The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, have been criticised for their latest announcement as the pair get ready to visit Nigeria
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s visit to Nigeria next month has been labelled as the couple trying to ‘one up’ the Royal Family.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are confirmed to be visiting the African nation next month, just days after Harry will appear solo in the UK to celebrate 10 years of the Invictus Games. Whilst Meghan is confirmed to visit Nigeria, she has not been confirmed as joining Harry in the UK and it’s thought she will stay home in California instead.
The couple’s African trip has been labelled by the Mail on Sunday’s Charlotte Griffiths as “a one-up on the Royal Family”.
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She told GB News: “Of course, they never try anything other than get a one-up on the Royal Family but I think what they’re really doing is on paper, they’re trying to celebrate 10 years of Invictus Games. Let’s face it, the real reason is that they need content for Netflix, they want to appear as quasi-royals, they want to carry on conducting quasi-tours as if they are still members of the Royal Family. I think the fact they are going to a Commonwealth country when they describe the Commonwealth as Empire 2.0 is a little bit rich.”
Last week the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) announced that the Sussexes are jetting off to visit Nigeria in May as they revealed the couple will meet with Service members and host a variety of cultural activities. The trip comes as Nigeria, along with Colombia and Israel, are considered new arrivals at the Invictus Games where they competed against the 21 nations that participated the athletic games in 2023. The trip is also a potential ‘must’ for Meghan after she revealed in her podcast series, Archetypes, that she has Nigerian ancestry which could also explain her eagerness for the trip.
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said that with Nigeria hoping to host a future Invictus Games and Meghan’s ancestry links to the country, it makes sense for the couple to make the trip. However, he added that the visit is not a sign the couple wish to return to working royal life with tours and royal trips, as he added that Harry ‘has no desire to do so’.
He told the Daily Mail: “It’s [the visit to Nigeria] a very good face saver with Meghan not coming to Britain and shows a bit of PR nous.”
Harry and Meghan, who stepped back from royal duties in 2020, make rare visits to the UK and currently have a strained relationship with the royal family following controversial interviews and comments made in their Netflix series. Meghan in particular is less keen to visit the UK and was last seen in the country in 2022 for the late Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral and did not attend King Charles’ coronation last year.
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