What are we paying senior royals for, if not to show up at presidential funerals? | Catherine Bennett

Prince Edward , 14th in line to the throne, attended Jimmy Carter's state funeral.

Charles should, putting grandma loyalty first , have sent a nervous-looking junior to meet five living presidents at a critical moment for UK interests: this is what happens to countries who upset a royal matriarch.

The king idolised his grandmother: “For me, she meant everything”.

Without knowing what advice William is receiving, or rejecting, it’s unclear if he has been careless enough to surround himself with flatterers.

Maybe none of his advisers another ex-diplomat arrived last year felt able to insist on the importance of attending work-related funerals.

Maybe they agreed that in the age of the hybrid workplace, a prince, of all people, should be allowed to reap the benefit? And why shouldn’t Edward , having kept his figure, also impress Trump ?.