PRINCE William had to politely fend off the advances of a 96-year-old female admirer as he joked “you are making me blush”.
The duke showed no signs of stress amid the Martin Bashir BBC scandal as he joked and chatted with elderly residents of a care home in Edinburgh.
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The father-of-three described how “tiring” fatherhood was during lockdown and how difficult it is to get George, 7, out of shorts and into long trousers.
Residents at Queen’s Bay Lodge care home snacked on ice cream and sipped tea as they were treated to their royal visit.
But it was great-grandmother and ex-servicewoman Betty Magee, 96, who stole William’s attention.
As the duke took a seat at her table in a marquee in the grounds of the care home, she said: “It’s customary in these parts to give a lady a kiss on the cheek.”
William replied: “Oh you are sweet. You’ll make me blush.”
Betty persisted asking her prince to give her a peck as William laughed and covered his face in mock embarrassment.
He added: “When the rules relax more I will come back and give you a kiss on the cheek Betty.”
After speaking to other OAPs and their families he later returned to her table as his oldest admirer tried her luck again.
William said: “Betty, I don’t know who is flirting more, me or you.
“Talking to you makes me blush. Is there whisky in your tea Betty?
Afterwards Betty, with her granddaughter Kimberly Anderson, 38, said: “I wanted a kiss from a prince.
“He asked how old I was and I told him I had just had my 96th birthday and I just asked him for a kiss.
“He said he couldn’t and then I reached out and stroked his cheek.
“I could go for him in a good way. He is a bit of all right.
“He said he couldn’t give me a peck on the cheek because of Covid which was a shame.”
Betty, who has a great-grandchild and three grandchildren, moved into the care home last September.
She served in the Royal Air Force in the Second World War.
At another table during the light-hearted visit the duke described how he was looking forward to Kate Middleton arriving in Scotland on Monday for the rest of his tour.
He said: “Catherine is coming up and I’m very much looking forward to it.
Asked how his family coped during lockdown, he replied: “At the beginning it was quite tiring. They (children) just need a lot of running around.”
Margot MacKenzie, 81, care home resident showed William a photo of her grandson Finlay McKenzie, now 14, in a kilt.
She said: “I saw a photo the other day of George in long trousers.”
William replied: “George is at school now. He likes his shorts. He likes always to wear shorts and t-shirts and football shirts.”
He added: “It’s nice to feel the world is opening up again now the restrictions are slowly lifting. It feels like it is coming back to normal.”
Speaking to care home staff, who lost 10 residents to Covid-19 in the past 14-months, he said: “I worry about the staff here and what you all had to put up with. But it is good you are all here talking.”
Queen’s Bay Lodge in Edinburgh, a care home for older people run by the Church of Scotland’s Social Care Council, which operates under the name CrossReach.
Built in 1974, it provides round-the-clock residential care for 28 pensioners.
CrossReach was launched in June 2005.
It supports over 10,000 people in Scotland living in challenging situations, making it one of the country’s largest providers of social services.
Services include care for children and families as well as older people and help with alcoholism, drug and mental health problems, assistance for homeless people and support for those with special learning needs.
Although CrossReach is part of the Church of Scotland, its range of services are available to people of all faiths, or none at all.
Prince William is in Scotland after being appointed Lord High Commissioner of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
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