Duchess of Cambridge goes on mini fossil dig as museum waves goodbye to Dippy the dinosaur
PICTURES have emerged of the Duchess of Cambridge joining a team of tiny ‘Dino-Scientists’ for a mini fossil dig to mark the beginning of a rare dinosaur replica’s tour of Britain.
Duchess of Cambridge cuts cake at Natural History Museum
After making London his home for 111 years, Dippy the Diplodocus will soon be on the move out of London’s Natural History Museum and is heading off on a tour of the UK.
An impressive 4.25 metres high and 21.3 metres long, the replica dinosaur - one of only ten in the world - will now be shared with 1.5 million people across Britain.
Catherine got stuck into an array of activities with the Dino Scientists
And to mark the beginning of his adventure, the Duchess joined 20 youngsters from primary schools across London to wave goodbye goodbye to the beast which has stood at the museum’s entrance hall for 37 years.
Wearing a striking bright teal and grey mottled dress, Catherine got stuck into an array of activities including decorating ‘dinosaur’ eggs and enjoying a children’s tea party.
The visit was organised in part with children’s mental health charity Place2Be
Kate was pictured in a striking teal and grey mottled dress
The royal could be seen chatting with staff and children from the primary school as they coloured in cardboard versions of the famous dinosaur.
And despite wearing a £375 LK Bennett dress, she was not phased by the fact that there was plenty of paint at hand to spoil the pricey frock and got stuck in with the crafts herself.
After learning about dinosaurs, she also got to cut a special Dippy on Tour cake with the museum’s director Sir Michael Dixon before a final ‘good luck’ photo with the Diplodocus.
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Kate, who has been a patron of the museum since 2013, told the children: "George loves the T Rex because it's the noisiest and the scariest."
Elizabeth, 10, said the duchess told her that the young prince "likes dinosaurs and volcanoes", while Anastazja, 10, added: "She said he was learning about that in school."
The duchess could also be heard asking the children if they had seen the films Jurassic Park and Jurassic World, which she thought were "brilliant" and that she remembered seeing the original film as a little girl and that she "really enjoyed it".
The Duchess is a patron of the Natural History Museum
Sir Dixon said the duchess is a "very supportive patron" of the museum and "comes on private visits occasionally with the children".
"George is very keen on dinosaurs - apparently he would have loved to come today," he added.
"She did remark on the fact that as her children get older she is going to have to mug up on the names of dinosaurs.
"She is actually very knowledgeable on the natural world and passionate about oceans. She is a keen scuba diver. She is very, very keen to engage more with the museum and its collections.
"She has been behind the scenes on a number of occasions and talked to some of our researchers and seen quite a lot of our collection areas."
Dippy's tour starts in early 2018, and will include the Dorset County Museum
Kate has been a patron of the museum since 2013
The visit was organised in conjunction with children’s mental health charity Place2Be, which the Duchess is a royal patron of.
The charity works in 282 primary and secondary schools across Wales, Scotland and England, reaching a school population of over 116,000 pupils.
This evening the Duchess will attend the Place2Be awards in Mansion House.
For those who have not bid the dinosaur farewell just yet, Dippy won’t be leaving the Natural History Museum immediately and will be on display until January 4.
Dippy the dinosaur has been in the great hall for 37 years
Conservators will then spend 12 months preparing him for his big journey which will see him tour the length and breadth of the UK.
Beginning on the Jurassic Coast in Dorset in 2018, Dippy will be travelling up to Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and all five regions of England during his trip.
His journey will end in Norwich in 2020 after taking temporary residence in eight different places including the Birmingham Museum, Great North Museum Newcastle and Norwich Cathedral.
Kate got stuck in despite wearing a £375 tea dress from LK Bennett
The team decorated 'dinosaur' eggs and had a mini fossil dig
Sir Dixon said: "We wanted Dippy to visit unusual locations so he can draw in people that may not traditionally visit a museum.
"Making iconic items accessible to as many people as possible is at the heart of what museums give to the nation, so we have ensured that Dippy will still be free to view at all tour venues."
He added the project is all about "encouraging children from across the country to develop a passion for science and nature."
Although Dippy will be leaving a huge gap in the grand Hintze Hall, it won’t be empty for long as he is soon to be replaced by a skeleton of a 4.5 tonne blue whale from summer 2017.