Don’t use monarchy as a MeToo soapbox, Meghan

THE event on Wednesday was the first time the young royals, ludicrously dubbed the Fab Four, had taken to the stage together. William and Kate and harry and Meghan were there to promote their charity work — to make it, in William’s words, ‘relevant to our generation’ and our ‘ever-changing times’.

It was all a bit self-conscious as they joked for the cameras, and what could be more noble in ambition than this generation of royals hoping to better the lives of the underprivileged?

Kate, looking heavily and happily pregnant, judged the mood perfectly, wearing a modest, sapphire-blue £99 maternity dress.

Meghan turned up in a sleeveless £ 1,415 silk wrap dress and was teetering on vertiginous stilettos that wouldn’t be out of place in a nightclub. But we can overlook that, given that she is new to her role.

What was impossible to ignore, however, is what she said. Turning her back on Kate and William to get the most advantageous camera angle, she recited, in her best actressy dictum, lines that come straight out of the #MeToo sisterhood handbook.

‘There is no better time than to really continue to shine a light on women feeling empowered,’ she began, tossing her glossy tresses. ‘You’ll often hear people say: “Well you are helping women find their voices” — and I fundamentally disagree with that because women don’t need to find a voice. They have a voice.’

Indeed, they do, Meghan. And I’m afraid we heard too much of yours on Wednesday. Yes, she’s still learning the ropes. But using this platform to indulge in # MeToo feminist propaganda was not only unedifying, but also worrying. The constitutional Monarchy will only survive if it keeps out of politics, and stands above fashion. Movements like MeToo are, by their very nature, both political and controversial. If the monarchy is to last, it cannot be used as a soapbox by a former soap star.

Meghan should understand that she need look no further than harry’s grandmother for a remarkable role model in female power.

Throughout 66 years of her reign, the Queen has kept her counsel. And yet she’s always been seen as the equal of the countless — mostly male — national leaders she has met.

In so many ways, Meghan is a welcome breath of fresh air. But the last thing Britain needs is an over- confident, virtue- signalling American actress using her position in the Royal Family to promote her right-on views.