King Charles' former gardener says one comment 'showed his true colours'

Edinburgh Live

9 hours ago

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King Charles III's former gardener has spilled the beans on what it was really like to work for the monarch. Jack Stooks, who spent 21 years tending to the gardens of Highgrove House, the residence of King Charles and Queen Camilla, opened up about his experiences.
Jack was responsible for sculpting the landscape garden on the Royal estate until he left in 2024. He expressed his surprise at the "normality" of the King and his hands-on approach to gardening.
Initially finding it "quite odd" to be directed by the King himself, Jack grew to appreciate the monarch's involvement. "He was very much on the ball all the time. If he came home at the weekend, he would be out in the garden checking what's been done, what hasn't been done," Jack revealed.
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According to Jack, a typical comment from Charles on a Monday morning demonstrated his genuine engagement with the garden's upkeep. He says one comment showed the Kings true feelings.
"He would be like, 'This needs doing, that needs doing'," Jack recalled, appreciating the King's attention to detail.
The sense of satisfaction among the gardening team was palpable when they knew their efforts were being noticed and enjoyed by the King. "He was interested in the garden he knew what was going on. So, we all had the sense of satisfaction that we would get something right and know that it was actually being enjoyed and admired by the person who owns it.", reports OK!.
Throughout his tenure, Jack not only worked closely with Charles but also encountered other royals including Queen Camilla, Prince William and Princess Kate, as well as Prince Harry.
In the Netflix series featuring Harry and Meghan, Meghan expressed her astonishment at the consistent "formality" within the Royal family.
Reflecting on her initial meetings with William and Kate, she commented, "I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside,".
She shared her expectation of a less formal personal interaction with the royals, saying, "[I thought there would be] a forward-facing way of being, and then you close the door and go, 'You can relax now', but that formality carries over on both sides. And that was surprising to me."
Nevertheless, according to Jack, who represented Prime Casino, the royals, including Charles, are more "normal" than they seem.
Jack asserted: "I think for me it's just the normality of how they are as people, and, you know, I think when people are looking in from outside they go, 'Oh why do we have to give them our little bit of money every year? We shouldn't have to do that, how dare they, he's not our King, he is not this, he's not that', but the amount of work they do for the country is just immense."
He praised the King, referring to him as a "trooper" for his dedication to duty throughout his cancer struggle.
"You see the amount of work he's still doing and he's just not giving up," Jack continued. "He could just say, you know, 'I'm ill, I can't do this' and the country will go. Okay, fine But he's like no, I've got a sense of duty.
"He just forces himself to carry on and carry on, and it's amazing to see that and see how they are as people for that. Camilla as well, the Queen, she could step back and not do that much. But again, you know, there she is supporting him all the time."