The world joins in wait for royal baby - Daily News & Analysis

Getting excited about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's new arrival is no longer a uniquely British pastime. The entire world is experiencing royal baby mania.

The child has already made history by becoming the first person to get a Wikipedia page before their birth. In the United States, newspapers are fuelling international interest in the first heir to the throne to be born in the past 31 years by confidently declaring it to be "the world's most famous infant".

Good Morning America, the most-watched morning show in the States, recently gave "royal makeovers" to three women due to give birth at the same time as Kate.

Across the US, tea parties are being planned to celebrate the birth, after it was reported that Pippa Middleton is considering throwing an American-style "baby shower" for her sister.

While the official announcement of the birth will be delivered by a formal notice posted on an easel in front of Buckingham Palace, residents of Canada's largest city will need only to look up to the sky to find out the baby's gender.

When the birth is announced, Toronto's tallest landmark, the CN Tower, will be lit up in pink or blue. The Monarchist League of Canada has also requested that the Canadian side of Niagara Falls be bathed in coloured light to mark the occasion.

In Australia, the country's now former Australian prime minister, Julia Gillard, surprised readers of Women's Weekly last month when she revealed that she was knitting a toy kangaroo for the couple's firstborn.

Not usually quick to show her feminine side, Gillard insisted that she loved knitting and that she wanted to give the Duke and Duchess something personal to mark the new arrival.

Since then, Australian travel agents have reported a spike in enquiries about visiting London, and some are even seeing clients altering their plans to see Buckingham Palace this week, to chime with the Duchess of Cambridge's estimated due date.

The Adelaide-based agency Phil Hoffman Travel has recorded an 80 per cent increase in bookings to London for both flights and cruises, and its chief executive, Peter Williams, insists that the impending royal birth is a significant factor.

"The much-anticipated arrival of the Duchess of Cambridge's baby has given holidaymakers even more reason to head to London,'' said Mr Williams.

"We know of some travellers organising their itineraries to maximise the chance of receiving a royal baby bonus on their holiday.'' While Commonwealth members are leading the charge, some unlikely countries with less obvious ties to Britain and its Royal family have been bitten by the baby bug.

Last week, the Finnish government sent the Duke and Duchess a traditional maternity kit, of the kind that is issued to every Finnish mother. It contains everything a new parent could possibly need, including a snowsuit, teething toy and a pint-sized duvet, while the box in which the gifts arrive doubles as a crib.

There are more traditional items on offer to celebrate the birth. Tea-towels, mugs and plates are being produced to commemorate the occasion, as are dolls, baby-grows adorned with royal slogans, specially themed doughnuts, mobile-phone covers and even potties.

Not to be outdone, the Royal Mint is to give babies born on the same day as the couple's first child a "lucky" silver penny. Presented in a pink or blue pouch, the pennies have been datemarked to commemorate the babies' year of birth, and also feature a shield of the Royal Arms.

St James's Palace has said the Duke and Duchess have welcomed the memorabilia as part of the celebrations of their firstborn.

"The birth of the Duke's and Duchess's baby should be a joyous occasion, and we recognise there is a long and happy history of people producing souvenirs to mark royal occasions," a spokesman from the palace said.

The Museum of London has also opened a rare exhibition of royal infant clothes and other items. The exhibition showcases bonnets, tiny vests and mittens worn by infants who grew up to become monarchs.

Meanwhile, a west London pub named after the expectant mother is offering 50p off every pint of beer on the day of the birth. As befits a baby due to be born in the digital age, the child also has its own spoof Twitter account.

Called @TheRoyalBaby__, the biography description reads: "It's jolly dark in here…" The account already has 11,500 followers and counting - and there are regular tweets.