Safe, Close and Prestigious: Britain’s Prince George, 13, Starts at Eton College

Prince George will begin at Eton College next week, following in the footsteps of his father, Prince William. The immediate question is whether his parents and the prestigious boarding school will allow the press to attend his first day.

The Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Catherine, have guarded their children’s privacy during previous school transitions. When George began at Thomas’s Battersea in London in 2017, only one television camera and one photographer were allowed access. The photographer was Chris Jackson, a familiar figure to the family. George’s mother did not attend that occasion because she was pregnant and suffering from severe morning sickness.

The family later moved from Kensington Palace to Windsor in 2022, prompting George, Charlotte and Louis to transfer to Lambrook School. Again, one cameraman and one photographer were admitted, on the condition that the children could continue their studies without disruption. Media organizations were asked not to buy or publish photographs of the children without palace approval, an arrangement that largely worked.

A similar approach is expected at Eton, with occasional images from annual events taken by Catherine or an approved photographer. But privacy is increasingly difficult to enforce. A fellow pupil, tourist or paparazzo near the school gates can take a photograph or video on a smartphone, upload it quickly and release it online without context.

The article contrasts George’s expected arrival with William’s start at Eton in 1995, when photographers and television crews recorded his entrance with Charles, Diana and his brother Harry. A three-row platform was built once to give the press a clear view. The media environment has since changed, and George’s parents are expected to seek a much more controlled beginning.

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Very cozy and idyllic, but a wall of 60 members of the press is quite intimidating.