Prince Harry, Meghan Markle's Nigeria Trip Is 'An Old-School Royal Tour,' Expert Claims
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's visit to Nigeria is like an official royal tour, according to royal experts.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are in Nigeria after its Chief of Defense Staff, the highest-ranking military official, invited them to visit the country. The royal couple arrived on Friday and kicked off their trip by visiting the GEANCO Foundation, which provides critical health care and education services. They saw traditional dancers and delivered speeches on mental health. The couple also signed a visitor's book.
Royal experts weighed in on the visit, and more than one likened it to a royal tour, except they were no longer associated with the British royal family.
"It's very close to an old-school royal tour," Jack Royston, chief royal correspondent at Newsweek, told The Sun. "The stuff they're doing, it's very much like we've traveled round seeing the Royal Family do. They have been to a school already, so it's very much that old-school royal playbook."
Robert Jobson, a British journalist, writer and author, also shared the same sentiment. However, he felt it was a "missed opportunity" because the Sussexes did not have that much reach compared to when they were still serving the British monarchy.
"This smacks of missed opportunity because they could have been serving King and country and GB Plc and the Commonwealth," Jobson said.
"Unfortunately, they decided to go it alone, but this tour doesn't have the same depth and impact as an official royal tour would have."
Judi James, a leading communication and body language expert who is featured regularly on BBC News, Sky News, GB News and CNN, analyzed Prince Harry and Markle's gestures during the engagement. The expert observed that they behaved in the same manner during their previous royal tours.
"Harry and Meghan's body language rituals here do define this as a royal visit in everything but name," James told The Sun's Fabulous.
"Her strong social smiles, very regal, his royal-style' hot climate' wear, which is a Windsor male staple, but most of all the way Harry's signals are more dominant than hers here; he seems to be taking the lead here, which implies traditional royal protocol is back in place to a certain extent."
James also noticed Prince Harry displaying the same traits when he introduced the former "Suits" star to royal life. The Duke of Sussex was reportedly "doing the fully immersive behaviors."
Prince Harry and Markle will be staying in Nigeria for three days. The trip came just days after he took a solo flight to England to attend a special Thanksgiving service at St. Paul's Cathedral to mark the Invictus Games' 10th anniversary.
