The royal wedding countdown is on! In just a few weeks, Prince Carl Philip of Sweden, one of Europe’s most beloved bachelors, will be off the market when he marries reality-TV star Sofia Hellqvist — and if the couple's latest comments are anything to go by, we can expect to see quite the romantic display when they tie the knot on June 13.
“I feel extremely confident, stable and balanced when Sofia is by my side, and I’ve felt that way from the beginning,” Prince Carl Philip, 36, told Swedish channel TV4 in an interview to be aired just before the nuptials.
Prince Carl Philip and Sofia Hellqvist spoke about their relationship in a joint interview Photo: Getty Images
Former model and soon-to-be HRH Princess Sofia, Duchess of Värmland, sounds just as enamored. “Carl Philip is my best friend, the person I talk to the most,” the 30-year-old bride said. “He’s so smart and I feel so secure with him.”
According to Swedish TV journalist Tilde de Paula, who met the couple for the interview, the two are the perfect match. “Meeting them was seeing true love up close,” she said.
The interview, which will air in Sweden on June 1 and 8, is the latest in the pre-wedding excitement. In April, Sofia enjoyed a bachelorette party with close friends like Crown Princess Victoria in a lavish mansion on the banks of Lake Mälaren, about an hour west of Stockholm. Then it was Prince Carl Philip's turn in early May, when his friends "kidnapped" him for a surprise bachelor party in Greece.
Carl Philip and Sofia haven't spoken about their relationship since last summer, when their engagement was announced after the Prince popped the question to his girlfriend of five years unexpectedly one morning.
"I was nervous," he said then of the proposal. "I woke up several times the night before — I don't know if she noticed! I wanted it to be a surprise." Sofia, meanwhile, already seemed prepared for life in the spotlight. "I know who I am and the values I have. I'm here for the most beautiful reason in the world, and it is love."
The royal pair started dating in early 2010, and the Palace confirmed the relationship later that year.