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Prince Charles Drops In On Pub "The Times" June 14, 2000

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Jun 14, 2000, 3:00:00 AM6/14/00
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June 14 2000 BRITAIN


©
Carl Wright, the pub owner, said: "He thanked me for all the Union
Jacks. Actually, I put them up for the football"
Photograph: BEN GURR


Prince drops in to village pub

BY DOMINIC KENNEDY


THE Prince of Wales helped villagers to drown their sorrows about the
woes of rural life when he made an unexpected visit to a country pub.
At the bar of the busy Hawk and Partridge at Bloxham, Oxfordshire, he
discussed how farming was going through a bad time, learnt that the
village still had a post office but not a bank, and asked the publican
if he was a supporter of fox-hunting.

The Prince, who was visiting Bloxham to hear a church concert on
Saturday, saw that the pub was smothered with Union flags inside and
out. He stood at the bar in front of a display of cockles, mussels,
pork scratchings and pickled eggs, and requested a Scotch.

Sipping a large, straight Glenlivet, the Prince turned to Peter Smith,
56, whose herd of pedigree beef cattle has lost half its value in five
years. Mr Smith, who has 250 acres of pasture land, said: "He seemed
quite interested. He said, 'Farming isn't very good at the moment. It
has been a bad time'." The Prince also shook hands with Mr Smith's son
Benjamin, 16, and was introduced to Carl Wright, 61, the pub's owner.

Mr Wright's wife, Heather, said: "He touched on the fact that various
village shops were having to close." When he found that the village had
no bank, he asked: "I suppose you have to use a hole in the wall?" The
reply was: "No, we haven't even got one of those."

The Prince turned his attention to the display of horse brasses and
photographs of horses on the walls of the 16th century inn. Mr Wright
said that he owned racehorses and had once spoken with Queen Elizabeth
the Queen Mother when they owned rival horses in a race.

The Prince asked: "Do you prefer Flat or National Hunt?" Mr Wright
replied: "National Hunt." Prince Charles put both thumbs up and
said: "Me too. You must be pro-foxhunting." Mr Wright said: "Yes."

The publican recalled: "He thanked me for all the Union Jacks.
Actually, I put it up for the football."


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