King Charles III and Queen Camilla bid Australia a royal farewell at Sydney airport
Check out the best highlights from the King and Queen’s Australian visit as they bid the country farewell.
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King Charles III and Queen Camilla have bid farewell to Australia following their royal tour.
Their Majesties flew out from Sydney airport, marking the end of their whirlwind tour of the country.
They were farewelled by a small crowd of fans on Wednesday, as well as NSW Deputy Premier Prue Car, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and NSW Governor Margaret Beazley.
The King sported a grey suit while Camilla opted for a printed Fiona Clare dress as they headed up the steps onto the Royal Australian Air Force jet.
They will now travel to Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting after spending a short five days in Australia.
The gathering will bring 56 countries together under the Head of the Commonwealth, which is now King Charles III following the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II.
Climate change and the impact of colonialism and reparations are expected to be discussed.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he looks forward to meeting the King again in Samoa in a statement issued on Wednesday.
“It was an honour to welcome The King and Queen to Australia for this historic visit, the first by a Sovereign since Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2011,” Mr Albanese said.
“Their Majesties met a range of extraordinary Australians who demonstrated the best of our great country.
“I look forward to meeting The King again in Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.”
The royals’ farewell follows a packed itinerary for Their Majesties, which included a visit to Parliament House and the War Memorial, as well as a tour through the banksia display at the National Botanical Gardens in Canberra.
Student Leo Turner, 12, managed to have a chat with the King, asking him if he’d heard of AFL while showing him an array of native Australian flora laid out on a table.
“Yes, I’ve heard of it,” the King said.
“What’s your favourite sport?” Leo asked.
“I can’t do much now. Too many injuries. I used to sit on a horse,” the King, who played polo for years, replied before continuing on with his tour of the gardens.
“NOT OUR KING”
During the Canberra visit Senator Lidia Thorpe interrupted a parliamentary reception for King Charles and Queen Camilla.
“You are not our king, you are not our sovereign” “f – k the king”, she yelled at the Australian head of state.
“Give us what you stole from us … our babies, our people, you destroyed our land. It’s not your land, you are not our king.”
Speaking to the National Indigenous Times in the hours after her protest, the independent senator said Australia’s head of state has historic wrongs to right, and that she made the remarks as part of a continued push toward a treaty.
“I wanted to send a clear message to King Coloniser to say that there’s unfinished business and we want our land back,” Senator Thorpe said.
“We want the bones back. How many of our old people been going overseas and trying to get our artefacts and our bones back.”
There are some 39,000 Indigenous artefacts held in 70 museums in the UK and Ireland.
Some items are being returned to Indigenous Australians, but the law governing the British Museum effectively outlaws items being returned to their original custodians the world over.
The King and the Prime Minister shared a word as the crossbench senator was escorted out by security.
THOUSANDS GATHERED AT OPERA HOUSE
In Sydney the King and Queen visited the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence, a food bank, a social housing project, a literacy initiative, a community barbecue, a meeting with leading cancer researchers Professor Richard Scolyer and Professor Georgina Long, and a celebration of the Sydney Opera Houses’s 50th anniversary.
An estimated 10,000 people lined the streets and packed into the forecourt of the Sydney Opera House on Tuesday afternoon in hopes of catching a glimpse of Their Majesties.
The royal couple were introduced to British actor Dame Joanna Lumley, actor Heather Mitchell, acrobat and dancer Lucia Richardson, singer Jin Tea Kim, artistic director of Bangarra Dance Theatre Francis Rings and Sydney Symphony orchestra principal bass clarinet player Alexander Morris at the top of the stairs.
KING’S CHEEKY REMARKS
The King and Queen attended a community BBQ hosted by NSW Premier Chris Minns and his wife Mrs Minns in Parramatta Park on Tuesday, which was transformed into a makeshift showground complete with food trucks and market stalls.
But while the King was making his speech at the “barbie”, a fumble of his notes caused him to interrupt his train of thought.
“Ever since – God almighty, they’ve got two pages of this bloody thing – anyway, I must say it’s a real pleasure to have this chance to try this produce,” he said.
“But also crucially to meet the people who make it happen.
“Working tirelessly in all seasons and all weathers and developing an intimate understanding of the importance of caring for nature and making it part and parcel of their endeavours.”
The King also shared a laugh with former Aussie rugby player Mark “MG” Geyer.
“Chris Minns introduced me to him and said ‘Your Majesty this is Mark Geyer, former professional league player, he’s now on radio at Triple M’,” Mr Geyer told Triple M’s Mick & MG in the Morning.
The King reportedly told Mr Geyer “You look like you could still play”, to which the rugby player replied “I’ve been retired for a while”.
“Why did you have to retire? Was it your knees? Was it your back?” The King asked him.
“No, it was my groin,” Mr Greyer replied.
“I know how you feel!” King Charles reportedly replied while laughing.
ROYALS PERFORM ‘AUSSIE CLASSIC’ MOVE
Their majesties met Noemie Fox — who won gold in kayak cross in Paris — Indigenous entertainer Casey Donovan, writer, artist and comedian Anh Do, and Paralympic swimmer Timothy Hodge.
The royals managed to get behind the barbecue, turning over snags from the Blackbear Barbecue, who served up thousands of sausages.
The King turned over vegetarian sausages, while the Queen went for the classic beef.
However, their majesties didn’t try them.
Despite this, they told Scott McCoy, who runs Blackbear Barbecue’s Blacktown restaurant, the sausages were “great”.
“I think they said they were great sausages, and they done the old ‘click click’ on the tongs … the Aussie classic,” the 42-year-old told NewsWire.
Mr McCoy said he was thrilled to meet the royals.
“It was amazing, it was everything it lived up to be, just sensational,” he said.
BONDI COP HERO HONOURED
Detective Inspector Amy Scott was honoured at the event after she tracked down, confronted, and fatally shot Westfield Bondi Junction stabber Joel Cauchi, who killed six people and injured 12 at the popular shopping centre in mid-April.
She has been credited with saving many lives that day.
Inspector Scott received the Commissioner’s Valour Award following her bravery at the Bondi Junction stabbing attacks.
NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb expressed her excitement to meet their majesties at the BBQ while saying it’s “fitting” for Inspector Scott to be at the event.
“It’s a privilege to be invited today among a very privileged group of people, and I look forward to meeting the King Queen,” she told NewsWire.
“I haven’t seen her yet, but to have her here – obviously the events of April earlier this year were played out across the world.
“I think it’s fitting that the King and Queen have an opportunity to meet her.”
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