Royal Reflection: Even Kings Face Challenges with Public Perception

After returning from his annual summer break at Balmoral, King Charles has been keeping busy with a full schedule of royal events, and while visiting Aberdeen, Scotland this week, he admitted that one duty keeps him on his toes.

The monarch has long been a proponent of sustainable initiatives such as clean energy, and while stopping by the newly opened headquarters of Great British Energy, he was asked to unveil an unusual paddle-style plaque in honor of his visit. However, King Charles admitted that he has a track record of mishaps in that department.

“Unveiling plaques can be a slightly hazardous occasion, which I have discovered to my cost on many occasions," he told the crowd.

Luckily, he didn't break the ornamental design at Great British Energy, but there are at least two times he's experienced plaque-related accidents this year.

Earlier this month, The King sent a plaque toppling onto the grass during the Victoria League's 125th Anniversary Garden Party, and in March, Charles hilariously dropped a wooden plaque while visiting a solar panel company called Oxford Photovoltaics, laughing and deeming the moment a "disaster."

While The King might have good reason to be wary of plaque unveilings, there's another member of the Royal Family who can't get enough of them. Prince Edward has a penchant for the dramatic when it comes to the otherwise dull moment, coming up with funny quips and over-the-top hand motions.

"This has taken years and years of practice," he told a crowd in 2018, per the Daily Express. Before pulling a curtain aside with flair, he added: "The other thing I want to warn you about before I do this is the unveiling of a plaque is not necessarily the most exciting thing that has happened in your lives. Therefore, I just want you to pretend that this is the most exciting thing that has happened."