Prince William may be seen as a hands-on husband and father, but one royal commentator has argued that his approach to official duties suggests the Prince of Wales is “workshy.”
In comments to the Daily Mail, royal author Norman Baker cited figures showing that between January 1 and June 15 this year, William, 43, carried out 57 engagements. By comparison, his father King Charles, 77, completed 76, while Princess Anne topped the list with 100 appearances.
Baker, who wrote And What Do You Do? What the Royal Family Don’t Want You to Know, a critical 2019 examination of royal finances, claimed: “If you are looking for a royal to cut a ribbon, you are unlikely to secure the attendance of Prince William.”
He argued the pattern is not recent, adding: “For 2024, Anne clocked up 474 public duties and Charles 372 – both more than one a day. William trailed in well behind with just 166 – less than one every two days.
“William has also been noticeably absent from royal events. It did not go unnoticed that when the family turned out in force for the traditional Easter service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor in 2025, the only senior royals missing were William and Kate.
“We might have expected William to represent the royals at events like the funeral for US president Jimmy Carter, given his father’s health ruled out transatlantic travel.
“It is rumoured that Charles ordered him to go, but he refused as it was Kate’s 43rd birthday. The nondescript Prince Edward, 14th in line to the throne, was dispatched instead.”
Baker continued: “William has stated firmly that his family must come first, and while that is laudable in some ways, is it really possible for the heir to the throne to absent himself from royal duties as he does?”
When it comes to carrying out royal duties, the Prince of Wales (pictured at the Order of the Garter service this month) is ‘workshy’, royal expert Norman Baker has claimed.
Critics Question William’s Priorities
‘And actually, is it even true? Since taking over the Duchy of Cornwall from Charles, William has found plenty of time to get into the micro-management of the Duchy.
‘He generates phone calls, texts and WhatsApp messages to Duchy staff on almost a daily basis, even bombarding them at weekends. He insists on receiving a weekly report from the Duchy’s secretary.
‘The public relations spin coming out of the Duchy would have you believe that his close interest is all altruistic, about making the world a better place.
‘It is interesting that one of his first decisions was to create an investment committee to boost profits for the Duchy and therefore for himself.
‘His appointments to the Board have been dominated by property developers and investment bankers.
‘Workshy William? Yes when it comes to undertaking royal duties. But no when it comes to adding to his already bulging bank account.’
It comes after experts told the New York Times in 2025 of Prince William’s ‘workshy’ nature.
Royal historian Ed Owens told the newspaper that William ‘has sometimes been seen as workshy’ but was now ‘gravitating toward bigger, more media-friendly events’.
Pictured: King Charles and Prince William watching the RAF flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace after attending Trooping The Colour 2026.
William Remains America’s Most Popular Living Royal
The commentator added that Charles has ’embraced his duties with a zeal that royal watchers say is either evidence of a robust recovery or the mark of a man who knows he has limited time’.
Around a similar time that the article was published, a YouGov study for The Times found 56 per cent of US adults have a positive view of Harry, while 21 per cent have a negative opinion.
William, meanwhile, has a 63 per cent positivity rating in America and 10 per cent negative, which puts him in first place among living royals.
The most popular royal overall was William and Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana, who died in 1997, with a 79 per cent positive rating and 4 per cent negative.
The late Queen Elizabeth II, who died in 2022, came second, with a 73 per cent positive and 8 per cent negative ranking. William was in third overall and Harry fourth.
Prince Harry Tops Royal Popularity Poll in America
Harry, who moved to the US with his wife, Meghan Markle, in 2020 after stepping down as a senior royal, was more popular among Americans than his sister-in-law Kate.
The Princess of Wales has a 49 per cent positive rating and 6 per cent negative, while the King’s ratings were 48 per cent positive and 27 per cent negative.
But William, Harry, Kate and Charles were all more popular than Meghan, the only US citizen on the list, whose ratings were 41 per cent positive and 25 per cent negative.
Even less popular than Meghan were Princess Anne (38 per cent positive; 6 per cent negative) and Prince Edward (38 per cent positive; 10 per cent negative).
Queen Camilla, meanwhile, was at joint-bottom in the table with the disgraced Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, scoring 26 per cent positive and 33 per cent negative ratings.
Watch: How Prince Harry ‘SMASHED’ King Charles’s trust | Palace Confidential LIVE in London
