Dame Susan Devoy: Prince William and NZ

Last night, friends celebrated their wedding anniversary by inviting a group over to mark the royal wedding.
We were instructed to come in formal bridal attire.
The lucky few came dressed in their original wedding attire but mother nature had been cruel to some over the years so, despite the greatest intentions to fit into wedding gowns that were designed more than 20 years ago, some were left having to come as maids of honour, bridesmaids or even mothers of the bride.
It was a hilarious conglomerate of twinsets, pearls and tiaras.
It would have been optimistic for me to squeeze into my Patrick Steele-designed meringue of tulle, however my mother put paid to that, when late on my wedding night she brushed past me, cigarette in hand and, in a blink of an eye, that tulle sleeve reminiscent of a butterfly's wing disintegrated into oblivion.
Such is the rich tapestry of life that we all have different views on the monarchy but, regardless of whether you are a monarchist or a republican, this royal wedding has been a welcome distraction from all the usual gloom and doom of recent months.
I'm sure Prince William's recent visit to New Zealand and the empathy he displayed to the families of victims from the Christchurch earthquake and the Pike River mining tragedy would have endeared himself to many here at home.
I will always remember his words. "My grandmother once said that grief is the price we pay for love. Here, today, we love and we grieve," he intoned, as many in the crowd wept unashamedly.
Perhaps we see a new breed of royals more in touch with the common people and less dysfunctional and scandalous as those gone before.
However that won't be as interesting or as newsworthy.
I wouldn't exactly fit the definition of a monarchist.
But in saying that I just love the pomp and pageantry and no one in the world does that better than the Brits, especially on the occasions of royal weddings.
The sea of Union Jacks lining the landmarks of London was a sight to behold. I simply can't imagine us unassuming Kiwis ever emulating that sort of patriotism, especially over a wedding.
The newly-weds are just what the doctor ordered and, undoubtedly, Buckingham Palace will be delighted that this handsome couple will portray the family in a much more positive light than the Duchess of York and others who have blighted their reputations.
What we saw last night was the future King and Queen.
Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, is 85 this year and shows no sign of wanting to abdicate in favour of Prince Charles, 62, who has been in training for the job forever.
In the shifting tides of public opinion, a recent poll suggests that one in three Britons wants the Queen to abdicate within two years, making way not for Charles and Camilla, but for William and Kate, deemed, said the poll, to be more "suited to the times".
William is heir to the oldest, most successful and stable royal house in Europe.
He will probably inherit a kingdom whose people are less reverential and deferential to the monarchy.
People who are tired of the dysfunctions and dramas surrounding the House of Windsor: the divorces, the taxpayer-funded Civil List, through which the Queen receives £7.9 million a year for official duties.
I hope that William Wales as he is known and Catherine can change that or at least save the Windsors.
Let's pray their lives are full of joyful family occasions, world tours and official duties and a trip down under for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
Long live the King.