As the King turns 76 today, BRIAN HOEY looks at some of his previous birthdays when celebrations were definitely NOT in order

As the King celebrates his birthday on November 14, alongside his wife, Queen Camilla, will he also perhaps reflect on what might have been. It could just as easily have been Diana as his Queen if his mother Queen Elizabeth II had had her way.

As heir to the throne at the time, Charles had to seek the permission of Her Majesty to marry, as all those in the line of succession had to. He might have followed the earlier example of his sister, Princess Anne, who when asked how difficult it was, replied: ‘Not half as difficult as asking permission to get divorced.’ Which they both were required to do at some time. 

These days, Anne is so far down the line that it isn’t necessary for her to ask anyone’s permission.

A royal birthday still attracts a lot of publicity, from newspapers and television, which is then lapped up by the public. It seems nearly everyone wants to know every detail of Royal Family life.

And if there is any spice in the story, so much the better. When Charles was still Prince of Wales, serving the longest apprenticeship ever by an heir to the throne (he was over 70 before he became monarch), he was allowed the comparative freedom that he lost the day he donned the crown.

Prince Charles turned 18 on the 14 November 1966 and was  taken at Balmoral Castle wearing the Balmoral tartan

Prince Charles was considered the most eligible and famous bachelor before he married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981

There was trouble on both asides. Five years after they married, Diana resumed a relationship with a former old boyfriend, James Hewit, in 1986 when this family photograph was taken

The couple undertook  a royal tour of Korea in November 1992 and shortly after John Major announced in the House of Commons that the couple were to separate

Charles was regarded as the most eligible and famous bachelor in the world and when he married Lady Diana Spencer, in July 1981, making her the Princess of Wales, and she became the most famous woman on the planet. 

But, as we now know, it wasn’t to last. Charles never stopped talking about Camilla Parker Bowles and his friendship with her, even when at last he married Diana. She accepted this, knowing that to object would place her at odds with the Royal Household, as well as against the most powerful family in the world.

On the day Charles and Diana married they became the most photographed couple ever.

However, there were problems almost from the beginning . And, contrary to the general belief, it wasn’t all Charles’s fault. There was trouble on both asides. Five years after they married, Diana resumed a relationship with a former old boyfriend, James Hewit, in 1986.

 Much later, Charles admitted that the love of his life had always been Camilla, and they began another affair. It would never end. To many people throughout the world, it remains one of the greatest love stories ever.

He said at the time that his relationship with Mrs Parker Powles was ‘non-negotiable’.

If there has ever been a year that Charles would describe as the worst in his life, it could well be 1992. His birthday that year was not a time for celebration. Perhaps relief was all he felt now that at last it was all over. This was when he and Diana finally separated.

When the divorce was finalised, the financial settlement was never revealed, as with all royal matters. But it was believed to be around £15million.

There had always been a great deal of speculation about what went wrong with the Waleses. Was it Charles never really having loved her? The massive age difference between them – he was 13 years older than Diana. Or maybe the difference in their upbringing. 

Charles had grown up used to the rigid discipline of Palace life and all it involved. With Diana, even though hers was an aristocratic background, there was a certain amount of informality in the Spencer family that was missing with the House of Windsor. She was a tactile, affectionate woman while Charles never really forgets who and what he is or was. 

The only bright light being that the way was now clear for him to marry Camilla at last, which he did on April 9, 2005, in a civil ceremony in Windsor Guildhall, followed by a blessing by the Archbishop of Canterbury at Windsor Castle. His mother, the Queen, did not attend the civil ceremony as she believed it would be inappropriate as the Head of the Church of England.

A few years earlier there was another tragedy that had caused Charles to try to forget the past. Diana was involved in a car crash in Paris in 1997, and died immediately.

Prince Charles and Prince Harry after the devastating news that Diana had died in a crash in Paris the previous night

There was international mourning for Diana after the crash and the same amount of derision and scorn, aimed at Charles who was blamed, unfairly

There was happiness for Prince Charles after marrying Camilla Parker Bowles in a Civil Ceremony at the Guildhall in Windsor

Charles has recently completed an arduous but wonderful tour of Australia and Samoa while continuing to recover from his cancer diagnosis

There was international mourning for her and the same amount of derision and scorn aimed at Charles who was blamed, unfairly, by many millions of men and women. All watched by a worldwide audience.

If there was one thing both Charles and Diana would be jointly proud of it was the fact that they produced two wonderful sons, William and Harry, though Harry, as a typical younger son, is causing certain problems at the moment.

They both love their father and understand the difficulties both parents faced in their early days.

William is working with his father, helping as much as possible and preparing for his own future role.

Anyway, things appear to have settled down for the Royal Family, at last. Charles is behaving impeccably as monarch and has recently completed an arduous tour of Australia while continuing to recover from his cancer diagnosis.

He deserves to enjoy this birthday, more than we know. He’s hard working. He never stops. Now is the time for him to relax, with his wife, and Queen, alongside him. And may we join with many more people, everywhere, in wishing him a Respectful Happy Birthday.