/ 26 July 2013

Prince George: Some good news amid the chaos

Prince George: Some Good News Amid The Chaos

My father challenged everything I knew about him when he announced he would be participating in a neighbour's London street party to ­celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. Now, my father is a lefty intellectual and economist who took part in the famous Paris student uprisings in the 1960s wearing a Chairman Mao cap. To him, the royal family represents an offensive and irrelevant anachronism.

When I questioned him, he said: "I don't support the Queen, but I do support the neighbours." And I suppose that's the best answer I could give as to why a cynical British hack such as myself loves the new royal baby. I love him because of the potential good he can do for my community and wider society.

The new arrival (all 3.8kg of him) has brought a desperately needed feel-good factor into a world that is still languishing in global recession. And don't underestimate the power of feeling good to perk up the economy. There is already talk of a boost for the United Kingdom in tourism and retail. Brand Kate, William and George Alexander Louis are just what a depressed world needs right now.

Baby George has made us lift our heads from the grindstone to celebrate old-fashioned values such as family, children and marriage. Call me soppy, but seeing Kate and William emerge from the hospital with their little boy has made us remember that, amid all the mayhem, there is still good news.

I also love the royal baby for inspiring a sense of community, for helping us to come together in celebration.

When I moved to South Africa in 2010, the Fifa World Cup had just started and I was struck by the event's power to bring diverse communities together.

And, unlike South Africans, who don't need that much of an excuse to have a party, us Brits find it more difficult to show emotion. So the royal birth gives us a chance to vent some of those repressed feelings, and I'm sure the shrinks would tell you that's a good thing!