SYDNEY PUB TO DANISH THRONE
It was the fairytale romance that sparked an Aussie royal frenzy unlike anything that preceded it.
Advertising executive Mary Donaldson was enjoying drinks at Sydney’s Slip Inn during the 2000 Olympics when she met a tourist named Frederik, who was in Australia to support Denmark’s sailing team.
As she would go on to admit in an interview, the Tasmanian-born career girl initially had no idea that the handsome man she chatted to for more than 30 minutes was the future king of Denmark.
And 23 years later, Crown Princess Mary’s incredible journey from Aussie girl next door to the Danish throne is complete – within a fortnight she will be crowned Queen alongside her husband, Crown Prince Frederik.
From unlikely beginnings, love blossomed quickly for the pair after their chance meeting at that packed Sydney pub.
Just a few years later, before the royal wedding, staff would hang a sign adorned with Danish and Australian flags out the front of the venue, proudly declaring that it was where the couple first met.
After their cute pub encounter, the then 32-yearold Frederik asked Mary for her phone number, sparking the beginning of a longdistance relationship.
A smitten Crown Prince Frederik made several secret trips to Australia before Mary moved to Denmark to study the Danish language at Copenhagen’s Studieskolen in 2001.
Immersing herself in the culture and language – and quickly becoming a fluent speaker – the polished and accomplished Mary was on the pathway to royal life.
In early 2003, Frederik’s mother Queen Margrethe publicly acknowledged the relationship and the couple announced their engagement at Amalienborg Castle later that year on October 8.
From the very start, the Danish people embraced the effervescent Mary, who seemed made for royal life.
Her wedding on May 14, 2004 at Copenhagen Cathedral, which was broadcast on Australian TV, kickstarted a media frenzy.
In a nod to her heritage, the elegant Mary carried a bouquet of Australian snow gum eucalyptus mixed with Palace flowers.
To the delight of both Aussie and Danish royal fans, the pair welcomed firstborn son and future king Prince Christian just over a year later
Mary is seen as never putting a foot wrong Lars Hovbakke Sørensen Danish royal house expert
in October 2005.
Now 18 years old, Prince Christian was named according to the centuries-old Danish tradition of alternating between Christian and Frederik as names of Danish kings.
Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik would later welcome daughter Princess Isabella in 2007, and twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine in 2011.
Known for her elegant style and support of Danish designers as well as her commitment to charitable work, Crown Princess Mary’s popularity in Denmark has never wavered.
Her marriage was thrust
under the spotlight recently after pictures emerged of Prince Frederik spending a long day in Madrid with glamorous Mexican socialite Genoveva Casanova.
Following the publication of the photos, Ms Casanova issued a furious denial that there was any romantic relationship between herself and the Danish royal.
The allegations, in late 2023, could not have come at a worse time for the royals. It was then that preparations were being made for the royal transition and the wheels were being “set in motion” for Queen Margrethe’s departure, according to royal insiders.
Royal house expert Lars Hovbakke Sørensen said it was no coincidence Mary and her husband had been making more high-profile appearances during 2023.
“Queen Margrethe has instructed her grandson Prince Christian to be trained up to assume more public speaking engagements in case something should happen to his father,” he said.
“Queen Margrethe is extremely popular in Denmark but she has been saying for some time ‘no one is immortal’ and, naturally, she has been preparing for her departure.”
Mr Hovbakke Sørensen said that Crown Prince Frederik was “comfortable” with the position of king and had long been preparing so
that he was ready to take on the role when fate dictated it.
“When Crown Prince Frederik becomes King it will be good for Denmark, he has the same high level popularity as the Queen and his wife Mary is well loved and seen as never putting a foot wrong,” he said.
The monarch has been guiding Mary and Frederik “along the institutional route and preparing them for more responsibility, until such time for a formal takeover”.
For Crown Princess Mary, becoming Queen will mark another incredible milestone and a new chapter in a journey that has taken her from her quiet upbringing in Hobart to the Danish throne.