King Charles received an unwanted memento during a state visit to Northern Ireland when a seagull left its mark on his suit jacket. The incident occurred as the monarch toured the seaside town of Newcastle, County Down, where he was about to begin a meet-and-greet with the public lining the main street.
Seagull Strikes During Royal Visit
The bird's droppings struck the King and those around him, prompting a lighthearted reaction. Irene Marting, 64, from the village of Dromara near Lisburn, was waiting with her sister Paula Leitch to see the King and witnessed the incident from across the street. 'We were talking to the King about the seagull and he said, 'It's well it didn't land on my head,'' she recalled. 'We're so thrilled he's come to Northern Ireland to see us, and it's really nice to see him in Newcastle.'
Queen Camilla Pours a Perfect Pint
Meanwhile, Queen Camilla was elsewhere in Northern Ireland, joking she was 'not quite the expert' while pouring a perfect pint of Guinness at the Parson's Nose pub and restaurant in Royal Hillsborough. She was invited to help serve the black stuff after meeting the staff and received a round of applause for her efforts.
Garden Party at Hillsborough Castle
The royal couple ended their day by hosting a garden party at Hillsborough Castle, the King's official residence in Northern Ireland. The Queen met soldiers and officers from The Rifles, the regiment she serves as Colonel-in-Chief. She asked them about a recent four-month deployment to Iraq, where they trained local forces, and they thanked her for a gift of Highgrove tea and shortbread biscuits.
Captain Harry Lin, from C Company, 2nd Battalion The Rifles, said afterwards: 'It was a very generous gesture, we were there at Christmas time, and we shared the shortbread with our American colleagues. The Americans were generous to us, so we returned the favour. They didn't know what shortbread was at first, but they kept coming back for more.'
