The royal couple has a packed itinerary of events
for a tour of Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea next month.
By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent, Sky News
The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall will be
treated to a barbecue in the outback, an afternoon on Bondi beach and a tour of
a special effects workshop used in the making of The Hobbit movie when they
visit Australia and New Zealand.
Details of their packed tour, which also takes in
Papua New Guinea as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, have been
announced.
Camilla will be making her first trip to the three
countries, in a private or public capacity, while Charles, a seasoned
traveller, has visited the southern hemisphere nations many times.
Among the highlights will be a visit by Prince
Charles behind the scenes of the new blockbuster movie from Lord of the Rings
director Peter Jackson.
He will visit a leading workshop in New Zealand that
created special effects for the much anticipated fantasy film The Hobbit: An
Unexpected Journey.
The heir to the throne will meet the filmmaker on
the day of his 64th birthday, November 14, and be shown make-up props worn by
actors including The Office star Martin Freeman, who plays the lead character
Bilbo Baggins.
A royal aide said that in the workshop, based in
Wellington, Charles would "come face-to-face with rather extraordinary,
rather terrifyingly in some cases, life-like prosthetics including the feet and
hands of the Baggins family".
The themes of the visit include service to the
community, encouragement of economic growth and innovation, promotion of youth
enterprise, celebration of sport in the community and support for the Armed
Forces.
Speaking about the first leg of the tour to Papua
New Guinea, which begins on November 3, the aide added: "The visit is
centred on the capital Port Moresby but also includes a visit to a nearby
fishing village called Boera where a traditional and probably rather dramatic
welcome is planned by the local inhabitants."
In Australia, the royal couple have set themselves
the task of visiting four major cities - Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney and the
capital Canberra - as well as the outback town of Longreach in Queensland and
the island state of Tasmania in just six days from November 5-10.
The royal couple has willingly accepted an
invitation from race organisers to play an important part in Australia's most
famous racing event, the Melbourne Cup, at which Camilla will present the top
prize.
"We were asked if they would like to do it, and
of course they are both great racing fans ... and very touched that they've
asked the Duchess to present the Melbourne Cup," Clive Alderton, private
secretary to Charles and Camilla, said.
It is a starring role for Camilla, 65, who will
overcome a dislike of air travel to make the long trek south.
Other events will see them highlight healthy eating
in schools, meet Australian cricketers playing with disadvantaged youngsters
and promote the wool trade.
The final leg to New Zealand, from November 10-16,
will see the royal couple meet popular children's author Lynley Dodd, writer of
the Hairy Maclary stories about the adventures of a hairy dog.
The final day takes the royal travellers to
Christchurch to see how residents have rebuilt their lives after last year's
devastating earthquake.
Details of the tour come as a new survey
commissioned by the Australian Republican Movement shows 48% of Australians want
a republic.
However, perhaps riding on the popularity of the
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, only 45% of under-30s questioned want a republic
- fewer than any other age group apart from those 70 or over.
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