The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have finished their brisk four-day visit to the east coast of Australia.
With an itinerary of Indigenous culture, Australian sport, multiple good causes and a trip to the national war memorial, it had all the hallmarks of a traditional royal tour.
But Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, no longer working royals, were here in a private capacity.
When they last visited in 2018 – then still active members of the Royal Family – tens of thousands of people greeted them on a nine-day tour across Australia.
This time was different. Most Australians the BBC spoke to were either unaware or uninterested in the couple’s visit.
There has been some backlash too, after it emerged Australian taxpayers may be saddled with some of the security costs for their public events.
“If they think it’s gone well, it’s because nothing has gone wrong,” says Giselle Bastin, an associate professor at Flinders University with a research interest in Australia’s relationship with the monarchy.
“They didn’t turn up at great big advertised opportunities to see them, at least not in the form of walkabouts, so they’ve managed to minimise the risk of people having a negative reaction, or hecklers calling out or booing them or anything like that.
“It has been very carefully controlled so that they just sort of spontaneously appear at places.”
That’s not to say Harry and Meghan haven’t been in their element during such encounters, high-fiving fans and taking selfies with them.
Source: BBC
