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The egos have landed.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have touched down in the UK, 5,000 miles from the Montecito sun, to face a cooler British reception.
And the rumor mill is at fever pitch. Will they set up their own court in the celebrity rural enclave of the Cotswolds? Is (long-resting) actress Meghan eyeing a return to the small screen? Will Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet have a proper reunion with at least one of their grandfathers?
Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.
Yet no spin can save this. The Megxit U-turn, no doubt rooted in fading US interest, represents a major loss of face for the couple — and comes on the back of flopped deals, unsold jam and relegation to Row 8 during a Knicks playoff game.
As the wanderers return, it would be all too easy to join the pile-on — but here’s why I won’t.
Bear with me.
While no one in England should be rushing to roll out the red carpet for the pair, a flat-out rejection and refusal to forgive — even for the most ardent royalist — misses the bigger picture.
For all the rows and recriminations, mudslinging and point-scoring the monarchy needs Harry and Meghan —both to fill a charisma void and as a jolt to the current dull and depleted complacency.
The British monarchy is not in good shape following major scandal and growing anti-royal sentiment. It took far too longer to ditch Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, whose friendship with the convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has caused untold reputational damage to the brand.
In King Charles, we have a committed but ailing monarch doing the heavy lifting while supported by his dull and dutiful siblings. Meanwhile, Prince William and Kate Middleton are still struggling to shake off their work-shy reputations.
In fact, William has all too often made royal life seem like something to be tolerated: a part-time gig to fit around family life and holidays, which overlooks the unavoidable fact he will king in the not too distant future.
Yes, Harry and Meghan squandered the popularity and goodwill they initially generated as a couple. But for Harry at least, it can and should be clawed back.
It’s hard for us Brits, because his betrayal feels raw. Etched in the nation’s psyche is the duke as a forlorn 12-year-old walking behind his mother Diana’s coffin in 1997. It’s personal. We’re invested in him and memories of his redeeming features still linger.
I believe there is still hope for his redemption.
Blessed with Diana’s people skills, warmth and common touch, Harry is, in fact, better equipped than most to win back the hearts of a disappointed public.
His military career, success with the Invictus games and recent work with landmine clearance charity The HALO Trust, which builds on his mother’s legacy, suggest there is a more meaningful role for him to carve out in royal public life. That was all wasted as Meghan’s plus-one in Hollywood — as Harry was reduced to cameos on her Netflix lifestyle show or partying at Kris Jenner’s 70th birthday.
Meanwhile, Kate’s tight grin during the royals’ summer break at Balmoral, Scotland, this week was fooling no one. The Sussexes’ return will have cast the very darkest cloud for her and William.
From the outset, whether it was petty squabbles over bridesmaid tights or borrowed lip gloss, the Wales and Sussex fall-out always smacked of a power struggle and tit-for-tat oneupmanship.
The notoriously controlling Williams always seemed resentful of his younger brother forging his own path with a strong woman who was never going to toe the line.
Meghan, for all her flaws, is a slick public performer — and before it all turned sour, she seemed set to upstage her in-laws (who no doubt resented sharing the public stage).
If nothing else, the Sussexes being back on home turf should be a wakeup call for William and Kate, who will need to up their game.
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