The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Family, News and Events 6: Aug. 2021- Oct. 2022

[muriel]

Originally Posted by Curryong

Yes, but it’s clear from this and other articles that Charles has his harpist play at various occasions, especially when staying in Wales or when he attends musical evenings and events elsewhere. That doesn’t occur with the Poet Laureate.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/...pist/77530900/

Just so that we are clear, the harpist is not for the personal pleasure of Charles, it is to promote the Harp as an instrument.

[muriel]

Originally Posted by Curryong

This article states that the harp played by the Royal Harpist (a woman by the way) has a home at Clarence House.

https://www.classical-music.com/feat...-role-involve/

Perhaps you are unaware that hundreds of public engagements and events take place at Clarence House every year.

[Erin9]

Originally Posted by angieuk

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...Montecito.html



I'm so glad I'm completely invisible when I walk down the street. Who would want this! I wonder what her mother thinks of it all. Harry, it seems, has no problem whatsoever with her behaving like this.

This article references that The Washington Post is over their complaining and provides quotes. I’ve read the entire article. It’s not good.

The Post is an American, serious, left leaning paper. That they got an article dedicated to them is a big deal imo. That it was negative- telling them to move on already is bad imo. That would not be the kind of attention I’d want from a well respected paper. Particularly when it skews left as it is.

[Curryong]

Yes I am aware of that, thanks. I’m also aware that the Royal Harpist has played elsewhere on countless occasions when Charles has been present. The harpist has other instruments she uses.

[Denville]

Originally Posted by Curryong

Yes I am aware of that, thanks. I’m also aware that the Royal Harpist has played elsewhere on countless occasions when Charles has been present. The harpist has other instruments she uses.

but the implication of the OP seemed to be that Charles was going around with this harpist in his retinue, paying a fortune to keep her with him and as I said jokingly summoning her to play for him personally to amuse him. Of course, the harpist is going to play at occasions where Charles is present and no doubt other occasions as well. It isnt as if Charles is like Herod with a retinue of people to amuse him who follow wherever he goes....

[Denville]

Originally Posted by Queen Claude

The distinction is that the reportedly Sussexes wanted a standalone office / household which meant a household would have been created to function alongside the existing standalone households: Buckingham Palace (The Queen, her children (except Charles) and her cousins), Clarence House (Charles and Camilla) and Kensington Palace (the Cambridges, formerly the Cambridges and the Sussexes).

What they got may have been referred to as an office or household in the article, but Harry and Meghan moved from a household / office where their name was on the door to a household / office that was subsumed within the Top Lady's* household / office which served the Top Lady herself along with ten (give or take) other royals. Harry, and then Harry and Meghan together, always had dedicated staffers, along with staffers that they shared with William and Kate, and later on shared with the Buckingham Palace royals.

* A term Diana used for The Queen.

so, it alll seems a bit confusing.. they got some more staff? but it didnt cost more or at least not much more, than previously, and Charles didnt refuse to pay out for them to have a somewhat different office set up?

[Erin9]

Originally Posted by HRHHermione

I think what gets to me about the “my voice” thing is that supposedly, this was all driven by a need for separation from the press and privacy. I was baffled by the interview claim about how the story no one really knows is their “love story” and how she wants to put that out there.

Why? Your husband is famously sad and angry at how little he had in his life that was private and shielded from the press. Does he want this story told and if so, why? It goes against everything he ever claimed to want for himself. Was his only objection this whole time that the people who were making money off of his story weren’t him? That’s a very different thing than wanting privacy.

It all just seems so off, and it’s getting harder to imagine how any of it ends happily for anyone. I don’t even know what Harry’s options would be if he wanted to walk any of this back.

It does seem a bit off that Meghan said she wants to talk about their “love story.” Maybe it’s okay if they control the narrative? Not sure.

If they’re serious though, it’ll be interesting. One takeaway from this interview is that imo Meghan very much wants their image to be of a perfect, perfectly in sync couple. Hence some of the over the top imagery.

But drama is what sells. Perfection doesn’t. (Unless all drama is going to somehow be about the BRF.)

Maybe she was just talking. In the interview she couldn’t decide whether she was or wasn’t getting back on instagram. Not sure what was up with that.

The whole interview read to me as one long stream of consciousness, where Meghan just talked. She sure didn’t seem to be thinking much about how she was coming across to many readers- out of touch with other people, extravagant, stuck in the past, controlling, needing to be seen as having the perfect marriage/life, over the top, lying (the school story), etc.

[Granada]

I guess I'm in the minority here, but regarding the contentious issues of HRH Prince and Princess Titles for Archie and Lili I still
believe they will not receive them.
I think that was brought up during the pregnancy, and completely rattled the Sussex's . Another example of them, AND now their children not being on the same footing as the Cambridges. I think that also led perhaps in some part to the name 'Archie'. Prince Archie ? Certainly not a typical upper class or royal name in the least.
I don't believe The Sussex Titles being pulled will happen, which is a sadly popular opinion on comment sections on social media outlets.

But, behind close doors I believe the document has been prepared to restrict the allocation of 'new' HRH Royal Titles. That had previously restricted these titles to Male line Grand children of the Sovereign, that had been the convention dating back to Elizabeth's grandfather King George V
by Letters Patent. I believe all the current HRH Princely Titles will be 'grandfathered in' .....no pun intended ! No one will lose them.

Its just a new way forward. And it will be popular with most in the UK for sure. Charles and William (by extension ) don't care how it plays ( if at all really ) in America.
Funny enough, George got the idea from his own Uncle, Tsar Alexander lll, who himself threw out settled convention and mandated by edict that only the Children and male line Grand children of the Tsar would be Grand Dukes and Grand Duchesses. In the extended Romanov Family, that did cause quite a stir too.
So, with the already well known wishes of Charles to streamline The Firm and modernize it, I believe the decision was made not to have The Sussex Children be HRH Prince and Princess. It has evidently. worked out quite well for Louise and James Wessex. I think that is an example that King Charles lll will use.
And this was well before all the never ending drama of The Sussex's leaving and ongoing litany of complaints and allegations too, against the Family and the Institution too !
On top of Charles's wishes on the matter, I believe the UK People would be very upset too should Harry and Meghan who are perpetually aggrieved, American raised Sussex Children receive Royal Titles.
I will quite happy eat my words if wrong ! With salt and pepper too !

[Queen Claude]

Originally Posted by Denville

so, it alll seems a bit confusing.. they got some more staff? but it didnt cost more or at least not much more, than previously, and Charles didnt refuse to pay out for them to have a somewhat different office set up?

Perhaps the distinction should be that they wanted a standalone office which would obviously mean getting significantly more funding versus getting funding to separate from Kensington Palace and be absorbed into the Buckingham Palace Household, which still may mean more funding than in previous periods, note the Sussex couple did not have a lengthy financial track record, but not as much as the increase required to set up the standalone office.

[Marengo]

Yesterday the Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived in the UK:

Harper's Bazaar article

[Curryong]

They flew into London by commercial airliner. So the couple are likely to be away from home for about a week, and Archie and Lili aren’t coming. I expect they will be staying at FC. for the moment.

[Granada]

Curryong, when you write, "I expect they will be staying a FC. for the moment".....do you believe they will then be visiting The Queen at Balmoral ?
Even they must realize that her health is, and has greatly declined.
For the rest of the Family and her trusted inner circle would probably *try* to veto that now after events of the past two weeks. The stress at her age would be very detrimental.

[FigTree]

Originally Posted by Granada

Curryong, when you write, "I expect they will be staying a FC. for the moment".....do you believe they will then be visiting The Queen at Balmoral ?
Even they must realize that her health is, and has greatly declined.
For the rest of the Family and her trusted inner circle would probably *try* to veto that now after events of the past two weeks. The stress at her age would be very detrimental.

We don’t really know if the Queen is unwell. Certainly she has mobility issues and apparently has no wish to be seen in a wheelchair. We don’t know if she has anything more concerning…as in she is in any more urgent failing health then a women of her age is anyway.

As for Harry and Meghan. Who knows. They are here and the then in Germany and then back and after that who knows if they will go to Balmoral.

I have a feeling this Christmas will have a big family get together at Sandringham as really there may not be many more Christmas like that and 2 have been missed already. Including last with the DoE. I doubt Harry and Meghan will be there though. And the family had a huge Easter with everyone there this year. Maybe not Charles?

[Alisa]

Originally Posted by Granada

Curryong, when you write, "I expect they will be staying a FC. for the moment".....do you believe they will then be visiting The Queen at Balmoral ?
Even they must realize that her health is, and has greatly declined.
For the rest of the Family and her trusted inner circle would probably *try* to veto that now after events of the past two weeks. The stress at her age would be very detrimental.

In her lifetime the Queen has dealt with far more serious matters than Meghan and Harry and some of them running concurrently.
Even so who knows, the Queen may very well request to meet with the couple.

It's a shame they didn't bring the kids- but I understand travels may interrupt their schedules.

[TLLK]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...anchester.html

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police confirmed to MailOnline that the couple's security is being 'privately secured'.

So it appears that the Home Office considers their engagements in the UK this week are private ones so there will be no taxpayer funded security for the couple.

[Alison H]

These are private engagements being carried out by people who have chosen to be private individuals. There’s no reason why the taxpayer should fund security for them. Hopefully everything will go well and they will focus on the events and causes, rather than on bad-mouthing Harry’s family.

[Mbruno]

Originally Posted by Granada

Curryong, when you write, "I expect they will be staying a FC. for the moment".....do you believe they will then be visiting The Queen at Balmoral ?
Even they must realize that her health is, and has greatly declined.
For the rest of the Family and her trusted inner circle would probably *try* to veto that now after events of the past two weeks. The stress at her age would be very detrimental.

Some tabloids like the Express recently ran articles claiming that Meghan dreaded the prospect of going to Balmoral over the summer, as she feared that such visit might lure Harry "back into the Family" (presumably by bringing back childhood memories etc.).

Of course that is tabloid journalism, so I would treat it as gossip only, and not necessarily true.

No plans to visit the Queen in Scotland have been announced so far, but we will see. I am pretty sure that, if the Queen requests their presence, they will go. They might even have a private meeting, which will only be announced afterward (or "aftterwards" as the British say), or not publicly announced at all.

[Curryong]

Sorry I’m a bit late in replying to this. When I wrote that I expected that Harry and Meghan are at Frogmore Cottage ‘for the moment’ I wasn’t hinting that they intended to go up to Balmoral or that they had been invited. In fact I don’t think at all that anyone’s schedule will be allowing for meetings between the Queen, Prince Charles at Birkhall and the Sussexes.

In fact I was thinking of the couple’s trip to Germany per the Invictus Games, rather than anything else. I’d imagine they will be spending one night in a German hotel at least.

[hereditarytitles]

German tabloid "Gala" has an article today about the visit to Düsseldorf coming Tuesday.
Title: They won't talk to the press"

https://www.gala.de/royals/briten/pr...-22919076.html

[Granada]

Thanks Curryong.