SHAPED BY AUSTRALIA

HE HAS TRUE-BLUE BLOOD AT HEART

Now our country’s official head of state, King Charles has always had a deep affinity with Australia. In fact, the monarch has visited our great nation 16 times, including for a two-term stint at Geelong Grammar School’s Timbertop campus.

“All I’ve ever tried to do, as far as Australia is concerned, is to try and help and encourage and assist in any way I can,” Charles, ever the diplomat, told Ray Martin in a 1994 interview when asked about Australia becoming a republic.

First arriving on our shores when he was 17, Charles says his time here as a teenager irrevocably shaped him, transforming him from a sheltered boy into a man.