Just when you thought the days of fans stealing a kiss from the Prince of Wales were over, along comes Tibeth Smith.
The 80-year-old who emigrated to New Zealand from the UK 50 years ago is an ardent royalist and showed her fervour in a fabulous public display of affection when Prince Charles and The Duchess of Cornwall visited today.
The occasion was a garden party in Brooklands Park in Taranaki, a spectacular region on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island and the home of an annual spring garden festival.
Many of those at the garden party had won their invitations in a competition and the royal couple mingled with the guests who included Mrs Smith.
Tibeth first hugged Camilla and then headed for her favourite royal Prince Charles. “That was absolutely thrilling” she said afterwards.
“I said to him ‘I’ve given Camilla a hug, can I give you one?’ and he said ‘go ahead’ so I gave him a hug and a kiss as well.”
Tibeth has been writing to the Prince for decades and was holding some of her return correspondence from the royal’s office including a picture of the royal couple sent by Clarence House to mark Tibeth’s 60th wedding anniversary in 2014.
“When he lost Diana I wrote to him about it and when everybody hated Camilla I wrote and said she was a very regal lady – I knew people would come round eventually.”
After tea the couple walked through the park and then Prince Charles visited the Te Rewa Bridge and its coastal walkway.
Welcomed onto the Bridge by members of Ngati Tawhirikura hapu [tribe], the Prince of Wales was escorted across the structure by Ngamata Skipper, who explained the history of the land and its people.
Skipper, who is chair of the hapu, was nervous leading up to the event but said it was an honour to have Prince Charles visit her ancestral land. “He’s manuhiri [a visiting guest] and it’s our role to welcome and support him,” she said.
Later Charles got a chance to meet members of the Taranaki Race Walking team and shook hands with one of the oldest in the group, 91-year-old Ivor Ellis. “Have we interrupted your jogging?,” Charles quipped, before asking him about his training regime.
Close to 100 people turned up to see the Prince on his walkabout, including New Plymouth’s Alistair Glennie, who handed the royal a packet of pumpkin seeds as a gift. After his close encounter with the future King, the 11-year-old said he wanted to give him a present and knew Charles had a love of gardening. He said he was surprised when the Prince stopped and talked to him though.
“It was cool, he was friendly,” Alistair said.
Later the royal couple flew to Auckland where Prince Charles met with the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition.
The couple start the Australian leg of their tour tomorrow.
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