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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Graham Russell

‘I pledge myself to you’: what the papers said about King Charles’s speech

King Charles III Queen Elizabeth II George Mann Daily Express Daily Record
King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, view flowers and messages outside Buckingham Palace after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort, view flowers and messages outside Buckingham Palace after the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

King Charles III’s emotional speech to a nation in mourning resounded across Saturday’s front pages, which highlighted his tender language to his “dear mama” and his promise to serve the people in a similar vein to the Queen.

The Times used a wrap showing a contemplative Charles outside Buckingham Palace, and its front page inside pictured him in the Blue Drawing Room inside the palace, at a desk bearing a picture of his mother. The headline is “I pledge myself to you”.

The Guardian uses an image of Charles having a moment of quiet reflection and carries a line from Friday’s speech as its headline: “I shall endeavour to serve you with loyalty and love”. It carries a 40-page supplement inside, charting a royal life.

The Daily Mail carries a most emotional image of a tearful Charles making his address, which it described as “an exquisite and deeply personal tribute” to the Queen. Its headline is: “Tearful Charles’s tribute to his darling mama”.

Sombre hues dominate the Daily Mirror’s front page, which looks ahead at the heartwarming style of leadership Charles wishes to exert. Picturing him seated at his desk, the headline is “Our new King’s pledge to the nation … loyalty, respect, love”.

The Daily Telegraph looks at Charles’s gratitude to his mother and his promise to follow her example during his reign. “To my darling Mama, thank you” is the headline. Pointers to comment pieces dominate the bottom half, describing everything from personal encounters with King Charles III and Queen Elizabeth II to how the Queen sought to be good, rather than the “queen of hearts”.

The i weekend says simply “My darling Mama” in its headline and features Charles giving a royal wave, with Camilla, now Queen Consort, behind him.

The Sun continues to use a rich purple hue on its front, and has placed “God save the king” under its logo. Its wrap front page shows Charles looking admiringly at his mother, with the headline “to my darling Mama, thank you”. Its wrap highlights three key quotes from Friday’s speech: first, one about his love for wife Camilla, who is now Queen Consort; second, William and Catherine becoming Prince and Princess of Wales; and last, his love for Harry and Meghan.

The FT weekend gives Charles a full-width image, showing him engaging with well-wishers outside Buckingham Palace, and the headline: “I shall endeavour to serve with loyalty, respect and love”. A dispatch at the bottom of the page describes the scenes outside the palace as dignified, with a crowd drawn from all walks of life. “These are the days that Britain does well, when the country shakes off its self-doubt and pulls itself to attention,” write Henry Mance and Jennifer Williams.

The Daily Express shows a slightly red-eyed Charles during his speech and its headline is the Hamlet quote he used in his message to his mother: “May ‘flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest’”.

The Daily Record highlights Charles’s principles of “loyalty, respect and love” and also features an image of the Queen in the bloom of youth for its pullout.

The National gives its front page to a child adding a floral tribute to the many already placed on the ground, saying in its headline “Scotland pays its tributes”.

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