Soldier prince turns on the charm
Prince Harry charmed the crowds as he paid a visit to Nelson's iconic flagship HMS Victory.
The prince was met by a sea of well-wishers as he prepared to board the ship and stopped to talk to members of the public.
And among them was one who had applied her lipstick in the hope of a kiss.
Tourist Vanessa Hernandez, 27, from Texas, in the USA, who had been sightseeing in the Historic Dockyard with her friends, shivered in the cold for hours as she waited for Harry to arrive.
As the 23-year-old prince walked towards Nelson's famous warship, the social worker, who is on holiday in Europe with her friend Melissa Rhoderick for two weeks, waved and shouted hello.
The prince heard her, turned and smiled bashfully before continuing his inspection of 40 Army and Sea Cadets from Portsmouth, Gosport and the Isle of Wight who were standing to attention in his honour.
However, despite her disappointment, Miss Hernandez said the long wait had been worthwhile.
She added: 'When we heard he was coming we insisted on staying to see him.
'He's a real celebrity and he has that bad boy image. We were interested in seeing him for ourselves. He's very handsome.'
The prince spoke to old and young people in the crowd who had gathered to welcome him to Portsmouth.
It was his first official engagement as Commodore-in-Chief Small Ships and Diving and one of the first royal visits he has made on his own.
After greeting the crowds, Harry was piped aboard HMS Victory where he narrowly missed bumping his head on the low beams below deck.
The prince was greeted by the ship's commanding officer Lieutenant Commander John Scivier who gave him a guided tour of the ship.
On the quarterdeck where Nelson was fatally wounded Captain Minewarfare and Fishery Protection Squadron Captain Peter Lambourn presented the prince with his commodore's pennant, which was mounted in a frame along with pictures of the squadron's ships.
'Harry, we are delighted to have you as our commodore-in-chief,' the captain said. 'The Royal Family and the Royal Navy have had close links for centuries.'
The prince, who had changed from the Army fatigues he had been wearing earlier in the day into a lounge suit, then attended a reception of naval officers and ratings in Hardy's cabin before returning to London.
Earlier in the day, the prince had visited the Fleet Diving Squadron on Horsea Island.
There had been grumblings in the naval community when Prince Harry and his brother William broke with family tradition and joined the army.
Their grandfather, Prince Philip, served in the Royal Navy in the Second World War and was mentioned in dispatches.
Their father, Prince Charles, commanded a coastal minesweeper while their uncle, the Duke of York, was a Royal Naval helicopter pilot and flew combat missions in the Falklands War.
In 2006 the Queen agreed with the First Sea, Lord Admiral Jonathon Band, that strengthening the links between the navy and the Royal Family should be encouraged.
Shortly afterwards Prince Harry, who is a cornet in the Household Cavalry's Blues and Royals regiment, was appointed Commodore-in-Chief Small Ships and Diving.
But the officers and ratings at the Fleet Diving Squadron said they were delighted that the high-profile, youthful prince got the job.
The prince was rarely without a smile on his face and appeared relaxed and at ease at the naval base. He laughed and joked with the divers, clearly enjoying the banter, which he would be familiar with in his own regiment.
Donning a bright yellow diving hood – emblazoned with the word 'Wales', like his new flippers – before jumping in to a chilly water tank the royal joked: 'I feel like Bananaman.'
He spent 15 minutes in the tank at the Defence Diving School, joining in with navy officers practising carrying out drills under water. He turned down the chance of climbing down into the water, instead choosing to follow the example of the navy divers and leap straight in.
Earlier he had again been quick to show his mischievous side.
While the 23-year-old prince was being given a demonstration on how to manoeuvre a remote-controlled bomb disposal vehicle, he confidently took the controls and gleefully rotated the tracked vehicle to send the seven-ft steel arm mounted on top of the device straight at nearby photographers.
Commander Peter Greenwood, commanding officer of the Fleet Diving Squadron, said: 'I was very impressed by Prince Harry. He was very keen to get stuck in. He's a real personality and you could see that in the faces of the men who he spoke to which lit up when he spoke to them.'
After seeing his prowess working alongside members of Southern Diving Unit 2 to learn about using the remote-controlled vehicle second in command of the unit, Chief Petty Officer Diver Michael Archer, 45, said: 'He was very relaxed and very interested in what we do and what our responsibilities are. He's obviously got a very good sense of humour.'
Prince Harry arrived at Horsea Island this morning in the middle of a convoy of three black Land Rovers.
In the uniform of his army regiment, the Blues and Royals, he saluted the welcoming committee of three navy officers, led by Commander Peter Greenwood, Commanding Officer of Fleet Diving Squadron, alongside Captain Peter Lambourn and Captain Bob Stewart.
The Queen appointed Prince Harry as Commodore-in-Chief Small Ships and Diving following talks with the First Sea Lord in 2006, where they discussed strengthening the links between the Royal Family and the Royal Navy.
It is the first visit to the squadron for the prince, who is a second lieutenant in the Blues and Royals.
Naval base spokesman Simon Smith said: 'This is an extremely proud day for the Royal Navy in Portsmouth. The Royal Navy is very much looking forward to showing Prince Harry some of its capabilities.
'It will prove a great way of kicking off the Navy's affiliation with the Prince in his new role of Commodore-in-Chief Small Ships and Diving.'
If you take a good picture of Prince Harry we'd love to see it.
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Weather for Portsmouth
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 15 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
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