Prince Harry gives a thumbs-up to the cameras as he and Meghan Markle arrive back at Euston Station after appearance at One Young World conference in Manchester – as they prepare to fly to Germany for next part of whistle-stop European tour
- The Duke, 37, and Duchess, 41, had travelled back from Manchester following the latter’s keynote speech
- The beaming Sussexes appeared to be in high spirits as they walked hand-in-hand to their awaiting 4x4s
- They are travelling to Dusseldorf on Tuesday where they will both appear at a ‘one year to go’ Invictus event
Prince Harry gave a thumbs up to the paparazzi as he arrived to London Euston station with Meghan Markle late on Monday night – after his wife’s first speech in Britain since they stepped down as senior working royals more than two years ago.
The Duke, 37, and Duchess, 41, had travelled back from Manchester Piccadilly following the latter’s keynote speech at the One Young World summit at Bridgewater Hall on day one of their whistle-stop European tour.
The beaming Sussexes appeared to be in high spirits as they walked hand-in-hand to their awaiting 4x4s while flanked by security guards, before Meghan gave a wave and smiled as she climbed into one of the vehicles.
They are believed to have been taken back to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, where they will spend the night before heading to Dusseldorf in Germany for the day two of their European tour.
In her speech, Meghan had said it was ‘very nice to be back in the UK’ as she gushed about Harry and the ‘life-changing’ impact of becoming a mother to Archie.
It came just days after her controversial interview with The Cut magazine, in which she said it takes ‘a lot of effort’ to forgive and hinted that she can ‘say anything’, in what was seen by some as a thinly-veiled threat to the Royal Family.
She also said that ‘just by existing’ she and Harry were ‘upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy’ before they stepped down as senior working royals in January 2020, in a move dubbed Megxit.
Prince Harry gave a thumbs up as he arrived to London Euston station with Meghan Markle late on Monday night
The beaming Sussexes appeared to be in high spirits as they walked hand-in-hand to their awaiting 4x4s while flanked by security guards
Meghan gave a wave and smiled as she climbed into one of the vehicles at Euston station on Monday night
They are believed to have been taken back to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, where they will spend the night before heading to Dusseldorf in Germany for the day two of their European tour
Harry and Meghan walk among the public as they arrive to Euston station on Monday night, more than two years after stepping down as senior royals
Harry and Meghan share a glance as they arrive to Euston station late on Monday evening
The Tuesday afternoon jaunt on the £13m MS Rhein Galaxie (pictured) will take Harry and Meghan along the Rhine to Duisberg and end at the Merkur-Spiel sports stadium where the sports event for disabled military veterans will be held
A police source said temporary roadblocks will be set up along the route from Dusseldorf airport to the city centre to allow the convoy of vehicles transporting Harry and Meghan to avoid being stuck in traffic (Pictured: Inside the party boat that will play host to the Sussexes on Tuesday)
Monday, 5 September: One Young World 2022 Manchester Summit
The Sussexes are travelling to Manchester on Monday where Meghan, 41, is due to give a speech on gender equality. The summit brings together young leaders from more than 190 countries.
The area around Bridgewater Hall, which is hosting the summit, will be cleared for 90 minutes ahead of the couple’s arrival, The Times reports.
However, Harry and Meghan have asked private security firms to provide a ‘ring of steel’ in Manchester for their appearance at the forum.
The event runs from 6pm to 8pm.
Tuesday, 6 September: Invictus Games Düsseldorf 2023
After Monday’s trip to Manchester, the Sussexes will travel to Dusseldorf on Tuesday to mark a year before Harry’s next Invictus Games.
Harry previously announced the sixth games would be held in September 2023. He and Meghan attended the 2022 Invictus Games last April in the Netherlands.
Wednesday, 9 September
The Sussexes have no official plans on Wednesday. They have not said whether they intend to visit with the Queen who is at Balmoral in Scotland.
Thursday, 8 September: WellChild Awards
The couple will return to Britain for the WellChild Awards ceremony in London on Thursday, where Harry will deliver a speech.
The WellChild Awards looks to ‘celebrate the inspirational qualities of the UK’s seriously ill children and young people, along with those who go that extra mile to make a difference to their lives.’
But her speech on Monday was jibe-free as she said she was ‘thrilled’ that Harry could join her this year as the One Young World organisation was ‘an integral’ part of her life before she met him, and that it was now a ‘privilege’ to meet them again with him by her side and ‘on UK soil’.
The Duchess also spoke about how her life had ‘changed dramatically by 2019’ and that her world view had ‘expanded exponentially’ after seeing ‘the global community through the eyes of my child.’
‘And I would ask what is this world that he would come to adopt and what can we do, what can I do, to make it better?’ she said.
The couple are in Germany today to start the countdown to the Invictus Games being held in Dusseldorf next September and their visit will include an hour-long scenic cruise along the Rhine on a ‘party boat’ usually packed with tourists.
The afternoon jaunt on the £13m MS Rhein Galaxie will take them along the Rhine to Duisburg and end at the Merkur-Spiel sports stadium where the sports event for disabled military veterans will be held.
Dusseldorf city officials insist the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex is private and they will be protected by their own security team with the couple footing the bill.
But German police will also be involved primarily on crowd control in the market square where Harry and Meghan begin their visit around 12.30pm.
A police source said temporary roadblocks will be set up along the route from Dusseldorf airport to the city centre to allow the convoy of vehicles transporting Harry and Meghan to avoid being stuck in traffic.
As the visit is private there will be no police motorcycle outriders and accompanying police cars will not turn on their flashing blue lights.
But the source said a vehicle carrying a doctor and medical equipment will be part of the convoy for the three-mile drive into the city.
A source with the city of Dusseldorf told Mail Online: ‘Of course this is a private visit, but we do not want anything to go wrong or there to be any incident. We are showcasing the city.
‘They will have their own security teams, but the police area being consulted and will be involved. We are hosts for the Invictus Games and we want everything to run very smoothly.
‘There have been lots of consultations and plans have changed, but we are confident it will be a trouble-free visit.’
The Duke and Duchess had spent their first nights in the UK less than half a mile from Prince William, Kate and their three children – but the families are not expected to meet, in a decision that underlines the deep rift between the brothers.
Monday’s event was their first public appearance in the UK since returning for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June as Harry’s legal battle with the Home Office rumbles on after they were denied 24/7 taxpayer-funded armed police bodyguards.
Meghan and Harry pictured at Manchester train station, presumably heading back to London ahead of their next stop in Dusseldorf, Germany
Harry and Meghan at Manchester station moments after the Duchess gave her first speech in Britain for more than two years
Meghan and Harry applaud the flag-waving ceremony as they attend the annual One Young World Summit at Bridgewater Hall in Manchester
Harry and Meghan smile as they take centre stage at the start of the One Young World summit opening ceremony
The Duchess of Sussex, 41, made the PR-friendly speech on Monday night as she addressed the 2,000-strong crowd at the One Young World summit at Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, as her smiling husband watched on
The couple’s decision to use at least two private security firms and dog teams to form a ring of steel around Bridgewater Hall came just days after Meghan told The Cut magazine in the US that it takes ‘a lot of effort’ to forgive and hinted that she can ‘say anything’, in what has been translated as a veiled threat to the Royal Family.
It is understood the couple and event organisers had arranged private security after Harry was told he was no longer entitled to taxpayer-funded official armed police bodyguards.
A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police confirmed its officers were not involved, adding that security for the event had been ‘privately sourced’.
Harry is suing the Home Office, claiming that the removal of his taxpayer-funded armed police protection bodyguards since they quit as frontline royals is ‘unfair’, ‘illegal’ and puts his family at risk.
After the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023 One Year To Go event, they will return to the UK for the WellChild Awards in London where Harry will speak on Thursday.
As well as not seeing William and Kate, the couple also declined an ‘open invitation’ to stay with Prince Charles at his Scottish holiday house on the Balmoral estate. The Prince of Wales told the couple they were ‘always welcome’ at his home ahead of their trip to the UK, palace sources confirmed.
It emerged Monday that Prince William has ‘no plans’ to see his younger brother Prince Harry until after the California-based royal releases his bombshell memoir this winter, even though the pair are currently staying around 380ft apart, as the crow flies, from each other in Windsor.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry leave the One Young World 2022 Summit at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Prince Harry leaves the One Young World summit in Manchester on Monday night, almost immediately after Meghan’s first speech in Britain in more than two years
The Duke Sussex leaves the One Young World 2022 Manchester Summit at Bridgewater Hall on Monday evening
William, 40, and his wife, Kate Middleton, are said to be avoiding contact with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex until they know what the couple plans to disclose in their Netflix documentary and Harry’s forthcoming book.
‘They have lost their chance of being trusted as the chance is they will record any conversation and use it against them,’ Royal biographer Angela Levin told The Sun.
Levin alleged William does not have faith that Harry, 37, will not repeat their conversations. The author said William’s hesitance to interact with the Sussexes is their ‘own fault for vastly exaggerating and being rude.’
Harry and Meghan are believed to have arrived at Frogmore Cottage in Windsor on Saturday ahead of their European tour. The property is located just 380 feet away from the Cambridges’ new four-bedroom Adelaide Cottage, where William and Kate spent the weekend with their children.
The insiders told The Mirror that Charles had thought the Sussexes staying with Prince Charles would be a ‘good opportunity for everyone to take stock and relax.’
‘But the invitation was declined, as it has been before,’ the source said, adding that Charles hasn’t ‘wavered’ on his attempts to have a relationship with his son ‘despite the attacks which seem to be coming with increased vigour.’
News of the declined invitation surfaced after Charles, 73, was pictured heading to church in Balmoral alone Sunday morning. Insiders allege he continues to find Harry and Meghan’s jibes at the Royal Family ‘painful’ and is ‘completely bewildered’ by their behaviour.
Meghan Markle’s seven-minute gender equality speech to the One Young World summit: Duchess of Sussex referenced time in TV drama Suits and gushed over Prince Harry and Archie
Meghan Markle has said ‘it is very nice to be back in the UK’ in her first speech in Britain since Megxit more than two years ago, as she gushed about Prince Harry and the ‘life-changing’ impact of becoming a mother to Archie.
In her appearance at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester on Monday night, the Duchess of Sussex, 41, spoke about a previous One Young World summit she attended in 2019 in London.
‘My life had changed significantly… I was now a mum’
She said: ‘And by that point, it’s fair to say, my life had changed rather significantly. I was now married and I was now a mum.
‘My world view had expanded exponentially, seeing the global community through the eyes of my child.’
To cheers, the Duchess of Sussex added: ‘I’m thrilled that my husband is able to join me here this time.
‘To be able to see and witness first-hand my respect for this organisation, this incredible organisation and all that it provides as well as it accomplishes.
‘So we are both of us, bearing witness to the power that you hold in your hands and the unbridled enthusiasm and energy that you have, to see things come to fruition.
‘It is just an absolute privilege. I’m incredibly humbled to not just stand before each of you, but to stand beside you.
‘We often hear people say: ‘the time is now’, but I’m going to double down on that, by saying your time is now. The important work can’t wait for tomorrow.
‘And this week the world is watching as you cement your place in history by showcasing the good that you are doing today, in the present moment, as we embrace the moment of now to create a better tomorrow.’
‘You are the future’
The Duchess of Sussex also told young future world leaders: ‘You are the future… you are the present,’ during the speech, her first public appearance in the UK since returning briefly for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The former Suits actress, also a counsellor for the global youth charity organisation, told the attendees: ‘You are the ones driving the positive and necessary change across the globe now, in this very moment.
‘And for that I am so grateful to be in your company today.’
‘The girl from Suits’
Meghan spoke about the first time she was asked to be a counsellor for One Young World in 2014 and having a ‘pinch me moment’.
‘And there I was, the girl from Suits. I was surrounded by world leaders, humanitarians, prime ministers and activists that I had such a deep and long-standing respect and admiration for.
‘And I was allowed in, to pull up a seat at the table.
‘I was so overwhelmed by this experience, I think, I think I even saved my little paper place-marker with my name on it.
‘Just proof: proof that I was there, proof that I belonged, because the truth was, I wasn’t sure that I belonged.’
‘I wasn’t sure that I belonged’
The Duchess of Sussex continued: ‘Because the truth was, I wasn’t sure that I belonged.
‘I was so nervous, I doubted myself and I wondered, wondered if I was good enough to be there?’
But she added One Young World, ‘saw in me, just as I see in you, the present and the future’.
She added: ‘And I want to make that point because often times I speak to young girls about the years ahead.
‘About what you will do, about what you will have to adopt to fix from previous generations and also what legacy you will leave.
‘Too often in that, we neglect the point – you are doing it now.
‘You, here, in this present moment, this is where it is all beginning.’
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