Montreal Gazette - Rebranding the monarchy

If Princess Diana forged the archetype for a new generation of royal as celebrity, her son and his new bride have taken up her mantle with their good looks, flair for fashion and natural charm.

On the eve of their Canadian tour - with a stop in Montreal on July 2 - popular culture experts are dissecting the appeal of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, the newlywed Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, examining how long their status is likely to last and whether their star power can help rebrand the monarchy for a new era.

Celebrity is by its very nature fleeting, said Berkeley Kaite, an English professor at McGill University, noting the word derives from the Latin meaning swift.