A recent Burnaby NOW article about how The Crown's final season on Netflix references a 15-year-old Prince William's visit to Burnaby in 1998 at the height of 'Willsmania' resonated with one former local family.
Elizabeth Elwood emailed the NOW to say the story brought back memories of an amusing episode in her daughter's life.
Katie, a 14-year-old high school student in East Burnaby at the time, had begged her mom to have the day off to catch a glimpse of Prince Charles, the hunky Prince William and his little brother, Prince Harry, when they visited Burnaby South Secondary and the B.C. School for the Deaf on March 24, 1998.
But mom Elizabeth said, "No."
"Mobs" had been predicted, and Katie would never be able to get near the royals, she said.
Katie "sulkily" resigned herself to her mom's decision, but arrived home from school the day of the royal visit looking smug, according to Elizabeth's email.
"Nothing more was said, and I assumed I was forgiven for being the mean mother," she wrote. "However, when the two local papers were delivered, I realized why my daughter had looked so pleased with herself. There she was, all smiles, on the front page of both papers, along with the headline, 'Burnaby Teens Love the Prince.'"
Far from being contrite when her mother waved the evidence of her truancy in her face, Katie was "jubilant" and "pleased as punch that she'd been proved right."
"In spite of the crowds, she had succeeded in talking with all three royals," Elizabeth wrote. "Charles, she giggled, had a twinkle in his eye, probably because one of her friends had cheekily handed him a slip of paper with her phone number and asked him to give it to Prince William. Having chuckled and told them they were naughty girls, the future king moved on and left the two young princes to shake hands with and charm the girls."
Elizabeth said she and her husband maintained appropriately disapproving expressions in front of their daughter but had a good laugh later on.
"What a public way of getting caught skipping school," Elizabeth said.
Follow Cornelia Naylor on Twitter @CorNaylor
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