My neighbour Brian surprised me a few days ago when he said he had always thought of himself as a monarchist and a big supporter of the British Royal Family.

"But I now realize I was really just a fan of Elizabeth," he said, referring to the late queen who died last September. "She epitomized duty and grew into her role with grace and dignity."

As for King Charles III, whose title will be formalized in an over-the-top coronation ceremony in barely a week's time in London, the only thing Brian would say was coolly blunt: "I don't have a view of him other than he's Elizabeth's son."

Like my neighbour, I hold no ill will towards Charles and wish the best for the Royal Family and its often disfunctional members.

But Charles isn't my king (I know, I know, technically he is the King of Canada) and his coronation drives home yet again to me the realization that it's inevitable that Canada will break from the British monarchy.