Prince earns good report card from British newspapers

Prince William arrives at the Wellington Hospital on the third and final day of his visit to New Zealand. Photo / Getty Images

While Prince William's visit was a bit of a novelty for New Zealanders, for the British media pack it was a serious opportunity to see him going about proper royal duties for the first time.

The Daily Telegraph gave him the nod of a job well done, saying he appeared to have a "genuine enthusiasm" for his royal duties and conducted his trip with "an easy, winning charm".

It said his prolonged "walkabouts" among the public and his hospital visit evoked visions of his mother's foreign trips.

The Prince's visit to Kapiti Island also recalled his father's interest in conservation.

Mirror correspondent James Whitaker was also approving, saying the trip turned Prince William into "a proper paid-up, working member of The Firm".

"It is about time he became more involved, particularly with countries over which he is destined to reign one day."

However, it was not all serious analysis of the future of the royal family.

His visit provided them with numerous colourful anecdotes.

The Telegraph said beginning the trip with a bit of rugby at Eden Park and a sail on NZL41 was the perfect introduction to his new role of working royal for the sport-loving Prince.

The reaction to the ever-increasing circle of Prince William's bald spot was covered by the Daily Mail, which reported All Black Ali Williams had teased him about it.

He was also said to be "mobbed" by fans: "Mothers with babies begging the Prince to kiss their children, screaming teenage girls with home-made posters declaring their love for the young royal and elderly fans reminiscing about meetings with his mother and grandmother before him."

His quip - "at last, a date with a kiwi bird" - when he held a little spotted kiwi on Kapiti Island was repeated in most major newspapers and much was made of the "security scare" when a radio station employee tried to drop off bread and a packet of Sizzlers.

Some focus also went on the near-miss when a schoolboy fired a rugby ball perilously close to the Prince's nether regions at Eden Park, prompting another to observe he "got him in the Crown jewels".

Much focus was also put on the Maori aspects of the visit. The Daily Mail reported he was "clearly moved" when he was given a black-and-white photo of a korowai being presented to his mother in 1983 by Erenora Puketapu, the same designer as for the korowai he was given.