Hi Royal Clubbers, it’s Ainhoa here with some post-Remembrance Sunday musings.
Before I dissect the stark contrast between how the royal family marked Remembrance weekend in the UK and how Harry and Meghan spent it in Los Angeles, I wanted to flag Danielle’s video in case you missed it. Danielle was on the ground in Whitehall, central London yesterday where she shadowed the King and his family paying their respects at the Cenotaph war memorial. She also had the chance to speak to some admirable veterans, including 100-year-old Philip Dawson.
Definitely watch her heartwarming video in case you haven’t! As one reader Geeta put it: “Thank you Danielle for sharing with us the video of our beautiful Royal Family at the Cenotaph, it was truly inspiring to watch this footage and to see our Majesty the King and Queen Camilla, The Prince and Princess of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.”
Now back to the Sussexes. I’ve seen a lot of unfavourable reporting today about how Harry and Meghan spent the weekend partying with A-Listers while King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William and Princess Catherine, among other senior royals, remembered the war dead in a series of sombre yet moving events – the Festival of Remembrance on Saturday night, followed by the Remembrance Sunday service at Whitehall.
Meanwhile across the pond, the Sussexes were attending a glitzy fundraising gala for Baby2Baby charity, where they posed for photos with their close friend Serena Williams. Harry, who served in the army for ten years and undertook two tours in Afghanistan, wore a poppy, but a lot has been made of the fact that Meghan didn’t wear one.
After the charity bash, the couple headed down the road to Kris Jenner’s 70th birthday party (Kim Kardashian’s momager for those not in the know). The event was held at Jeff Bezos’s Beverly Hills mansion and the guest list read like a roll call of Hollywood royalty: as well as the Kardashian-Jenners, other A-Listers included singers Adele and Mariah Carey, actresses Oprah Winfrey, Sarah Paulson and Naomi Watts, broadcaster Gayle King, entrepreneur and TV personality Martha Stewart, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
I’ll admit, the optics didn’t look great. While the British royal family were back in London commemorating those who have died in conflict, Harry and Meghan, who reiterated last week the importance of marking “Remembrancetide”, were living their best lives, rubbing shoulders with the who’s who of the celebrity world. All the while looking incredible I’ll add! Harry sported a tuxedo for the James Bond-themed birthday bash, keeping his poppy on for the evening, while Meghan looked sensational in her flattering, thigh-high split evening gown.
But playing Devil’s advocate, the Sussexes are not part of the working royal family anymore. They can do as they please and shouldn’t feel the need to pass up social invitations just because they happen to fall on the same weekend as Remembrance Sunday. Harry spent a large part of last week travelling to Canada, meeting war veterans and serving personnel there, and continuously bangs the drum for servicemen and women, and their bereaved families. You just have to watch a bit of his Invictus Games to see his genuine passion and empathy. So was it really a crime that they enjoyed a night on the town, at events that they did not schedule themselves?
As ever, I’d love to hear your thoughts so please take our poll below and then expand on your answer in the comments.
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