for some reason, my friends are normally suprised to find i'm not the ardent republican they expect me to be.
i wouldn't be too heartbroken if the royal family were to be abolished (the institution, not the individuals in question -- i'd be very upset if someone decided we should start executing royals) but i also don't see any point in investing time and money in getting rid of the royal family.
firstly, the queen is our head of state and as a parliamentary democracy we need a head of state. if we were to abolish the royal family we'd need to choose (presumably by election) an alternative person to fulfil that role and not only pay their salary and expenses but also fund an alternative venue for state dinners, entertaining foreign dignitaries and such since buckingham palace and other royal residences wouldn't be in use.
secondly, and as nbc pointed out, the royal family act as a tourist attraction. certainly they aren't the main reason people visit the uk, but as a british person who's spent time living overseas i can definitely say that one important for some people's interest in the uk is the royal family -- i lost count of how many times i was asked if i'd visited buckingham palace, seen the queen etc.
thirdly, for all you may wish to criticise the royal family they do a lot of important work for charities, voluntary organisations and the like. people seem to have this idea that the queen spends all day sitting in her residence ordering servants to fulfil her every wish -- in fact she works what is essentially a full-time job, although i probably shouldn't get too carried away with that argument since most people would be happy to do her work in return for the affluent lifestyle she has.
fourthly, it's just a nice tradition.
i'm one of the least traditionalist people you could meet, but i don't see the point in attacking tradition for the sake of it -- if there's no compelling reason beyond "it's old-fashioned" to abolish the monarchy then let's leave it alone. (and yes, i realise there are other compelling reasons -- i'm just saying that i think that argument in particular is very weak.) people like the monarchy -- young people feel proud of receiving their duke of edinburgh award from the actual duke of edinburgh; nhs workers, teachers, public servants who get invited to one of the events the royal family hold to honour those who have made a real contribution to society; some people just enjoy seeing the royal family on the news or in magazines. certainly the nice tradition/people like them argument wouldn't be a persuasive argument in isolation, but i think there are plenty of other reasons to keep the royal family and the people like them argument is just a postscript to that.
let the "fizz, i'm disappointed in you! how can you support such a reactionary old institution?" comments begin. just kidding.