Buckingham Palace returns girl's lost toy after giving it the royal treatment

A little girl who lost her stuffed toy on a recent trip to London has had it returned to her, accompanied by photographs showing the monkey living the high life at Buckingham Palace.

Savannah Hart from Adelaide, Australia was holidaying in the UK this summer along with a stuffed monkey belonging to her school. On a day trip to Buckingham Palace with her family, Savannah misplaced Harriet the monkey and had to fly home without her.

Upon her return to Woodside Pre-school in the Adelaide Hills, Savannah’s teacher encouraged her and her classmates to pen a letter and send pictures of the missing monkey to the Queen and her staff at Buckingham Palace.

Harriet flew back to Australia with her new friend Rex, a stuffed toy Corgi. Courtesy Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2019.

About a week later, staff from the palace replied to the schoolchildren to inform them they had tracked down Harriet. The monkey was put on the next flight to Adelaide accompanied by a new friend — a soft toy corgi called Rex who kept Harriet company on the 9,000 mile journey.

While Savannah and the children at Woodside were delighted to get their monkey back, it’s not clear whether Harriet felt the same. She seemed to have grown quite accustomed to the royal lifestyle at Buckingham Palace. Photographs sent to the school show her wearing a Royal Collection Trust name badge and relaxing in front of one of the royal fireplaces. She is also pictured enjoying a scone in one of the manicured gardens and smiling with staff under a picture showing the royal line of succession.

Harriet smiles with palace staff under a photograph of the Queen, Prince Charles, Prince William and Prince George, the British line of succession. Courtesy Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2019.

A Royal Collection Trust spokesperson said: "We aim to give every visitor to Buckingham Palace a memorable experience, and after we had found Harriet the monkey near the family pavilion, she spent some time helping out the visitor services team before heading home."