First days as king Charles shows his temper, but also his emotions in a draining week

In the end, it was the pens that did it. Twice.

- Caroline Davies

Taking on a demanding schedule of head of state duties and public appearances while simultaneously dealing with profound personal sorrow, it was likely that something would have to give. And for the exhausted King, the focus of his frustration was the pens.

At his proclamation, last Saturday he frantically motion ed to an aide to remove a box of pens that was impeding him as he signed his solemn declaration and oath.

On Tuesday, signing a visitors’ book at Hillsborough Castle , the King’s exasperation at a leaking fountain pen was also captured on camera. “Oh god, I hate this ,” he snapped, handing the implement to the Queen Consort, ensuring it leaked over her hands. “I can’t bear this bloody thing … every stinking time,” he added, walking away.

It was a glimpse of the Charles that his private staffhave witnessed over the years, a man wont to express his ire volubly.

Of course, it is something his mother would not have been seen to do in public, though the Windsor temper is said to be a hereditary trait. His grandfather King George VI was famous for his “gnashes”, as the family referred to his outbursts, which would inevitably see the Queen Mother holding his wrist and counting his pulse as he calmed down.