Meghan Markle certainly knows how to impress the in-laws. She has announced that she and Prince Harry are going to devote much of their married life to the Commonwealth. And we all know how much the Commonwealth means to the Head of the Commonwealth. In this week’s interview to mark their engagement, the future princess mentioned it twice as she spoke of her ‘passion’ for all the ‘young people running around the Commonwealth’. The Prince himself is already plugged in to umpteen charities on this patch, not least the excellent Queen’s Young Leaders programme. It is all music to the ears of a monarch who, as a young princess herself, famously pledged ‘my whole life, whether it be long or short’ to this ‘family of nations’.
The Commonwealth badly needs a boost. It should have been all over the news throughout the fall of Robert Mugabe; it is perfectly placed to help rebuild that troubled nation. Yet, aside from a throwaway line from Boris Johnson, we have barely heard any mention at all. Sometimes it seems that the FCO has dropped the C. Harry and Meghan can now do wonders for its profile. No wonder the Queen and her corgis have taken a shine to the new girl. Imagine if she turned to be good with a horse, too.
Two golden rules of royal weddings. First, it’s always wonderful on the day. Second, there is always an almighty official spat beforehand which no one saw coming. When Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer, there was a Spanish boycott because the honeymoon included Gibraltar. In 2011, Prince William’s marriage plans had a crisis moment when it turned out the guest list had included the Syrian ambassador but not ex-PMs Blair and Brown.
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