The Princess of Wales left wellwishers shocked after making a highly unusual move on a surprise royal engagement.
Kate, 43, headed to Wales yesterday where as well as paying a moving visit to a children’s hospice, she also dropped in on the Welsh knitwear and sock manufacturer Corgi in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire. After enjoying a tour of the factory, Kate got back in her car as she prepared to head home – but in an extraordinary moment, she pulled over her convoy to stop so she could jump out of her car and speak to a young girl – who handed her a banana.
The move is highly unusual, with royal convoys rarely stopping after they have left an engagement, and Kate must have felt a royal imperative to ask the driver to let her get out. The young girl, named Lily-Rose Logan, aged three, had been calling out “hello princess” as the royal left the Corgi factory. As the royal approached, the young girl handed Kate the banana.
Addressing Lily-Rose, Kate said: “I heard you say ‘hello’ from all the way back there and I wanted to come and see you.” Afterwards, Stacey Chorley, 39, Lily-Rose’s mum, said: “It was so exciting, we had no idea that was going to happen. I hope this is one of the things Lily-Rose will remember. Kate was so lovely, she’s very natural and down to earth.”
As Kate handed Lily-Rose back her banana the young girl threw it on the floor and the Princess of Wales had to bend down to retrieve it. On her visit to the factory, Kate spent over an hour touring the factory and speaking with staff who gave her demonstrations of their work.
The Princess of Wales surprises wellwishers outside the Corgi textiles factory in Wales ( Image: PA)
She was given the chance to try her hand at ‘linking’, the process of finishing the sock, before joking: “I’m sorry I was so terrible.” But Huw Jones, the former owner of Corgi, which is now owned by children, said she had passed the test and “can start on Monday”.
Shauna Kinsey, 24, who showed Kate how to link the sock, described the royal as ‘lovely’. “She tried to do a whole sock and said it’s fascinating how it’s all made.” Corgi was founded in 1892 by the current co-owner’s great-great grandfather, who started by making socks for miners, and now sells products in 34 countries.
Chris Jones, 56, who owns the business with his sister Lisa Wood, said: “The visit has been fabulous. The princess said she wants to shine a light on manufacturing in the UK, so it’s really nice to get their support.
“And it’s lovely for the staff, the skills they have got, they don’t always get the recognition, so it’s really nice. We spoke about the industry, the challenges, but really she wanted to know how we made the products, and the skills involved.”
Kate chats to workers on the factory floor ( Image: Getty Images)
The firm, which has the Royal Warrant has made numerous items for the family, including for the King, with Mr Jones, saying Charles favoured a specially made longer sock. As Kate left she was given a cream cashmere zip-up cardigan, and a navy cashmere wrap for her mother, whose birthday is on Friday. She was handed the gifts by Cari Jones, 12, Mr Jones’s daughter.
Earlier, Kate left her mark when she followed tradition and made a handprint for a children’s hospice she described as a ‘lifeline’. She celebrated becoming patron of Ty Hafan children’s hospice in South Wales by visiting the centre where she did not unveil a plaque but contributed to a wall of handprints from youngsters and their families supported by staff.
The unannounced trip to Wales was her second this week and comes as she continues to make a phased return to royal duties after completing a bout of chemotherapy last summer, and follows the princess confirming she is in remission from cancer.
Kate also made a surprise appearance at official commemorations, attended by the Prince of Wales, marking Holocaust Memorial Day on Monday. The flurry of royal engagements this week is not thought to indicate that the princess is fully back to work but continuing her gradual resumption of official duties.
