The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Visit to zoo turns fishy for princess
The Princess Royal has fed penguins and met young Ukrainian refugees on a visit to Edinburgh Zoo.
She and her husband Vice-Admiral Sir Tim Laurence are in the Scottish capital as members of the royal family visit the nations of the UK over the long weekend to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The couple visited the Penguins’ Rock enclosure – which is home to gentoo, rockhopper and king penguins – including Sir Nils Olav, a Brigadier in the Norwegian King’s Guard.
They met staff including animal keeper Lisa Girot and fed the penguins with blue whiting from a bucket.
Earlier, the princess met children from Ukrainian orphanages who were taking part in an animal handling session with a snake and an armadillo in the Rainforest Room at the zoo.
The children were rescued from the war-torn country and brought to Scotland with the help of the charity Dnipro Kids, formed by supporters of Hibernian FC.
Their visit yesterday was organised by the zoo’s community team.
Anne was shown around by Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) chief executive David Fields.
Alison Amivisca, community and discovery programme manager at RZSS, said: “As our wildlife conservation charity’s royal patron, it was exciting to show the Princess Royal the work we are doing to help more communities connect with nature and inspire change.
“It was also fantastic to see her feeding some of our cheekiest residents, our gentoos at Penguins’ Rock.”
While in Edinburgh, the princess will also visit HMS Albion and inspect a guard of honour before boarding the ship.
On the flight deck of the amphibious assault vessel, the princess will meet members of the ship’s company and representatives from charities across Scotland supported by the Queen and Anne as patrons.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Earl and Countess of Wessex will visit Wales and Northern Ireland respectively.
William and Kate will travel to Cardiff today to meet some of Wales’s best-known performers before a platinum jubilee celebration concert.
They will meet the crew behind the event at Cardiff Castle, learning about the lighting, sound and visual effects for the show before helping with the final preparations.
The couple will also watch rehearsals and meet Aled Jones and Shan Cothi, both hosting the show which will feature Mike Peters from The Alarm, singer Bonnie Tyler, West End star John Owen Jones, drumming weatherman Owain Wyn Evans and the Pendyrus Male Voice Choir.
Over the extended jubilee bank holiday weekend the Earl and Countess of Wessex will carry out two engagements in Northern Ireland.
Sophie and Edward will meet children taking part in street performances, join in with art and craft sessions, and speak to people sharing their memories of the Queen.