King Charles's hilariously formal style of step-grandparenting is actually so sweet

King Charles's style of step-grandparenting has been revealed by Sara Parker Bowles, the ex-wife of Tom Parker Bowles, and the former daughter-in-law of Queen Camilla.

Before she married King Charles III, Queen Camilla was married to Andrew Parker Bowles, with whom she had two children named Tom and Laura. Tom went on to marry Sara Buys and the couple had two children named Lola and Freddy. Although the couple's divorce was finalised in 2022, the two still co-parent their teenage children. In an interview with the Daily Mail about her new business, Sara opened up about her relationship with her former mother-in-law, and how Queen Camilla's grandchildren are still incredibly close with their royal granny and step-grandfather.

Our King: Charles III: The Man and the Monarch Revealed by Robert Jobson | £9.23 at Amazon

Released ahead of His Majesty's coronation, royal author Robert Jobson reflects upon King Charles as both a man and as Britain's monarch. He considers his motivations, driving passions and how his values will go on to influence his approach to his reign.

View Deal

In the interview, Sara revealed that King Charles's style of step-grandparenting is rather sweet as he has taken a formal approach to ensuring that he makes room in his life for his step-grandchildren. Sara explained that she received an email from the King's secretary just before her eldest daughter's birthday. The email was rather formal as it was not only sent on behalf of the monarch by his PA, but the assistant also decided to refer to His Majesty as the King, rather than using a more familiar title for this personal email.

"It said the King would like to know what Lola wants for her birthday. It felt medieval, like something out of a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale. I thought, 'I’m never going to get used to this,'" Sara said. While it may be rather formal, this was a sweet gesture from the King who wanted to ensure he got the youngster something she would like.

Sara revealed that since her children's grandmother has become the Queen, there have been some adjustments within their family. "It was definitely surreal that she’s now Queen. It makes things different. It’s going to be something hard for us to manage," she said. "It probably helps our kids are the age they are where they just don’t care. That’s refreshing and that irreverence helps you keep things in perspective."

Sara added that her ex-husband was also 'worried' about his mother becoming the Queen. "Nobody who knows Camilla ever says a bad word about her because she is absolutely lovely but it was relatively recently - in the past eight years - since she’s been working so much that suddenly there was a seismic shift," Sara said. "Now, people love her. Tom was worried when the Queen died that it would happen all over again, but she’s completely accepted."

Sara concluded that the Queen is an excellent grandmother and said that her family always comes first despite her responsibility to the crown. "She’s a really good granny, very hands-on and she’s never been anything but nice to me. If Tom and I are arguing, it’s between us. The long-term relationship between her and her grandchildren is what’s important and that’s never changed," Sara concluded.