Rock star reception set to greet Harry and Meghan on the couple’s first Australian tour
PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle, who left the nuptials of fellow Windsor blue-blood Princess Eugenie, can expect a rock star reception in the Harbour City. WHERE TO CATCH A GLIMPSE
NSW
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THE Duke and Duchess of Sussex have finally set foot on Australian soil in Sydney this morning on the royal tour which Australia has been avidly waiting for.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who left the nuptials of fellow Windsor blue-blood Princess Eugenie to get ready for the flight Down Under, can expect a rock star reception in the Harbour City.
It is expected that much of the focus will be on Meghan’s fashion choices, with Australian designers hoping she will choose one of their outfits to give them multimillion-dollar global exposure.
Meghan has already wowed in Australian designs, choosing a Ralph and Russo gown for the couple’s official engagement portrait in December 2017. That same month she wore a Camilla and Marc blazer with an Oroton handbag — which sold out online within hours — to a Commonwealth Youth Forum event in London.
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Her choice of clothes has already set tongues wagging at Princess Eugenie’s wedding, with many speculating about whether she might be pregnant when she wore an elegant navy Givenchy coat dress, leaving it unbuttoned over her stomach.
Royal watchers here will be keen to see for themselves if there is any sign of a baby bump just five months after their glorious wedding in Windsor Castle’s St George’s Chapel in May.
The pair are likely to be visible throughout the Invictus event, the initiative established by former British Army Captain Harry to celebrate the spirit of ill and injured servicemen and women. Eighteen nations and 500 competitors will take part.
But before the games officially open on Saturday, they have a jam-packed schedule which will focus mainly on Sydney, with trips to Dubbo, Melbourne, Fraser Island, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand.
Their first duty will be an official welcome by the Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove at Admiralty House tomorrow morning, before heading to Taronga Zoo to meet two koalas and to open the Taronga Institute of Science.
They will then travel by boat to the Sydney Opera House to see the Bangarra Dance Company before their first public walkabout to get up close with the massive crowds of wellwishers.
Their first day of official duties Down Under concludes with a reception at Admiralty House.
On Wednesday they fly to Dubbo to tour the Royal Flying Doctor Service, and will visit a local farm hit hard by the drought, before attending a community party in Victoria Park, where fans will get their next chance to see the couple.
Royal fever has gripped the central NSW town with a new beer brewed in their honour, shops and pubs decorated in regal fashion and the city’s party shop selling out of royal-themed decorations.
After a day in Melbourne, the royals will head to Bondi Beach to visit local surfing community group OneWave and will meet the public again before they leave to meet representatives from a youth advocate program. That afternoon the Prince and Prime Minister Scott Morrison will climb Sydney Harbour Bridge to officially raise the Invictus Flag.
Harry and Meghan will finish their day with calls on the PM and Opposition leader Bill Shorten.
On Saturday, their schedule includes a trip to Cockatoo Island and the Opera House for the Invictus Games ceremony and, on Sunday, they will watch several Games events before meeting competitors in The Domain.
They will travel to Fraser Island, Fiji and Tonga before heading back to Sydney to give presentations at the Australian Geographic Society Awards. They will spend their final day at the Invictus Games before they fly out on October 28 to New Zealand.