Royal Tour, Day 2: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry head to Dubbo
HARRY and Meghan made an impromptu stop on their tour to say hello to a young fan. They had an important question for him.
IN THE latest heartwarming moment of what's turning out to be a royal tour that’s making us go gooey daily, the royal couple pulled over their car to make an impromptu stop.
Seeing a bunch of locals waiting at the gate as they left a scheduled visit to a local farm during their day in Dubbo, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex abandoned their tight schedule and rushed over to personally meet everyone.
One boy handed Meghan what appeared to be a toy bull.
“Can we put this in the nursery?,” she asked him.
She then told locals how they were having a “fantastic” day and Harry even had a pose off with a cute toddler full of attitude.
The Prince put his hands on his hips and pulled a face at the girl before asking if she wanted a photo and grabbing her to pose among the kids.
The excited locals were so grateful for the couple stopping to make sure no one misses out on their tour of Australia.
HARRY OPENS UP IN EMOTIONAL SPEECH
The royal couple earlier did away with minders, instead lovingly holding umbrellas for each other as a much needed downpour hits Dubbo.
The Duchess of Sussex held a brolly for her husband as he delivered his official address — the most emotional and personal of their tour so far — to the town that’s been struggling through drought for a decade.
Looking lovingly at her Prince, Meghan Markle showed she has serious arm strength, maintaining her composure with one arm as the other appeared to stroke Harry on the back.
She even told the Mayor of Dubbo, Ben Shields, “I’ve got it” as he went to offer the service for Harry himself.
It was a touching and personal speech where Harry spoke about mental health and depression and revealed his own experience of asking for help.
Prince Harry ended his speech by telling the crowd “the rain was a gift”, much to the delight of locals who have been saying they believe the royals brought the wet with them.
Dubbo Aboriginals credited Harry and Meghan for bringing rain, saying thank you as it bucketed down in the town’s Victoria Park as locals cheered.
Sharing a stage, sharing an umbrella, sharing a moment, and Meghan being incredibly supportive as Harry makes his speech. 😊ðŸ˜â¤ï¸#DukeandDuchessOfSussex #RoyaltourAustralia #Royalbaby #Dreamteam
— Natashaaa🌼 (@Ashaashin) October 17, 2018
The way that Meghan looks at Harry is the way that I look at food and it’s a pretty special bloody look. #Dubbo #RoyalTourAustralia #RoyalBaby @9NewsAUS @HarryandMeghan @KensingtonRoyal
— Madison (@MadisonKiller) October 17, 2018
Dubbo has welcomed the downpour with a crowd of 30,000 gathering for the town’s barbecue celebration for the couple.
Moments after Harry and Meghan sat with a local farming family to hear about the drought crisis gripping the nation, the skies opened up.
“It’s most welcome in this area we need it,” one farmer told 9 News. “We’ve got to have that follow up rain.”
One mum waiting for the couple to arrive said: “They are bringing the rain for us. We are glad it’s here.”
Harry opened up about depression and mental health issues, acknowledging the plight of farmers while also alluding to his own struggles.
“We know that suicide rates in rural and remote areas are greater than in urban populations and this may be especially true among young men in remote regions,” he said.
“But outside all of that here’s what I also know. You are one huge community and with that comes an unparalleled level of internal support and understanding.
“All you need to do is to ask for it. Ask your neighbour, your peer, your fellow farmer is literally right around the corner.
“Chances are they may well be suffering too and will relish the opportunity to either listen or talk themselves.
“You need to know a part of being strong and tough is having the courage to ask for help when you need it. You must not silently suffer. You are all in this together and if I may speak personally we are all in this together, because asking for help was one of the best decisions that I ever made.
“You will be continually amazed how life changes for the better.”
The royals watched sheep dogs perform as they chatted to locals, community groups and volunteers such as the Drought Angels.
In Dubbo’s Victoria Park families packed up for the drive home.
Cousins Emily Charnock, 9, and Joe Ecclestone, 7, of Orange said the visit had been “so exciting just to see them” even though the Duke and Duchess’s slightly late arrival at the park, and then the rain, meant they didn’t meet the couple.
Five boys from the Smith and Barton families from outside Dubbo said it was “worth the wait” and thought the royal couple’s baby or “joey” was lucky to be seeing Australia too.
HRH, #DukeOfSussex delivered a POWERFUL SPEECH! @KensingtonRoyal #teamtungsten #teamsussex #sussexsquad #Princeharry #MeghanMarkle #RoyalTourAustralia #RoyalsinDubbo #RoyalBaby #DukeAndDuchessOfSussex pic.twitter.com/gFEEDGP3zp
— tia (@tia48544709) October 17, 2018
I try not to be sentimental about these things (being a staunch republican), but there's something rather touching about a young Prince Harry getting soaked to the skin in a drought-stricken NSW country town. Let's hope there is more rain coming, though... #RoyalTourAustralia
— Deb (@deborahbrian) October 17, 2018
LORD OF FLIES
The couple has struggled with flies throughout the day, with Harry even doing a strange swatting dance to shoo them away.
Never afraid to have a bit of fun, Harry made the playful moves when being introduced to the Royal Flying Doctor Service soon after they arrived at the Dubbo Airport.
“The flies are friendly in Dubbo too,” Harry gets told before doing his dance and blowing air at the woman introducing them before she tells him they’re blow flies.
ROYALS GET PUT TO WORK ON THE FARM
The Duke and Duchess made sure they wore appropriate attire today, being put to work on a New South Wales farm.
NSW drought co-ordinator and former National Rural Woman of the Year, Pip Job, has shown the couple how to feed stock as they see first-hand the effects of the drought on farmers across the country.
Prince Harry and Meghan visited local Dubbo farming family the Woodleys and sat down to have a chat to hear what's been happening on the land.
Meghan even baked her own banana bread at Admiralty House last night to share with the family.
THE RAIN KEPT POURING
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex received a warm but wet welcome at a Dubbo high school for their last engagement in the regional city.
A smiling Prince Harry and Meghan were greeted by the Dubbo College Senior Campus principal and 2018 and 2019 school captains.
Meghan joked with school captains who greeted them saying she hoped they didn’t mind standing in the rain.
Year 12 school captains Thomas Nelson and Grace Gower said it was a privilege the couple chose to visit their school.
“They brought the rain so that’s wonderful,” 17-year-old Grace said.
Thomas, also 17, said it was “very surreal”.
Students of the Girls Academy at Dubbo Senior College met with the Duchess of Sussex to discuss school programs. @KensingtonRoyal #RoyalVisitAustralia pic.twitter.com/5z47m0jvY6
— PM&C (@pmc_gov_au) October 17, 2018
“It’s good they get out and about in the community ... They’re such wonderful people,” he said.
After the official greeting and Welcome To Country, the couple then briefly parted ways.
Prince Harry headed to meet young men from the Clontarf Foundation and Meghan made her way to the Girls Academy.
Both the Clontarf Foundation and Girls Academy aim to improve the education, life skills, self-esteem and employment prospectsof young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women.
Both programs are embedded in schools nationwide.
The couple will talk to students in the programs before, weather permitting, they head out to the school oval to watch touch football and netball drills.
It’s Their Royal Highnesses last official engagement in central-western NSW before they visit Melbourne on Thursday.
The trip to Dubbo is the second day of their tour to Australia which coincides with the Invictus Games in Sydney, which begins on Saturday and runs for a week.
- AAP
THE MOST TOUCHING MOMENT OF THE DAY
Prince Harry had an especially touching moment with a young fan who was out to greet the royals in Dubbo today.
Cameras snapped the sweet moment Harry bent down to give Luke Vincent, 5, a big hug.
After the embrace, Luke, a Buninyong Public School student, reached out and grabbed Harry’s beard at the chin, clearly fascinated by his facial hair.
Harry was in no rush to leave as the boy kept touching his face, displaying the patience and kindness he shows to all his fans.
Cue the mass heart melting on social media:
Aw!!! That’s too cute!!!
— Erin (@OnceFanErin) October 16, 2018
Tiny boy stroking Harry’s beard in Dubbo is the sweetest thing you will see all day #imnotcryingyouare #royaltourdownunder
— Anna Brain (@Brainybites) October 16, 2018
Oh gosh my poor heart cant handle this cuteness â¤ï¸ðŸ˜
— MinheeMM (@MmMinhee) October 16, 2018
The boy then handed Meghan Markle a bunch of flowers and was thanked and embraced by the Duchess of Sussex. Luke was later interviewed by Channel 7 when it was revealed why he loves beards so much.
Despite running behind schedule, Meghan and Harry were in no rush to move along, stopping to chat with all the eager schoolchildren and shake their hands.
Clearly these two are going to be parenting naturals.
ROYALS VISIT ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE
Harry and Meghan thrilled a cheering crowd at the Royal Flying Doctor Service at Dubbo Airport, with the Duchess of Sussex tenderly exchanging flowers with a young girl whose life had been saved.
When Keiley Storer, 3, shyly handed over a posy of gerberas and daisies, Meghan said, “Would you like one back?”, and returned a white flower.
Meghan then asked the little girl, “Would you like the big pink one?” and Keiley began to cry, saying, “Oh no, my posy”.
Keiley’s father is RFDS patient transfer officer Christopher Storer. Her mother, Melissa Storer, said she told the Duchess about the serious larynx problem that had sent Keiley into cardiac arrest aged eight weeks.
“We don’t wish that for your baby,” she told the Duchess.
Meghan then laughed and said “I certainly hope not,” Melissa Storer said.
She said the royal couple was “very laid back ... I didn’t even have to think about curtsying”.
Little Keiley was one of three country patients meeting the royal couple, whose lives were saved after they were flown in from outlying properties and bush towns by the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS).
They were among a crowd of around a hundred patients, staff and RFDS volunteers gathered inside the service’s airport hangar.
Courtney Sheil, 15, was on her cousin’s sheep station outside Tilpa, 700km northwest of Dubbo when she fell off her motorbike and hit her head.
Courtney said when she told Meghan about her resulting head hip injuries, the Duchess replied: “That must have been very scary.”
“(Meghan and Harry) were really glad I was okay,” Courtney said later, saying the couple was “very nice and inviting”.
“They were amazing people and she was even more stunning in person.”
The Duke and Duchess also met Afghanistan war hero Marcus Wilson, an Australian Army veteran who is also competing in the Invictus Games sailing competition.
Mr Wilson, who won a bravery award pulling wounded out of a helicopter crash, said that Harry was “excited” about the upcoming games.
Meghan wowed the crowd by posing for photographs with relatives of Flying Doctor staff.
Nerrie Madden, 70, posed for a quick picture with her daughter, Terri-Lee Leach, the mother of RFDS Dental assistant Emmy Leach, and the Duchess.
“I asked her and she said yes immediately,” Ms Madden said.
“She’s beautiful, just a natural.”
Royal Flying Doctor Service South-Eastern Section president, Ruth Sandow, and Chief Medical Officer, Dr Randall Greenberg, accompanied the royal couple around the hangar.
Harry and Meghan dedicated a new Beechcraft King Air B350 propeller plane bought from Wichita in the US to the Dubbo & Region Supporters Group.
The group raised the money for the local emergency retrieval transport to mark the 90th year of the RFDS, which was given its royal charter by the Queen in 1955.
Supporters Group member Barara Howells said the couple told them, “It’s lovely to be here. There’s a big community spirit here”.
After dedicating the new plane, Prince Harry bent down and sniffed a large buttercream cake before cutting it to mark the occasion.
MEGHAN AND HARRY ARRIVE IN DUBBO
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have touched down in Dubbo for the second day of their first royal overseas tour.
The pair landed in the regional NSW town at 10.30am, smiling and looking relaxed as they were greeted by local officials upon arrival.
Crowds cheered and rows of primary school children in their uniforms held up signs that said “DUBBO LOVES HARRY AND MEGHAN” as they prepared to say hello to the royal couple.
Despite running behind schedule, the Harry and Meghan took their time shaking hands, chatting and posing for photos with their fans.
Meghan looked comfortable for the short plane journey, with her hair in a ponytail and her white Maison Kitsune shirt untucked over a loose grey Serena Williams Collection jacket. She wore jeans by Australian brand Outland Denim, a necklace by Aussie designer Natalie Martin and Harry wore a blue denim button-up shirt loosely tucked into black pants.
Both had their Akubra hats at the ready — given to them as a gift by Governor-General Peter Cosgrove at Admiralty House yesterday morning.
The pair left Admiralty House in Kirribilli earlier this morning, trailed by security cars and police on motorbikes.
Earlier, Kensington Palace tweeted about the Dubbo visit, with a photo of two Akubra hats and the words “Dubbo, we’re coming to see you...”
Dubbo, we’re coming to see you... #RoyalVisitAustralia 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/1vc4AA0dXw
— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) October 16, 2018
This won’t be the first royal visit to the regional town, though. Today’s trip will mark the sixth visit to Dubbo by royalty.
WHY ARE THE ROYALS VISITING DUBBO?
It is great that they’re keen to venture out of the major cities, but why go back to the same place six times rather than visit another regional part of the country?
One of the main reasons Meghan and Harry are visiting Dubbo now to raise awareness for the drought, which has been plaguing farmers.
But there’s also a historical reason. While the royals are beloved across the nation, Dubbo in particular holds a soft spot for them.
The regional city, 400km northwest of Sydney, includes Taronga Western Plains Zoo, the famous local observatory, the old goal and more cafes serving freshly-brewed tea than you can count.
But a century ago, it was a very different story. Dubbo was a shanty town called Tin Town, deemed so unsightly that its townspeople tried to hide it from travellers, according to the ABC. The royals helped to change that.
In 1920, Edward, Prince of Wales, was the first to travel to the rural city to thank the communities of those who served in the Great War.
Then in 1954, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh visited the town, bringing tourists a-flocking; the town only had a population of 11,000 by then, but 50,000 people rocked up to see them.
According to local paper The Daily Liberal, the first visit by a reigning monarch brought about an outpouring of patriotism the town had never seen.
Special trains were in service to transport people from every town in the region to where they were visiting, and army personnel were called in to control the crowds.
“Schools had photos of the Queen above the blackboard in every classroom and children sang the national anthem before sitting down,” said one resident. “God Save the Queen was played at the pictures prior to the screening of the movie and everyone stood up and sang it. In the great scheme of things, there was God and then the Queen — that’s how it was in those days.”
The last royal visit was in 2006, when Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, visited the town to acknowledge the work of local indigenous students involved in the Duke of Edinburgh Awards program.
Meghan and Harry are set to meet with local families, take part in a community barbecue and visit the Clontarf Foundation and Girls Academy. And, unsurprisingly, locals are pulling out all the stops.
The bush town is so afroth with royal fever ahead of their flying visit today it has produced its own royal beer.
Called “Dubbo Royale” and bottled in a red, white and blue can, it is a British-style lager combined with “fruity” US West Coast hops “for the Meghan component”.
“We call it marriage in a can,” Old Bank Hotel licensee Col Mackintosh told news.com.au from his front bar bedecked in royal bunting, a cardboard cut-out of the royal couple and boxes of the brew.
Pubs across town will be serving cans of Royale as locals take a day off to celebrate the fact Dubbo will host the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for almost five hours on Wednesday.
The Hunter Valley brewed beer will also be available on tap alongside a specially brewed Sydney royal beer, Young Henry’s “Get Royally Frothed”, at $6.50 a schooner.
Harry and Meghan will meet members of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, see sheep and cattle on a farming property and mingle with up to 10,000 locals in Dubbo’s main park.
The small rural city on the NSW Western Plains is buzzing with excitement about the visit, with interest ratcheting up another notch after Monday’s royal baby announcement.
Shop windows decked out with royal displays line the main streets, including a baby shop with a “royal nursery”.
Dubbo Mayor Ben Shields said the forthcoming visit was “huge” for Dubbo.
“It was big anyway because Harry and Meghan are one of the most popular royal couples,” he said. “And then we heard on Monday night about the little Sussex. That’s just the icing on the cake.”
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