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Prince William and Princess Kate face a "crying shame" when they succeed King Charles. The royal family has faced criticism in recent years after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's relations with peadophile financier Jeffrey Epstein. The former prince denies any wrongdoing but the royal family's reputation has suffered due to the scandal.

There is a thinning "front line" of working royals, according to royal expert, Robert Hardman, meaning by the time Prince William becomes monarch, the couple might not have many working members of he royal family to work with. He told The Telegraph: "I think it's a crying shame that when William takes the throne, he and Catherine are effectively looking at quite a significant spell on their own, carrying the whole show."

He added: "Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, are stepping up, and the Gloucesters too, but they're all going to be of a certain age. The Princess Royal is turning 76 this year.

"I think William's view is that we're all going to just have to accept things will be different. We can't suddenly summon up extra royals.

"We're just going to have to get used to a different sort of business model, if you like."

King Charles' coronation took place on May 6 2023 and it was a historically momentous day for the UK and the Commonwealth.

The coronation marked the first new monarch in over 70 years.

It was also a significant day for Charles himself, who, at 74, became the oldest monarch in history on the day of his coronation.

Speaking to Harper's Bazaar last year, royal author Tom Quinn, said: "The people I've spoken to have said that the succession planning, as they call it, began even before Charles' diagnosis.

"I mean, he's the oldest Prince of Wales to become king in history, so succession planning had begun before Charles came to the throne simply because of the age issue."

He added that William isn't necessarily undergoing training for the top job, but that the palace is preparing William by giving him more of the sort of work that Charles would do.