The prince, the puppy and the Prime Minister

 In days of yore, a meeting between a Prime Minister and a prince was likely to be rather formal, held in state settings and possibly quite dull. Things are a bit different in 2015. Prince Harry met the Prime Minister of New Zealand today and while they did the usual royal visit things like shaking hands and signing books they also went off message and charmed us all. The latest chapter in how politicians entertain royalty involves presenting them with puppies which then get cuddled and kissed.

The puppy, the prince and the Prime Minister

(photo Kensington Royal Instagram)

Prince Harry doesn’t really need any encouragement to clown around and win more fans doing it. But on his first walkabout during his week long tour of New Zealand, which started today, the country’s Prime Minister couldn’t resist helping him. John Key saw a very cute puppy, whipped it out of its owners arms and took it over to Harry for a cuddle. The prince nuzzled the little dog while the hundreds of people around him took photos of the moment and then looked rather sad when the puppy was taken away. If the tour carries on like this, the prince might just break the internet.

View image | gettyimages.com

Harry had already displayed his legendary charm several times throughout the day. He had teased a group of schoolchildren about their football and rugby playing and then made everyone go ‘aah’ by taking a card offered by one pupil as a gift to Princess Charlotte, tucking it in his pocket and promising to deliver it himself. And that was before he started winning over the crowds who gathered to see him at the country’s War Memorial.

Harry charms a new fan on his first walkabout in New Zealand

(photo Clarence House Instagram)

And during his time at the memorial he showed the other, serious side of Harry that has won him so much admiration in recent times. The prince who has shown a deep determination and passion to help wounded service men and women return to fully active lives signed his name in a book to remember those who never made it back from fighting before placing a fern on the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior. His face was sombre and at one point he looked as if he was fighting back tears as he paid his own tribute to those who have served New Zealand.

The fern placed by Prince Harry at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Wellington

Later he headed off to the rugby where, as is expected from Harry, he headed into the dressing rooms to meet the teams, nabbed himself a top and picked up another cute present for Charlotte in the shape of a Babygro in the team colours. There were more smiles, more photos and more jokes before he headed home to relax after a long day at the start of a long tour.

Prince Harry does rugby his way

One down, six to go on Harry's fist visit to New Zealand and already he's proved a huge hit. The next week is going to be very interesting indeed - all bets are off after the tale of the prince, the puppy and the Prime Minister.