Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were criticised for going on a “cosplay” royal walkabout during their first day of joint engagements on British soil since their return to the UK. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were welcomed to the Community Recording Studio (CRS) in St Ann’s, Nottingham, with all the fanfare, for a run of three quasi-royal public appearances in the city on Thursday.
The couple set up home back in England in August in a dramatic U-turn six years after quitting the working monarchy for a new life in the US. But despite stepping down as senior working royals, Thursday’s visit resembled those of working royals extremely well and fans and royal watchers took notice.
Walkabout with crowds
During their first engagement, the Sussexes made a beeline for the crowds of well-wishers, just like a traditional royal walkabout – smiling, shaking hands, giving hugs and taking selfies with the members of the public for 20 minutes. They got mobbed by fans who wanted to see them as they departed.
Now various well-respected figures within the royal community have criticised Thursday’s appearance of “royal cosplay”.
Royal editors weigh in
The Telegraph’s royal editor Hannah Furness said that the Sussexes are back to what they said they don’t want. She said: “Harry and Meghan are back to Nottingham, back to hand-picked charity visits they still call 'engagements', and back to walkabouts. Back to accepting flowers, inviting the press to cover them, and doling out hugs to anyone in the vicinity.
“Back to the life they said they did not want, except this time with none of the boring bits, or the duty that being a working royal entails.”
She said Thursday felt like “a bit of a challenge to the King”, who, alongside the late Queen Elizabeth, hoped that “a line could be drawn between the working family and the selling of jam”.
Meanwhile, The Times’ royal editor Kate Mansey claimed that despite quitting the Royal Family six years ago, the Sussexes organised a “day full of royal déjà vu moments”. She also claimed that their appearance left Palace courtiers describing the situation as “intensely frustrating”.
First UK appearance in four years
Thursday marked the first time in four years that Meghan has appeared publicly at events in the UK, the last time being the late Queen’s funeral in 2022.
