Royal reception

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall hosted a reception for prominent New Zealanders, Australians and Papua New Guineans living in the UK, on 24 October, ahead of their upcoming tour.

The reception at St James' Palace was attended by around 200 guests including: Dame Kiri te Kanawa, Hayley Westenra, Sean Fitzpatrick, Anton Oliver, and world renowned chefs Peter Gordon and Anna Hansen.

It began in true Kiwi style with a rousing waiata and haka from London based Maori Culture group, Ngati Ranana.  The audience were totally enthralled, especially the Duchess of Cornwall who hadn’t seen a live haka before.

New Zealand High Commissioner Derek Leask also greeted Their Royal Highnesses at the beginning of the evening - they commented on how much they were looking forward to visiting New Zealand, especially as it will be the Duchess’ first trip.

What to wear in Wellington was a popular topic, with a number of Kiwis warning the Duchess of the capital’s windy reputation.

The night was topped off by a surprise performance from Kylie Minogue - a remarkable evening which gave Their Royal Highnesses a taste of what is to come during the next few weeks.

More photographs are available here.