After my one column about space turned into two I did not
think I would be writing more anytime soon. However, when I discovered my
colleagues did not share my level of excitement over the upcoming royal
nuptials I knew I had found something else to write about. For those of
you who attended our “Real Hollywood Royalty” film series featuring Grace Kelly
(m. Prince Rainier III of Monaco) and Rita Hayworth (m. Prince Aly Kahn), I
hope you enjoyed my attempt to build excitement for when American actress Meghan
Markle marries Prince
Harry on May 19.
As a child I was fascinated by Queen Victoria because we
shared a first name. She was my go to option for any assignment on a
historical figure where she could be made to fit the requirements. Given that
interest in the British royal family, the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady
Diana Spencer in 1981 was very exciting for nine year old me. It came as
no surprise, to my mother at least, that I wanted to get up early enough to not
only see the 11:20 am BST ceremony (6:20 am EDT) but also the procession to St.
Paul’s and guests entering the Cathedral. Fortunately it was summer so I didn’t
need to worry about missing school, but I never voluntarily got up that early!
Like many young girls I was taken with Princess Diana’s seemingly fairy tale
marriage and so impressed by the spectacle that I decided I would require
female guests to wear hats when I got married. I outgrew that fascination
before I got married, much to the relief of my female relatives and friends,
though not until after I graduated from college.
Of course I was excited to read about the births of Prince
William in 1982 and Prince Harry in 1984. The 1996 divorce of the Prince and
Princess of Wales four years after their separation made it clear the marriage
was not a fairy tale. 4 am EDT was too early for me to watch the entire thing
live but I did get up early to watch part of the funeral of Princess Diana
after her tragic death in 1997. The 2006 film The
Queen depicts the royal family’s response to this event.
When Sarah Ferguson married Prince Andrew in 1986 I was a
teenager and we had a VCR so I had my dad record it and watched it at a more
reasonable time of day. I had not been at my first professional job for very
long when Prince Edward got married, and for some reason wasn’t very interested
anyway.
When the engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton was
announced in 2010, my previous workplace had some lunchtime conversations about
reusing an engagement ring from a wedding that ended so unhappily. The
general consensus was that we’d be happy to have to such a beautiful piece of
jewelry, but not as an engagement ring. In the months leading up to the
wedding, whenever I was in a waiting room I devoured People, Us
Weekly, and the like for photos of the couple and information about their
wedding plans. I took the day of the wedding off so I could watch it on
TV.
Although I watched the repeat broadcast rather than the live version, I was
up early making British scones and cakes to eat with my friend who came to
watch it with me. I was not alone in having a wedding watching party. In fact,
serious royals fans would consider me an amateur since I didn’t watch it live
and we didn’t dress up or wear hats. I did get some awesome swag though: a
commemorative tea tin and china mug. The births of their children has also been
exciting and I eagerly awaited the arrival and naming of Prince Louis last
month.
While I’m sure there are many people who will find it easier
to watch Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding on a Saturday, I would prefer
a workday since my family would be busy at school and work leaving the TV, and
my time, free for binge watching the wedding. My understanding is the British
would have preferred a work day as well so they could get a Bank Holiday.
Unfortunately my friend who watched the 2011 wedding with me will be working,
and my other potential watching partners live elsewhere, so I probably won’t
spend much time creating a special menu just for me.
I was too young to pore over gossip magazines when Princes
Charles and Andrew got married and am not a committed reader of them now, but
if you are, Morrill Memorial Library’s Flipster app
gives you access to several of them. I prefer to look at a few blogs that
follow the royal family. My favorite is written by Heather Cocks and Jessica
Morgan. Each week they do a “Royals Round-Up” with links to articles about and
photos of European royals from the preceding week. When the Duke and Duchess of
Cambridge travel, the site often has daily posts with photos from the
trip. The two also wrote book The
Royal We about an American who goes to college in England where she
falls in love with the heir to the British throne. What Kate Wore has
fashion coverage of the Duchess of Cambridge and an offshoot called What
Kate’s Kids Wore has information about what the young princes and princess
wear. Meghan’s Mirror covers Ms. Markle’s style including an entire
page about her handbags (a weakness of mine).
I know some of my coworkers were surprised to learn just how
interested I am in the British royals. I am clearly not a slave to
fashion, do not watch reality TV shows, and generally have very little interest
in celebrities. The truth is I love some of the fashion worn by the
Duchess of Cambridge and Miss Markle but my practical nature means that even
their off the rack styles aren’t likely to be found in my closet since my
lifestyle doesn’t call for cocktail dresses or high heels. But now you know
I’ll be glued to the TV next Saturday morning!
