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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex started their itinerary at the Community Recording Studio in St Ann’s, a youth charity supported by a 1.1 million pound donation from Prince Harry announced the previous year, according to a Reuters dispatch. They arrived in a dark-colored Range Rover shortly after 10:30 a.m. local time and spent approximately 15 minutes greeting around 100 well-wishers who offered flowers, balloons and requests for selfies. ITV News reported that the couple hugged supporters, with Harry placing a hand on Meghan’s back and crouching to chat with children while Meghan kissed one woman on the cheek after receiving a gift. One well-wisher shouted “We love you Duchess Meghan” as the crowd cheered their arrival. A BBC video titled “Watch: Harry and Meghan at first joint engagement since UK return” captured the couple interacting with the public outside the studio.
Meghan told those present it was great to be back, according to People magazine. The visit returned the couple to the site of their first joint public appearance in 2017 shortly after their engagement was announced, multiple news outlets noted. A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan stated they were really excited to be back in Nottingham because they support and believe in the organizations being visited.
Next on the schedule was Himmah in Hyson Green, central England’s largest food bank, where the couple observed a cooking class and visited the food bank facilities. Meghan had donated 10,000 pounds to the group from sales of her 2018 cookbook produced after the Grenfell Tower fire, with Harry matching the amount in 2021, Reuters reported. The final stop was at Epic Partners, a group offering sports, education and mentoring to disadvantaged youth that the couple had backed during their earlier visit.
The engagements were conducted in a style reminiscent of royal visits with a prearranged media pool and use of their ducal titles even though the couple are not working royals, an AP News assessment found. King Charles issued a letter last month clarifying that Harry and Meghan are to be regarded as private citizens, catching the pair off guard according to CNN. The family had relocated from California to the UK in August with their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5.
Public opinion polls show most Britons view the couple negatively although sympathy is higher among younger demographics, Reuters figures show. Meghan had not taken part in a public UK event since Queen Elizabeth’s funeral in 2022, ITV News data places the gap at more than four years. The day’s events focused on youth development, music, food security and community support.
The couple’s return to Britain followed more than six years after they stepped back from royal duties and moved to the United States, a timeline outlined by The New York Times. They describe themselves as public figures despite the palace position, several reports indicated. Their 2017 Nottingham visit had drawn much larger flag-waving crowds compared with the more contained welcome on Thursday.
