A Finnish work experience girl bagged a rare media chat with Prince William while on a week’s placement at a regional daily.

Bangor University student Ida Väisänen spoke to the royal while covering his visit to the North Wales town of Caernarfon for the Daily Post.

Aspiring journalist Ida spent last week on work experience with the Post, and was despatched to help with the newspaper’s coverage of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s visit on Friday.

But to her surprise, Ida was approached by the Prince as she stood by a staircase in Caernarfon town square.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge during their visit to Caernarfon

She told the Post: “As an aspiring journalist there are many things you expect you get to do on your first field day on work experience. Shaking hands with Prince William isn’t one of them.”

Ida added: “Prince William got up the stairs first. I expected him to move on but he stepped straight in front of me and greeted the lovely couple who I got to know whilst waiting, Nigel and Angela from Manchester, where their dog Molly was introduced.

“I followed this exchange, so cold and so in awe that I was frozen. Then he turned to me and gave out his hand. His Royal Highness was giving his hand out to me, smiling and looking me straight in the eyes. I couldn’t get my hand out of a glove fast enough.

“He was extremely considerate and polite, asking if we are all local and once hearing that I’m from Finland, he repeated it in surprise, asking whether I was on holiday.

“I explained I went to Bangor university. ‘It’s a good university’, his highness replied.

“He seemed pleased that I had stayed in the area and recommended me to explore Caernarfon and Anglesey’s beauty further.”

Ida is set to attend a journalism training course in Newcastle next year.

She said: “It was a very short and lovely chat that must have lasted less than two minutes, but it was still a completely surreal to an amateur who had been shaking in the cold for the past two hours taking notes.

“Then the moment ended. Kate Middleton joined her husband and waved the crowd before they entered the café after formal introductions outside.

“After visiting a van selling the catering centre’s products and receiving flowers the crowd waved them off. I slowly started to come around that when freezing outside on a similar morning years later, I get to say I met a future king on my first field day.”