Various News and Discussions about Haakon and Mette-Marit

[Larzen]

Mette-Marit's approval ratings

Theese are the numbers from the Norwegian article

49% says she does a better job than they expected she would do when she got married
34% says she does her jobe as they expected
1% says she does a worse job than they had expected
16% has no oppinion

All theese number means nothing IMO as they says nothing about what they thought about her to begin with

She has won over many older people who were the ones most sceptical around the time of the wedding

32% says she does a VERY good job
47 % says she does a good/reasanable good job
14% has no oppinion(not good, not bad)
2% says she does a terrible job

She does very well with the teachers, police, nurses, and those who does not work\caretakers in the home, whilst the akademics are the most sceptical as they were fron the beginning,

Haakon gets a positive score of 88% noone thinks he does a terrible job, 45 % thinks he does VERY well
MM gets a total positive score of 79% 2% thinks she does a terrible job

 

[Alexandria]

Nice to see the Crown Princess making headway. Slowly but surely!

I wonder if late last year and earlier this year when Haakon had to "sub" in for King Harald while he was battling cancer had any impact on his very positive public opinon results? I seem to recall that many people were impressed with the job Haakon did in filling in for his father despite experiencing the arrival of his first child and wanting to spend time with her, too.

... Which also makes me think that the birth of an heir in Ingrid Alexandra (a very cute heir at that!) must've helped/boosted the popularity of the CP couple, too. Everyone loves a baby, right?!

 

[Dennism]

Yes, this is quite possible. I remember reading a year or so ago in Majesty or some other magazine about Mette-Marit and they said that her approval ratings have gone up after the slow start and they pinpointed on the idea that she was pregnant and the return from London. Yes, everyone loves a baby!

 

[GrandDuchess]

Nice to see the figures have improved - she deserves it!

 

[norwegianne]

I think the year in London helped her to ease into her role, but it might also be a reason for why it has taken three years, and not shorter time.

Ah, the heir. Babies always help on the opinion.

 

[Dennism]

Yes, it did help her. But in the article it just added to a less than high opinion after the wedding. But you´re right. It did help her to reach the point she is at now.

 

[Larzen]

Travel plans for 2005

Travels and plans for Haakon and Mette-Marit in 2005

January 23- 27. Mette-Marit is going on a work visit to Malawi to see Norwegian and international AIDS Projects. She is going with the organisation FOKUS (Forum for Women and development questions) http://www.fokuskvinner.no/ ) which she is patron of. She will most likely be accompanied by the minister of development questions Hilde Frafjord Johnson. She will spend two days in the Capital and make three day trip of the rest of Malawi. This will be her 2. trip alone abroad

Febuary 1 Mette-Marit and Queen Sonja will got to Britain to open a exhibition about queen Mauds dresses at V&A
About the Exhibition: http://www.vam.ac.uk/files/Style%20and%20Splendour%20release.doc

Febuary 5 is the official opening of the celebrations of the centennial, Norway from 1905-2005, I think I remeber reading the the King and Queen, Haakon and MM will se a jubilee show at Drammen Theatre that will be broadcast on TV2 (The King and Queen is deffenetly going)

Febuary 7-11 Haakon will pay a visit to Sierra Leone as UNDP good-will ambassadour

April 2005 Visit to EXPO in Japan, I have seen articles saying Haakon going alone as well as MM accompanying him, we will have to wait for confirmation

May 10-13 They will take part in the Statevisit form Japan

May 17 National day

June 10-11 King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia visits Norway to open a bridge between Norway and Sweden as well as a Nobel center in Oslo, dont know if Haakon and Mette-Marit will attend this visit

October 2005. Haakon and Mette-Marit will tour the Midwest of USA (for 14 days according to Aftenposten paper edition) The Midwest was where the most norwegians settled and the visit will focus on the relationship with the norwegians living here to mark the centennial

November 25 there will be a gala at Akerhus catle hosted by the goverment to mark that it is 100 years since King Haakon and Queen MAud arrived in Norway

November 27. King Harald will host a gala ball in Oslo to mark that the celebration of the centennial is over.

The King also said in his New Years speech that the royal family will attend as much as they can of the celebrations around the country.

I hope this is correct there may be some mistakes and the might of course be some changes.

 

[Anna_R]

Hello! votes Haakon top royal dad

From Hello: http://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2005/01/04/princehaakon/

OUR READERS VOTED PRINCE HAAKON TOP ROYAL DAD

4 JANUARY 2005

The heir to the Norwegian throne, Prince Haakon, has even more reason to celebrate the start of a new year, after being named father of the year by hellomagazine.com readers. In a closely contested battle Haakon was given the nod as this year's "big daddy" according to your votes.

 

[akina21]

Marius could become rich in the future if he starts selling his anti-aging solution to the world. He stays four years for ever .

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

There will be some Royal visits in June this year from other European Royals to Norway.

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Thank you. This is unexpected. Anyway, I´m sure they will make it to Australia sometime. 2005 is a busy year for Norwegians. Maybe in 2006. Then you can meet them and tell us all about it!

Yes,i also think that,this year the Norway Royals will be so busy.Maybe next year.So we can meet and talk to them.This March,we can meet Prince Frederik and Princess Mary of Denmark and also Princess Victoria of Sweden.

 

[lucys]

Wow, they publish their general schedule for the entire year? Do most Royal Houses do that? There's some very interesting stuff on the schedule so far.

As for the hello poll--I think he does seem like a great dad--and I think the Hello polls are so silly because one person can vote like 10,000 times if they want to--but am I the only one who thinks it's kind of tacky to have a poll on perceived parenting skills? Yeah, I know, it's hello, who cares!

 

[Larzen]

No, but on the website of the centennial many of theese events are mentioned, others are written about in the paper, and there has been press releases from the palace about Mette-Marits trip to Malawi and the Japanese state visit. Other big events are also planned but they invovle only the King and Queen so far (Visit to Denmark, Sweden, Britain and Amerika) This will be an extraordinarily busy year for the royals and there is ofcourse no suprise that such big events are know way in advance

 

[Larzen]

Mette-Marit today opened the new Norwegian Center for Design and Architechtur. According to Vg she had been feeling sick in the afternoon, but went to the opening and gave the opening speech, she left half an hour earlier than she was supposed to though
http://www.vg.no/pub/vgart.hbs?artid=265423

 

[kwanfan]

I hope Mette-Marit will feel better quickly!

 

[Larzen]

ETA: Pictures from Colourpress

 

[Larzen]

ETA: Pictures from Colourpress

 

[carlota]

she actually left before the dinner they were planned to have because she wasn't feeling well.
maybe she is pregnant?

 

[KikkiB]

My guess is that she's coming down with the flu or something like that, because it is the flu-season right now!

 

[Danielle]

Thanks pdas1201 and Larzen for the photos. I hope she feels better soon. She doesn't look so good in this photo: http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=88734 I don't think M-M is pregnant, although I have a feeling that she will be the next Crown Princess (after Maxima) to have a baby.

 

[kinneret5764]

Is MM pregnant or is that she hasn't lost the weight gained from her pregnancy with IA?

 

[GrandDuchess]

The job as a Crown Princess

From Fotomarktplatz:
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway during an interview with the newspaper VG in her office at the Royal Palace in Oslo, Norway, February 3, 2005. The Crown Princess said to the newspaper that her recent visit to Malawi her first trip aborad without her husband, and the aids patients had really change her life. Crown Princess Mette-Marit also pointed out, to the VG newspaper, that it was important to give 100 percent of her personality in her job as a Crown Princess. Photo Janne Moller-Hansen

Is there anyone from Norway who read this interview, and perhaps could give us a broader summary?

 

[norwegianne]

I read the interview, but I can't really recall much of it now...

What I do remember (this is paraphrasing, because I don't have a photographic memory):

- the journalist noting that there were baby pacifiers lying about in her office, along with a few baby books. The office was also furnished in a modern, simplistic, style.

- Mette-Marit saying that she felt that she had grown more into her role, but that it was a job that she wouldn't have dared to take on, if she hadn't been 100 % positive that she had love to keep her going. It would have been difficult to do without Haakon to back her up. (I'm paraphrasing here, but you get the general gist.)

- Mette-Marit put emphasis on the fact that raising Ingrid Alexandra to become aware of the privileged position she was in, and utilise that position to help others, was important to them.

 

[Alexandria]

Thanks for the pictures GrandDuchess and the article summary norwegianne.

I really like Mette-Marit's office and the more contemporary design scheme she's got going.

Interesting to note how much Mette-Marit's recent solo trip to meet with AIDS patients has deeply affected her life. Sometimes it seems to me that royals make these trips abroad but they don't affect them very much, that it's just part of the job and they go about these trips in a mechanical way. But from the pictures it was obvious that Mette-Marit was enjoying herself and participating and engaged on the trip 100 per cent.

 

[carlota]

i also liked mm's office a lot... seems original and well decorated. however, i don t think she spends much time there... do you?
by the way, those were nice photos...

 

[Larzen]

She has previously said that she is at her office almost every day, and that she and Haakon prefers to have meetings with staff\and extern persons at her office because its nicer\more personal than his. Haakons office is next door. That was a choice the Queen made during the renovation, before haakon and mm had met because she had to wait a long time to get her office, and the Queen wanted everything to be ready for the future CPsess whoever she might be

 

[Dennism]

From Fotomarktplatz:
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway during an interview with the newspaper VG in her office at the Royal Palace in Oslo, Norway, February 3, 2005.

Yes, nice office. I like seeing photos of the royals at their desks. I like MM´s outfit here too. She looks great. Not a fan of that outfit at the skating rink though. Don´t look at it too long. Might make you dizzy. Too bad more people don´t follow figure skating in Norway. They could have had a good chance to see the Crown Princess again.

 

[servingsophie]

I think Mette Marit always looks wonderful in her formal outfits. She looks so elegant and doesn't she look busy?

 

[pdas1201]

Article in TV2

I think it talks about Mette Marit's shopping in Milan, Italy. It also says that Valentino, Alberta Ferretti, Prada and Miu Miu are her favorites.

Can someone who understands Norwegian, please translate this. Thanks!!!

http://pub.tv2.no/nettavisen/side2/kongelig/article360848.ece

 

[norwegianne]

The article talks about Mette-Marit shopping in Milan, despite being recently critizised for not wearing enough Norwegian clothes. It talks about her getting huge percentages off, and some of her favourite designers. All of the above originated in Se & Hør...

The article also says that she also uses much clothes by the Norwegian designer who designed her wedding gown.