Prince Charles named 'king of balloon making'

2 February 2017

Prince Charles was dubbed the "king of balloon making" as he visited a school in Hertfordshire.

Prince Charles

The 68-year-old royal - who is first in line to the British throne - joined pupils at Yavneh College, a Jewish school in Borehamwood, where he helped to create crowns out of balloons.

With the guidance of Rabbi Avrohom Zeidman, the Prince joined pupils in blowing the long thin balloons up. Testing his blue one against the size of his head, he expertly tied the ends together to create the crown.

Rabbi Zeidman said: "I think this is an excellent royal crown. I will definitely give this to someone saying it was made by the Prince ... I think the Prince was great, after one or two more hours practice he would be king of balloon making."

The balloon crowns will be donated to Camp Simcha, a charitable organisation which aims to "improve the quality of life of children suffering from cancer or other life threatening illnesses".

Meanwhile, Prince Charles - who is married to the Duchess of Cornwall and has Prince William, 34, and Prince Harry, 32, with his first wife, the late Princess Diana - attended a fundraiser for the World Jewish Relief earlier this week where he warned the "horrific lessons" of World War II are in "danger of being forgotten".

He said: "The work of World Jewish Relief allows us to rally together to do what we can to support people practically, emotionally and spiritually, particularly at a time when the horrific lessons of the last war seem to be in increasing danger of being forgotten. In reaching beyond your own community you set an example for us all of true compassion and friendship."

At the event, the Prince of Wales also met Holocaust survivor and former Olympic champion Ben Helfgott.

He shared: "To meet Ben, and others who, like him, have endured indescribable persecution, is to be reminded of the danger of forgetting the lessons of the past."