King Charles and Queen Camilla's very Aussie act at community barbecue

King Charles and Queen Camilla were invited to help with a traditional Australian barbecue and encouraged to use the tongs 'the Aussie way'.

Scott McCoy, 42, manager of Black Bear BBQ restaurant in Sydney and better known by the nickname 'Chop', said it was 'an honour' to have some royal helpers.

Chop said: 'I'm still shaking. It was great.'

The King and Queen declined a chance to taste any of the sausages, which included lamb, beef, pork and vegetarian variations.

Chop said the Queen was instructed to use the tongs 'the Aussie way' to turn the 'snags' (sausages) by clicking them twice before she used them.

Chop said that the King and Queen thought the sausages were 'amazing' and that they 'could tell they were great without trying them'.

Murray Wilkinson from Mudgee had brought a handful of his 16,000 Merino sheep to demonstrate to the King and Queen the art of working with sheepdogs. Along with him were Colt, five, an Australian Kelpie and Meg, six, a UK Border Collie.

Mr Wilkinson, who also has 3,000 head of cattle, said: 'I am going to demonstrate to them how we work the dogs and will then get them to jump up on the sheep's backs.

'It took me about three weeks to train Meg and about a year to train Colt. The girls do tend to pick it up quicker.

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'It's a great honour to have been asked. I did my apprenticeship for 14 years with the Packers and I know there is some crossover there.

'It's been a tough time for the industry. International prices have been dropping.

'Things are levelling up but it's been tough so it's good to show off our industry.'

The King and Queen watched Colt being put through his paces but unfortunately the sheep got confused by the large group of photographers and cameramen standing in the pen and it took several attempts to get them in.

'Too many people!' Charles gestured and laughed. He smiled at Meg, who sat waiting on a barrel, desperate to join in.

Colt eventually managed it, barking with annoyance at the livestock and running across their backs.

Mr Wilkinson said afterwards: 'It was a bit frustrating as the media moved which confused the sheep. He could have done it very quickly but it took him several attempts. The king still said he was impressed, though, and talked about how wonderful it was. He was saying how well the sheep looked and the price of wool.'

The barbecue came after the Queen met passionate young readers and leading authors as she visited the Green Square Library in Sydney.

Camilla, a long-term advocate for literacy and reading, attended the event to celebrate and promote the role of writing and literacy for young Australians.

She met past participants of the Queen's Commonwealth Essay Competition and Australian authors in the award-winning underground library beneath Green Square Plaza which opened in 2018.

Camilla was joined by the Deputy Premier of New South Wales, Prudence Car, and met representatives from the NSW Government Department of Education, the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Aboriginal Education Consultative Group.

She joined students from across Sydney taking part in a series of writing workshops, before presenting certificates to past participants of the Queen's Commonwealth Essay Competition, an annual competition run by the Royal Commonwealth Society.

Meeting the author Kylie Captain at a table of schoolchildren, Captain told her: 'I write about Aboriginal culture and what it means to me.' 

Camilla replied: 'That's wonderful, you're inspiring people.' 

Turning to the children, she said: 'Would any of you like to read something to me? I'd love to hear your story.' 

One student, Maya, 10, read out her story called The Lonely Sea.

Next Camilla joined children from South Sydney High School who were doing a workshop with author Will Kostakis. 

He told Camilla: 'I write coming of age stories. I've asked them to reflect on the communities they're part of.' 

Camilla told the table of aspiring young writers: 'There's a lot of talent there. I can see a lot of budding writers. It's so important you get the right teacher and the inspiration'.

After presenting four young medal-winners of the Queen's Commonwealth Essay competition with their certificates, Camilla greeted her friend and former private secretary Amanda McManus, who has been in Sydney for the royal trip and still works with the Queen on her Reading Room. 

McManus introduced Camilla to members of local Sydney book clubs and several leading Australian authors, including Thomas Keneally, who wrote Schindler's Ark which was adapted to become the film Schindler's List, and Liane Moriarty, author of Big Little Lies.

Camilla also met Matt Cosgrove, author of Macca the Alpaca, and told him: 'We had an alpaca yesterday which sadly I missed out on.'

Ending the engagement, Camilla posed on the library steps for a group photo with the schoolchildren, authors and book club members before waving to crowds who had gathered outside as she left.