Prince Harry has always spoken fondly about his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth. His love and admiration was most definitely on display as he warmly greeted her on Monday at the opening of the Royal Chelsea Flower Show. The proud granny was all smiles when the 30-year-old leaned down to plant a kiss on her cheek.
It was Harry's first engagement since touching back down in the UK after a month-long army secondment in Australia coupled with an official trip to New Zealand. Despite his hectic schedule and just returning, Harry was sure to join Prince Charles, Camilla and his grandparents for an appearance because his charity, Sentebale, is a part of this year's show.
During a preview of the garden earlier in the day, Harry joked about his jetlag. "I'll probably be like a walking zombie. It will be great," he told BBC Breakfast. "I haven't seen my grandma for a while, or my grandfather."
"Hope in Vulnerability" is the name of Sentebale's show, with the uplifting moniker reflecting the charity's mission of helping HIV sufferers come to terms with living with their condition.
As requested by Harry himself, the garden features plants that are both native to the UK and Lesotho, where the charity operates, and the Prince enlisted the help of Matt Keightley, an award-winning landscape designer.
Matt said: "[The royals] genuinely seemed interested and fascinated in the details. The royal family members were interested in how many of the plants are native to Lesotho. It was amazing to have so many of the royals."
The Queen was wrapped up warm in a bright cobalt blue coat, ideal for the seasonal British weather which began the day with rain and ended with sunshine.
The 89-year-old attends the flower show every year, which takes place in the grounds of the 17th-century retirement home for army veterans, the Chelsea Hospital.
The relationship between the Queen and the show dates back as far as May 1952, and since then the monarch has visited the annual show on all but 12 occasions. It's a passion she has passed on to Harry, who first began attending in 2013, and for which the show saw a spike in ticket sales.
