The royals are not the Kardashians, Miss Markle

After visiting Cardiff with harry for her third official public engagement, Meghan Markle must have been delighted with the wall-to-wall media coverage.

She was doing selfies with the crowd, signing autographs, kissing hands, throwing high- fives, encouraging group hugs — and the cameras loved it. harry even invited a crowd of youngsters to mob his fiancée, saying: ‘everyone give Meghan a hug — go!’

the Prince was pictured surrounded by young girls thrilled at being allowed to put their arms round him.

It was certainly change for the monarchy. But was it a change for the better?

of course, Meghan is a welcome breath of fresh air for the institution — her glamour, confidence and youthful sense of fun have injected it with vim and popularity.

And yet to see a royal of harry’s rank — not very long ago, remember, he was spare to the heir — being mobbed in this way just wasn’t very British or regal. Indeed, centuries of tradition were being washed away.

I don’t want to be po-faced, and quite understand that the monarchy needs to adapt and modernise. But what next? Should we all be hugging Camilla and Charles on their next walk-about. or, God forbid, the Queen?

It is clear Meghan is endearingly desperate to please. Joining the firm is a daunting prospect even for a sophisticated 36-year-old tV celebrity. Yet every item of her £3,300 outfit in Cardiff was sending out a blatant message. the women- empowering earrings, the £1,350 cruelty-free Stella McCartney coat, the £295 handbag whose purchase provides money to abandoned and orphaned children.

there’s a thin line between doing good and signalling how virtuous you are. We may live in an age of social media, but the Windsors are not the Kardashians.

times have moved on since the Victorian constitutional historian Walter Bagehot wrote of the royal family: ‘Its mystery is its life, we must not let in daylight upon magic.’

But to a great extent, his words still hold true. the monarchy survives on respect and restraint, on mystery and, yes, magic.

It is precisely because of her dignity and refusal to play to the cameras — to drum up that hollywood, red-carpet fever we saw in Cardiff — that the Queen is one of the most successful monarchs in our history.

Yes, the young royals must move with the times — but they should be careful what they wish for.