The night Mary met her prince

Princess Mary of Australia will be sworn in as the new Queen of Denmark on January 14, following Queen Margrethe II’s shocking abdication of the Danish throne.

Australians and Danes alike were overjoyed by the surprise announcement that Australian-born Princess Mary will ascend the throne as Queen of Denmark in two weeks, nearly 20 years after her marriage.

The news came as a welcome sigh of relief for fans of the royal couple after the bubble burst on their fairytale relationship as rumors surfaced about international affairs and the possible breakup of their marriage.

Justin Tynan recalls the moment the group slipped into a slip-in on a spring night in 2000 and the bartender ushered them in to discuss the black AmEx credit card he’d slipped across the counter. He said he would never forget it.

“I said, ‘Wow, who is that?’ and he pointed at him and I said, ‘Who is he?’ We had no idea who he was,” Tynan said. said.

“I remember Mary being with him, but of course we didn’t know who she was at the time.

“It wasn’t until much later that I realized that the prince had come to the pub.”

Tasmanian-born Mary Donaldson was 28 years old at the time and working as a sales director at luxury property company Bell Properties.

Her boss, real estate developer Chris Meehan, had invited her to a pub to meet friends to celebrate the Danish women’s handball team’s gold medal win earlier that day.

Little did Mr Meehan know that he counted Prince Frederick among his friends thanks to their shared love of sailing and the Sydney to Hobart race.

Mr Tynan, who is now chief operating officer of Lundy Hotels, which includes Wally Bay Hotel and No Cheesy Cronulla, said the Sussex Street pub was a “sweet spot” in Sydney’s vibrant nightlife scene at the time. Ta.

“It was shiny and new and all designer clothes,” Tynan said.

The late John Hemmes of the Merivale Empire was renovating the venue, including the newly opened Establishment Bar, in time for the large crowds of spectators from around the world who flocked to watch the Olympic Games.

“Justin [Hemmes] and his father [John] We acquired that building, and then we acquired all the buildings next to it,” Tynan said.
“So we underwent a major refurbishment and opened a courtyard bar, making it a great location for Sydney, especially during the Olympic period.”

Mr Tynan became the center of a media and tourist frenzy when he revealed in an interview years later that a Sydney pub was where the royal couple first met.

“I think I had done about 50 live crosses around the world when the news broke,” he said of the time.

“The Danish flag still hangs in front of the building, but back then we served Carlsberg beer, had Danish food on the menu, and busloads of Danish tourists came by who just wanted to see exactly where we were. ”

“It was really crazy.”

Queen Margrethe of Denmark shocked the world when she announced that she would abdicate the throne on January 14 in favor of her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik, and his Australian-born wife, Princess Mary.

It’s still unclear when the formal coronation will take place later this year, but Tynan said the pub, rebranded as a Mexican cantina and bar, El Loco Slip Inn, will broadcast it on TV. He said he wouldn’t be surprised if it was streamed. tv set.

NCA NewsWire has contacted Merivale for comment.