Tyreese Rodrigues-Sa with Queen Camilla in Sydney on the weekend. Photos: Supplied.
Lake Heights teen Tyreese Rodrigues-Sa has been writing to Queen Camilla since last year’s coronation for her and King Charles III, leading to a personal invite to meet the British royals in Sydney on Sunday (20 October).
However, it’s not the first time this 17-year-old has seen the couple in person, having flown to London for the coronation last May for his 16th birthday.
“I’ve always been a fan of the royal family, and not just the British, but the Spanish, Danish, Norwegian and the Belgians,” Tyreese said.
“I write to all of them.”
In addition, Tyreese has also amassed a collection of royal items over the years, including official portraits of Queen Elizabeth II, and Charles and Camilla, and replica dresses from Netflix TV series The Crown.
“I’ve been in contact with Camilla more so out of all the royals, because she actually writes back and she signs all her letters,” he said.
“On the last week of school holidays, I received a letter from the palace under the private secretary of the Queen, saying she would love to meet me in Sydney, and that’s how I got to meet her.”
Tyreese said the Australian Government then emailed him, giving him access to a special VIP standing-only section at the event zoned for invited guests to meet the couple.
“I was very nervous, because I didn’t know what to do, how to speak to them, but I knew the protocol,” he said.
“Camilla was very talkative compared to Charles. Charles, he’s very quick with his engagements, as I’ve noticed in many other engagements online.
“He shook my hand, he said ‘Hello’, and then he went on to the next people.
“Then Camilla, she stopped, and she spoke to me and the other people that were in the invited area, and then continued along to the public.”
While it was all a bit of a blur, he did recall bits and pieces of the conversation.
“She said it was lovely to meet me, and I said that back to her, and then I asked if I could have a photo, and she said, ‘Absolutely,'” he said.
“Meeting Charles was very good, but I was looking forward to meeting more so Camilla, especially seeing her jewellery.
“She had a lovely four-chained pearl necklace that the Princess of Wales wears a lot.”
Tyreese, on the other hand, wore his usual personal jewellery and a special bracelet he borrowed from his grandmother.
When it came to who to choose to take as his plus-one, he couldn’t go past his father.
“I had one person I could bring, so I brought my dad, because last year for my 16th birthday, I got to go to the coronation,” he said.
Tyreese said, like this week’s interaction, that moment in London was one he’d never forget.
“I was maybe halfway down the mall on the right side,” he said.
“The atmosphere was just amazing.
“It was my first time going to England, but it felt like my thousandth, because I just knew everything there. My dad even said it was like I was his own personal tour guide.”
In fact, when Tyreese says the royal family members feel like family to him, it’s not too far of a stretch.
“I did my DNA test not that long ago and it came back that I am the direct descendant from William the Conqueror,” he said.
“So that makes Charles a very, very, very, very distant cousin,” he said, laughing.
He said while his friends knew he loved the royal family, they didn’t believe he was getting to meet the couple until he showed them the letter.
Meanwhile, his Illawarra Sports High School principal posted it on the teacher’s newsletter, while his dad made it on to national radio show the Kyle and Jackie O Show.
While his favourite living royal is Anne, he admits his ultimate favourite will always be Queen Elizabeth II.
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