of Cambridge which was stuffed with a crisp £10 as he toured the Royal
Welsh Show in Builth Wells, Powys.
Between lengthy discussions about bee-keeping, sheep-rearing and the
price of cattle, the Prince, who was accompanied by the Duchess of
Cornwall, indicated that there was only one other subject on his mind;
his "absolutely gorgeous" grandson.
The Prince was on his way to the annual agricultural event's main show
ring after being shown some prize-winning cattle when Amanda Winney,
49, waved the card in his direction and caught his attention.
Delighted Mrs Winney, from Leominster, said: "He took the card and
said that he will pass it on which is fantastic.
"It's amazing to meet him. He shouldn't really be here what with the
new baby, but duty calls in his case.
She said the card, inside a pale blue envelope, depicted a baby in a
cradle and contained a £10 note in the hope that the new parents might
splash out on a cuddly toy.
When the Prince came across a heavily pregnant Bethan Davies, 36, from
Llangadog, he could not resist asking her whether or not she was
overdue and if she had chosen to find out the baby's sex.
Miss Davies told him that the gender of the baby, due on Monday, would
be a surprise, and he inadvertently confirmed that the Duke and
Duchess of Cambridge had also chosen to do the same.
"It's better that way we had a lovely surprise on Monday when our
grandson was born," he replied.
Those manning the tannoys as the Prince arrived in various rings to
present trophies and speak to participants did their best to whip up a
flavour of the baby fever that has gripped the country in recent
weeks.
Andrew Jones, a farmer who was in charge of announcements in the sheep
ring, bellowed: "We must extend our congratulations to the Duke and
Duchess of Cambridge.
"It's a proud moment for Anglesey too, they're convinced that the new
prince was conceived there."
A member of the National Sheep Association also managed to crowbar a
baby reference into a speech, noting that although it had been a bad
year for the industry "nothing gave them more of a lift than then news
that his Royal Highness is now a grandfather".
The Prince, however, stoically kept to the subject in hand, save for
disclosing to one well-wisher that the as yet unnamed baby was
"absolutely gorgeous".
Such was the enthusiasm for the agricultural subjects at hand that few
thought to ask him for details about the newly born future king.
Rather than be showered with babygrows, booties and tips on
grand-fatherhood, he was presented with a picture of a prancing cob
and a sheepskin rug.
Paul Eales from Pembrokeshire Bees was not alone when he said he had
not thought of mentioning the baby when introduced to the royal.
"No, he was just really interested in the bees," he said.
"He has a very good understanding about them, I was really impressed."
Rhys Jones, 50, from the Cambrian Mountains Initiative, agreed: "No,
no, we didn't mention it. No tips or anything, we were too busy
talking about whether there were enough lambs for the scheme."
As the Prince left one venue for the next, he was congratulated by
Susan Fiander-Woodhouse, 52, the first in a line of people waiting to
meet him.
"Is everyone queuing to congratulate me?" he asked drily, before
passing quickly along.
He couldn't resist one reference to the newborn, however. Giving a
speech on behalf of the Prince's Countryside Fund, of which he is
president, he noted that it was his seventh visit to the show in 50
years. "That's probably why I've become a grandfather," he smiled.
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