Prince Archie turns 5! Special gifts, phone call to grandpa Charles and party in the sunshine with Doria
He may be sixth in line to the British throne, but Prince Archie's upbringing in Montecito, California is world's away from the centuries of Kings and Queens he descends from.
Today, as Archie turns five, just how might the young royal be celebrating? "I wish we knew more about little Archie", former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond tells OK!.
"Having seen Harry pine so much for his own family and now to know he has his two little children (rather perfectly a boy and a girl) it would be lovely to see them together. I bet Harry is an absolutely fantastic dad."
Jennie continues: "I can imagine him romping around the garden with his kids and giving them the best life he possibly can. He was such a fun and mischievous little boy himself, it’s more than likely that Archie has inherited his charmingly naughty personality.
"Of course it’s his absolute right, and I think probably his obsession, to keep the children out of the media, but I think most people would just be happy for him if they could see the joy I’m sure he gets out of family life."
Prince Archie was born at the Portland Hospital in London on 6 May, 2019 and made his first public appearance in his parents' arms in front of a select number of photographers in St George's Hall, Windsor Castle.
The young royal was originally styled as Master Archie Harrison Mountbatten Windsor - but this all changed when Harry and Meghan announced that Archie would be known as Prince Archie going forward as they were keen not to deny him and younger sister, Princess Lilibet, of their "birth right".
Both children are entitled to use princely titles as they are the grandchildren of The King, owing to the rules set out in the 1917 Letters Patent by King George V.
While he has spent very little time in the UK, Prince Archie did get any early taste of what royal duty would feel like as he joined his parents on a tour of South Africa when he was less than a year old and was pictured meeting Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
As for how Archie's birthday will be spent before Prince Harry flies back to the UK on Tuesday 7 May, Jennie reflects on her own position as a grandmother to young children. She says: "Archie’s birthday falls on a Monday this year, so it could well be that he’ll be spending it at school. We don’t know if he has started full-time education yet.
"If my experience of being a grandmother to two children of a similar age is anything to go by, the day will begin with the kids squabbling over anything and everything."
Imagining what gifts might be in store, the expert adds: "Archie is probably obsessed with pirates and dinosaurs. He would have loved his grandpa’s tie when the King visited a cancer centre: he was wearing his special T-Rex tie decorated with tiny T-Rex dinosaurs. So I expect his birthday presents will be something to do with whatever his latest fad is. A battery operated car or truck maybe? A junior surf board?
"A party in the Californian sunshine is a great deal easier to organise than a party in our changeable British weather. So I expect they will have some kind of celebration in the garden of their mansion. Or maybe on the beach with some of his friends. I imagine that granny Doria will be on hand to help and join in.
"In any normal world, you could expect a video call to the folks back home. I wish we knew more about little Archie, but children can provide neutral ground for aggrieved parties to forget their differences and get on with life.
"So I very much hope, and would expect, that Harry will make contact with his father, and allow Archie to chat away with the grandpa he hardly knows."
The King previously revealed that he had had a "very emotional" meeting with Archie and Lilibet when they were last in the UK for Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee in June 2022.
As source said at the time: "The prince, of course, hasn't seen his grandson Archie for a bit of time and so it was very, very, very special to have some time with him. He hadn't met Lili, his granddaughter, and so to meet her was very emotional, a very, very wonderful thing."
