EXCLUSIVE: Princess Tatiana of Greece is returning to Australia, and here's why

EXCLUSIVE: Princess Tatiana of Greece will arrive in Australia this week for a whirlwind visit, nine.com.au can reveal exclusively.

The 45-year-old is to appear at a garden party fundraiser for the Hellenic Museum in Melbourne on Thursday before recording a podcast.

It'll be the princess' second visit to Australia and will come nearly 18 months after Tatiana's divorce from her husband, Prince Nikolaos of Greece.

The couple's separation made headlines around the world when it was announced in April last year.

Prince Nikolaos, whose late father King Constantine II of Greece was a close friend of King Charles III, remarried just 10 months later.

The princess, who is also known as Tatiana Blatnik, was able to retain her royal title after her 14-year marriage ended.

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Princess Tatiana's appearance at the garden party will mark the first time royalty has graced the Hellenic Museum's popular annual event.

This year, tickets sold out in 48 hours.

"Princess Tatiana's lived a real life full of many different experiences, both positive and challenging and that makes her incredibly relatable," The Hellenic Museum's Helen Mantzis told nine.com.au.

"And that was really the motivating force. We're really honoured to have her and welcome her to Melbourne."

The princess will speak about her life before and after marrying into Greece's royal family, including her not-for-profit mental health initiative, Breathe Hellas.

This year's garden party is supporting the museum's new Children's Gallery, which aims at "inspiring curiosity and belief for the next generation", Mantzis said.

"Princess Tatiana's advocacy for mindfulness and emotional resilience deeply resonates with the vision of the Children's Gallery, because it's about nurturing that next generation and vision of creative, confident and connected young minds," she said.

"By weaving this idea of play and culture and imagination together, we're giving a space to children that really is going to lean into that empathy and sense of belonging.

"And her mental health initiative, Breathe Hellas, is a really interesting tie to that."

Breathe Hellas, which was created in 2020, is described by Princes Tatiana as a "mindful mental health movement". Its creation was partly inspired by the suicide of her late father when she was just seven.

After the garden party, the princess will join Mantzis for a conversation on the soon-to-be-launched Loopels platform to "explore conversations around resilience, reinvention and the art of becoming".

"Her appearance and what she has to say will really resonate with that audience," Mantzis said.

"[The princess'] passion for philanthropy and cultural connection makes her the perfect guest to help us celebrate the museum's work."

The Hellenic Museum is Australia's only cultural space dedicated to "sharing the richness of Greek history, art, and culture from antiquity to the modern day," Mantzis said.

"It really celebrates that enduring influence of Hellenism in shaping contemporary Australian life," she added.

Earlier this year Princess Tatiana told her followers on social media she would continue to live in Greece despite her divorce.

She was born in Venezuela and grew up in Switzerland before moving to the US and then London. Her mother is German, but grew up in Spain, and her father was Slovenian.

Speaking to Vanity Fair Spain in July, Princess Tatiana said: "Being part of the Greek royal family has been a privilege and an honour.

"I've learned so much: values ​​like love and service to the homeland, family unity, and, of course, I got to know Greece.

"Being married to Nikolaos has been a privilege, and I will always have deep respect for him. Our history has marked a very important stage in my life. Without him, I wouldn't live in Greece."

Her ex-husband Prince Nikolaos is the son the late King Constantine of Greece, who died in January 2023, and Queen Anne-Marie of Denmark, the sister of Queen Margrethe II– mother of King Frederik.

Nikolaos was born in Rome after his father fled Greece during a period of military dictatorship.

In the 1970s, the Greek people voted in two referendums to replace their monarchy with a republic.

Constantine II lived in London during his years in exile before returning to his home country in 2013.

The current head of the Greek royal family is Crown Prince Pavlos, who is married to Crown Princess Marie-Chantal.

The family retains close ties to the royal families of the UK, Denmark and Spain.

In July, Princess Tatiana told Vanity Fair Spain: "Greece is my home; I'd never lived in a country for so long. I've harboured a deep sense of belonging to what I consider my country.

"Staying wasn't the easy path, but easy isn't my thing. Starting over somewhere else would have been easier on paper, but not in my heart."

She and Prince Nikolaos married on August 25, 2010, with royalty from across Europe attending the festivities.

They didn't have any children together.

Their last public appearance together was in February, 2024, when they attended a memorial at Windsor Castle to mark the first anniversary of the death Constantine II.

Princess Tatiana said of their divorce: "Ending a long marriage is never easy, but it is possible to separate with love and dignity if you prioritise mutual respect.

"We didn't give up on anything. We moved on to a new stage".

Princess Tatiana was last in Australia in 2017 when she visited with her then-husband, as International Ambassador of The Hellenic Initiative.

Mantzis said she and the Greek community were "excited" to host the princess this week.

"She's an incredible individual inside and out and it's just absolutely fantastic that she's coming out in support of the museum," Mantzis said.

"We're all very, very excited."

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