A few weeks ago I asked everyone on Instagram to send in questions for Saad Salman, founder and editor of The Royal Watcher. After weeks of planning and organising, I’m pleased to announce that his answers are finally here! I hope you enjoy reading them just as much as I did!
Question 1: What do you think to Charles as king?
I really admire King Charles and his record as Prince of Wales is quite admirable, especially his work on sustainability, interfaith dialogue, and youth empowerment through the Prince’s Trust.
As King, he has been under different pressures and while I admire the way the handover was dealt with, there have been some (lack of) ceremonial aspects that have been a disappointment, especially after having dreamt of the splendour of the Coronation for much of my life.
Ultimately, I think King Charles is the perfect person for the role of Sovereign. His training and his record make him a very admirable leader, but the current economic and societal situation (as well as family issues) have led to the first year of his reign being much more chaotic than expected.
Question 2: Have you ever met any royals?
My favourite meeting has been with HM The Queen of Malaysia, but I have also met the Princess of Wales and most of the Scandinavian Royals, as well as seeing quite a lot of British and Foreign Royals on my recent visits to London and Denmark in the past few months.
Question 3: How long have you followed the royal family and what started your interest?
I have been following Royal Families since around 2013 and started The Royal Watcher in 2016. I come from an aristocratic background and grew up around spectacular jewellery and grand events so naturally that was what first attracted me to Royalty.
Question 4: Do you prefer past or present royals?
I prefer past royals since they had such fascinating lives and connections to each other, while also living in times where they gave me lots of talk about (in terms of jewels and events). However, current royals provide such a nice sense of continuity, and when they do things right (turn up in full Gala), I love covering them.
Question 5: What tips would you give someone that wants to start a career as a royal watcher?
Research a lot and find your niche. The best way to make a career out of this is do something unique and do it well. Also, give yourself time, you will develop into what makes you special and that will ultimately make you well known much more than pursuing fame and views from the start.
Question 6: What’s the most interesting thing you’ve written about/ reported on?
One of my most notable discoveries was back in 2018, when I spotted the Duchess of Sussex wearing Princess Diana’s Butterfly Earrings and was the first to make it public. It is what got me a role at ELLE.
Question 7: How do you see the monarchy changing over the next few years?
The last few years have been a period of great change in the Royal Family and the next few years will be a return to normalcy as there are no major occasions on the horizon. I suspect we will see the King and Queen begin to reduce their workload in a few years while the Prince and Princess of Wales will taken on a bigger role and extended members of the Royal Family go into retirement. However, I would not expect the Wales children to take on royal duties until they are in their late 20s so we should not expect too much change.
Question 8: What’s your favourite royal residence?
Windsor Castle. It has such a fascinating mix of Architectural styles and is the most regal building. A fitting seat of the Monarchy.
I also really enjoyed visiting Fredensbourg Palace in Denmark, and it seems to have been a really idyllic place to live. No wonder the ‘Royal Mob’ gathered there for decades.
Question 9: Who is your favourite current royal and why?
I admire the working members of the British Royal Family and quite a lot of the foreign royals, but my favourite has to be my friend, Her Majesty The Queen of Malaysia, who is the most fascinating figure and a true Queen in every sense.
Question 10: Why did you start your page about royals?
I began The Royal Watcher on the night before my final exam when I was in School, after having spent a lot of time reading similar website but making my own observations and discoveries which I wanted to share as well.
Question 11: What else are you interested in besides the royal family?
I really enjoy art, architecture, fashion and cuisine, which ties into why I decided to pursue a degree in Art History.
Question 12: Do you think Beatrice and Eugenie deserve more credit?
I admire Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie and do think they they do deserve more credit. As the Royal Family shrinks, I can see them being called for more representational duties (attending Receptions, Banquets, Services, etc) without taking on the other roles of being working royals.
Question 13: Why has Charles made the monarchy smaller?
There was decades of public polling and demand. The UK has one of the largest working Royal Families, which was necessary in the age of empire but due to the age of many of the current working royals, it seems that is no longer a possibility. In most other monarchies, duties are carried out by the Monarch and Consort, the Heir and their Spouse and usually one other member of the extended Royal Family (usually a parent or sibling of the Monarch), and thus the cost to maintain such a large working royal family seems hard to justify, no matter the vast amount of engagements they cover.
Question 14: Do you run your page full time or do you work another job?
The Royal Watcher is my full-time job. I started the website while I was in School and by the time I graduated University, it had become my full-time occupation.
Question 15: What are your opinions on King Edward VIII?
My main thoughts are regarding an issue that continues to plague royals to this day. That they believed they possessed an innate personal quality that made them so special rather than understanding that their fame and popularity only came because of their link to the Monarchy. That ultimately proved to be their biggest downfall.
Question 16: What did Queen Elizabeth die from?
The Queen passed from old age, but an unforgettable experience I have was that I was inside Buckingham Palace when the Queen passed away, and checked over my long pre-written article while sitting in the Palace gardens. Such a surreal day, which I will never forget.
Needs to Question 17: Would you ever think about writing a book about royalty?
I would love to write a book about the Jewels of Royal Families across the world. It would be the project of a lifetime and while it seems like a faraway fantasy now, I think through my research, I am slowly making progress on that dream.
I’d like to say a huge thank you to Saad for joining me with this Q&A. You can read more from The Royal Watcher over on instagram. You can also had over to royalwatcherblog.com for more information and posts! I hope you have enjoyed todays blog. Please feel free to leave any questions in the comments section below or message me on Instagram and I will do my best to help. You can also support my research by visiting and subscribing to my Ko-fi page. Don’t forget, you can also subscribe to by blog for email updates about new blogs! Thank you again, Shannon x
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