This morning, at about half past eleven, the Prince of Wales walked out of St James’s Palace and onto The Mall, where the traffic had been ordered to a halt so that he could play a game of cricket for charity.
Yes, The Mall itself had been turned at William’s behest, into a cricket pitch. Waiting for him were Joe Root, the England captain, Brian Lara, Sourav Ganguly and Ajinkya Rahane, assembled to promote next month’s Earthshot Prize in Mumbai. William batted (Ganguly’s verdict: “He batted alright”), bowled several balls, posed for the team photograph, and then wandered over to the St James’s Park side to shake hands and shoot selfies with tourists.