SUPPORT OUR JOURNALISM: Please consider donating to keep our website running and free for all - thank you!

Prince & Princess of Wales

William shares ice cream with elderly care home residents

The Duke of Cambridge enjoyed ice cream and flirtations with a nonagenarian during a visit to Queens Bay Lodge in Edinburgh on Sunday afternoon.

The Prince, who is visiting Scotland this week to coincide with his appointment as Lord High Commissioner of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, was visiting with care home residents and their families supported by the Church of Scotland’s Social Care Council, Crossreach.

William first met with 96-year-old Betty Magee and her great-granddaughter Kimberly. Upon meeting him, she told William: “It’s customary in these parts to give a lady a kiss on the cheek.”

Unfortunately for Betty, William declined due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, saying, “Oh, you are sweet. You’ll make me blush,” and, “When the rules relax more, I will come back and give you a kiss on the cheek, Betty.”

Betty’s flirtations caught so much notice that even one of the staff jokingly commented for William to stop flirting with her residents. He replied, “I’m trying not to. I’m not sure who’s flirting more!”

The Duke of Cambridge spoke with other residents, including 81-year-old Margot MacKenzie, who showed him a picture of her grandson in a kilt. She told William how she’d seen a photo of Prince George in long trousers the other day, to which William replied: “George is at school now. He likes his shorts. He likes always to wear shorts and t-shirts and football shirts.”

Of the lockdown last year, Prince William admitted that isolating at home had been ‘tiring’ at first, because Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis “just need a lot of running around.”

He also revealed his excitement for Kate to join him, saying: “I’m very much looking forward to her joining the royal visit on Monday.” The couple will carry out engagements in Edinburgh, Fife, and Orkney.

William spoke with the staff at Queens Bay Lodge as well, saying: “I worry about the staff here and what you all had to put up with. But it is good you are all here talking.” The home lost ten residents during the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s nice to feel the world is opening up again now the restrictions are slowly lifting,” he added. “It feels like it is coming back to normal.”

Before leaving, the Duke circled back to Betty, telling her, “Talking to you makes me blush. Is there whisky in your tea Betty?”

Betty told reporters afterwards: “I wanted a kiss from a prince. He asked how old I was and I told him I had just had my 96th birthday, and I just asked him for a kiss.

“He said he couldn’t and then I reached out and stroked his cheek. I could go for him in a good way. He is a bit of all right. He said he couldn’t give me a peck on the cheek because of COVID which was a shame.”

Crossreach, the organisation that oversees Queens Bay Lodge, supports over 10,000 people in Scotland, making it one of the largest social services providers in the country. Though it is affiliated with the Church of Scotland, Crossreach supports people across a variety of faiths and those who don’t practice religion.  

About author

Jess Ilse is the Assistant Editor at Royal Central. She specialises in the British, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Royal Families and has been following royalty since Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Jess has provided commentary for media outlets in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Jess works in communications and her debut novel THE MAJESTIC SISTERS will publish in Fall 2024.