The Prince of Wales’s recent comments on GM food reopened the debate over whether he is fit to be king. But what else is he fit for? Paul Theroux has a suggestion. In his new book, Ghost Train to the Eastern Star, he reports an encounter he had in India with the Prince, parts of whose diary about the return of Hong Kong to the Chinese had just been made public. Theroux writes:

He had mocked the handover ceremony, called some of the Chinese notables ‘waxworks’, spoken of the Chinese president’s ‘propaganda speech’ and scorned the goose-stepping Chinese soldiers. He also complained of being stuck in club class, rather than first, on his way out: ‘Such is the end of empire, I sighed to myself.’
What this proved was that though he may never be crowned king… he could still make a decent living as a travel writer with such breezy generalisations.