Popularity of the Royal Family in Norway

[Katrianna]

Mette-Marit has been a favorite of mine since day one. I get the impession that one could sit down and talk to her and she would be completely down-to-earth with that person even a "commoner". I admired her because at her prewedding interview she brought up her past life and dealt with it in front of the nation and I believe she was sincere. At the wedding the Bishop stated she had the chance at a new start to her life, and I believe she's proved it. As for her wardrobe, I wonder if the choice of such conservative outfits is on purpose to deflect criticism if she wore daring outfits that they reflect her "wild past".

 

[crisiñaki]

As for her wardrobe, I wonder if the choice of such conservative outfits is on purpose to deflect criticism if she wore daring outfits that they reflect her "wild past".

Maybe that's the reason and besides with Märtha Louise choice of outfits, the NRF has more than enough color in the house

 

[soCal girl]

Maybe that's the reason and besides with Märtha Louise choice of outfits, the NRF has more than enough color in the house

Your posts crack me up crisinaki . Yes, Martha Louise has enough color in that house for the both of them . Sometimes I wish the two would swap color schemes for their outfits . MM is beautiful and also has a beautiful heart. She's brought three lovely children into this world and let's face it; her crown princess days have been filled with unfortunate events. While she may not be as popular as other crown princesses, I'm sure she's not crying over that. As someone said, her circumstances were very unique when she came into the royal family.

 

[Avalon]

I love Crown Princess Mette-Marit very much. She is probably one of my favourite princesses ever.
I am not norwegian and I have never been to Norway, so I can't really say what they feel about their princess, but I personally find it hard to believe that they don't love her for

1. Being an excellent mother to their future Queen, Ingrid Alexandra and her borthere, Marius and Sverre
2. Being an excellent consort for Crown Prince Haakon
3. Performing excellently ever since she married Prince Haakon
4. Never changing or adapting, she's just who she is, no pretence.

 

[HRH Kerry]

An old article from Aftenposten about the incident...

Valhalla,

Thanks for posting the article. Like I said earlier, I had never seen the pics of the Prince after the interview. Oh my God! I had no idea that it was that bad. I even feel bad for the German tv crew now that I have read the article. Some of them were even burned and their words seemed sincere. JMO.

 

[xtan]

of all the princess, she is the quietest... and has the least profile

 

[norge]

There is actually a video of the entire 65 minute interview floating around somewhere on the net...I'll try to find it. It's quite good.

 

[Smilla]

There is actually a video of the entire 65 minute interview floating around somewhere on the net...I'll try to find it. It's quite good.

Oh, I hope you can find it - I never manged to, although I tried.

 

[catango]

I'm not very fan of MM, But She seems to be too down to earth, and that is what a country need in a Princess, a person who knows what the life is about.

 

[norge]

Oh, I hope you can find it - I never manged to, although I tried.

here's the link, you can find the interview here.

http://www3.nrk.no/pluss/bryllupet/lyd_og_bilde/1243720.html

http://www.nrk.no/dynasx?p_lenke_id=133334&p_artikkel_id=&mswmext=.asx

 

[sm1939]

thanks for posting that Interview , its fab

 

[Lakshmi]

I saw video of MM first time and she is so natural and graceful. She really appears down to earth, next door girl.

 

[lizz70]

M-M is naturally beautiful and unlike other royal ladies who we could mention, she is never plastered in make up inches think, has never had cosmetic procedures and spends her time raising her children herself instead of fobbing them off on nannies while they jetset round the world and sit for ubiquitous photo shoots. Maybe these other ladies need all the primping and preening to look good but M-M still looks lovely without scrap of makeup.

 

[sm1939]

total agree with you Lizz70

 

[Little_star]

I have no idea whether Mette-Marit is popular or not in Norway but she seems quite down-to-earth. She seems happy with her gorgeous husband and cute kiddies which is the main thing, hence the fact that most of the time she always looks very "normal". Even at formal occasions she doesn't tend to be very glitzy and glam, just an ordinary woman in a nice frock. I can't say I'd ever call her beautiful, striking maybe because she has the Nordic blonde look.

I've always had the impression that she's more interested in staying out of the spotlight and just being herself and raising her kids which is a good attitude.
However, when you're a Crown Princess you have to be out there working for your country and I think sometimes her dislike of doing this comes through, which may be why some people perceive her to be doing a "bad job".

 

[ricarda]

I keep seeing polls in the Norwegian press showing the royals are much less popular today than even five years ago. It always seems to coincide with Mette-Marit entering the family. Not so much because of her "past" but that she hasn't performed as "Crown Princess" as well as Maxima and Mary have. Both of them are popular beyond belief and have raised the popularity of their respective royal families. Letizia is doing a good job too though she is not as popular as Prince Felipe who himself is not as popular as King Juan Carlos. But they are popular.

I am not Norwegian but I spent 1 year in Oslo and have many friends there.
As far as I know Mette-Marit is popular, not as popular as her husband but popular - in Norway.

She is just not so popular on messageboards because she is not as glamorous as others
or did not have an outstanding career before her marriage like Letizia.

I don't think it's because of her that the NRF is less popular today.
CP Mathilde is very popular and always performed her duties very well - but despite of it the Belgian monarchy seems to have problems nowadays.
It's a general trend - and in some countries this trend is stronger than in others.
The crownprincesses are not that much responsible for the un-/popularity of their royal families,
it very much depends on the ruling monarch and on political circumstances.

 

[Aussie Princess]

M-M is naturally beautiful and unlike other royal ladies who we could mention, she is never plastered in make up inches think, has never had cosmetic procedures and spends her time raising her children herself instead of fobbing them off on nannies while they jetset round the world and sit for ubiquitous photo shoots. Maybe these other ladies need all the primping and preening to look good but M-M still looks lovely without scrap of makeup.

Who's that?

 

[Larzen]

The publication "Propaganda" has asked the advertisng business which Norwegian face has the most advertising value and can attract most money. Crown Prince Haakon tops the list but because he is not available for advertising the next on the list is young actress Ane Dahl Torp. Crown Prince Haakon tops the list because he is seen as uniting and is popular with most of the people http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/article1235902.ece
http://www.propaganda-as.no/emneomrader/reklame/ansiktet+reklamenorge+sikler+etter/art293171.html

 

[Jamerican]

Considering the controversy that surrounded her from the beginning, I think she has done a pretty good job so far. IMO I think she has had the hardest road of all the new arrivals. From what I can understand from the Norwegian media reports, she seems down to earth and approachable. I liked the fact that she made her first visits abroad on her own fairly early on. I don't always agree with her fashion choices (unfortunately, looking like a 'princess' comes with the job), but when she gets it right, boy, she looks amazing.

 

[Laviollette]

Considering the controversy that surrounded her from the beginning, I think she has done a pretty good job so far. IMO I think she has had the hardest road of all the new arrivals. From what I can understand from the Norwegian media reports, she seems down to earth and approachable. I liked the fact that she made her first visits abroad on her own fairly early on. I don't always agree with her fashion choices (unfortunately, looking like a 'princess' comes with the job), but when she gets it right, boy, she looks amazing.

I've always wondered if the controversy surrounding her past is the reason she is kept so low key by the NRF. I don't know if she's ever visited an organization that helps single mothers or people who have developed problems with drugs or alcohol for instance. It seems she could speak to young people about the perils of drugs or the importance of staying in school after you've had a child out of wedlock but she's kept away it seems. After nearly five years of marriage she is only patron of 10 charities. The Norwegian press never mentions what they are. Maybe someone can tell us.

 

[pollyemma]

she has visited centers for drug rehabbed people. i have seen footage of atleast one such visit.

i think its her own choice not to do more public duties. we also dont really see many paparazzi shots of her out in the city, visiting friends, going shopping etc. she seems to be happy to just be at home.

i personally fail to understand why Haakon is more popular than his wife. yes he does more, but he's sooooo effeminate(i realize that that is a majority opinion)

I love MMs clothes. she dresses very "sweetly."

 

[Larzen]

I've always wondered if the controversy surrounding her past is the reason she is kept so low key by the NRF. I don't know if she's ever visited an organization that helps single mothers or people who have developed problems with drugs or alcohol for instance. It seems she could speak to young people about the perils of drugs or the importance of staying in school after you've had a child out of wedlock but she's kept away it seems. After nearly five years of marriage she is only patron of 10 charities. The Norwegian press never mentions what they are. Maybe someone can tell us.

She has been involved with such things, she was in a documentary interviewing a woman with drugproblems, a mother who lost custedy of her child, a man with mental problems etc. It was broadcast on National TV.

She and Haakon has also invited people with different (mental) problems into their home twice, including people with substance problems, singel parents, people with social adaptive problems

The Norwegian royals dont have oodles of patronages as they do in Britain and Denmark, Queen Sonja has 13, Haakon has 12 for example.

One of her patronages is FOKUS wich includes 72 organisations that deal with different womens issues including an organisation for single mothers http://www.fokuskvinner.no/om_fokus/organisasjoner

 

[Laviollette]

She has been involved with such things, she was in a documentary interviewing a woman with drugproblems, a mother who lost custedy of her child, a man with mental problems etc. It was broadcast on National TV.

She and Haakon has also invited people with different (mental) problems into their home twice, including people with substance problems, singel parents, people with social adaptive problems

The Norwegian royals dont have oodles of patronages as they do in Britain and Denmark, Queen Sonja has 13, Haakon has 12 for example.

One of her patronages is FOKUS wich includes 72 organisations that deal with different womens issues including an organisation for single mothers http://www.fokuskvinner.no/om_fokus/organisasjoner

Thank you.

 

[Laviollette]

she has visited centers for drug rehabbed people. i have seen footage of atleast one such visit.

i think its her own choice not to do more public duties. we also dont really see many paparazzi shots of her out in the city, visiting friends, going shopping etc. she seems to be happy to just be at home.

i personally fail to understand why Haakon is more popular than his wife. yes he does more, but he's sooooo effeminate(i realize that that is a majority opinion)

I love MMs clothes. she dresses very "sweetly."

She does seem to be a homebody. I have seen a couple of paparazzi shots of her. One had her cleaning the snow off her car. She was by herself, I think. The picture was striking and sweet. I thought, here is the CP of Norway cleaning her own snow off her car in winter. They don't have a lot of security I suppose although recent events may have changed that a little.

 

[carlota]

i must say that at first i didn't like mette marit at all for future queen. all her story of her past puzzled me and i could have never believed a girl like her could possibly archieve the qualities a princess and queen should have. however, after some time of being here and knowing about her work, about herself, about her thoughts and seeing how much she adapted to the role, i realised why haakon chose her: she may not be the ideal girl for the role, but she is definetely someone who is unpretentious, simple, humble, a nice person to talk with. everyone seems to like her and people don't seem uneasy talking with her. she is still as common and as "commoner" as she was before marrying: she tries to be unnoticed when she goes to private visits, she visits her friends from the past, attends their weddings... however, at the same time she made such an improvement in her role: from the plane accident, to that first christmas in the palace until now one can definetely say how much she changed. her story was one of the most difficult ones and she didn't even have the "tools" other princesses had: a degree, a supportive family (sven hoiby...) and she had the drawback of a past relationship and a son already. life for her must have been difficult at first, and she should have faced a lot of criticism. however, she managed to go over and to do things well. i think it's admirable. it's also admirable how she copes with so many different people and they all seem to like her: from rich women (marie chantal or rosario nadal), to famous people (gwyneth paltrow, valentino), to unknown people who she met in malawi, who made her "princess of malawi", to her old friends who are still there such as linda tanevik, to older ones such as camilla and charles passing through all the people she meets in events who seem really pleased with her. her simplicity and down to earth-ness are the clue to all this qualities.

thanks for the interview link, by the way. can anyone tell us if mette marit did other interviews or photo shoots? if so, which ones?

 

[capricorninin]

I have to agree with you, the fact that she has been accepted in the royal circle so well is a feat in itself. And I think her being chosen as the godparent of Prince Christian just proved it. So far the trend has been that princess consorts, the newer ones are being chosen as the godparent for the second born. But to be made a godparent of an heir and that too a prince shows in what good regard she is being held by people who have got a chance to know her. (Don't get me wrong, I am not against princesses as heirs but the fact that Christian had a lot of choices from crown princes while amalia, ingrid only have one existing role model in Victoria, and yet they chose her, she must have a very good impression.)

Also other quality I like in this couple is that they are not hypocritical. Her past though quite behind her is always going to bother some people. And the fact that Norway's monarchy is not that popular is also a worrisome situation. But that they are not adopting a holier than thou approach is so fresh to see. I think it was great courage on their part to attend Charles wedding. And later on the visit to Britain to socialize so publicly. It was courageous to go out there and support Camilla when she has been in so much controversy. All the other princes chose to not attend mostly I believe from the pressure of the moral police backlash. But here was a couple having faced the more or less same situation and yet they chose to go. A very kind and supportive gesture.

 

[Alexandria]

her story was one of the most difficult ones and she didn't even have the "tools" other princesses had: a degree, a supportive family (sven hoiby...) and she had the drawback of a past relationship and a son already. life for her must have been difficult at first, and she should have faced a lot of criticism.

I disagree that Mette-Marit didn't have a supportive family. Sure, Sven's a media-hungry attention seeker riding on the coat tails of his daughter to get himself recognized, but by all accounts, Mette-Marit has a wonderful support system in her mother and to a lesser degree, in her siblings. I think that by the time the engagement to Haakon happened, and certainly by Ingrid Alexandra's birth, the only connection Mette-Marit really had with her father (and perhaps wanted) was a biological one.

I think it's unfair -- and a discredit to Mette-Marit's mom and to single parents period -- to say that Mette-Marit did not have a supportive family just because her father is the way he is. Sure, he probably didn't provide any support to Mette-Marit in those early months as Haakon's fiancee then as a Crown Princess, but that isn't to negate the fact that she had a tremendous amount of support in her mom while growing up and in those early months in the spotlight.

Plenty of people come from divorced or single-parent backgrounds and feel perfectly supportive. I have a friend who was raised by her mom single handedly from the time she was six and she would never say that because her father was wayward that she felt unsupported in any way. Just as I have another friend who is now a single mom and I would never say that her son will be supported because it's just him and his mom.

Support can come from a lot of different people, through biological connections or not. Just because there's one wayward parent doesn't mean that the person is unsupported.

 

[Jamerican]

Sven Hoiby's behavior has been absolutely ridiculous. I do think that the rest of her immediate family have been very supportive.

Does anyone remember the comments made by one of the Kings sisters regarding the commoners marrying into the NRF? I can't imagine having to deal with that.

 

[Marengo]

I do not think she objected commoners, as she is married to a commoner herself. I think she objected the kind of commoners (controversial ones).

 

[carlota]

of course, alexandria. mette marit's mum behaved like a true lady all the time, but let's face that the conditions for her weren't good with her brother in a trial, her father being photographed in those costumes... at first she was more in the headlines because of others than because of herself.