Meghan Markle's planned Sydney appearance during an Australia visit with Prince Harry has prompted insider claims she is becoming 'Sarah Ferguson 2.0', as critics say the paid event blurs the line between private work and 'faux royal' duties.
This will be Harry and Meghan's first return to Australia since their high-profile 2018 royal tour, undertaken when they were still working members of the royal family. In 2020 the couple announced they would step back from royal duties, and in February 2021 Buckingham Palace confirmed they would not return to official roles, ending their capacity to represent the monarch abroad. Since then, any public overseas appearance has been scrutinised for how closely it resembles the kind of engagements they once carried out on behalf of the crown.
