Taking the microphone, Prince Harry gestured towards the Nigerian royals ranged before him, playfully calling them his “in-laws”. It brought laughter from his audience. “I”ll skip the protocol because at this point we‘re all family,” the Duke added, to more guffaws.
On reflection, though, maybe it wasn’t such a big joke after all. Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion. The House of Windsor may have cut the Sussexes adrift but in Lagos last Sunday wealthy rulers bearing gifts and titles were effectively competing to claim Meghan for their own royal families.
But as the Duke and Duchess would do well to note, not everyone who came paying homage was all they seemed. The Mail on Sunday reveals today that one of the kings is a convicted fraudster who was twice kicked out of the United States. The venue for what one guest described as Meghan”s “unofficial crowning” was a flashy fifth floor restaurant in the coastal megacity”s latest boutique hotel.
Hardly the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace but there was a red carpet, fanfare trumpets — and no shortage of ceremony. Monarchs journeyed from all corners of Africa”s most populous nation to honour the 42-year-old former Suits actress. In Nigeria different regions continue to have monarchies, now with ceremonial roles rather than constitutional powers, representing the groups that existed before colonisation.
From the oil-rich Niger Delta region, representing the I.