Young and old welcome Charles and Camilla to Brisbane for Commonwealth Games

IT may not have been the rock star welcome Prince Harry would get, but Prince Charles and his wife Camilla would be well chuffed with the reception Brisbane gave them on the first day of their Commonwealth Games visit.

They were first given the pomp and ceremony of an official welcome ceremony, including a 21-gun salute and honour guard, at Old Government House in the Botanic Gardens.

Dignitaries including the Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove, Queensland Governor Paul de Jersey, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, representing the Prime Minister, were on hand for official welcome.

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But around 2000 cheering Brisbanites gave the heir to the throne, who may or may not one day be king of Australia, the welcome that showed there is still support for the monarchy in Australia.

With republican sentiment growing in Australia the size of the crowd was anyone's guess.

And around an hour before their arrival the scene was far from a fairytale welcome, with pouring rain and just a few eager well-wishers standing behind metal barriers.

However, almost on cue the rain cleared up and even a few rays of Queensland sunshine managed to struggle through as the royal couple arrived and began to greet those gathered.

Dressed in a light grey suit, the Prince shook hands and exchanged greetings with young and old who had come to welcome them to Queensland.

Brisbane local Marianne brought her granddaughter Marlena to see the Prince.

“I usually see the frogs, not the princes,” Marianne said.

Fellow Brisbane local Lorraine shook Charles’ hand, but confessed later she had no idea what he said to her.

“I can’t remember what he said, I guess I was shocked,” she said.

“We didn’t expect to be able to shake hands with him, so it ticked off our bucket list.”

The lunchtime visit had been timed to coincide with city workers being free to come and greet the royal visitors, however many had come from further afield.

Sharon Wilkins brought her family down from Mackay for the Commonwealth Games, which the Prince was due to open this evening.

“This was also happening so we thought ‘when will we get this chance again?’” she said.

Then, as quickly as they had arrived, the royals were whisked off for their next engagement, and the crowds slowly evaporated as the sun went back behind clouds.