What is your opinion of Frederik and Mary - Page 13

Noelle9982 · #**241** 01-12-2006, 05:56 PM

Although I don't believe any of this junk I'm reading about Mary's extravagant phone bill, let's pretend for a second it is true and we have proof to back it up...

So what?! Do you really think no other CP has ever had a large phone bill? Every one of us here has probably gone over our cell phone minutes for the month or spent extra money around the holidays to call friends and family who live a distance away. Come on. Granted the amount reportedly spent by Mary is a lot more than any of us has spent but it's all relative. She was living almost 14,000 miles away from friends and family and living as a princess in new, unfamiliar country. Again, I don't think any of this is true but if it were and this is the worst we can fault her for then I think she's doing a pretty darn good job!

Margrethe II · #**242** 01-12-2006, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fandesacs2003

ABOLUTELY, my comment was not towards Mary or the DRF, but a general consideration/reflexion about EVERY royal family.

Thank you for clarifying "F2003"...

"MII"

princess olga · #**243** 01-12-2006, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by angele

$16,300 on phone calls! my mistake
Royal wedding creates $4m debt

you know what, that $16,000 (or whatever the number) phone bill of Mary's does not say anything bad about her. If anything, it highlights that oversees phone calls made out of Denmark are way, way too expensive.

Does the Danish phone company have a monopoly on its local market or <what>?

To compare, I live in the States, and make regular phone calls to my various family members, who live all over the planet, including in Australia. I pay about 10 cents a minute for oversees calls.

But even if Mary pays as much for hers as I do, so what?! If anything, that's a cost that's totally justified in her position: her role is all about keeping up relationships, so if anything we should applaud the fact this girl picks up the phone seemingly quite often!

But as Warren said, let's get some facts: does anyone know what the presumed costs per minute would be for an overseas phone call from Denmark? (don't mean to get off topic on this one, but if we are to judge Mary's 'excessive phone bill', we should at least know what one phonecall would set you back in terms of costs, no?)

princess olga · #**244** 01-12-2006, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Noelle9982

Although I don't believe any of this junk I'm reading about Mary's extravagant phone bill, let's pretend for a second it is true and we have proof to back it up...

So what?! Do you really think no other CP has ever had a large phone bill? Every one of us here has probably gone over our cell phone minutes for the month or spent extra money around the holidays to call friends and family who live a distance away. Come on. Granted the amount reportedly spent by Mary is a lot more than any of us has spent but it's all relative. She was living almost 14,000 miles away from friends and family and living as a princess in new, unfamiliar country. Again, I don't think any of this is true but if it were and this is the worst we can fault her for then I think she's doing a pretty darn good job!

I am with you. As I said in my former post, if anything, a horrendously high phone bill should be part of Mary's job <requirements>! It is crucial for Mary to keep up relationships with folks, friends, family and whatnot, because later on in her capacity as queen she will need all the goodwill she can grab.

(Now, don't get me wrong: I don't think Royals can just go to town with their tax-payer-created expense accounts. When a few years back for example I kept on hearing about Willem Alexander's and Maxima's 10-plus vacations they supposedly took, without a clear and sound work ethic to compensate this, I did vocally (on this forum, that is!) disagree with that (in all fairness, these Dutch royals seem to have stepped up their work load, with impressive results I think!)--but phone calls and other means of communication are an exception I think)

Noelle9982 · #**245** 01-12-2006, 06:35 PM

Even if we know the cost per minute of a call from Denmark to Australia, we don't have any proof that the "16,300.00 telephone bill was comprised only of Mary's personal calls.

princess olga · #**246** 01-12-2006, 06:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Noelle9982

Even if we know the cost per minute of a call from Denmark to Australia, we don't have any proof that the "16,300.00 telephone bill was comprised only of Mary's personal calls.

very true, but at least we can deduce if she/or whomever made an extravagant amount of phone calls to down-under or whether it was a mere, say, 30 calls for example. I remember back in the early nineties, when I was living in the Netherlands and had a boyfriend in the US, phone calls were a steep 25 guilders a minute, which was a fortune to the student I was then. So perhaps phone calls are these days horribly expensive still in Denmark? Just curious..
and again, it's not like she used the 16,000 $ to purchase a new horse, or get acupuncture sessions or whatever!

Noelle9982 · #**247** 01-12-2006, 06:48 PM

I'm all for looking into it if someone wants to do the work but like you said, princess olga, it's not like she spent this money on frivolous things. She spent it on keeping in touch her family.

Also, just a comment on that article...
the author is somehow insinuating that because of Mary, all this money had to be spent. Regardless of who Frederik married, the Frederik VIII palace would have to have been renovated so it's not really Mary's fault any more than it would have been any other CPs fault.

In addition, I don't know one single bride who hasn't gone over-budget when planning a wedding. If the queen didn't have it to spend, she wouldn't have.

tabbitha · #**248** 01-12-2006, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UserDane

The expenses of the wedding of DK's Crown Prince ? Let me assure you that whether the name of CP Frederik's wife had been Mary, Maria, Katja, Thyra, Louise or whatever - there would have been expenses in connection with his wedding. Even though Mary was one of the two principal participants, these expenses are not due to her.

Had she not married Frederik, he would have been on honeymoon with whomever he had then married. Expenses the same; it was the wedding of the future king, that costs and there is nothing unusual in that.

Exactly right.It wasn't down to Fred and Mary how much the Wedding cost- it was out of their hands and as you said Userdane the BIG wedding would have gone ahead whoever fred married but he wanted Mary:)

**Mandy** · #**249** 01-12-2006, 06:49 PM

Since we are not sure that the phone bills are fact or fiction, I suggest we move on.

Mandy
Danish Forum Moderator

bertie5252003 · #**250** 01-13-2006, 12:39 AM

I really like Mary I think she appears very real. Naturally these people do not however live in the real world as do we, money is not the same for any of the royals we all chat about, monitor or think we have a handle on. So I guess whatever bothers us about any of these good people is only from the outside looking in.

Toledo · #**251** 01-14-2006, 02:06 AM

The title of the thread is:
What bothers you about Frederik and Mary?

Well, not much, they are young, happy and in love. They started a family and have a caring family that supports them on both sides of the planet. Who could ask for anything more? I forgot, they have a cute pet too, the dog given to Mary.
So what bothers me? Nothing, except that they don't get more attention from the international media as positive role models for future Royals. We hardly hear from them in the USA, the royalty here is Hollywood-based and our crown princes are Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. I would rather have more news on Fred and Mary than on celebrities of the moment. I'll rather read on Mary's charity work than on Sting and U2's Bono saving a swamp somewhere else.

crisiñaki · #**252** 01-14-2006, 03:31 AM

Now we know why you signed in the Royal Forums, Toledo

Toledo · #**253** 01-14-2006, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crisiñaki

Now we know why you signed in the Royal Forums, Toledo

Not too many places in the USA have news on Mary, so this forum is great to get those news links from overseas.

Jamerican · #**254** 01-14-2006, 03:42 PM

I just want to start off by saying this is a great board, and I hope to post often.

I'm a little torn regarding Mary. I'll start off with the things I think are cool.
she dresses well (for the most part), and I admire her ability to take on a role that I think, for all it's glamour, can be quite difficult at times.

However, I didn't much care for the numerous interviews and photoshoots she did. For one thing, at times she did not come off as sincere or particularly intelligent, which may not be the case in real life.

It has been said that for modern royalty to survive, it has to strike a balance between staying true to the past and adapting to the future. It has also been said as well that 'we cannot let daylight upon magic.' Photoshoots for fashion magazines, for me, smacks of celebrity, and I don't think that is what royalty should be about. You can promote fashion and your country without posing for Vogue. Diana single-handedly revitalized the British fashion industry, and she did not pose for her first official fashion cover until what, 1995?

I also thought that she and the palace agreed to such a lengthy tour of Australia too soon after being Crown Princess. I personally would have counseled her to wait a bit. What was the hurry?

I guess the past is the past, so we can't hold those things against her.. I'm just glad she isn't doing any more interviews.

semisquare · #**255** 01-14-2006, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Not too many places in the USA have news on Mary, so this forum is great to get those news links from overseas.

that is because she is not like princess diana and so she will not be in the news. infact i just heard about her trip to new york.
im sure we will hear about prince william's wife because his girlfriend is already in the news

Toledo · #**256** 01-15-2006, 02:16 AM

Jamerican, welcome to the Royal Forums! :) Thanks for sharing your opinion and we hope to see more of you.

Margrethe II · #**257** 01-15-2006, 03:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jamerican

I also thought that she and the palace agreed to such a lengthy tour of Australia too soon after being Crown Princess. I personally would have counseled her to wait a bit. What was the hurry?

Thats an interesting observation.

"MII"

Hotdog · #**258** 01-15-2006, 04:45 AM

I think the hurry to get the Australian tour was due to:

1. Striking while the iron was still hot.
There was a huge amount of publicity in Australia about their wedding so it was part "thanks for the attention and favourable press" and partly to do it before the public and media lost interest.

After all Royal families are just one big PR business for their nation aren't they if they no longer have any real power?

2. To get it over with before she started pumping out kids.

Hotdog

Scott · #**259** 01-15-2006, 05:22 AM

What bothers me about Frederik and Mary? The answer is very little because I do not know them personally nor am I ever likely to meet them. Therefore why should they bother me.

:)

From what I have seen since their engagement and marriage they are a popular young couple in their own Realm and they appear to be doing a good job in Denmark and on any overseas visits they have made. As the Queen is in good health will be able to:
1) concentrate on their marriage and form a good partnership for life
2) produce and raise their family and
3) have plenty time for Mary to acquire the skills she will need to perform her royal duties to perfection and thus find her "niche" in the Royal Family.
I actually think she has already been doing a great job.:) and I wish both Frederik and Mary a long and happy life together.

Scott