Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will have to ‘spill’ for £1m fee

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will have to share stories from their royal lives as part of their new £1 million a speech deal, an expert has claimed.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex recently signed a deal with New York-based Harry Walker which describes itself as ‘the world’s leading speaker’s bureau’ and counts the Obamas, Jane Goodall and Oprah Winfrey among the A-list talent on its roster.  

And now Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, has warned the royal couple will be expected to spill details of their time in the firm in order to justify the six-figure fee.

Ingrid, who has written biographies of the Queen and Prince Philip told The Mirror: ‘No one wants to pay to hear them sounding off about gender equality and the environment.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will have to share stories from their royal lives as part of their new £1 million a speech deal an expert has claimed. They are pictured giving a speech at Wembley Arena in 2019

‘Harry and Meghan will really have to up their ante, and they will absolutely have to tell some stories about the Royal Family.’

Speaking could prove an extremely lucrative booking for the Duke and Duchess, who vowed to become financially independent from the royal family when announced their plans to step back in January.

In January, it was reported that Barack and Michelle Obama had advised the Sussexes on their plans for a new life outside the Royal Family.

It comes after PR expert Mark Borkowski told The Sun that Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38, will ‘clean up’ in their first gig since stepping down form the royal family three months ago.

They plan to speak on social issues including racial justice, gender equality, the environment and mental health, according to the LA Times.

‘I’m surprised they haven’t done this sooner. It will be one of the great income generators for them. The speaker’s circuit is a natural safe space for them to plunder,’ he added. 

The Harry Walker Agency has high profile clients, many of whom are friends of the Duke and Duchess, including Meghan’s best friend Serena Williams and the actor Tyler Perry – whose $18million (£15million) Beverly Hills mansion they are living in.

Royal expert Ingrid Seward has warned the royal couple will have to spill details of their time in the firm in order to justify the six-figure fee. Pictured in March in London

Royal expert Ingrid Seward has warned the royal couple will have to spill details of their time in the firm in order to justify the six-figure fee. Pictured in March in London

Speaking could prove an extremely lucrative booking for the Duke and Duchess, who vowed to become financially independent from the royal family when they stepped back in January.

Meghan Markle’s visits to baking workshop for disadvantaged women

Following the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s visit to Homeboy Industries cafe and bakery yesterday, Meghan suggested it was similar to the Luminary Bakery in London.

The social enterprise trains UK-based women who have been victims of violence and sex trafficking.

Meghan featured the project when she guest-edited an issue of British Vogue, and she posed for a series of photographs with women at the bakery in 2019. 

Luminary Bakery (pictured) is an all-female social enterprise bakery which helps women who have been victims of violence and sex trafficking, or who have been to prison, get back into work

Luminary Bakery (pictured) is an all-female social enterprise bakery which helps women who have been victims of violence and sex trafficking, or who have been to prison, get back into work

Harry and Meghan have become close friends with the former US president and his lawyer wife and turned to them for help after making the decision to step back from royal duty.

At the time, sources confirmed Harry and Meghan had discussed their plans with the former US president and his wife and wanted to mimic the way they had managed to build a successful, but dignified, life for themselves after the White House. 

A source said: ‘They have found huge commercial success without actually looking like they are getting their hands dirty, to put it bluntly, and retaining their popularity.

‘In fact it is fair to say that their star has soared since leaving the White House, particularly Michelle’s, and this is something Meghan admires very, very much.’

It has previously been reported that the Queen’s grandson and his wife want to model themselves on the Obamas, and would set up a similar working model to the former president.

It comes after the couple,visited the Homeboy Industries cafe and bakery yesterday.  

They appeared low-key in photographs shared of the visit to a bakery in Los Angeles as they helped prepare food and learn more about the organisation’s programme. 

The parents of Archie donned hair nets and facemasks as they volunteered alongside former gang members at a Los Angeles bakery.

The bakery shared snaps of the pair’s visit on Instagram, posting: ‘Thank you to Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, for visiting and standing in kinship with our Café and Bakery teams yesterday!

‘Our staff were thrilled to work alongside them as they helped prepare food and learned more about our newly launched #FeedHOPE program, which employs our program participants to provide meals to food-insecure seniors and youth across Los Angeles in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.’ 

Meghan donned a smart white shirt and relaxed denim jeans for the volunteering effort, sweeping her hair into a low bun to tuck into her net.

Meanwhile Prince Harry opted to match his wife in a similar smart white shirt as he joined her on the production line.

The couple could be seen helping out to bake bread, as well as folding dough and sorting out food boxes for the vulnerable in their new hometown. 

The Duchess had previously taken part in cooking workshops with the organisation when she was a teenager alongside her mother Doria (pictured, with the Prince Harry at the launch of the Hubb cookbook in 2019)

The Duchess had previously taken part in cooking workshops with the organisation when she was a teenager alongside her mother Doria (pictured, with the Prince Harry at the launch of the Hubb cookbook in 2019) 

According to Harper Bazaar’s royal editor Omid Scobie, it is run by Father Gregory Boyle, who the Duke and Duchess have been speaking with about the racial justice movement.   

Meghan first met Father Boyle 20 years ago at a Homeboy Industry cooking workshop where she and her mother Doria made tamales. 

Father Boyle, who has worked closely with Meghan’s alma mater, Immaculate Heart High School in Los Angeles, said: ‘The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were just ‘Harry and Meghan’ to the homies.

Ssources revealed that the Duchess of Sussex feels 'destined' to help fight systemic racism in the United States (pictured, the royal recently spoke out about Black Lives Matter)

Ssources revealed that the Duchess of Sussex feels ‘destined’ to help fight systemic racism in the United States (pictured, the royal recently spoke out about Black Lives Matter)

‘They rolled up their sleeves and deeply engaged with our workers in the bakery and cafe. It was immediate kinship and heartening in its mutuality.’

Harry and Meghan’s spokesman said ‘the duchess mentioned that the spirit and style reminded her of the times she visited the Luminary Bakery in London’, a social enterprise that offers disadvantaged women in the UK new opportunities.

Mariana Enriquez, manager at Homegirl Cafe, said: ‘It was remarkable to share our Feed Hope programme with Harry and Meghan.

‘They are both down to earth and kind. The staff was honoured they took the time to see us, hear us and walk on our journey today. We will never forget it.’

The couple often gave speeches while working members of The Firm. Pictured in  Tembisa township near Johannesburg, in October 2019

The couple often gave speeches while working members of The Firm. Pictured in  Tembisa township near Johannesburg, in October 2019

A representative of the couple said the Duke and Duchess ‘connect deeply’ with the organisation’s mission (which includes resources such as counselling, education, legal assistance, addiction recovery and employment ops) and feel it’s ‘a perfect example of how empathy, kindness, and compassion can change the world.’

The organisation describes itself as ‘a beacon of hope in Los Angeles to brave men and women seeking to transform their lives after gang-involvement and incarceration.’ 

It provides support to nearly 9,000 individuals through job training and free services such as tattoo removal, mental health services, GED classes, legal services, and more. 

It also helps provide space for our clients to heal from intergenerational cycles of violence in a community of radical compassion.

Grin: Mr Obama meets Meghan Markle at The White House in 2016. Harry and Meghan have become close friends with the former US president and his lawyer wife and turned to them for help

Grin: Mr Obama meets Meghan Markle at The White House in 2016. Harry and Meghan have become close friends with the former US president and his lawyer wife and turned to them for help

It is the third time the couple have been seen volunteering during the course of the coronavirus pandemic. In April, Meghan and Prince Harry were spotted out on the streets of LA as they continued their volunteering work for charity amid the crisis.

The couple were seen linking arms and holding hands as they delivered packages to residents from the back of their $35,000 Cadillac XT5, having seemingly downgraded from the Porsche SUV they had used previously.  

It emerged that the couple, who moved to Los Angeles with 11-month-old son Archie a month ago, have been distributing meals to the needy in LA for the Project Angel Food charity.

Other high flying  clients signed to Harry Walker Agency include former President Barack and  First Lady Michelle Obama

Other high flying  clients signed to Harry Walker Agency include former President Barack and  First Lady Michelle Obama

A source close to the couple told the Daily Mail that they had hoped to keep their volunteering private but were glad the charity was being recognised.

The Sussexes initially moved to Canada after stepping down as senior working royals on March 31 but are now forging out new lives for themselves as they set up home in California. 

The news comes days after a friend of Meghan’s told DailyMail.com that her instinct to leave the United Kingdom and move to California all makes sense to her now, because she believes she was ‘destined’ to help fight systemic racism in the United States.

The Duchess feels that her ‘gnawing urgency to uproot from England’ was fate so she could be at the ‘forefront’ of the movement, the insider explained.

Meanwhile the agency also boasts other clients including former US president Bill and Hillary Clinton

Meanwhile the agency also boasts other clients including former US president Bill and Hillary Clinton 

They added: ‘Meghan said her work as a leader is more important than ever right now and that she’s been speaking with Oprah and other community leaders on how she can be part of the solution.

 ‘Meghan feels like her mission goes far beyond acting. She said she wants to use her voice for change and hasn’t ruled out a career in politics.’

Meghan, who quit her royal duties with husband Prince Harry earlier this year and relocated to LA in March, recently distanced herself from best friend Jessica Mulroney after she threatened to sue a black influencer over a dispute.

It came as the United States has been rocked by protests across the country in the wake of the deaths of George Floyd and other African-Americans who have died at the hands of police, sparking national conversations about racism.

Meghan spoke out about Floyd’s death earlier this month, declaring ‘black lives matter’ and admitted she hadn’t made a statement earlier because she had been ‘nervous’.    



Read more at DailyMail.co.uk