Any Aussie with even an inch of doubt that Prince Harry takes after his mother, Princess Diana, would have to be reconsidering their stance after the weekend that was. The ‘People’s Prince’ has well and truly proved himself as such during a whirlwind visit for the International Fleet Review.
By Chloe Schneider
After touching down late on Friday night, the royal woke to a perfect Sydney Saturday and headed straight to Garden Island to attend official duties. As he exited a car right on schedule (we love a man who’s on time) dressed in his white military uniform (and a man in uniform), the Prince stepped up on the Dias to receive a royal salute from assembled navy officers before boarding the HMAS Leeuwin. Harry was joined by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, lord mayor Clover Moore, and Governor-General Quentin Bryce amongst other dignitaries for the official proceedings.
Once the formal engagements for the morning were said and done, Harry was out of his white uniform and into a dashing navy suit for a walkabout beginning at Campbell’s Cove at The Rocks to meet and greet with the public. Naturally, all the ladies in the crowd were whistling as the Prince posed for photos with fans, heard many professions of love, laughed off a few enquiries as to his marital status, and played with the children and babies who came out with their parents to meet the prince. Ever the gentleman, Harry gushed about how much he loved Sydney, and how excited he was to be here for his first official visit representing the Queen.
Soon after charming the crowd, 29-year-old Harry was summoned to Kirribilli House where the Prime Minister hosted a assortment of Australia’s elite including billionaire James Packer, cricketer Brett Lee, former rugby player George Gregan, VC winner Ben Roberts-Smith, and the PM’s daughters Bridget and Frances, both of whom were thrilled to meet the Prince. Bridget tweet a picture of herself, her sister, and the Prince captioned, “A once in a life time experience meeting Prince Harry. Sydney has put on a fabulous day 2 celebrate the #ifr2013.”
Like the rest of Sydney, the Prince enjoyed the harbour fireworks before waking Sunday morning to head to Perth where he visited the home of the SAS at the Campbell Barracks in the coastal suburb of Swanbourne. During his visit, he met past and present members of the unit, and joined families of fallen SAS members killed in the line of duty to lay wreaths in their memory.
With limited time, there was no official public functions for the prince to attend during his time in WA, but a small crowd did gather at the airport to greet the prince before he boarded his flight to Dubai where he is scheduled to attend the Sentebale ‘Forget Me Not’ ball on Monday.
It might not have been a long visit, but it was definitely an appreciated one and Prince Harry has proved himself the sparkling, charismatic, and charming Royal we’ve always hoped him to be. Unfortunately, it seems everyone’s new crush is accounted for — while Harry has been in Australia, the rumour mill in London is in overdrive with news that he is about to marry current squeeze Cressida Bonas with a friend of the model telling The Telegraph, “Cressie is going to marry Harry.” The source continued, “Harry never stops talking about marriage and children, and she has now got used to he idea. The wedding is likely to take place next year.”
Stay tuned!