'Humble' Princess Anne enjoys Prince George’s favorite pastime on latest royal engagement

Princess Anne checked out her grandnephew's passion during her royal trip to Manchester

Princess Anne enjoys Prince George’s favorite pastime
(Image credit: Getty)

Princess Anne enjoyed a special royal engagement yesterday—and we're pretty sure Prince George would have loved it. 


Prince George would have loved Princess Anne's latest royal engagement—had he been invited, that is. 

The Princess Royal traveled to Manchester on Wednesday to unveil a new NHS helipad on Oxford Road, much to the excitement of the city's locals and medical services. 

The state-of-the-art installation will facilitate the faster transfer of critically ill patients to hospitals, allowing them to be treated by trauma specialists within minutes of reporting the emergency. The first of its kind in the North West of England, it has been used by the air ambulance service over 70 times since it opened last May. 

Princess Anne also visited the Antenatal Clinic and Delivery Suite at Saint Mary’s Hospital during her trip, where she learned about the award-winning maternity care provided by its hardworking staff. 

The second eldest of the Queen's children wore her signature style for the appearance, keeping warm in a wool grey coat, knee-length charcoal skirt, and black riding boots. Her engagement was well received by royal fans, one of whom called her a "humble and hardworking Princess". 

“We were delighted to welcome Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to officially unveil our life-saving helipad here in Manchester and to visit our renowned maternity services," Kathy Cowell, Chairman of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, said. 

"The helipad has made a tremendous difference to how quickly our trauma teams can respond to emergencies which can be the difference between life and death." 

Princess Anne's trip likely gained the envy of her grandnephew, Prince George. It's understood that the eight-year-old is fascinated by all things aircraft, having dreamt of flying planes and helicopters since he was just a toddler. He even got the opportunity to play pilot during a trip to Hamburg in 2017, after being invited to climb inside multiple chopper models at the city's airport.  

Prince George

Prince George inside a helicopter model at Hamburg Airport in 2017 

(Image credit: Getty)

"George was excited, with the first helicopter he wanted to sit in the cockpit, and then he wanted to sit in the next one, he already knew there was a difference between them," said Antoine van Gent, the head of flight testing at Hamburg airport. 

Hopefully, he'll be able to accompany Princess Anne on her next flying adventure. 

Emma Dooney
Lifestyle News Writer

Hailing from the lovely city of Dublin, Emma mainly covers the Royal Family and the entertainment world, as well as the occasional health and wellness feature. Always up for a good conversation, she has a passion for interviewing everyone from A-list celebrities to the local GP - or just about anyone who will chat to her, really.

Emma holds an MA in International Journalism from City, University of London, and a BA in English Literature from Trinity College Dublin.