Toni Collette and the most recent recipient of the Victoria Cross Corporel Daniel Keighran were among a very exclusive elite of just 20 guests invited by Governor-General Quentin Bryce and husband Michael Bryce to have dinner with Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall at Admiralty House this evening.
The royal couple arrived in a motorcade from a more frenetic Diamond Jubilee Reception at Sydney Opera House to the peace and serenity of Kirribilli, where the four-piece Australian Army Jazz Band played on the lawns on a stunning Sydney evening with views across the harbour.
This was a dinner to showcase talented young Australians from a range of backgrounds in different fields.
Other guests included Channel Ten news presenter Hamish Macdonald, Masterchef’s Poh Ling Yeow, 2009 Young Australian of the year Jonty Bush who developed the One Punch Can Kill anti-violence campaign, Alex Blackwell, Vice-Captain of the Australian Women’s Cricket team, Founder and CEO of Carman’s Fine Foods Carolyn Cresswell, mummy blogger Mia Freedman, Ella Havelka, a dancer with Bangarra and descendant of the Wiradjuri people, and Tanya Denning, the Channel Manager for National Indigenous Television.
The Duchess looked resplendent in a blush chiffon Bruce Oldfield dress with exquisite sequinned bodice worn for the first time at this event and the Prince very dapper in a dark blue double breasted suit. Equally elegant was the Governor-General in a tailored mint skirt suit.
Guests were waited on by stewards in crisp sailor suits from the naval defence force and each was announced as they personally met the royal couple and posed for a group shot on the lawn with the Opera House in the background before heading inside for an intimate dinner.
It is the last function on Sydney’s day of events for the royal couple before they fly out for a final day in Australia in the nation’s capital Canberra.
