Crown Prince Frederik and Mary Donaldson, Current Events 1: September 2002 - May 2004


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Lorraine

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Hello Everyone,

How are you all doing? I have often wondered about this and forgot to ask, so here it is now...stupid question. Why doesn't Mary propose to Fred instead of waiting. I would if I was with a guy for two years. Its afterall 2002 and the roles between men and women are changing. I can imagine Mary proposing to Fred outside Marseilsborg Palace or Amaliensborg Castle, getting down on bended knees while QM,Prince Henrik and our dearest, Mr Per Thornit are having a meeting and are shocked when they look outside the window and wonder what on earth is going on. Would anyone of you out there propose to a guy?

I bid you all a very beautiful day with hugs, smiles, love and friendship to everyone. :D


Jacquelines reply to posts :

Lorissa! That is an absolutely fantastic idea. I never thought about that. If Mary can live with Frederick for months at Amalienborg (sorry if I didn't spell correctly)without their being married, surely she can pop the question. Besides, it does seem that Miss Mary is running the show in this relationship, so she might as well go all the way.

Jacqueline
 
Frederik and Mary - Picture and News Thread

This article was posted by Rick.

Aussie girl to 'marry' Prince

26sep02

DENMARK'S Crown Prince Frederik has become engaged to his Australian girlfriend Mary Donaldson, a Danish Television channel has reported.

There has been no confirmation as yest from the palace.
TvDanmark said the pair would marry on May 24 next year, citing political sources.

The royal palace said it "had not heard word of any engagement".

Donaldson, potentially the future Danish Queen, has been dating the prince for two years but has received little or no encouragement from the palace.

Denmark's press has been piling the pressure on Queen Margrethe to extend a welcome to the royal girlfriend.

The pressure has mounted since Margrethe admitted last month that she had not yet met Frederik's girlfriend and that she did not want to talk about his private life.

"Meet her" urged BT newspaper, supporting demands from its readers for Margrethe to make the first gesture and get to know 30-year-old Donaldson.

Frederik, 34, was introduced to Donaldson by Spanish Crown Prince Felipe at a reception in Sydney during the September 2000 Olympics.

In February, the Danish court finally confirmed the two were an item.

Gossip magazines have reported that Donaldson, who often stays in the crown prince's apartments at Copenhagen's Amalienborg Palace, is studying Danish.

Donaldson, a trained lawyer from Tasmania, moved to London last year to be near her father John, an Oxford university professor who married Australian writer Susan Moody after the death of his first wife.

This summer she was installed in an upmarket area of Copenhagen, a kilometre from Amalienborg, where she works for information company Navision, a Danish subsidiary of Microsoft.

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Julia :

Hey Rick! Really interesting article...wonder what's keeping the Queen from meeting Mary? Disinterest? Disapproval? Wants Fred to marry someone of royal blood? I can't believe that she hasn't met her informally, that is unofficially, you know?
Have a great day!
Julia

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Kelly B :

Today's Hello online has a snippet about Fred "stepping nearer to the altar" or something along those lines. I guess this TV channel report has kicked it into high gear. Not sure who these UNNAMED political sources are? But its got the tabs in a tizzy--and that doesn't take much.

THEY say they would get engaged Oct 2 (so Mary can attend the new baby's baptism and hence, over shadow the day--nice move by a potential new aunt!) and be married May 24.
If the palace is preparing for an engagement next week and are currently saying "they know nothing of an engagement", and something does happen....they should really revamp their PR dept.

When will it end?

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Julia :

Kelly, it's fairly amazing that the tabs know more about the engagement date as well as the date of the wedding than the palace ...It would be rather overshadowing if Mary and Fred were to be engaged just in time for the baby's christening...not terribly fair.

Have a great day!

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Lorissa :

Hey Rick, Kelly,Julia and everyone.

How are you? Thanks Rick so much for posting the article. Kelly and Julia, I agree totally with your posts about the Oct 2 "supposedly" engagement. I don't think that Fred or the palace would overshadow the new baby's christening and announce it then. All these re-hashes and media predictions are simply crazy. Its like the same old stories and rumors again. Poor Mary! It must be frustrating as well as nerve racking waiting for him to propose. You two are funny!
The press seems to know more about Fred's lovelife then the Palace or Fred himself.

Have fun and take care!!!
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Robb :

I hope not ! If I were Princess Alexandra I would be
cheesed off even though she's not going to be the Queen
she has been in Denmark longer and had more practice as a Pincess
than Miss Mary! If they are going to be sister-in laws why get off
on the wrong foot? But it looks like Mary has no respect for the queen
either !
How/why would Fred be with someone so minipulative/immature something is "fishy" in that relationship !
Robb
 
Originally posted by Samantha:

HI.

Sydney Confidential
by Peter Holden, Jo Casamento and Naomi Toy
25/9/02
English news,2002 Nationwide news pty ltd

SOME weird stuff is going on in Denmark, where the media is in a frenzy over Prince Frederik's relationship with Tasmanian Mary Donaldson. With the announcement of an engagement expected some time soon, an operative reports that local newspapers and magazines have been contacted by greedy folk from Tassie, purportedly with stories to tell and, more importantly, sell. Another whisper impossible to confirm is that the palace is prepared to buy embarrassing photos, should any exist.

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Sam :

New digs step nearer to palace for Mary.

214 words
8 September 2002
Sunday Tasmanian
5
English
(c) 2002 Davies Brothers Limited.

TASMANIA'S real-life Cinderella Mary Donaldson has moved a step closer to Denmark's royal castle.

She now lives just a few blocks away.

This is the exclusive portside apartment block in Copenhagen that the former Taroona girl recently moved into.

Ms Donaldson, girlfriend of Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik, was also spotted after a lunch engagement in the Danish capital this week.

And, observers assured, she is again wearing that suspiciously "engagement" looking ring.

This follows news during the week that Ms Donaldson, 30, has begun a new job with Danish Microsoft subsidiary Navision.

Ms Donaldson holds a law degree from the University of Tasmania and worked at a real estate agency in Sydney before moving to Denmark several months ago.

She met the 34-year-old prince at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Reports of their budding romance and Mary's move to Denmark, plus rumours of an impending marriage, have been circulating since.

But Mary's move may be a lonely one for now, with Prince Frederik resuming his Military College studies this week.

He travels to Brazil on September 11 and also has an upcoming engagement in New York to receive the Danish-American Society's man of the year award.

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Lorissa :

Hey everyone,

Thanks Sam! I'm so glad that you kept your promise and posted
new articles up. I hope that more Tasmanians will be bribed into
spitting out interesting info on Mary. Then we can have some real
"juicy" gossip. Funny about the Palace willing to buy embarrassing pics, thats if they exist? What does everyone think?

The same thing happened a couple of years ago with Australia's media tycoon's heir, James Packer. He was engaged to a actress/model Kate Fisher and she had appeared naked in the movie "Sirens" with Hugh Grant and numerous other modelling assignments. If they were to get
married he was willing to buy up every magazine,movie,etc... that Kate starred in nude. I wonder of there is any nude pics of Mary?

I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

I bid you all a very beautiful day with hugs, smiles, love and friendship to everyone.

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Kelly :

Hello All--I finally got here and the computer-challenged dork I am...it took awhile to get registered...(I know...I know..it's not that hard. Be nice to the dumb girl, please )

Good little tidbit on the potential feeding frenzy in Oz.
I figure it is only a matter of time. EVERYONE has something they would rather not see on the cover of a paper or tabloid.

And when it comes to the payoff, some people may wait until "an announcement" may be made. I mean dirt on a royal girlfriend probably won't pay as well as dirt on a future CP. It's all about economics.
I just have a hunch, don't know where from, but I am sure there are people Mary has trampled over or peeved off who are circling to await their moment for a payoff (financial or emotionally)

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Jacqueline :

Thanks for the article Sam.

I think that a few new things about Mary that perhaps aren't that flattering will eventually surface, especially if an engagement is announced. I don't know how everyone else feels about this, but I always thought that it was a little strange that absolutely nothing the least bit questionable or for that matter at least interesting has been brought up about Mary. It has always seemed somewhat odd to me. There must be something. I guess that we'll just have wait and see.

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Mara :

Bla bla bla... Can we talk about something besides Mary? YUCK! Just kidding. Hey, did anyone hear when Fred is going on Good Morning America? I hope I didn't miss that. Please let me know.

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Kelly B :

I haven't heard about the GMA appearance at all. It's not getting alot of promotion. What am I saying--any promotion.
I did hear he is hosting a party this Sunday at BB Kings--which is kind of a cheesy concert (overpriced too) hall in Times Square. I was suprised that this place would be chosen to host a party. If you want down home fun, it's one thing, but this is just cheeseball, as they say.

Perhaps there is nothing about Mary that is very interesting. Dirt or even normal information. She is pretty boring, so far. The whole thing about the palace willing to buy off pics or info---not sure if its true--but it's funny.

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Jacqueline :

Hi everyone!

No matter how hard someone tries to inform himself or herself, it really doesn't matter, especially when the proper authorities can't even provide you with the information that you need in order to remain informed of current events. Okay, I know that this sounds a little odd, but I am speaking in regards to Fred's appearance on GMA.

I went to the GMA website and I didn't find anything about Fred on the website. I didn't even find something pertaining to the show's schedule and topics for the week. I e-mailed a friend and asked him if he has heard anything about it, since he watches the show daily and he has heard nothing. He said that he would call the show and find out the list of topics for the week. Well, when he called and entered the correct key on the menu that gives detailed information on the week's schedule, he found that the recording did give detailed information about the week's shows-details that go all the way back to the week of May 6. Can you believe that? No one has updated the automated phone system since the beginning of May. I think that my friend said that this particular week was supposedly, "Blast from the Past" week. Whatever. It must have been some week. Honestly, the fact that they are still giving information out on the week of May 6 is a "blast from the past" in itself.

That is just plain horrible. I guess that some of us will never know, especially since the week is almost over.I am very disappointed in GMA. I am sorry everyone. I wish that I had more information. But, GMA just will not cooperate with the public. I guess they're really busy.
 
Well, LC had said that he would be appearing on GMA later this month. Well, today is the last day of the month. But the saddest thing is that he was in NYC probably talking with them and noone knew anything about it. Its very sad.

Well, I guess we will soon see what will happen. They should be "engaged" (if that's true) in 2 days. I highly doubt that will happen. I just really find it odd that they would marry May 24th. That's just a couple of days before his birthday. Oh well. :?
 
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Something on the SRMB said that he pulled out of his appearance at ABC because they wanted to discuss Mary and Greenland and not some other topic. Who knows what the real story was? They didn't promote it at all...so I guess it was never a featured or "hot" story for the program.
 
It was the 200 year anniversary of author Hans Christian Andersen. That is what he was supposed to be on there for. I don't blame him for pulling out at all. That really bites that they can't stay on subject.
 
(or as always, the press was wrong)


Taken from .......... abuzz at wedding rumours
October 3 2002<img border='0' alt='image'src=http://www.smh.com.au/ffxImage/urlpicture_id_1033538683365_2002/10/03/3wld_donalson+frederik.jpg>




Mary Donaldson and Prince Frederik of Denmark.


The Danish palace was tight-lipped over rumours that it was set to announce the engagement of Crown Prince Frederik to Australian girlfriend Mary Donaldson, denying that such an announcement was due.

"There will be no announcement today [Wednesday] or in the near future," said the personal secretary to the prince, Per Thornit, dismissing reports of an imminent royal statement as "speculation invented by the media".

A report on Danish television channel TvDanmark2 last week said that, on Wednesday, Frederik would announce his intention to marry Ms Donaldson in May, quoting sources from the interior ministry and royal palace.

Photographers and television crews have set up camp outside Copenhagen's Christianborg Castle - the seat of government where there is also a royal apartment - where Queen Margrethe was meeting Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen and other senior ministers on Wednesday.

Speculation was high that the monarch was presenting Ms Donaldson to the Danish Government - a constitutional formality before any royal engagement can be officially announced.

But royal court chamberlain Soeren Haslund-Christensen denied that Ms Donaldson was with the queen, insisting "there is nothing new on this matter".

The prince said last week that reports of his engagement were premature, appealing for the media to halt speculation over his private life.

Danes have welcomed Ms Donaldson with open arms, apparently unperturbed by the possibility of an Australian one day becoming their queen.

She has dated the prince for two years but has received little or no encouragement from the palace. Queen Margrethe, the reigning monarch, admitted last month that she had not yet met Ms Donaldson.

Frederik, 34, was introduced to Ms Donaldson by Spanish Crown Prince Felipe at a reception in Sydney during the September 2000 Olympics.

In February, the Danish court finally confirmed the two were an item.

AFP
 
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Mary's big day draws near.

By SUE BAILEY.
489 words
27 September 2002
Hobart Mercury
3
English
(c) 2002 Davies Brothers Limited

THE excitement is mounting in Denmark that after a fairytale romance Tasmania's Mary Donaldson will finally become engaged to Crown Prince Frederik next week.

Danish television station TvDanmark reported on Wednesday night that the pair would marry on May 24 - the same date his grandparents were married. The report, which led the evening news, sent the Danish media into a frenzy.

In the country where she could end up Queen, Ms Donaldson is fast becoming the equivalent of Princess Diana, with paparazzi following her every move. She regularly makes headlines and the front covers of European magazines.

The couple have just returned from an eight-day holiday in Brazil and Prince Frederik is in New York alone until Monday when he will return for Tuesday's resumption of Parliament.

TvDanmark head of news Jens Hobsgaard, who broke the exclusive story, said "political sources" had told him there would be an official announcement of the couple's engagement next Wednesday.

"We think our sources are quite reliable," Mr Hobsgaard said in Copenhagen last night.

Mr Hobsgaard said Ms Donaldson was the first girlfriend Prince Frederik had been seen with in public.

"He used to hide his girlfriends from the press and slide off somewhere but now he is showing Denmark and the world, `Here is my bride'," he said. "If they become engaged, she will be able to attend the christening of the prince's nephew on Friday.

Mr Hobsgaard said the only word Mary had uttered to the media was "Hi".

"We don't know her, we don't even know her voice, but she is extremely popular," he said.

A journalist with national broadcaster Television 2, Gitta Didriksen, last night said all television channels believed an engagement announcement was imminent.

"We will not broadcast it until we have confirmation but all the magazines are asking will they or won't they say something on Wednesday," Ms Didriksen said.

"We have to be very serious but there is huge interest in Denmark and everybody is positive she is the right girl for him."

However, the co-editor of the weekly magazine Billed Bladet, Peter Juul last night poured cold water on the likelihood of an announcement next Wednesday.

"Nobody believes it, no one takes it seriously but May 24 would be the perfect date because that was when his grandparents married," Mr Juul said.

He was adamant that no announcement would be forthcoming because of the christening of Prince Joachim's second son today week, which will be televised, and Parliament resuming next Tuesday.

Prince Joachim is Prince Frederik's younger brother.

"Personally I don't think there will be an engagement until the New Year," Mr Juul said.

Ms Donaldson, 30, who grew up at Taroona and has a law degree from the University of Tasmania, met the 34-year-old Prince at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Document mrcury0020020927dy9r00003
 
OBSERVER - Just princely Boulevard.

130 words
12 September 2002
Financial Times
13
English
(c) 2002 Financial Times Limited. All Rights Reserved

Who says life is difficult for non-European Union nationals entering Denmark (new this year: tough immigration rules)?

Mary Donaldson, 30, a professor's daughter from Tasmania, arrived recently armed with a degree in law, a brief career in property and a photogenic personality. What is more, she has landed a job at Microsoft's European headquarters in Vadbaek, north of Copenhagen.

Oh, and incidentally, she is dating the dashing Crown Prince Frederik, Denmark's most eligible bachelor, who has a new job at the Danish defence command, also in Vadbaek.

If Donaldson is facing any bothersome red tape, it may not be for long. Denmark's tabloids reckon a royal wedding is imminent. And royals, unlike commoners, do not need work permits.

Europe Edition 1.

Document ftft000020020912dy9c0005p
 
Cool it, says Mary's prince.

313 words
28 September 2002
Hobart Mercury
5
English
(c) 2002 Davies Brothers Limited

DENMARK'S Crown Prince Frederik early today said that reports of his engagement with Tasmanian girlfriend Mary Donaldson were premature and appealed for the media to halt speculation over his private life.

The visibly annoyed prince appeared on Danish television to issue the rebuke to the local media, which has been piling pressure on the 34-year-old to take the plunge and announce his intention to wed his popular girlfriend.

"If it were true there would be a statement either from me or from the royal palace," Frederik, who is in New York, insisted, appealing for the media to "examine their conscience from time to time".

"It's funny that I have to comment on rumours that the press itself has come up with," he added in comments broadcast on DR public television.

Danes have welcomed Ms Donaldson with open arms, apparently unperturbed by the possibility of an Australian one day becoming their queen.

The Danish royal family already includes a non-Dane, after Frederik's younger brother, Prince Joachim. married Princess Alexandra, originally from Hong Kong, in 1995.

A report on Danish television channel TvDanmark on Wednesday said that Frederik next week would announce his intention to marry Ms Donaldson next May, but the royal palace refused to comment on the report at the time.

Ms Donaldson has dated the prince for two years but has received little or no encouragement from the palace.

Denmark's press has been urging Queen Margrethe to extend a welcome to the royal girlfriend after the reigning monarch admitted last month that she had not yet met Ms Donaldson and that she did not want to talk about her son's private life.

"Meet her," urged BT newspaper, supporting demands from its readers for Margrethe to make the first gesture and get to know 30-year-old Ms Donaldson.

Document mrcury0020020928dy9s00004
 
Castles, wars and a Hamlet touch.

By Scott Fraser.
780 words
29 September 2002
Sunday Herald Sun
English
(c) 2002 Herald and Weekly Times Limited

"TO be or not to be?" What else could possibly come to mind when standing on the ramparts of the well-preserved, grey sandstone, green copper-roofed castle called Kronborg? It was built in the 15th century to ensure taxes were paid by ships passing through the sound between today's Denmark and Sweden to the Baltic Sea.

The story of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, was fictional, yet Shakespeare drew on a legend.

He was able to build a mental picture of a Danish castle from a description an actor friend brought back from the township of Helsingor (Elsinore).

It's a big, impressive, solid place - simply billed as Hamlet's Castle - set on a low promontory at the end of a small bay housing a harbour from which busy ferries ply back and forth to the twin Swedish town on the opposite shore.

These fortifications - portals, guard houses, a moat, drawbridge and ramparts - form one of several castles and palaces explored by Australians whose interest in the Danish royal family has been increased by suggestions of romance between Crown Prince Frederik and Sydney real estate agent Mary Donaldson.

Much of this building is open to the public, including the Royal Apartments. It also houses a maritime museum said to be one of the oldest in the world. Not far away, but inland, is Fredensborg Palace, built at the end of an 18th century war with Sweden as the "Castle of Peace".

More a country mansion than a castle, it has long, straight avenues radiating through parkland towards a lake and small pavilions. Tourist buses park in a satellite township that is home to courtiers and other staff.

Because Fredensborg remains an active royal residence, the family's country estate, it is open to visitors only at limited times and in a limited way.

The main royal residence in Copenhagen is a nondescript three-storey building.

So, to gain an insight into Danish royal life, most travellers linger longest at the 17th century Renaissance-era Frederiksborg Castle, parts of which had to be renovated after a fire in 1859.

This does look like a fortress, with imposing tall, brick towers and spires peeking over the surrounding forests and dominating the township of Hillerod.

The castle is set defensively on islands in the middle of a lake creating a natural moat, and you reach it through a series of terraces, gates set in thick walls and enclosed cobbled courtyards.

The perfect design for fighting desperate, back-to-the-wall battles, you think. But it is such a pretty place.

The walls are set with statues and reliefs, broken by colonnades, while water sparkles from fountains, cream bricks form decorative patterns in the dominant red, and sunlight glistens on ancient copper-clad roofs that have long since turned green with age.

Behind the main building is a reconstruction of the Baroque Garden, cascades and lake.

Picking up a self-guided tour booklet, I enter one of the four prominent corner towers of the main courtyard, stair turrets linking different levels of the buildings.

I find myself climbing a spiral staircase lined with shields presented to members of the Ancient Order of the Elephant, a royal brotherhood similar to the English Order of the Garter.

I'm told that the Danes had not seen elephants when the order was formed, but knew from stories they were strong and intelligent.

The staircase opens at balcony level to the stunning Lutheran Kirk, still the parish church.

It also is used for coronations and such events - lined with frescoes, shields and paintings, its elaborate woodwork is highlighted by the sunlight that streams through stained-glass windows.

Beyond the kirk, up and down more stairs, the guided tour passes through room after room of art treasures set beneath painted and carved ceilings.

It is a designated museum of Danish national art.

Many of the portraits depict members of the royal family.

You realise it matters little in the Danish scheme of things whether or not the family is soon expected to include an Australian. This is another world.

Snapshot HOW TO GET THERE: Copenhagen International Airport is serviced by more than 60 international airlines.

Lufthansa flies daily from Melbourne, via Singapore and Frankfurt. Scandinavian Airlines goes via Bangkok.

Take the coastal train from Copenhagen Central Station to the Zealand region, home to many of Denmark's finest castles.

UPSIDE: Great beers, seafood and good Danish pastry.

DOWNSIDE: Off the beaten track for those on the Euro trail - and a lot of pickled herring.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW: Currency: Kroner.

Religion: Evangelical Lutheran.

Population: 5,312,000.

Capital: Copenhagen.

Document suhers0020020928dy9t000m3
 
Thank you for posting this article. I am wondering one thing, though. I keep reading that Mary is taking lessons in the Danish language and Denmark's art and culture. How do people actually know this? I know when Maxima was reported as having a private tutor there was a picture of her with the tutor, etc.
 
Thanks for the article Lorissa. It seems to basically repeat many of the same things that we have been hearing, but I must admit that it is one of the more well constructed articles that I have read about Mary (and Fred). Thanks for sharing it with us. :D
 
I agree Robb. I thought that the fact that photographers other than those requested by the bride and groom or their families were there was a bit odd as well. My guess would be that someone tipped off the press that Mary's friend was getting married and that she would be there as a member of the wedding party and Fred would be with her.

There are a lot of different scenarios:

....Mary could have told someone at work that she was going home for a friend's wedding simply in passing.
....Mary could have mentioned it to a new friend that she has made in Denmark.
....Someone in Australia who most likely attended the wedding could have tipped off the press about Mary and Fred being in town for the wedding. (I would bet that this is most likely what happened)
 
Too bad someone tipped the press off. I feel bad for the bride. It was her day and the cameras in the street were taking pictures of one of her bridesmaids. Embarassing for Mary as well, I would think.
 
I agree, very embarassing for Mary and sad for the bride. I guess the excitement for Mary's imminent engagement with the prince is just so high in Australia that when the press heard they'll be at a wedding there, they just forgot all about manners and common decency and turned the wedding into a Mary & Fred show. I just hope someone said "I'm sorry" to the bride.
 
Hey Robb,

How are you? Interesting point. I wonder how the Journalists find out so soon about the Wedding in Sydney. Poor bride having her wedding ruined by all these Journalists. I would be mad if it was me. :roll: :x
 
I hope that Mary gave the bride and the groom and a really nice wedding gift. Of course, it wouldn't take back the media blitz on their day, but getting a useless gift after having your wedding day ruined doesn't help the situation any.
 
I kinda have mixed feelings about the topic.
Yes, it was the bride and groom's special day. However, the bride had to have known about the "Mary-Frenzy" in Denmark and abroad when she asked her to be in her wedding party. I'm sure the bride considered the possibility that the papparazzi (sp?) might show up. Sometimes you have to take the good with the bad. In this case, friendship was more important.
 
Hey Everyone,

All this Mary has seemed very cool and always "smirking" as many have noted towards the Photographers and Journalists, seems like she is finally showing annoyance and her true self?. Can Mary handle the media following her constantly? :D :shock: :? :roll:

"Marqueeing time at cup"

by Mike Edmons, Peta Hellard and Luke Dennehy 6 November, 2002 Herald-sun

NOT at all happy to be photographed were Danish Crown Prince Frederik and his Tasmanian girlfriend Mary Donaldson, who began their day in style at the Moet and Chandon marquee.

Their two besuited security guards stepped in every time a camera was pointed their way. And when The Eye dodged the security boys to ask Donaldson, a Sydney real estate agent before romance blossomed with the Prince at the 2000 Olympics, who had designed her brown lace dress, she was less than friendly.

"It's a Danish designer," she said. Yes, but which one? "Just write that it's a Danish designer, OK," she snapped rudely, before pointedly turning away.

Thanks for that, princess.
 
Thanks for the article Lorissa. Interesting indeed. Well, if this did happen, it's only natural. Eventually, she's going to have enough. I know that I would get aggravated after a while, especially if I had to put on a brave face/smirk all of the time, and there was still no engagement announcement. No matter how she's playing the game, it's enough to make anyone crack or snap. :?
 
from
http://www.eharlequin.com no date found
article
http://www.eharlequin.com/harl/magazine/features/royal/42mfer11.htm

by Stephanie Wilson Chapin

The Prince & the Girl Down Under


Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark falls for an Aussie lass.


Well, it seems like yet another Crown Prince has succumbed to Cupid's arrow. Only months after the future kings of Norway and Holland got hitched, it seems Denmark's heir to the throne has the love bug. Crown Prince Frederik is dating a young Aussie woman and she just may be "the one." Read on for all of the details!



So how the heck does a Danish prince hook up with an Australian commoner? It helps when the summer Olympics are held in Sydney. Most of the young royal types are into sports these days, and what better way to support national athletics than to turn up at the most prestigious sporting event in the world. It's all about being in the right place at the right time, and Mary Donaldson definitely got it right during Prince Frederik's visit to the games. Let's begin with the scoop on their first meeting and long-distance courtship.

According to Australia's The Daily Telegraph, Mary swung an invitation to an exclusive Olympic party being thrown by United Airlines, the official airline partner of the Sydney Olympics. At the time, she was working for an advertising agency called Love (ironically). But before she joined Love in May of 2000, she had worked for Young & Rubicam Inc., another ad agency. One of her clients at Y&R was United Airlines. She worked on the company's Olympic strategy. Through her connections to United and their Olympic partnership, she found herself in United's hospitality tent during the Sydney games talking to the future king of Denmark. And apparently, the courtship began right there.

After their first meeting, they spoke on the phone every day and Prince Frederik flew to Australia every other month to see Mary in person — I guess you can do things like that when you've got oodles of cash. Last December, Mary quit her job at a real estate company and moved to England. The media is speculating that she made the move to be closer to the prince. So just who is this Aussie lass?



Mary Elizabeth Donaldson is 30 years old and was born in Tasmania, an Australian island-state just off the southeastern tip of Australia. She is 5 feet 9 inches tall and has long brown hair and brown eyes. She has two sisters who are both aerobics instructors and still live in Tasmania. Her father is a math professor at England's Oxford University and he's married to crime writer Susan Moody. Her mother died several years ago.

Reports say that Mary is staying with her father and stepmother while she's in England. From what I can tell, she hasn't landed a job yet — maybe she doesn't plan to. Mary graduated with a law degree from the University of Tasmania in 1994 and she seems to have some good work experience, so it's unlikely that she would have trouble finding a position somewhere. The longer she waits to find work, the more suspicious we'll all get!



Most recently, a royal spokesperson for the prince confirmed that Mary was a guest at the royal palace in Copenhagen in February when she celebrated her 30th birthday with Frederik. The prince also confirmed their relationship himself in an interview in January, but added that he was "in no hurry to get married or engaged."

The prince has had numerous girlfriends in the past, including singers and models, but the Danish press seems to think that he's treating Mary differently.

Apparently, Danes are also excited at the prospect of having a foreigner as their queen. That's probably because one of the most popular members of Denmark's royal family is Frederik's sister-in-law Princess Alexandra. She is from Hong Kong, making her the first woman of Asian descent to marry a member of one of Europe's sitting royal houses. Alexandra is also beautiful, smart, and she's taken a very active role in Denmark's public life.

Whoever Frederik chooses, he must get his mother's permission to marry. Since Mary has been a guest at the palace, it looks like Queen Margrethe has given her tacit approval. It's not known whether or not the two women have met, but it's bound to happen if Mary starts hanging out at the Palace. No one has confirmed a meeting between Prince Frederik and members of Mary's family, but he's competing in an international sailing competition in Tasmania next January. Perhaps he'll be taking his new bride or fiancée with him for a visit with family and friends. I'll keep an eye on these two and you can be sure you'll get the scoop right here if something more "official" develops.

 
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from
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com, September 06, 2002
article
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoft/134530095_queen06.html

by By Brier Dudley
Seattle Times technology reporter


Whispers link Microsoft, royalty

Denmark is one country where Microsoft should get along well with the government. One of its employees there is dating the crown prince, and rumor has it she's being groomed to become the next queen.

Mary Donaldson, 30, a former real-estate agent from Australia, has been the talk of the nation since she began dating Crown Prince Frederik, 34, two years ago.

Gossip reached a crescendo yesterday, the first day of Donaldson's new job in the public-relations department of Microsoft's Navision subsidiary in Denmark.

Donaldson is on a team of five working on the new identity for the business-software company Microsoft bought in July for $1.4 billion.

Frederik, who attended Harvard University, served as a frogman in the Danish Navy and worked at the Robert Mondavi Winery in the Napa Valley, had a string of girlfriends before he met Donaldson at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

Press reports have noted Donaldson is appearing in increasingly formal attire and speculated that she's being prepped for royalty. An Australian paper also reported seeing a large ring on her left ring finger in July.

Microsoft's international-affairs spokesman was unaware of any employees with royal connections and would not discuss Donaldson.

"We don't comment on employees' personal lives, regardless," said Mark Thomas.

The Danish royal family has no official political role but it's a beloved institution, especially Queen Margarethe II. The highly educated, progressive 62-year-old uses her annual New Year's speech to the nation and her pulpit to push for integration, racial harmony, morals and values.

Danes say they respect the royals' privacy, but they are closely following the life of the handsome prince destined to be their king.

"The Danes are eager to see the crown prince settling. He's had a lot of girlfriends that didn't seem to have the queen material," said Bodil Brovick, a Bellevue insurance agent and president of the Northwest Danish Foundation, a cultural and philanthropic organization in North Seattle.

Brovick said Frederik's choice of wife is important for the fate of the monarchy, which needs the people's support to continue.

"I think it's important for the future of any monarchy that you have a royal family that is respected and does show a high level of values, and from that standpoint, I think it's very important who Frederik chooses," she said.

Donaldson has a tough act to follow in Queen Margarethe II and Princess Alexandra, a Hong Kong investment executive who married Prince Frederik's younger brother, Joachim, in 1995. She quickly learned Danish, speaks well in public and is liked by the people, Brovick said.

"You need to have a person that can handle worldly affairs," Brovick said. "She will be a representative of the country. When she's traveling, she needs to have a certain level of presence, charisma, educational background and so on to handle those situations in a professional way."

Even before Microsoft hired the prince's girlfriend, Denmark was supportive of the company, which has its Scandinavian headquarters in Copenhagen. In June, the country declined a request by a Navision competitor to launch a European Commission investigation of Navision's sale.

Other countries in the region have spawned Microsoft competitors. The Linux operating system was created in Finland and the Opera Web browser is from Norway.

If Donaldson marries the prince and becomes queen someday, it would not affect the government's regulation of Microsoft, said Lis Frederiksen, minister counselor at the Royal Danish Embassy in Washington, D.C.

"No, absolutely not," she said. "The royal family's totally separate from that kind of business and governmental issues."

Frederiksen said the government has no official comment on the relationship but admitted she follows the Frederik gossip.

"Everybody's very curious about it. You bet they are,'' she said. "The woman that he picks is going to become the next queen."

 
Sun Herald
By Annette Sharp, 24th November, 2002

MARY Donaldson, the girlfriend of Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, has at last met the family of her royal boyfriend.

But our Donaldson sources are playing down the pleasantries, explaining that a passing "Hello" does not a royal introduction make.

Media speculation about whether Donaldson will one day be Queen of Denmark is constantly thwarted by the fact that she has not been formally introduced to Queen Margrethe.

Now The Diary has learned that the royal family has met Donaldson, just not within the constraints demanded by royal protocol.

Sources claim Donaldson is pushing on eagerly with her Danish language lessons in an effort to hasten such an introduction as she believes she will receive a more favourable reception from Queen Margrethe if she can speak fluently in the Queen's native tongue.
 
A royal dress rehearsal - A future queen turns out for a society wedding.

By PENELOPE CROSS.
551 words
2 November 2002
Daily Telegraph
3
English
© 2002 Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd

SYDNEY was treated to a royal dress rehearsal yesterday when princess-in-waiting Mary Donaldson joined boyfriend Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark at an eastern suburbs wedding.

The 30-year-old former real estate agent returned to Australia to be a bridesmaid at the afternoon nuptials of friends Kylie Matthews and Anthony Jones at St Marks, Darling Point.

Tasmanian-born Ms Donaldson was elegantly dressed as one of the wedding party in a gold satin shell top and long skirt with matching gold jewellery and her hair swept into a bun.

The young woman who is the talk of Denmark beamed after the ceremony as she and the 34-year-old prince greeted old friends and posed for wedding photos, amid a backdrop of falling rose petals and balloons.

At one stage, traffic on Darling Point Rd stopped so the wedding photographer could get a shot of the bridal party and guests lined up outside the church.

While Ms Donaldson was happy to smile and wave as passers-by strained to catch a glimpse of the object of the media's attention, a friend requested she be left alone to enjoy the day.

Appearing to find the public glare unnerving, Ms Donaldson was said not to want to steal the limelight from the bride and groom.

Following the service, the wedding party was whisked away in Rolls Royces to Catalina restaurant at Rose Bay for the reception.

Yesterday's wedding was the fifth Ms Donaldson has attended with Crown Prince Frederik this year.

There has been mounting speculation that an announcement regarding their engagement is imminent.

Ms Donaldson has also been spotted sporting a ring on her ring finger, but there was no sign of one yesterday.

The Danish media has been in a frenzy for months over the law graduate's relationship with the prince.

She met the future Danish king at the Slip Inn in the city during the Olympics.

The prince had flown out to support the Danish sailing team, and Mary was working as an account manager for ad agency Young & Rubicam.

She later joined Darlinghurst property group Belle and soon after her affair with the prince became public.

But while the couple have been dating for two years, the Danish court only confirmed they were an item in February and have since denied engagement rumours.

Ms Donaldson is now based in Copenhagen and has recently started a job as a project consultant with software company Navision, a division of Microsoft.

Her every move, including designer shopping trips, is now monitored as the Danes make no secret of the fact that they want the Australian as their future queen.

Prince Frederik's past girlfriends, including an underwear model and Danish pop star Maria Montell, have not been considered proper princess material.

Ms Donaldson is also said to be taking language courses and lessons in etiquette and Danish history.

But the palace continues to dispel rumours of their engagement and the prince has pleaded for the media to stop speculating about his love life and the couple's future.

Similarly, Ms Donaldson is not playing the media game and her refusal to give any interviews only adds to her public mystique.

Document daitel0020021102dyb20005n
 
Mary's Easter sparkle, Royal watchers expect official engagement - Mary's Easter sparkle.

By ANNE BARBELIUK.
609 words
30 March 2002
Hobart Mercury
1
English
© 2002 Davies Brothers Limited

TASMANIA'S princess-in-waiting, Mary Donaldson, may be formally recognised as Denmark's future queen this Easter.

And a visiting Danish journalist is amazed Tasmania is remaining so low key about the royal match.

Danish royal watchers and an excited Danish public are eagerly awaiting the announcement that their Crown Prince has proposed marriage to the former Hobart girl.

Easter is one of the few occasions on which the Danish royal family comes together, and observers say the time is right for the much-anticipated news.

As excitement brews in Europe, Danish news crews have been swarming Tasmania in an attempt to profile Ms Donaldson's family and early years.

Visiting Danish journalist Karen Glahn said the announcement was expected any day now.

The Melbourne-based freelance journalist said Denmark had an insatiable fascination with their touted future queen.

"People can't get enough. This is like Princess Diana," Ms Glahn said.

"There are three big weekly gossip magazines in Denmark and there is not a week that goes by without a story about Mary."

And now they were brimming with excitement about an Easter proposal.

The royal Danish court has officially confirmed the romance between the former real estate agent and Frederik, the Crown Prince of Denmark.

Ms Donaldson occasionally stays at the palace, is seen driving palace cars and has been introduced to the "inner circle".

Considering the fervour in Denmark, Ms Glahn said she was surprised more was not being made of the relationship in Tasmania.

She said Tasmania should stop being coy about the match and seize the marketing opportunity with both hands.

Ms Glahn said European news crews were desperate for information about Tasmania and pictures of the environment in which Ms Donaldson grew up.

Despite the eagerness, she said it seemed Tourism Tasmania was shunning the limelight.

"I really don't think Tourism Tasmania realises what a big story this is," Ms Glahn said.

"This is a huge international story but ... they keep playing it down, but they should be playing it up.

"They really should start thinking Mary will be the Queen of Denmark."

Ms Donaldson, 30, is a former Taroona High student and the daughter of former University of Tasmania professor John Donaldson. She studied law at the University of Tasmania before moving to Sydney.

Ms Glahn said Denmark wanted to know as much as possible about Mary's formative years - where the family lived, where they holidayed.

She said a dozen or more European news crews had already visited the state to try to fit the jigsaw together and more were on their way. But they had "hit a wall".

"Tourism Tasmania could really boost the state's profile by helping these journalists - imagine the pictures of beautiful Tasmanian beaches where the family camped and so on."

With a lack of information, some Danish news outlets were getting the picture wrong.

"One article referred to Tasmania as a backwater," Ms Glahn said.

And another mentioned Ms Donaldson grew up in Tasmania but later moved to Australia.

Ms Glahn said Tourism Tasmania should take the lead and contact the Donaldsons in preparation for an announcement.

"People have been so kind, considering how many journalists have been contacting them. People have been very kind in their refusal," she said.

Ms Glahn, who visited the state for five days last week said Ms Donaldson had an extremely positive profile in Denmark - but it was based on limited information.

"They like her and are very positive about her, but they don't really know her," she said.

Document mrcury0020020401dy3u00001
 
Court in the act of an engaging preparation.

By RASMUS HEIDE.
998 words
8 April 2002
Daily Telegraph
17
English
© 2002 Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd

MARY Donaldson is living every girl's dream - being swept off her feet by a prince. RASMUS HEIDE in Copenhagen reports that an engagement is imminent.

SHE lives in the Danish Royal Court's holiday palace, takes lessons in the local language and has a personal bodyguard.

Sydney real estate agent Mary Donaldson has come a long way.

The 30-year-old brunette is officially a princess-in-waiting, having moved permanently into Prince Frederik of Denmark's private apartment in the regal holiday residence, the 100-year-old Marselisborg Palace in Aarhus.

It is yet another delightful chapter in Mary's fairytale romance with the heir to the Danish throne, whom she met when he was visiting Sydney during the Olympic Games.

Denmark is on tenterhooks as it awaits a palace announcement of the couple's engagement and the royal court is taking extreme care that nothing goes wrong in the meantime.

It is believed this is why Mary now lives alone at Marselisborg where she can enjoy all the privacy, peace and quiet a Danish queen-in-the-making could wish for.

It is only in the past few weeks that Mary has moved into the holiday palace to avoid the prying eyes of local media.

Holed up in quiet luxury she is spending as much time as possible with the Crown Prince and becoming a firm favourite on the royal circuit.

Although the couple has been skiing in Switzerland, eating out in Copenhagen and strolling on Danish beaches, the Sydney girl spends most of her time hidden away from the glaring eyes of the Danish press.

She is yet to make any kind of voluntary public appearance or statement - but Mary seems to have found her feet in the cooler Danish climate and on the polished floors of the royal palaces.

In February she took up residency in the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, where Prince Frederik hosted a party to mark her 30th birthday.

But the prospect of a future Danish crown princess being photographed jogging in the parks, receiving intensive Danish lessons or shopping in the capital's most exclusive boutiques was deemed inappropriate.

Hardly any official events take place at her new residence, Marselisborg Palace, which is the newest palace in Denmark.

It sits in an English-style 13ha park surrounded with vast lawns, trees and small lakes.

The palace is Queen Margrethe's favourite holiday spot, and the park is rarely opened to the public.

Sources close to the royal court believe Mary's residency at the palace indicates that Frederik's mother, Queen Margrethe, has given her all-important blessing to her son's love for the Sydneysider.

Although Frederik is studying in Copenhagen, he often makes the three-hour-drive to Aarhus to spend time with his love.

Marselisborg is not far from Schackenborg Palace near the German border, where Mary is getting to know Frederik's brother, Prince Joachim and wife Princess Alexandra.

The Australian expat has a great deal in common with Hong Kong-born Alexandra - both are foreigners far away from home, and Danish lessons are a very important part of becoming a Danish princess.

The speed and extreme ease with which Alexandra took to the Danish language soon after her arrival endeared her to the Danish people and Mary hopes to do the same.

Just before Easter, the Crown Prince and Mary were spotted lunching at a Copenhagen cafe, and later attracted curious looks as they strolled along a beach outside the Danish capital.

Walking hand-in-hand, the couple enjoyed the beautiful early Danish spring with only a couple of bodyguards keeping them company.

Mary and Frederik spent the week before Easter skiing at Verbier in the Swiss Alps, where the couple stayed with some of the Crown Prince's close personal friends.

Danes believe Mary has brought out a quieter side in the Crown Prince, who enjoyed a reputation as an international playboy before his Australian romance.

When he is skiing in the Alps, Frederik usually stays at hotels, but last month it was reported he had enjoyed a more discreet time holidaying with Mary at the private holiday cottage of IT millionaire Peter Warnoe, one of Frederik's friends.

Even if the week in Switzerland was a romantic getaway for the couple, they did not spend all their time together.

Mary is not as experienced a skier as Frederik, so she mostly stuck to the lighter tracks, and also spent less time on the slopes than him.

The Crown Prince is an early riser and often hit the slopes in the early mornings, while Mary stayed at the cottage. She joined Frederik and Warnoe on the slopes later for a few hours of skiing before returning to the holiday home by late afternoon.

The Crown Prince is renowned for his late night parties, and Verbier is known for its jet-setter nightlife and exclusive guests - sometimes including duchess Sarah Ferguson.

But the lures of the nightlife do not appear to offer the same attraction for Prince Frederik as they did before he met Mary.

The Easter holiday in the Swiss Alps was filled with evenings at home with Frederik's friends rather than nightly escapades at clubs and bars - a far cry from Frederik's usual late-night holiday fun.

The royal once known as "turbo prince" for his fast living has been tamed by an middle-class Australian girl who is expected to be his bride.

Princess in waiting * Mary Donaldson, 30 * Born: Tasmania, 1972 * Raised: Taroona, a middle-class suburb of Hobart * Parents: John Donaldson, an Oxford University mathematics professor; stepmother is novelist Susan Moody * Siblings: Two sisters, Patricia and Jane, who still live in Tasmania * Career: Real estate agent at up-market firm Belle Property in Kings Cross * During the Sydney Olympics she was an advertising account manager at the Love agency. She also worked at Young & Rubicam.

Document daitel0020020407dy480001c
 
Ex tells of Prince's girlfriend.

By Vanda Carson.
146 words
24 May 2002
The Australian
4
English
© 2002 Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd

A MAN who described himself as the "first real love" of the Australian woman who is dating the Crown Prince of Denmark used to tease her about marrying a prince.

Glenn Marriott described his ex-girlfriend Mary Donaldson as "a fantastic sweet girl" in an interview published in a Danish magazine yesterday.

Mr Marriott, 31, said he had dated the 30-year-old Tasmanian, now living in Sydney, for almost three years when they were at school in Hobart.

"I used to tease her that one day she would find a rich prince," he said.

The pair broke off the relationship when Ms Donaldson began a law degree at the University of Tasmania.

The former Sydney real estate agent has been dating Prince Frederik since the pair met at the Slip Inn bar during the Sydney Olympics.

Document austln0020020523dy5o000sd
 
Sydney Confidential.

By PETER HOLDER, JO CASAMENTO and NAOMI TOY, Additional reporting Penelope Cross.
18 May 2002
Daily Telegraph
14
English
© 2002 Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd

Mary makes Danes' day DENMARK has been celebrating the photo they were waiting to see - Sydney real estate agent Mary Donaldson with Prince Frederik.

And to cement her place in the nation's history books, Denmark's largest tabloid, Ekstra Bladet, featured Mary, 30, as their Page 9 girl - the Danish equivalent of England's Page 3 girls.

Showing nothing but the Danes' fascination with the attractive Australian, the photo was of a fully dressed Mary walking along a street with her mobile phone.

Like all the other girls who feature in the Danish tabloid, Donaldson will also be paid for the pic.

Ekstra Bladet's news editor Soren Juhler personally delivered the $200 fee to Mary Donaldson c/o Amalienborg Palace.

Juhler told Confidential the palace staff readily accepted the letter addressed to Mary Donaldson, verifying connections with the Court.

Juhler added that "we may have to contact the palace again, when we elect the page nine girl of the month who gets an additional $850. Of course that'll now have to be Mary," he said.

In Aarhus, where Mary has previously been residing at the regal summer residence, Marselisborg Palace, the couple met Frederik's brother Joachim. And while Prince Frederik raced his sailboat Nanoq in The Dragon Battle of Jutland race off the coast of Aarhus, Mary spent the afternoon shopping for lingerie. The couple spent the evening out at one of Aarhus's many cafes.

Giving Mary the loving nickname of Kanga - matching Frederik's own of Pingo - there is no doubt that the Danes are more than ready to welcome the attractive Mary into the Danish Royal Court with open arms.
 
A royal rendezvous - Mary flies out to spend New Year with her prince.

By CHRISTINE MIDDAP, PHILLIP KOCH.
452 words
23 December 2001
Sunday Telegraph
21
English
© 2001 Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd

PRINCESS-in-waiting Mary Donaldson flew out of Sydney yesterday to be closer to Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik.

The 28-year-old former real estate agent arrived at Sydney International Airport at 3.30pm to board Qantas Flight 319 to London, where she will spend Christmas with her family before meeting up with the handsome bachelor again before New Year's Eve.

She was seen in Bondi Junction yesterday morning dressed in a light blue sleeveless top and grey pants, and was wearing the same outfit when she said goodbye to Australia at the airport.

Ms Donaldson, who met the former Navy SEAL commando during the Olympics, finished up her job with Belle Property last Tuesday and called in the removalists to her house on Thursday.

"Mary said she was going to London indefinitely," one friend said. "We had some farewell drinks for her on Friday and she was planning to fly out over the weekend."

Her trip to London will allow her to spend more time with her parents, Oxford mathematics lecturer John and his wife Susan Moody.

Journalist Peter Juul, of Denmark's royal magazine Billed-Bladet, said Ms Donaldson would not spend Christmas with Prince Frederik in Denmark because their relationship was still not official.

"Officially there is no relationship - so unless they choose to announce their engagement at Christmas, which we dream about - we don't think she will be here for Christmas," Juul said.

Prince Frederik will spend Christmas, celebrated in Denmark on the 24th, with his family. But he will have almost a week off before his next official engagement on January 1, fuelling rumours of a romantic European interlude with Ms Donaldson.

"There are five or six days when they could be together - but we don't know where that will be," Juul said.

Since the couple met, Prince Frederik has wooed Ms Donaldson from afar, speaking to her each day by phone and travelling to Australia at least six times to see her. They spent some of the northern summer together at a French chateau.

A move to London would take the relationship to a new level, putting them within three hours flying time of each other.

Frederik's father King Henrik has said that he has yet to meet Mary, but it is still unclear whether she has been presented to Queen Margrethe, who must approve of any engagement.

Ms Donaldson's father, John Donaldson, is said to be happy for his daughter, telling Billed-Bladet: "It doesn't matter if it is the prince or a plumber" as long as she was happy.
 
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