The Princess of Wales stunned onlookers with her unexpected gesture during a surprise royal visit. On her excursion to Wales, Kate, 43, made an emotional stop at a children’s hospice and ventured to Corgi, a Welsh knitwear and sock making company based in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire.
Following a tour of the premises, as she was leaving in her vehicle, the princess astonishingly ordered her convoy to halt so she could emerge from her car to greet a little girl who offered her a banana. This action is incredibly rare, as royal motorcades seldom stop like that after an engagement, hinting that the future Queen felt strongly compelled to ask her chauffeur to make the stop.
Three year old Lily-Rose Logan was calling out “hello princess” when Kate left the factory, prompting the warm interaction. Upon meeting the young girl, Kate remarked: “I heard you say ‘hello’ from all the way back there and I wanted to come and see you.”
Lily-Rose’s mother, Stacey Chorley, 39, expressed her family’s excitement and disbelief at the event, praising Kate for her genuine, approachable demeanour.
As Kate handed Lily-Rose her banana back, the young girl tossed it on the floor, prompting the Princess of Wales to bend down and pick it up. During her visit to the factory, Kate spent over an hour touring the premises and engaging with staff who demonstrated their work, reports the Mirror.
She was given the opportunity to try ‘linking’, the process of finishing a sock, before humorously apologising: “I’m sorry I was so terrible.”
However, Huw Jones, the former owner of Corgi, now owned by his children, assured her she had passed the test and could “can start on Monday”. Shauna Kinsey, 24, who guided Kate through the linking process, described the Royal as ‘lovely’.
“She tried to do a whole sock and said it’s fascinating how it’s all made.”
Corgi, established in 1892 by the current co-owner’s great-great grandfather, initially produced socks for miners and now exports products to 34 countries. Chris Jones, 56, who co-owns the business with his sister Lisa Wood, expressed: “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.”
The company, which holds the Royal Warrant, has crafted numerous items for the Royal Family, including a specially made longer sock favoured by Charles, according to Mr Jones. As she departed, Kate was presented with a cream cashmere zip-up cardigan and a navy cashmere wrap for her mother, whose birthday falls on Friday.
The gifts were handed over by Cari Jones, 12, Mr Jones’s daughter. Earlier in the day, Kate left her imprint at a children’s hospice she referred to as a ‘lifeline’, following tradition by making a handprint.
She marked her patronage of Ty Hafan children’s hospice in South Wales with a visit to the centre, where instead of unveiling a plaque, she added to a wall of handprints from young patients and their families supported by the staff. This unannounced journey to Wales is her second this week and comes as she gradually resumes royal duties after completing chemotherapy last summer, following confirmation that she is in remission from cancer.
Kate also made an unexpected appearance at official commemorations attended by the Prince of Wales for Holocaust Memorial Day on Monday as she continues a gradual return to official duties.
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