By Katie Daly

Copyright hellomagazine

The Duchess of Edinburgh’s schedule has been back-to-back since she landed in Japan for her official visit with Prince Edward on 18 September. On Saturday, Duchess Sophie, 60, made an unexpected reference to her daughter during a moving meeting with Ukrainian refugees and evacuees during an official visit to Tokyo. The royal met 16-year-old Daniel Zagorodniy, who told her that he now lived alone in Tokyo after his parents had to return to Ukraine.

“Who cooks for you? Who does the household chores?” Sophie asked Daniel, having visited Ukraine last year, and expressed her sadness at the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The boy revealed that he does it all himself, to which the duchess remarked: “As well as studying? Goodness me. That’s a lot for a 16-year-old. Well, I’m sure your mother is happy to know that you’re safe. I don’t underestimate how hard it is, so well done.” Sophie and her husband, Prince Edward, share a 17-year-old son of their own, James, Earl of Wessex.

Daniel went on to tell Sophie that he wanted to study international relations at university. According to the Telegraph, “the Duchess’ face lit up as she revealed that her daughter, Lady Louise [Windsor], 21, was studying the subject as part of her English degree.”

Lady Louise’s education

Lady Louise is a fourth-year student at St Andrews in Scotland, where her cousin Prince William and his wife Kate both studied in the early noughties. Though specific details of Louise’s education and future career plans have been kept under wraps, she is certainly busy. Last year, it was revealed that Lady Louise had joined the St Andrews’ University Officers’ Training Corps (UOTC). According to The Sun, this involves getting stuck into basic weapons training, leadership lessons, and a course in navigating tough terrain under pressure.

Elsewhere, she has appeared in several student productions on campus, and according to the university’s student newspaper, she played a ‘powerful and cynical witch’ in a play called Dragon Theatre last January. She was last seen in public in August when she was seen competing in the National Carriage Driving Calendar in Essex.

Duchess Sophie’s schedule

Meanwhile, on Duchess Sophie’s visit to Japan, she has plenty of engagements ahead of her. On Sunday, she and Edward are set to meet Mr Yoshiya Hirano, the mayor of Koya Town, as they visit Sojiin Temple. They are also expected to visit Koyasan’s principal temple before viewing a selection of Koyasan’s most important national treasures at Reihoukan Museum. Then, they are on to Danjo Garan, a site for monastic practice, before concluding the day at Okunoin Cemetery.