Thursday 26 October 2017

Harry shows how royals can mix private and public


It was a day when his feelings. both public and private, were at the fore. The second and final part of Prince Harry's visit to Denmark saw him embrace Invictus, focus on the future, get medieval on social media and take part in a very personal meeting. Heartfelt, in every way.




You knew it was going to be a good day when the first picture that the official Kensington Palace Twitter account published was of cake. Strawberries, sponge and rather yummy looking croissants all vied for attention on the social media feed ahead of a royal visit to a bakery in Copenhagen.



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The serious part of the cake fest was a focus on mental health issues, so close to Harry's heart. The prince met members of the Danish national campaign, One of Us, which aims to destigmatise mental health issues.  The breakfast meeting also saw Harry return to an issue he's made a major one this year as he again warned that people are spending too much time on social media, calling it a mental workout that no one would put their body through.


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Next came a reminder of just how very tall Harry actually is. He met up with Prince Joachim of Denmark who always seems ridiculously tall but the fifth in line to the British throne was nose to nose with the sixth in line to the Danish crown. They were joining forces to support armed forces as the two princes, both former serving soldiers, headed to a centre which helps Danish military veterans.


  

The royals were given a tour of some of the facilities before enjoying a game of ''rolling floor ball'', a sport developed in Denmark for wounded veterans. Denmark has a great record in the Invictus  Games and Harry was keen to catch up with some of those who have taken part in his competition and hear about their experiences. 



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Invictus was also on Harry's mind during the most poignant part of his Danish visit. During his time with the country's military, the prince held a private meeting with the parents of Morten Krogh Jensen, the Danish soldier whose body Harry had accompanied home during a tour of Afghanistan. Harry has spoken before of how that changed his life forever and how that one flight got him thinking until he developed the idea of giving hope back through the Invictus Games. 



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From there, the prince moved on to a high school, Orestad Gym, where he took part in a conference about making a difference. He also legged it up a very long staircase indeed as he arrived before settling down for chats that covered areas like volunteering, UN Global Goals and voting. 


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Then it was back to that staircase as #RoyalVisitDenmark came to an end. You can see just what a success it's been from this one image from the school visit. Harry has been feted throughout the two days while both the Danish Royal Household and Kensington Palace Instagram feeds are filled with comments about just how great people think the prince is. There's little doubt that Harry is heading into a new phase of his life. Day two of his Danish tour was all about private and public with the prince striking the perfect balance. Now the challenge is to do that on a larger scale as his life behind palace doors takes centre stage as marriage beckons. If anyone can manage it, Harry can. 

Photo credit: Kensington Palace Twitter

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