the continual 'me, me, me'. For all his bonhomie he is a very self-centred spoilt man who didn't have the courage to follow his own heart and broke their mother's.
Regular reader Australia - of course you can fake a post pregnacny bump just like she faked her pregnancy bump. We all have a right to our opinions and i don't think there is any need for rudeness in your posts - unless of course you don't think telling someone to shut up is rude. Why do you presume it is only men who think this whole thing was a fake ?
I just thank god I won't be around to witness the enthronement of a king who is not entitled to wear the crown
charles should have married camila when he was young, but she was already married mores the pity, sorry i thought diana was a rather doe eyed help me i cant cope person, not suited to royal life,
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Sandy, New York City, United States, 10 minutes ago
Realistic female, no way would Charles "come to love" Diana with his mistress Camilla still interfering. I think it a cheap shot to knock the wife to praise the mistress. How do you know Camilla was not out for the money and power? She certainly got this from Charles and even got an HRH out of it too. It's amazing how Diana is blamed when Charles sought comfort from the mistress even before he dated Diana. Who can you blame for Charles' flaws if Diana was not around then?