Meghan and Harry’s schedule for final month as senior royals
The next four weeks are the final countdown for Harry and Meghan, with the couple set to attend six Royal engagements in 11 days.
The world has watched captivated as Meghan and Harry put the wheels in motion for their bombshell split from the British Monarchy, with the couple now down to their final month as senior royals.
With Harry having touched down in Britain for a series of royal events this week, the countdown to March 31 – which marks the formal date their new life will begin – has officially begun.
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But while Harry and Meghan’s stacked February/March diary has been made available to the public, once they set off to Canada again to no longer carry out duties on behalf of the Queen, we have little idea how their life will look.
Here’s a glimpse into their final month:
FEB 26 – TRAVALYST CONFERENCE
Harry was pictured arriving in Britain from Canada early this week, shortly before heading to a summit on his sustainable tourism project, Travalyst, founded with brands Booking.com, Skyscanner, Tripadvisor, Trip.com and Visa.
The conference at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre allowed Harry and his Travalyst team to gain feedback from the travel industry on new ideas for sustainability, including creating an online scoring system to show the eco-friendly status when booking flights and accommodation.
When Harry launched Travalyst last year, he defended his use of private planes.
In response to criticism, he said he spent “99 per cent of my life” using commercial flights, but occasionally needed to ensure “my family are safe”.
Sustainable is tourism is something Harry will continue to work on when he steps back from senior royal duties.
FEB 28 – INVICTUS GAMES CHOIR
Harry – who made a pointed request to be addressed without his royal title in Scotland – is set to visit the Abbey Road Studios in London for a collaboration with none other Jon Bon Jovi.
The musician, 57, spoke about his upcoming project with the British royal, 35, onThe Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky on Wednesday, Fox News reports.
Bon Jovi is planning on re-recording his 2019 single Unbroken for the Invictus Games this year, which is a charity sporting event for wounded servicemen and women that Prince Harry created and runs.
“(Prince Harry) said yes and stuck now to it, so we’re doing it,” Bon Jovi said. “I’m gonna hand him a tambourine and see what he’s got going.”
“My idea and letter to him at the time was, ‘I’d like to give you the single. I would love to give something back to the people you care (about) … but I want them to be the singers,’” the rocker said of inviting the Invictus Games’ choir to join him on the track.
Bon Jovi admitted that he’s not sure how to address the royal since he and Meghan decided to step back as senior members of the royal family.
“I’ve been asking, ‘What do I do? How do I address him?’ And then I realised I’m gonna call him ‘The Artist Formerly Known as Prince,’” the Grammy-winner joked.
MARCH 5 – ENDEAVOUR FUND AWARDS
The announcement of Harry and Meghan’s joint appearance at the Endeavour Fund Awards at London’s Mansion House next week delighted fans.
The couple will help celebrate the achievements of wounded, injured and sick servicemen and women at annual awards, now in their fourth year.
Upon arrival, the Sussexes will attend a pre-ceremony reception where they will meet the nominees, endeavour participants and key supporters of the Endeavour Fund.
They will then attend the awards ceremony, where they will each present an award.
Harry will also give a short speech.
The engagement will be the first of three joint engagements the couple will undertake together before closing their Buckingham Palace office on April 1 and heading back to Canada.
Last year at the awards ceremony, a heavily pregnant Meghan presented the Celebrating Excellence Award to Nathan Forster, a former soldier of the Army's Parachute Regiment.
MARCH 6 – SILVERSTONE EXPERIENCE MUSEUM
Harry will then join British Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton at the official opening of the Silverstone UK Experience Museum, which aims to tell the story of the past, present, and future of British motor racing.
In 2016, the Silverstone Heritage Experience appointed Harry as the Royal Patron of the project.
Speaking about the initiative, Harry said: “The Silverstone Experience will be an exhilarating attraction, based here at the home of British motorsport and I’m sure it will help to engage children in engineering by making that all important connection between their textbooks and the excitement and thrills of motorsport.”
MARCH 7 – MOUNTBATTEN MUSIC FESTIVAL
Meghan and Harry will link up again to attend the Mountbatten Music Festival at the Royal Albert Hall, which celebrates the musicianship of the Royal Marines.
The festival takes places over two days – March 6 and 7 – and while the couple are expected to attend on Saturday, it has not been confirmed whether they will appear in the afternoon or evening.
MARCH 8 – INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
The following day, Meghan will mark International Women’s Day at a special event, the details of which have not yet been revealed.
Last year, the duchess spoke on a panel alongside a group of inspiring women including former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
During the discussion hosted by King’s College London, Meghan spoke about raising the next generation of feminists.
“I had seen this documentary on Netflix about feminism, and one of the things they said during pregnancy was ‘I feel the embryonic kicking of feminism’,” Meghan – who was heavily pregnant with Archie at the time – said.
“I loved that, so boy or girl, whatever it is, we hope that that’s the case with our little bump.”
MARCH 9 – COMMONWEALTH DAY SERVICE
For their final royal engagement, the couple will join the Queen and other members of the royal family at the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey on March 9.
This service always takes place on the second Monday in March and is attended by heads of government and representatives of the 54 countries of the Commonwealth.
In recent years the Service has been broadcast live by the BBC and has attracted contributions from Ellie Goulding, Sir Richard Branson, and Nobel Peace Prize laureates, Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi.
Tickets for the event are not available, however fans will likely be able to catch a glimpse of the Sussexes’ as they arrive at the venue before the ceremony.
Other members of the royal family who are expected to attend include Prince Charles, Camilla, Prince William and Kate Middleton.
MARCH 31 AND BEYOND
While Harry is expected to attend the London Marathon in April in his capacity as patron, and the couple will attend the Invictus Games in the Netherlands in May, the six events in the UK in February and March – and any others they’re asked to attend – will be their last official standing duties.
After this, they’ll each continue to support causes they’re passionate about alongside their quest for financial independence.
For Harry, his priorities will be the welfare of servicemen and women, conservation, sport for social development, HIV, and Travalyst.
And Meghan’s focus will remain on women’s empowerment, gender equality and education.
As announced earlier this month, they will operate without their “Sussex Royal” brand, which they reportedly spent tens of thousands of dollars on.
Following lengthy Buckingham Palace talks, the Queen and senior royal officials have ruled the couple they cannot use “royal” in their new commercial lives as they look to gain “financial independence” after moving to Canada.
The couple are currently living in a mansion on Vancouver Island.
They’ve already been told to close their Buckingham Palace office and Harry must ditch his honorary military positions for at least 12 months.
They have been allowed to keep their HRH titles but have been forced to accept that they will not use them publicly as they tout for business around the globe.
The Sussexes have also agreed to repay the £2.4 million ($A4.7 million) of taxpayers’ money used to refurbish their Frogmore Cottage home in Windsor and are expected to pay a commercial rent for it of about £30,000 ($A58,600) a month.
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