Meghan Markle and Prince Harry returned to the public spotlight in Nottingham on Thursday, greeting cheering supporters during their first joint public appearance at UK engagements since the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex visited several charitable organisations across the East Midlands, where they were welcomed with flowers, balloons and requests for photographs.
Meghan appeared delighted by the reception, exchanging hugs and kisses with supporters while Harry repeatedly placed an arm around his wife as they walked through the crowds.
When one well-wisher welcomed Meghan back to Britain, the duchess smiled and replied, “It’s wonderful to be back.”
She also remarked on the weather, telling another supporter, “We’ve got lovely weather today. We got lucky.”
Their visit came approximately six weeks after their return to live in the UK, with the couple undertaking a series of engagements that resembled traditional royal walkabouts.
However, their activities were organised by Team Sussex rather than through the Royal Family’s official programme.
Nottingham Crowds Welcome Couple With Flowers and Balloons
Around 100 people, including numerous schoolchildren, gathered to see the Sussexes as they arrived at the Community Recording Studio, a youth and community organisation offering creative activities, mentoring and development programmes.
Cheers and shouts of “I love you, Meghan” greeted the couple as they stepped out of a black Range Rover Sport.
Supporters held up their phones to capture the moment, while others presented the duchess with flowers, cards and balloons.
Meghan stopped to speak to people, pose for selfies and greet children in the crowd.
Harry also appeared relaxed, complimenting one woman’s bright pink jacket and playfully touching a man’s ginger beard.
The couple were accompanied by their private security team, while police community support officers were also present.
Photographers and journalists watched from behind barriers, in arrangements reminiscent of formal royal engagements.
One supporter, who declined to give her name, said she had planned to go shopping but decided to see the couple instead.
“I want Harry and Meghan to know we still love them. I’m so glad all these people have turned up,” she said.
Emily Davis, 21, was among those who presented Meghan with yellow flowers and a handwritten card.
She described meeting the duchess as an honour and said Meghan had placed the card in her pocket after receiving it.
Ms Davis said she had written that Meghan was an inspiration to her.
Meghan Reunites With Woman Who Welcomed Her in 2017
The Nottingham appearance brought back memories of the couple’s first joint royal engagement in the city in 2017, shortly after announcing their engagement.
Irene Hardman, 90, who had welcomed the pair during that earlier visit, returned with a framed photograph from the occasion.
Meghan recognised the significance of the picture and kissed the elderly woman.
“Oh my gosh, how sweet is that. That was our very first walkabout. What a great memory,” Meghan told her.
Ms Hardman later recalled the exchange, saying the duchess had told her she remembered the encounter well.
“She’s an absolute delight, she’s a pleasure,” she told the Daily Mail, adding that she believed more people had turned out this time than during the couple’s original visit.
Her friend, Mary Cooper, 69, expressed a wish for the Sussexes to reconcile with the Royal Family.
“I know it’s not technically a royal engagement, but I wish it was. I wish they would reconcile,” she said.
“There are so few young royals now, I wish they could be royal again.”
Photographs from Thursday showed similarities between the couple’s latest walkabout and their 2017 appearance, including Harry’s familiar gesture of placing his arm around Meghan.
However, the crowds appeared smaller than those pictured during their earlier visit.
Debate Breaks Out Over Meghan’s Royal Status
The Sussexes’ reception was not without disagreement.
A brief argument reportedly broke out after a supporter overheard someone in the crowd remark that the couple were no longer undertaking a royal visit.
A woman responded emphatically: “She is royal, she will always be royal.”
The debate reflected the distinction between the couple’s royal titles and their status as non-working members of the Royal Family.
King Charles has described Harry and Meghan as “private citizens”, while critics have characterised their charity engagements as an attempt to return to royal duties without formally resuming their previous roles.
The king, meanwhile, was approximately 150 miles away in Cardiff, where he and Queen Camilla attended the ceremonial opening of the Senedd.
The Sussexes’ engagements were organised independently of the monarch’s official programme, despite adopting some of the familiar features of royal visits, including public walkabouts and meetings with charitable organisations.
Healing Crystal Gifted to Meghan for Protection
Among the supporters who met the duchess was Shani Saviciene, 30, who gave her a healing crystal intended to offer positivity and protection.
Ms Saviciene told the Press Association that she had asked a member of Meghan’s team to help her get the duchess’s attention because she was standing on the opposite side of the pavement.
She said Meghan eventually came over, allowing her to explain the gift.
“I love you so much. I’ve given one of your team, like, a healing crystal for you,” Ms Saviciene recalled telling her.
According to the supporter, Meghan was grateful for the gesture.
Explaining why she had chosen the gift, Ms Saviciene said she wanted the duchess to be “protected, uplifted, and just have as much positivity around her as possible”.
Other supporters presented Meghan with cards and flowers, while the couple received balloons, including one shaped like a unicorn.
Duchess Shares Family Details During Workshop With Girls
Inside the Community Recording Studio, Meghan took part in activities with young people, including an acting exercise and a confidence-building workshop involving bracelet-making.
During a discussion about the activities that made them feel most like themselves, one girl mentioned gymnastics.
Meghan responded by revealing that her daughter, Princess Lilibet, had also taken up the activity.
“Oh yeah. Our daughter is doing that too right now. She loves it,” the duchess said.
Meghan also spoke about her own sources of happiness, explaining that spending time with her family and cooking helped her feel most like herself.
“I feel most like myself when I’m with my family and also when I’m cooking. I love doing that. I love to cook,” she told the girls.
She encouraged the young participants to show themselves the same kindness they would offer their closest friends.
“We have to remember to talk to ourselves like we talk to our best friends.
It’s really important to be just as kind to yourself,” she said.
The couple also met the organisation’s staff and took part in activities during their visit.
Trevor Rose, the chief executive of the Community Recording Studio, welcomed them to the building.
Meghan Praised as Couple Visit Food Poverty Charity
The Sussexes subsequently visited Himmah Hub, a community centre run by Nottingham charity Himmah, which supports people experiencing food poverty.
The organisation had drawn a crowd of around 50 people at its gates, with more supporters gathered along the street.
The couple entered the building without stopping to address those waiting outside, and some were disappointed when they later discovered that the pair had departed through a rear entrance.
One person who had waited to see them criticised the decision, saying: “That’s really naughty of them. I’m very disappointed.”
At the hub, Harry and Meghan met volunteers and helped with activities, including putting on aprons to assist the chefs.
Their charitable programme also included work connected to the Hubb Community Kitchen and Epic Partners, an organisation offering sports mentoring to children aged four to 18.
Hubb was established in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017, which killed 72 people.
Meghan has supported the project for years and wrote the foreword to its 2018 cookbook, Together.
Shaghofta Akhtar, 53, who brought flowers for Meghan, described the duchess as the “Queen of hearts” and compared her ability to connect with people to that of the late Princess Diana.
Ms Akhtar said she wanted residents to show Meghan that she remained loved in Nottingham.
She described the duchess as an ambassador for peace and an inspirational figure, arguing that she did not need a royal title to connect with the public.
Meghan Chooses British Designers for Nottingham Visit
Meghan also attracted attention for her outfit, which featured several British fashion labels.
She wore a wool-and-cashmere coat from Joseph priced at £1,495, paired with a matching cashmere turtleneck jumper costing £345.
Her accessories included the brand’s £695 mini loaf bag.
The duchess completed the look with a deep-plum Oliena pencil skirt from The Fold, priced at £175 and made from the label’s crease-resistant Clever Crepe fabric.
She wore burgundy heels from London-based designer Jennifer Chamandi, costing £650, and appeared to have accessorised with a £26 belt from Marks & Spencer.
During the walkabout, Meghan removed her coat before entering the Himmah Hub, where she joined volunteers and took part in activities.
Meghan’s Public Engagements Remain Separate From Royal Duties
Although Thursday’s events featured familiar elements of royal walkabouts, a source close to the Sussexes said Meghan did not consider herself a working royal.
The source described her as a “full-time mum and entrepreneur”, explaining that her public appearances with Harry would be relatively rare.
According to the source, Meghan was reading scripts and balancing family responsibilities with her business interests and charitable activities.
Harry, meanwhile, has continued to concentrate on philanthropy and public service, particularly through his work with the Invictus Games.
A source told the Telegraph that the couple had different professional priorities, with Harry focused on charitable work and Meghan concentrating on her children, business and potential return to acting.
Meghan is also seeking to expand her lifestyle brand, As Ever, into the UK market by the end of the year.
In recent weeks, she has promoted a new advent calendar and announced a collaboration with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai.
As Ever Proceeds to Support Malala Fund
Meghan announced that proceeds from sales of As Ever jams and teas on International Day of the Girl, October 11, would support the Malala Fund, which campaigns for girls’ access to education.
In a joint statement shared on social media, the duchess said supporting girls today would help empower women in the future and described access to education as essential to achieving that goal.
She subsequently told her 4.9 million followers that 100 per cent of net proceeds from the specified jam and tea sales would go to the charity.
Her office declined to confirm the final sales figures.
The Daily Mail estimated that the contribution could amount to approximately £1,900, based on the available information.
The announcement followed a private tea involving Meghan and Malala at Claridge’s in London the previous week.
Sussexes Remain Estranged From Senior Royals
Despite their renewed public activity in Britain, Harry and Meghan have not met King Charles during the latest visit, and their relationship with Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, remains strained.
Charles and Camilla saw Archie and Lilibet in person for the first time in four years during a meeting at Highgrove in July.
Harry is understood to remain in telephone contact with his father, although he and the Prince of Wales have not spoken since 2022.
The Sussexes are also awaiting a decision concerning their request for taxpayer-funded security in the UK.
The issue has remained a concern for Harry, particularly after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced a review of security arrangements for members of the Royal Family and other public figures following the death of Reform UK’s justice spokeswoman Ann Widdecombe.
The duke and duchess are understood to regard themselves as public figures and were reportedly surprised by correspondence outlining their position, which was authorised by the king.
Meanwhile, reports indicate that the couple intend to spend the Christmas period in California with Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, rather than with the Royal Family at Sandringham.
A friend said the Sussexes were not expecting an invitation and believed a family Christmas with the wider royal household would be difficult and awkward.
Ragland, who has remained close to the family since Harry and Meghan moved to the United States in 2020, is expected to play a central role in their festive plans.
The couple are also understood to be considering spending school holidays and half-term breaks in California or Portugal, where they own a property.
