Duty calls for Meghan
Prince Harry’s fiancée joins him on visit to Nottingham and charms the waiting crowds with effortless ease
Meghan Markle accompanied Prince Harry to Nottingham yesterday on their first outing together since their engagement, greeting hundreds of wellwishers lining the streets by saying: “Hi, I’m Meghan.”
SHE came, she saw, and by all accounts she conquered. And if Meghan Markle found her first day of working on royal duties a little surreal, who could blame her?
The former actress ended her inaugural official visit to Nottingham yesterday watching a play with uncanny parallels to her own life, about two people hiding their love from the public.
Ms Markle and her fiancé Prince Harry were treated to a performance from young actors and watched as the onstage narrative ended with a phone call delivering news of a forthcoming royal wedding.
The couple, who announced their engagement on Monday, tactfully avoiding commenting on the subject matter, instead praising the lively young actors for their talent. The show, at Nottingham Academy, was the culmination of a three-hour visit for the Prince and Ms Markle. If she was daunted by the crowds or her new responsibilities, she gave no sign, greeting hundreds of well-wishers with a cheery: “Hi, I’m Meghan.”
And it appeared she had swotted up on modern royal protocol too. After years of perfecting her photograph for Instagram, she yesterday followed in the footsteps of the members of the Royal family to decline selfies politely, apologising to all who asked: “I’m so sorry, we’re not allowed.” As Prince Harry looked on proudly, she threw herself into making small talk with crowds who had turned out from 6am to catch a glimpse of the glamorous couple. “I’m so happy,” she said at one point. “It’s just such a thrill to be here.”
Onlookers remarked at the tactile interactions between the couple, who regularly held hands or put their arms on one another’s backs as they criss-crossed between the two sides of the narrow cobbled street. She was treated to all human life Britain has to offer, from toddlers waving “Princess” wands and handmade cards to the pensioner whose first encounter with royalty was the young Princess Elizabeth in 1950. Frank Shelton, 79, brought his eight-year-old barn owl Kim along for the day, telling all and sundry: “Harry’s bringing his bird so I brought mine.”
Irene Hartman, 80, presented the couple with Christmas presents including a Nottingham fridge magnet “for their fridge at Nottingham Cottage”, hailing Ms Markle “one of us”.
Ms Markle showed her engagement ring to interested admirers. When the Prince was asked about his luck managing to win over Ms Markle “as a ginger”, he said with a grin: “It’s great, isn’t it? Unbelievable.” Ms Markle’s first official gift came from Ian Curryer, chief executive of Nottingham city council, who gave her and the Prince a silver pin in the shape of Robin Hood with a bow and arrow, in honour of what they had done to boost the area.
He said Prince Harry told him he was “delighted to be here” and had exclaimed over the “great” number of people who had turned out in the 34F (1C) temperatures. Waving to people in the windows above the narrow street, Ms Markle walked down a line asking people their names, where they had
‘We wanted to make it a fun play and involve the royals. She said that we were in unison’
‘They’re so in love. We need magic at the moment. There should be a public holiday for the wedding’
come from and endearingly introducing herself by name in case they were not sure who she was.
Various new admirers pronounced her “a natural”, “so lovely” and “a little gem”. Margo Heyhurst, from Cambridge, said: “Her clothes, her demeanour, everything about her. They’re so in love. We need magic at the moment. There should be a public holiday for the wedding.” After around 25 minutes meeting the public, the Prince and Ms Markle entered Nottingham Contemporary for a World Aids Day fair. In an event about the importance of fitness, Ms Markle passed another test for anyone making their mark in public life this side of the Atlantic: recognising the importance of football.
Amdani Juma, the project coordinator for Champions for Change, said: “She said football is the number one sport for bringing the human race together.”
A second event, at Nottingham Academy, the fifth in line to the throne and his fiancée watched a performance by young actors from Nottingham’s Community Recording Studio, who had devised a topical plot about two lovers attempting to hide their relationship.
The final scene saw a character taking a telephone call alerting him to an forthcoming royal wedding. Taynika Jarrett-bennett, 19, who played one of the lead roles, confirmed it had been deliberate. “We wanted to make it a fun play and involve the royals,” she said. “She was so lovely. She said: ‘You were in unison. Your timing was good.’ It’s given us a lot more confidence.”
When Meghan Markle joined her fiancé Prince Harry for half an hour’s walkabout in the historic centre of Nottingham yesterday, the crowd was as warm as the weather was chill. Of course, she is a star, a woman of great beauty whose choice in clothes is emulated by those who have the figure and the pocket to do so. But a repeated comment by those who met her was how natural she was. It is true that she looked as though she was long accustomed to shaking hands with strangers, making friends with toddlers and responding cheerfully to surprising remarks from pensioners. Yet it does no harm that she is an actress by profession, knowing how to move, smile and speak to advantage. That is not artificial; it is a rare virtue, and one that should cheer the hearts of many a crowd as she makes a royal role her own.