Yesterday, the Dutch Royal Family gathered for their annual summer photocall. This year King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima, along with their three daughters, posed for over 80 photographers on Wassenaar beach in Meijendel.
The family looked happy and relaxed on what was a sunny but windy day. The family’s two dogs also joined them but were seemingly less cooperative than their owners, unable to sit still for the photographs.
The shoot was followed by a press conference with The King and Queen where Willem-Alexander spoke of his concern for Greece, and how he hoped that the crisis would soon be over. He remained quiet, however, on whether or not he felt Greece should remain a member of the European Union.
He also commented on flight MH17 that was shot down on the 17th July 2014. The flight had departed from Amsterdam and two-thirds of the passengers were Dutch. The King said that “it was a wonderful day that suddenly went pitch black” and went on to say that the families of those affected were still very much in his heart.
On a lighter note, they were asked about Princess Catarina-Amalia who, this year, will move up to high school. Her mother spoke of how excited the young Princess was for this new chapter.
The annual summer photo op and press conference are part of a media code that was created in 2005 by the Government Information Service. It dictates that throughout the year several such photo ops will be held and in return, the family are left alone by the media for the rest of the time, a practice not upheld in Britain.
Feature photo: Provincie Drenthe
