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Meghan and Harry turn down Oscars invite
Well, that would have been quite a coup. Meghan and Harry were approached by Academy Award organizers to present the Best Picture award at the Oscars tonight, Sunday, but they turned down the offer, according to Hello!
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According to a source, “they were honored by the request, but declined the invitation.” On one level, this is expert PR: Keep them wanting more! On another, why say yes to appear at some J.P. Morgan do in Miami as the couple did this week, and then say no to the Oscars and possibly causing the Rapture.
According to the U.K. Sunday Times, the queen has asked Meghan and Harry to attend the annual Commonwealth Service on March 9, as part of the couple's final round of official royal engagements.
Meghan and Harry’s Miami trip: big money, confessions, and J. Lo
More details have emerged in Page Six of Harry and Meghan’s trip to Miami Beach on Thursday to speak at J.P. Morgan’s billionaire summit at the 1Hotel.
Yes, the couple left the isolated environs of Vancouver Island behind, and reportedly received a $500,000 fee, plus expenses, to attend the annual AIS (Alternative Investment Summit).
Harry, it was reported, talked to the assembled guests about his years in therapy as a result of the trauma of his mother, Princess Diana’s, death. And the couple also reportedly bonded with Jennifer Lopez, fresh from her fabulous Super Bowl half-time show performance, and her husband Alex Rodriguez.
“Harry and Meghan got on really well with Jennifer and Alex, and spent some time chatting with them over dinner,” a source told Page Six. J.Lo was overheard inviting the couple and their baby Archie to her and Alex’s house in Miami to spend time with them and their kids.”
In his speech, Harry also reportedly spoke about living under the media glare, and their desire for media privacy. Square this, if you can, with Los Angeles apparently abuzz about Meghan and Harry looking to live (and make lots of money) there.
Queen wants Beatrice and Eugenie to stand in for Meghan and Harry
The Daily Beast has reported before on rumblings that Prince Andrew’s daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, were set to receive the call-up to stand in for the royal duties that Harry, Meghan and disgraced Prince Andrew himself can no longer do.
Indeed, it was thought that it was his disgrace—and the fact he still hasn’t spoken to American law enforcement about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein—that would disqualify the princesses from taking on such roles. Prince Charles was thought to be a chief impediment, too.
Not so. The Daily Mail reports that the Queen wants Beatrice and Eugenie to step up. “Her Majesty thinks that her granddaughters should attend more royal events and carry out more duties,” a courtier told the paper.
As for Charles’ objections, a close friend of the heir-in-perpetual-waiting, told the Mail, “The Royal Family has already become slimmed down with the duke and duchess of Sussex giving up public duties. As the older members of the family retire, it will become slimmer still, so there are spaces to be filled. His Royal Highness is very fond of his nieces and would not stand in the way if they did want to carry out more duties.”
Royal fashion watch
Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapello Mozzi made their wedding announcement via a Buckingham Palace Instagram post this week. And, sigh, it was the best kind of romance novel chic—he in white shirt and trousers, she in beautiful floral dress. Sunlight was dancing all around them. Un-chill all your cynical hearts—even if reaching for words like “fairytale” when it comes to royal weddings is perhaps not so wise given past experience.
This week in royal history
On February 9th, 2002, Princess Margaret died, aged 71, bringing to an end a dramatic royal life now fully evoked in The Crown. Margaret is seen as the original royal rebel, sidelined next to her sister because she would never be queen, yet still required to be “royal” at all times—extending to not being able to marry her divorcé true love, Group Captain Peter Townsend.
She still had a pretty fabulous life (see her times on Mustique, for example), until she was beset by injury and illness. But Margaret is still remembered for her imperious fabulousness, rather than the infirmity of her later life.
Unanswered questions
How outward-facing will Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapello Mozzi’s wedding be? It was announced this week that Prince Andrew’s daughter would wed her love on. May 29 at The Chapel Royal, St. James’s Palace. Afterwards there will be a private reception, given by the queen, in the gardens of Buckingham Palace.
Given Andrew’s ongoing Epstein-related questions, how much of a public celebration will be the wedding itself be? It seems the queen is determined to show she is fully supportive of her granddaughter.
