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Prince William - Source: Reuters -
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So his royal highness, Prince William of Wales is visiting New Zealand. This will be his third visit (yes third - he first arrived here in 1983 as a baby and then came again in July of 2005).
While the 2005 trip was on behalf of the Queen, participating in World War II commemorations, he also got a chance to meet the British and Irish teams touring New Zealand at the time.
The question is how excited is New Zealand this time? Do we care about the second in line to the throne visiting our shores?
While the older royals are a bit of a bore it must be said that the Prince is pretty hot stuff - sure he's not like younger brother Prince Harry whose bad boy antics have long been media fodder (though those antics have subsided since he went to war), but Prince William is still that bloke who flew a helicopter over to his sweetheart Kate Middleton's house and landed it in her back garden just so he could show off his flying skills. He did the same a few days earlier, flying a Chinook, with his brother on board, to attend a stag party.
The punters out there also think William's worth writing about, with speculation rife that he will announce his engagement to Kate Middleton this year.
And as "spare to the heir" - that's right, his father Charles must become King of England before him - he seems to be concentrating on his official duties, representing his grandmother abroad (his visit to New Zealand in 2005 was just the beginning) and officiating her duties in a most gentlemanly fashion.
Then there is the fact that this is a man whose mother was the late Princess Diana. The "People's Princess" left quite a mark on his character, especially when it comes to humanitarian and environmental causes - from volunteering at a British Red Cross aid distribution centre to helping those affected by the Boxing Day tsunami to helping assist the homeless by granting his patronage to Centrepoint, the same charity his mother was patron of.
Prince William is also a flight lieutenant in the Royal Air Force and while he did wish to serve on the frontlines (which his younger brother managed), he knew quite well it was unlikely that he would be allowed to.
But that hasn't dampened his spirits - the royal is now training as a full-time search and rescue helicopter pilot, which means he still plays a full-time role as a member of the armed forces, but without being deployed on any combat operations. His training will be completed this year.
Finally, for maybe the older Kiwis at least, Prince William is still remembered as that wee baby in flannel shorts, sitting on his mother's lap as his father looked on at Government House in Auckland, playing with the most iconic children's toy in this country - the buzzy bee.
ONE News is keen to hear from Prince William fans, or
anyone hoping to catch a glimpse of him on his visit - email us
at
news@tvnz.co.nz
with the subject line PRINCE WILLIAM.
