Royal baby begins a life in the public eye

With a grand arrival that is attracting global interest, the new heir to the British throne is destined to a lifetime in the public eye.

Associate Professor Steve Matthewman, of Auckland University, says privacy will be hard to come by for the firstborn of Prince William and his wife, Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge.

"Privacy is a vanishing concept for everyone ... A life in the spotlight is what this child is destined to have, particularly in a world of social media and mobile phones."

Professor Matthewman, who is at the university's School of Sociology, says the recent past has seen a rise in the popularity of the royal family.

"In the last decade there has been a resurgence of the royals. Almost a rebranding of the royal family, post-Diana.

"Basically, the further away from the throne, the more privacy and leeway they would have ... Obviously in this case the child will have a life in the public eye as the first child to Diana's son."

He believes a lack of privacy in early development stages could affect the child's personality.

"One of the common things sociologists say is, 'How we think about ourselves is strongly influenced by what others think about us.'

"This will definitely have an impact [on the child] as not all of us have millions of people scrutinising and photographing our every move.

"The child will need to learn to disengage with these views and choose to ignore them."

Dr Sean Palmer, chairman of Monarchy New Zealand, says the child's life will be recorded as if every milestone is a historic occasion.

"Every single moment of their lives are recorded and played back to the world. They will be sheltered for the first 20 years, but if they get in trouble we will know about it."

Psychologist Sara Chatwin says that unlike celebrity children, a royal child is born with a raft of pressures.

"A royal baby is not like an actress or actor's child, where fame and fortune can go ... a royal will always be in the spotlight as they inherit their positions."

... a life that will be lived 'in the service of NZ'

Few Kiwis can forget when Prince William took some of his first baby steps on the lawn of Auckland's Government House. Now, 30 years later, many will be watching the Prince present his firstborn to the world.

The birth of the first child to Prince William and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, would mark the continuation of a long NZ connection with the royal family, said Monarchy New Zealand chairman Sean Palmer.

"Many remember the birth of William," he said. "So this is coming the full circle and in 30 years time we will see it come the full circle again.

"In many ways the monarch is more than just a head of state. They live their entire lives in the service of New Zealand ... We witness their lives from beginning to end."

Dr Palmer, who has a PhD on the role of monarchy in New Zealand, said the global hype surrounding the royal birth will provide a great service here.

"There are real tangible benefits ... The monarch's very presence is an assistance to our industry," he said. "The monarch draws great attention to artists and culture, which is really good for New Zealand."

He said New Zealand would use the birth to draw attention to the country.

"William took some of his first steps on the grounds of Government House at the age of nine months. That was good publicity for New Zealand because they [the royal family] shared the spotlight that was always on them on to us."

The baby would have a deep relationship with New Zealand.

"This baby will be raised to believe it is their responsibility to serve the 16 Commonwealth countries and will grow up in a family that sees New Zealand as significant."

Dr Palmer said despite opposition, the monarch would always play a significant role in NZ society. "New Zealand's monarchy is an incredibly important part of our constitution and is deeply intertwined to many facets of our society."

Dr Palmer urged New Zealanders to donate to Plunket to celebrate the royal arrival.