French royal correspondent, aged 8, attends King's welcome ceremony

Noé from Normandy, known for his exchanges of letters with Queen Elizabeth, has dreamed of meeting British royalty

Noé shows off his commemorative stamps of Queen Elizabeth
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French schoolboy Noé Patrel, 8, who has become known for his correspondence with royalty, was among the official invitees when King Charles and Queen Camilla arrived at the Arc de triomphe today.

We made the request to the British Embassy on behalf of his family as we knew it was his dream to meet Queen Elisabeth, and now King Charles.

His invitation, along with a family member, came from the Elysée.

Read more: Bordeaux and Paris: details of King Charles' France visit revealed

"I'm so happy to see the King and Queen Camilla," Noé said, after he was told the news of the invitation by his teacher at his school in Normandy.

Noé's royal story began more than two years ago when he wrote to Her Majesty with his condolences on the death of the Duke of Edinburgh, and received a card back from her.

We covered the story after we spotted it in local newspaper L’Eclaireur-La Dépêche and the family have remained in touch ever since with news of Noé’s activities. Several Connexion readers wrote to Noé about the UK or sent gifts related to the Royal Family.

We liaised with the Embassy for him to attend a Coronation event at the British Embassy in Paris in May.

Read more: Nine million French viewers for Coronation’s royal ‘fête des voisins

Most recently, Noé received a new card in June from the King thanking him for a letter he sent on the occasion of the late Queen’s death, and a card in August from the King and Queen in thanks for his Coronation wishes.

He has also just now received an order he placed last year for special commemorative stamps of Queen Elizabeth, which show key moments in her life.

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