Count Nikolai shares photos of ‘sweet memories’ with his uncle and grandmother after skipping ascension for trip to Bali (but does dine at a Danish restaurant!)

Count Nikolai of Denmark has shared a sweet photo of his ‘sweet memories’ with his uncle.

The royal, who was stripped of his ‘Prince’ title in 2022, didn’t attend yesterday’s ceremony in Copenhagen which saw his father ascend the throne.

Instead,  he’s been enjoying a break from his studies in Sydney to relax in Bali with his girlfriend Benedikte Thoustrup.

Taking to Instagram today, the model shared snaps of himself as a toddler, with his uncle.

In the shots, from the early noughties, the pair are seen playing on a pool, playing table football and riding scooters in the corridors of the palace.

There was some speculation among royal fans that the son of Prince Joachim had returned to Denmark for the occasion, after Benedikte shared a picture of Danish food and tagged the location as Copenhagen.

But the couple were in fact dining in a Danish restaurant in Bali. 

The pair seem to be enjoying their time in the southern hemisphere, having recently also visited New Zealand.

The post comes days after shared a sweet throwback with his grandmother. 

The queen’s eldest grandson, 24, took to Instagram to share adorable throwback photos of his grandmother and late grandfather, Prince Henrik of Denmark, alongside a young Nikolai.

Despite a royal row, where Nikolai and his siblings were all demoted, the dashing model appeared to have stayed on good terms with his grandmother, uncle and cousins.

In one of the touching photos – taken before Prince Henrik’s death in 2018 – the Danish royal family can be seen in joyous spirits as they wave onward from the Palace balcony.

Captioned ‘sweet memories’, Nikolai also shared a close-up image of himself as a baby, while the queen cradled him closely and sported the happiest of smiles.

Nikolai, alongside his siblings,  was stripped of his prince title by his grandmother Queen Margrethe  in 2022.

In a third photo, a slightly older Nikolai posed centre stage between his adoring grandparents, and donned a sharp black blazer with a sky blue dress shirt.

He beamed while waving from the palace balcony, clearly pleased to be standing amidst the two monarchs.

But it seems the student has no ill will towards the family, as he enjoyed a Bridge Climb this week.

Speaking last month,  Nikolai said he’s excited to ‘chart his own course’ after being stripped of his royal title last year – but will ‘still be there’ for his closest cousin and future king, Prince Christian. 

The royal opened up about what the future holds after making the move to Australia this summer, in an interview with Wish Magazine.

He travelled Down Under to study on exchange at University of Technology Sydney for a semester, accompanied by his glamorous designer girlfriend Benedikte Thoustrup. 

However, despite tensions in the family last year – when Queen Margrethe stripped Prince Joachim’s four children of their prince and princess titles – it would appear Nikolai holds no bitterness towards his grandmother.

The count told the outlet he’s ‘blessed to be in a position’ where he can decide his own path and expressed his fondness for the future king – Prince Christian, who had just turned 18. 

‘They are really cool and I love how expressive young guys are here. Their style is just so relaxed and nonchalant. I love how they walk around barefoot sometimes – not that I ever would – or just in their thongs.’

He explained he had a very ‘conservative clothing style’ growing up – but has been ‘keen to explore more’ of his fashion.

Today, the new King and Queen of Denmark sent a message that Nikolai’s father Prince Joachim is still a key part of the monarchy today, by including him in their first official engagement since taking the throne. 

It was a remarkable turnaround for the brothers’ relationship, which was rocked in September 2022, when Queen Margrethe stripped his children of their royal titles – a decision Prince Joachim claimed had ‘harmed’ his family.

Amid the ructions, Joachim, 53, and his second wife Princess Marie, 46, admitted their relationship with his older brother Crown Prince Frederik, 54, and his sister-in-law Crown Princess Mary, 50, was ‘complicated’. 

But there was no sign of tension between the brothers today, as Joachim joined the royal couple at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen for their first official engagement as the new King and Queen. 

While there may be echoes of Prince William and Prince Harry’s feud, the pair have proved that it is possible to overcome the tensions in a brotherly relationship where one is destined to be King.

Joachim, who famously fell out with his mother when his children lost their Prince and Princess titles, appeared to show it was all water under the bridge as he proudly stood alongside her today. 

Perhaps in a nod that everything is peaceful within the family, second-born Joachim wore a tie emblazoned with elephants.

The Order of the Elephant (Elefantordenen) is Denmark’s highest honour. The honour is typically given to children of the monarch and their spouses, as well as heads of state and foreign royals. 

In 2022, Queen Margrethe shocked royal watchers as she sensationally announced Joachim’s four children would lose their titles.

Nikolai, 24, Felix, 20, Henrik, 13, and Athena, 11, are now known as ‘Count and Countess’ and referred to as Their Excellencies, rather than Their Royal Highness. 

The Queen insisted the move would be ‘good for them in their future’ and allow the children – who have maintained their positions in the line of succession – to ‘shape their own lives without being limited by the special considerations and duties’ that a formal affiliation with the Danish Royal Family involves.

After the family were stripped of their titles in September 2022, Prince Joachim claimed that his mother’s decision had ‘harmed’ his children.

Months later, the sixth-in-line to the throne admitted that ‘communication was missing’ within the Royal Family in the lead-up to the shock announcement. 

Joachim told local news outlet B.T.: ‘There is a lot to work on. Communication was what was missing. Now we have met and we are on the right track.’

He added that he had only been given five days’ notice before the news was made public.

Following the Queen’s announcement, Joachim spoke to Danish publication Ekstra Bladet outside the Danish Embassy in Paris, where he lived with his French-born wife Princess Marie and his two youngest children, and said his four children had been ‘hurt’ by their grandmother’s decision.

‘I was given five days’ notice to tell them. In May, I was presented with a plan which, by and large, was that when the children each turned 25, it would happen. Now I had only five days to tell them. Athena turns 11 in January,’ he clarified at the time.

Speaking to B.T., Joachim and his second wife Marie also admitted their relationship with Prince Frederik and Princess Mary is ‘complicated’.

Meanwhile, Prince Joachim’s ex-wife Alexandra said that her sons, Nikolai and Felix, had been left feeling ‘ostracised’ from the institution and the decision had come like a ‘bolt out of the blue’. 

The Royal Household released a further statement that the ‘decision has been a long time coming’.

‘We understand that there are many emotions at stake at the moment, but we hope that the Queen’s wish to future-proof the Royal Household will be respected,’ the statement added.

None of Joachim’s children – or his wife Princess Marie – joined him at the ascension yesterday.

Instead, Marie and their two children, Count Henrik, 14, and Countess Athena of Monpezat, 11, remained in Washington DC, where the family now live after Joachim became defence industry attaché at the Embassy of Denmark.

A palace spokesperson told Hello!: ‘Prince Joachim will be there, but the children go to school, there is no special reason.’

However, there appears to be no hard feelings from his eldest son Nikolai, who posted sweet throwback pictures with both his uncle and grandmother to his Instagram account.

The student, who is currently studying in Sydney and on holiday in Bali, added that he was eating Danish food, perhaps in a a sign he was missing home. 

After the parliamentary reception, most of the royals headed to a reception in the parliament, however Joachim left to fly back to the US.

Once inside parliament, the family listened to speeches from Danish politicians, including the Prime Minister, before the Danish National Girls’ choir sang Hans Christian Andersen’s ‘Denmark, my Fatherland,’ causing Mary to cry. 

Braving the -2C (28F) temperatures and rainy weather, Mary and Frederik greeted their family outside the building before watching speeches by politicians. 

After entering parliament, Mary – clutching a bouquet – headed into the chamber with husband Frederik and son Christian sitting either side of her.

Joachim, Benedikte and Margarethe sat behind as they listened to a speech by Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Prime Minister.