FILE PHOTO: Britain's Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, along with other members of the British royal family, watch as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team Red Arrows performs a flypast during Trooping the Colour parade in London, Britain June 8, 2019. (Photo: REUTERS/Hannah Mckay/File Photo)
Sophie Winkleman, the wife of Lord Frederick Windsor who is Prince Charles' cousin, has some things to say about the effects of the coronavirus lockdown on children and families. The royal, who recently became the patron of The Children's Surgery Foundation, said that not everyone is coping well and she is especially not the type to embrace doing video calls.
As most members of the royal family have been resigned to Zoom, FaceTime or Skype, because in-person engagements have been discouraged to prevent the spread of the virus, Sophie told Tatler that she cannot bear this technology. The part-time TV actress said that she doesn't love the fuzziness of video calls or the distraction of looking at the screen. She still prefers a good, old-fashioned phone call more than anything, adding that she "really, really don't like" video conferencing.
Sophie, whose royal name is Lady Frederick Windsor, also said that she's not fully okay with the idea of homeschooling. One of her children goes to the same school as Prince George and Princess Charlotte, at Thomas's Battersea, which shifted to homeschool lessons at the start of the coronavirus lockdown.
She said that not all parents are capable of sitting and guiding their kids via online learning, especially if they do not have the physical and financial means to do this. Thus, she hopes that "all schools would open" in the U.K. soon to help ease this burden from parents.
One of the things she looks forward to when things normalize is to ride buses and go to theaters. She said that she relishes in this "magical form of escapism" since she was a little girl and sadly, this cannot be replicated in an online setting.
Meanwhile, those close to the royal family home that Sophie's new patronage would be the first of many, especially in the absence of Prince Harry and Meghan, according to Daily Mail. However, a friend of the royal cousin said that Sophie isn't keen on taking on more royal duties despite her new responsibility.
Sophie has been married to Lord Frederick since 2009 and the royal family were all in attendance, including the Queen. She has continued with acting even after her marriage to the royal, albeit in small roles only. She was recently in the period historical drama series Sandinton for a guest spot.
