THE DUCHESS OF SUSSEX CELEBRATES HER BIRTHDAY AFTER GUESTEDITING THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE OF BRITISH Vogue
AFTER GUEST EDITING ‘VOGUE’ AND WORKING ON HER CHARITABLE FASHION LINE, THE DUCHESS OF SUSSEX WAS REWARDED WITH A QUIET FAMILY DAY
The Duchess of Sussex found herself the centre of yet more media attention last week. It followed the exciting announcement that not only did she guest edit British Vogue’s September issue, she will also be trying her hand at fashion design, developing a clothing line to benefit charity.
So it was perhaps with some relief that she was able to enjoy her 38th birthday on Sunday quietly at home with her husband the Duke of Sussex and their son Archie. OK! discovered that the low-key celebrations at Frogmore Cottage were likely to involve breakfast made by Harry, peaceful strolls around the Great Windsor Estate, a big birthday cake and, most importantly for the new parents, precious quality time with their rapidly growing three month old.
At the time of going to press, ahead of Meghan’s big day on August 4, royal commentator Omid Scobie tells us: ‘It will be a private celebration for sure. Everything Meghan and Harry do revolves around their son, so as much as it’s Meghan’s birthday, the day will be all about Archie. They’re so aware of how quickly
he’s growing up. Meghan often says to friends: “I feel like I turn away for a second and he’s bigger when I look back!”’
Detailing their day, he adds: ‘After waking up together, I can imagine that Harry, who has an equal hand in everything, will want to put on a nice breakfast for Meghan to start off her day. After all they don’t have their own chef, and their housekeeper only works nine to five and doesn’t sleep at the property, which is quite different from what we’re used to with other royals.’
Describing their life at Frogmore as ‘very quiet’, Omid explains: ‘They hold a lot of their meetings in their house but when they’re not working they love to walk on the Windsor Estate itself, and I imagine they will do that on her birthday. Harry will bring their dogs along and Meghan will push Archie in his pram before heading home for a slice of cake.’
While Meghan insists she doesn’t need gifts, especially since Archie’s arrival, Harry will have definitely made a fuss of his wife. ‘Even before marrying into the royal family, Meghan has always said to friends and loved ones: “I’ve got everything I want. Having
you with me on the day is enough.” But we know Harry likes a romantic gesture,’ says Omid. ‘He’ll pull out all the stops because he worships the ground she walks on.’
But having already arranged to have her engagement ring reset and resized for their first wedding anniversary in May, and an eternity ring made for her, it’s not jewellery that he will have planned as a gift.
‘At the moment, their focus has been on finishing each room at Frogmore and getting it just perfect,’ explains Omid. ‘So I wonder if Harry’s mind might go there for gifts rather than the obvious jewellery.’
And with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge recently dispelling rumours of a rift with Harry and Meghan thanks to a family day out at the polo, it’s likely that Kate and William will be popping by Frogmore Cottage over the coming days too. However, the idea of Her Majesty the Queen throwing a surprise party for Meghan at Balmoral in Scotland was never really on the cards! ‘They’re planning to go away somewhere this summer and Balmoral will be an option, but not for Meghan’s birthday,’ says Omid. Harry, in fact, took a short trip to Italy last week to give a
‘barefoot speech’ about climate change at the Google Camp climate retreat in Sicily while Meghan and Archie remained at home. The event was attended by A-list celebrities, including Leonardo Dicaprio, Harry Styles, Stella Mccartney and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerburg. Coldplay performed at the three-day event, during which the duke insisted that climate change was a ‘humanitarian issue’ rather than a political one.
Omid adds: ‘This summer is all about enjoying family life together. After all, they have the launch of the Sussex Royal Foundation in September and then their royal tour of Africa so it’s going to be non-stop from then on.’
Not that Meghan is one to put her feet up. Despite being on maternity leave, she has been busy guest-editing the September issue of British Vogue magazine. She put herself forward for the role in a text message to the editor in chief, Edward Enninful, after he initially asked her to appear on the cover ‘over a steaming cup of mint tea’, as Meghan recalls it.
While Meghan’s sister-in-law Kate posed for the cover of British Vogue in 2016 to mark the magazine’s centenary issue, Edward said that after much discussion, Meghan ‘felt that it would be in some ways a boastful thing to do for this particular project’. He added: ‘She wanted, instead, to focus on the women she admires.’
Settling on the theme Forces For Change, the cover features 15 women, including teen climate change campaigner Greta Thunberg and Hollywood actress Jane Fonda (see our icons feature on page 80) who are ‘trailblazing change makers, united by their fearlessness in breaking barriers’. A 16th mirrored panel shows the reader’s reflection, representing the fact that they too have the power to change the world.
Meghan says she was inspired to ‘go a bit deeper’ with the editorial tone of the issue by a French novel she read ‘many moons ago’. The Four-chambered Heart, by Anaïs Nin, features a quote that has ‘always resonated’ with her: ‘I must be a mermaid, Rango. I have no fear of depths and a great fear of shallow living.’
‘these seven months have been a rewarding process’