From home-baked banana bread, to war widows, to little boys who love beards, the 16-day tour of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex has had a smashing start.
Crowds from Dubbo to Bondi have embraced the expectant couple, with that “Markle magic” working a charm in the manner of her mother-in-law Princess Diana’s first tour to Australia in 1983. Here are the highlights.
The barely-there baby bump
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex with Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and his wife Lynne.Credit:AP
The Duchess of Sussex arrives for her first morning in Sydney at Admiralty House, while the world wakes to the news of her pregnancy, announced only 15 hours earlier. The first question is: does she have morning sickness? The second: is it a girl or boy? Wearing cream Karen Gee (an Australian designer whose website soon crashes) her barely discernable baby bump is displayed for the first time, with Kensington Palace confirming the baby will be born in the British spring. Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and Lady Cosgrove present the couple with a pair of infant Ugg boots and a toy kangaroo for the nursery. “Thank you, this is our first baby gift,” Meghan proclaims.
The furry namesakes
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex visit Taronga Zoo. Credit:Toby Zerna
Prince Harry and his wife head for Taronga Zoo to meet their marsupial namesakes. The 10-month-old joeys, Meghan and Harry, wedding gifts for the couple from the people of NSW, were unfazed by their royal visitors as their mothers, Wattle and Ruby, munched on eucalyptus leaves. Here the couple was presented with a koala toy for their new baby – another hastily arranged surprise for the expectant couple, who seemed to smile on Sydney, just as the weather did – for one day only. A choppy ferry trip to the Man-o-War steps at the Opera House necessitated a change of shoes for Meghan and the donning of a Martin Grant trench coat.
The Daphne moment
Harry meets Daphne Dunne for the third time and introduced her to his wife Meghan.Credit:AAP
A tour of the Opera House was meant to be the highlight here but pink-haired and green-manicured war widow Daphne Dunne stole the show. The 98-year-old came from Kirribilli to see Prince Harry, whom she had met in 2015. She sat for hours among the crowd, holding a card congratulating the couple while wearing her husband’s Victoria Cross. Her then-25-year-old husband Albert Chowne was killed in action during the World War II Kokoda campaign in Papua New Guinea. The Duke hugged and kissed Mrs Dunne, telling her he had told his wife all about her. He called Meghan over, who knelt down to speak to Mrs Dunne. “I’ve heard so much about you, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you,” the Duchess said. "We’ll have a little one when we see you next time."
The beard-puller
Prince Harry is tickled by Luke Vincent, 5, on his arrival in Dubbo, Australia.Credit:AP
Beard-puller Luke Vincent has always had a thing for Santa Claus. So when the five-year-old with Down syndrome met the couple at Dubbo Airport and pulled the royal ginger whiskers, no one much seemed to mind the breach of protocol, least of all the Duke. Luke's school principal at Buninyong Public School, Anne van Dartel, said teachers and Luke's parents "weren't surprised when he went in for the big hug yesterday". "There was an enormous ‘aw’ from the moment he threw his arms around Prince Harry, so I didn’t quite know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, seeing we weren’t allowed to touch him, let alone rub a royal’s head," she said.
The speech in Dubbo
Dream team: Meghan shelters Prince Harry while he speaks at a community picnic.Credit:AP
Forget the sponges, slices and sandwiches made by the Wongarbon Country Women’s Association, the Woodley family went bananas for the bread baked by the Duchess. The fourth-generation farming family, near the tiny hamlet of Wongarbon (population 400) hosted a morning tea with the royals to show them their drought-affected property. Later in the rain, with an umbrella held by his wife to protect him, Prince Harry made a moving speech about mental health. "You are all in this together and if I may speak personally, we are all in this together. Asking for help was one of the best decisions that I ever made,” he told the 8000-strong Dubbo crowd.
The pasta necklace
Six-year-old Gavin Hazelwood, who made a gold (painted) noodle number for Meghan pictured with his mum and sister before he gave the necklace to the Duchess. Credit:Joe Hinchliffe
Dressed in a mini pilot's uniform, six-year-old Gavin Hazelwood provided Thursday's cutest moment when, holding a sign that read "I made you a necklace", he handed Meghan the trinket on a navy ribbon. The former Ms Markle bent down to receive the necklace made of painted pasta. It went perfectly with her Dion Lee dress, but demand for it was not as great as the frock by the now New York-based designer (his website crashed). "It was my idea … [but] mum helped a bit," Gavin said.
The unscheduled hug
Prince Harry hugs India Brown.Credit:Reuters
Melbourne hearts melted from the moment the couple arrived, with the southern city embracing them as tightly as India Brown and her unscheduled hug about halfway through the morning meet-and-greet. "Been here since 4am, loved u since I was 8!!!" her sign read before she put her arms around the Prince. "Oh, you're going to get me in trouble," said the Duke of Sussex as he broke royal protocol to hug her back. The public display of affection (for someone other than Meghan) elicited squeals from the crowd.
The circle on the beach
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan take part in a "Fluro Friday" session run by OneWave, a surfing community group raising awareness for mental health and wellbeing, at Bondi Beach.Credit:AAP
From 6.30am, OneWave, a group championing improved mental health via saltwater therapy, had been out on their usual “fluoro Friday”. The royal couple took off their shoes and walked barefoot on the beach where they met some colourfully dressed OneWave members. Sitting on yoga mats on the sand, Harry and Meghan joined in an "anti-bad vibes circle" to talk about mental health. The Duchess (again wearing Martin Grant), and the Duke were presented with a surfboard. A quick change before the trip to Macarthur Girls’ High in Parramatta, into an outfit by Roksanda Ilincic (a Serbian designer based in London) for an interpretive dance at the school on the banks of the Parramatta River.
And there's plenty more to come
From the moment it was heralded a few weeks ago the Duchess would not be participating in the Sydney Harbour Bridge climb, speculation was rife that she was pregnant. Instead of his wife, the Duke was accompanied by Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Interest in his outfit was not quite as intense as the Duke’s usual offsider (certainly websites crashed). On Saturday, the royal couple will open the Invictus Games at the Sydney Opera House.
Helen Pitt is a journalist at the The Sydney Morning Herald.
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