Ayesha Hazarika
(Picture: Daniel Hambury)One of the huge successes of the last 13 days was the fact that the royal family didn’t morph into EastEnders.
Despite many in the media craving beef, the public loved seeing the family unity — especially Prince Harry, who was there with his brother, the future King. While I’m sure it wasn’t all plain sailing behind the scenes but the optic of seeing them together was powerful.
For all that has happened between them, the rights and wrongs, it made many hope for some kind of reconciliation, especially when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex joined the walkabout with the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Seeing the Fab Four back together was a special moment — even just to marvel and wince at how high the women’s shoes were. If you ever think being a royal is an easy gig, check out the female footwear. The combined star power of those young royals together is undeniable. It’s box office. And that’s what the royal family desperately needs now with the passing of the Queen.
The King knows he faces challenges. Britain and the Commonwealth are changing. A younger, more ethnically diverse population simply doesn’t show the deference that their elders did. There are complicated, difficult conversations to be had about Britain’s past and the legacy of empire. That doesn’t mean tearing everything down but it does mean a shift in mood and connecting with a new generation.
That’s why The Firm needs Harry and Meghan. They can reach legions of people that the new, slimmed-down ageing royal workhorses just can’t. That’s why it was so self-defeating to end up pushing them away. Whatever has happened in the past, it makes sense to build bridges — not only would it be right but there would be mutual advantage.
I hope the funeral allowed both sides to find baby-steps back. I hope that the Sussexes could feel that having a role within, or at least connected to, the institution could be a huge platform for major transformative work. A podcast or documentary, no matter how well paid, is not the same or as satisfying as true public service.
But I know that’s probably wishful thinking on my part. And I can understand how nervous the Duchess of Sussex must have been to come back to a country where she experienced so much hate. While the reaction she got from the public on her return was warm, I still saw some vile comments dripping with racism online. There was even a hashtag #MeghanGoHome.
On top of that there were the usual sour media suspects unable to say a good word about her. I even saw people criticise the Duchess for exposing her forearms at the funeral. So I’m not hopeful of a big comeback. If I were her, I wouldn’t want to return to the scene of so much pain.
But if the royal family wants to not just survive but thrive, it would be wise to find reconciliation. The King should focus on young Britain.
In other news...
Last night I went to the opening night of Jordan Gray’s sell-out Edinburgh show at the Soho Theatre. Gray is clever, funny, a brilliant musician and transgender. She likens herself to a female Russell Brand, but I would say she has far more going for her. The show has a clever title, Is It a Bird?, and she talks about being transgender through some very sharp routines.
There’s a revelation at the end which left me feeling like Dame Maggie Smith in Downton Abbey but I’m glad I saw the show. I learnt a lot and it reminded me that in the furious online rows over trans rights, we very rarely get to see trans people simply as people telling their stories with warmth and humour. There is a lot of heat, but not much light. The line that stayed with me was Gray softly singing “If I’m going to be a joke, I may as well be in on it.”
