The Duchess of Sussex launched a new lifestyle brand that will see her flogging jams and kitchenware minutes before Prince William’s emotional speech an awards ceremony in honour of his mother. Tonight William is making a rare joint appearance with his brother Prince Harry as the pair come together for the Diana Legacy Awards at the Science Museum in London – although neither of them will be in the room at the same time, even virtually.
But in a shock turn the Montecito-based couple then also revealed their $100,000 NAACP – Archewell Foundation Digital Civil Rights Award while the Prince of Wales was still at the event. And it follows a trying week for the Royals – after Princess Kate was forced to admit to editing a photo of her and her children that she released on Mother’s Day after the world’s top picture and news agencies – including PA – ‘killed’ the image over claims it had been digitally manipulated.
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliam told MailOnline: ‘The Sussexes in my opinion do nothing by accident and timing is often absolutely pivotal. ‘We found that out one way over the weekend and we’ve now just been reminded that there may be more shots in their locker than some of us thought. And it’s no accident.
‘For years they’ve been unpredictable but they have been predictable in one sense, and that is the unerring timing when they believe it’s beneficial to get information out. They don’t do anything by accident.’
Prince William has paid a moving tribute to his late mother to mark the Diana Legacy Award’s 25th anniversary and as he presents awards to 20 recipients tonight. The Prince of Wales will appear at the awards event alone as his wife Kate is still recovering from abdominal surgery.
Harry, who lives in California, will then join a video call with the winners, according to reports. However, his involvement will only take place after his brother has left the ceremony. The brothers’ reluctance to acknowledge each other’s presence at the event lays bare the depth of their feud as before their falling out they often appeared together in person to pose with the award winners. It follows claims by a royal expert that Princess Diana would have insisted the brothers set their feud aside to present the award in her name.
Ingrid Seward, the royal biographer and editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine says that the pair’s mother – who the evening is in tribute to – would have forced the warring brothers to reunite to celebrate the prize’s winners. ‘And if she failed, I think she would have insisted that they came together however briefly by speaking over the video link in order to celebrate the winners of the prize organised in her name,’ she told the Mirror.
In a busy day for Harry and Meghan the pair also releasing a video to congratulate Dr. Joy Buolamwini, the winner of this year’s NAACP – Archewell Foundation Digital Civil Rights Award in the immediate aftermath of William’s speech. The computer scientist and activist was seen being surprise by the couple – as Meghan gushed that she was ‘an expert and inspiration’, with Harry adding that she is one of the world’s most ‘inspiring, passionate and impactful figures in AI’.
Meghan’s new venture is said to have been in the works for some time, with rumours of a commercial venture ‘genuine to who she is’ coming out last year. Meghan’s plush luxury lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard was revealed just minutes before William’s speech in a glitzy Instagram video.