Queen Elizabeth II is considered to have been a fair matriarch, but she had rules and did not like her family to break them.

So when Prince William decided to take Prince George on a helicopter ride from London to Norfolk, his grandmother was less than pleased.

The reason this was so controversial is that both Prince William and Prince George are direct heirs to the throne, and if anything should happen to the helicopter carrying them, it would be a devastating blow to the succession. (I also assume, with some authority, that the Queen was generally concerned about the health of her family.)

According to Robert Jobson's new book "Our King," the late monarch "felt a great sense of security" because Prince Charles and Prince William were "well qualified" to succeed the queen, and Prince George had also assured her that the monarchy would continue.

"That is why she exchanged sharp words with William after he defied her wishes and took all his next of kin on a helicopter to Norfolk," Jobson wrote (via the Daily Mail).9]

"She warned him that in case of an accident, George and warned him to fly with her, and told her grandson to always be aware of his successor."

"She also told him that she was going to be the one to take over the company.

This is not the first time we have heard about the Queen's great dislike of William's love of helicopters.

In December 2021, it was revealed that Elizabeth was "terrified" of a potential accident and had "several conversations" with her grandson about it.

A source said at the time, "She knows William is a competent pilot, but she knows a lot can go wrong. [She] thinks it's not worth the risk to have all five of them continue to fly together, and she can't imagine what would happen. It would cause a constitutional crisis."

The same issue was brought up again and again between the current Prince of Wales and my grandmother in her later years. Phew!